You’ve probably heard the phrase somewhere — a coach mentioned it at training, another parent dropped it in the group chat, or it turned up in a club email about “player pathways.” Individual development plan. It sounds like something that needs a meeting room and a laminator. It doesn’t.
A development plan in junior sport is really just three things written down: a couple of things your kid is genuinely good at, a couple of things they need to work on, and the specific drills tied to each one. That’s the whole thing. No spreadsheets, no sports scientist, no sit-down with the coach that opens with “so, about Jack’s trajectory.”
They exist to solve one problem: most kids spend training doing generic work — a bit of everything, none of it targeted — when a small amount of focused time on the right thing would move the needle a lot further. A development plan is just what points that time at the two or three things that will actually make the biggest difference, instead of spreading it thin across everything.
So when does your kid actually need one?
Most kids don’t need a formal development plan before about age ten. Somewhere between U12 and U13 — when training gets more structured and the gap between kids starts to actually show on the field — is when a plan earns its place. Before that, the only plan worth having is “kick it, mark it, have fun, go again.”
That’s not a brush-off. It’s what recognised coaching frameworks says too. Most Junior Coaching Curriculums (roughly ages 7 to 12) are built around learning to work as an individual, then in small groups, then as part of a team. It’s only when kids hit Youth Coaching Curriculums, from 13 up, that they flag “a wide spectrum of developmental maturity” — which is a polite way of saying some fourteen-year-olds are built like men and others still look like they’re in Year 6. That gap is exactly where an individual plan starts to matter.
Why ten to twelve is the turning point
Up until about U11, most of what a kid needs is touches, reps, and a coach who lets them have a go. Skills are still general. Everyone’s working on the same basics based on their sport. For AFL it will be kicking, marking and tackling technique.A plan doesn’t add much because the whole team is basically on the same plan.
Around U12, that changes. Training sessions get longer and more structured. Positions start meaning something. And some kids’ effort and some kids’ natural growth spurt start producing very different seasons. That’s not a sign something’s gone wrong. It’s the exact point where a plan pays off, because it gives a kid something specific to work on instead of a vague sense they should “try harder.”
What a plan should actually look like before that age
If your eight-year-old’s development plan is longer than a sentence, it’s too long. At early junior level, the plan is: show up, get a game, enjoy the car ride home. Anything more structured than that risks making training feel like homework, and a kid who feels like footy is homework doesn’t keep playing.
So what goes in an actual development plan?
Strip away the jargon and every good development plan is built from the same two ingredients: strengths and weaknesses, each one paired with a specific drill.
- A couple of genuine strengths. Not “he’s a great kid”, but an actual skill. Strong overhead marking. Good closing speed. The point of naming a strength isn’t to hand out a compliment, it’s to pair it with a drill that keeps building on it, so a kid’s best asset doesn’t quietly plateau while everyone focuses on what’s wrong.
- A couple of specific weaknesses. Specific enough that a coach could hand over a drill for it tomorrow. “Doesn’t tackle well” is a feeling. “Tends to reach in with one arm instead of wrapping up” is something you can actually train.
- A drill for each one. This is the part most plans skip, and it’s the part that matters most. A strength or weakness without a drill attached is just an observation. “Work on your left foot” is an observation. “Ten kicks off the left boot at the start of every training session” is a drill.
- A way to check whether the drill’s actually working. Not a feeling — a number, a note, a video clip, something the kid can look back on in six to eight weeks and see moved.
The kid should write the weaknesses on the list, but with some guidance from a coach or parent. A plan a coach or parent writes without ever asking the kid what they think they’re bad at is a to-do list, not a development plan — and kids are usually more accurate about this than adults expect.
What doesn’t need to be in it: disposal counts from every single game, a comparison to teammates, or anything that reads like a performance review. This is development, not monitoring.
Where ScorX fits in
Making sure that focused time actually happens is exactly the gap ScorX’s training module was built to close. We’ve just added development planning into it — so instead of strengths, weaknesses, and drills living in a coach’s notebook or a parent’s head, a kid can set them properly, log against them through the season, and actually see the shift. Not “you played well today.” A number that moves.
A quick example
Say a coach flags two things after a few games: strong overhead marking (strength), and a habit of reaching in with one arm instead of wrapping up the tackle (weakness). The plan pairs each with a drill — extra contested marking reps at training to keep the strength sharp, and a two-arm tackling drill run every session to fix the weakness before it becomes a habit that’s harder to unlearn at fifteen than at eleven.
Six weeks later, the tackle count tells the story on its own. Not “he tried harder.” A number that moved because a specific drill targeted a specific thing.
Frequently Asked Questions
What age should a junior AFL player start a development plan?
Around U12 to U13 is the right window for most kids — roughly when training becomes more structured and individual differences start to show. Before that, focus on participation and enjoyment rather than formal goals.
Do development plans only matter for the “talented” kids?
No — if anything, they matter more for kids who aren’t the most naturally gifted. A plan gives every kid something concrete to improve, rather than leaving progress to whoever developed early or got the most game time.
Who should write the plan — the coach or the parent?
Neither, alone. The best plans start with the kid’s own sense of what they want to work on, with a coach or parent helping shape it into something specific and measurable.
How often should a development plan be updated?
Every six to eight weeks works well for most junior seasons. Long enough to see real change, short enough that one bad game doesn’t derail the whole plan.
What’s the difference between a development plan and just tracking stats?
Stats on their own are just numbers. A development plan gives those numbers a purpose — a named strength or weakness, a specific drill attached to it, and a number that shows whether the drill actually worked.
Do I need a separate drill for every strength and weakness?
Yes, ideally. A weakness without a drill is just an observation — naming it doesn’t fix it. Keep the list short (two or three of each) so every one actually gets a drill, rather than a long list where most items never get worked on.
ScorX is free to download. Set your first development goal this weekend.
Related Sideline Blogs
- 5 Development Goals to Set at the Start of the AFL Season — Pairs well with this one if you’re building a plan and need concrete goal ideas to start with.
- What Junior AFL Positions Actually Develop in Kids Under 12 — Useful if the focus skill in your kid’s plan is position-specific.
- 7 AFL Stats That Matter for Junior Development — And 3 That Don’t — Helps you pick the right number to track once the plan is set.