Cowley Brothers Webinar: How to Maximize Video and Data in Non-League Football

Coaches at non-league and semi-professional face unique challenges, such as limited time on the training field, finite resources, and balancing the demands of players who also have full-time jobs.

This can make the thought of investing in video and data to improve your analysis seem daunting and out of reach. However, taking the first step is actually simpler than you might think.

We spoke to Danny and Nicky Cowley, who discussed how they incorporated video and data at the start of their career at the semi-professional and lower levels of English football and how it proved to be a springboard both for their teams and their coaching careers.

Currently Colchester United Head Coach and Assistant Coach, the Cowley Brothers have had a distinguished career which has seen them rise up the football pyramid.

Boasting a wealth of experience, they started at Concord Rangers, winning three promotions to take them from the Essex Senior Football League to the National League South, before moving onto Braintree and then Lincoln City. 

In three and a half years at Lincoln, the brothers took the Imps from the National League to League One, winning the Checkatrade Trophy and becoming the first non-league club to reach the FA Cup quarter finals in 103 years.

The Cowleys then enjoyed spells at Huddersfield Town, Portsmouth and now Colchester United, meaning that they have coached in eight of the top nine tiers of English football.

In this webinar, the Cowley Brothers talk about the motivations behind their decision to start using video and data during their tenure at Braintree and how it helped close the gap with clubs operating on a full-time professional basis.

They also describe how they implemented video analysis workflows through simple and affordable steps and also how visual learning boosted performance and player development by simplifying key messages.

Given the importance of using the little time they typically had with the players, the Cowleys explain how video and data can maximize the available time - both at training, on coaches on the way to the game, and off-the-pitch - and how it can create a collaborative culture and environment, ensuring that everyone on the team takes ownership for the team’s collective improvement.