Gary Warren is embracing the opportunity to spearhead Ross County’s new-look youth academy.
Warren has been appointed as academy manager at Victoria Park, in a move which sees him replace Gordon Duff in the role.
The Englishman spent six years as a player with Caley Thistle, and spent more than three years as captain of the club before leaving in 2017.
Having spent several years back in England, Warren returned to the Highlands last summer when he was appointed as County’s head of professional academy.
We can today provide an update on a refocus on our club's academy.
Read here 👉 https://t.co/nW2vRvKRri pic.twitter.com/e6mtFBM6u6
— Ross County FC (@RossCounty) August 21, 2023
The 39-year-old, who until recently combined his full-time role with playing for Clachnacuddin, has now been elevated to the task of heading up the academy.
We take a look at the people involved within the new structure and how it will work.
Gary Warren – Ross County academy manager
Warren has been tasked with setting the vision for the academy, with the ultimate goal of ensuring homegrown players are ready to make the step up into Malky Mackay’s first team.
Warren said: “There’s a main focus on trying to create a culture and identity around the academy, giving it more of a Ross County feeling and vibe.
“We want to allow the academy to develop its own values going forward.
“Developing our own homegrown players is what we want, the main part of what we’re trying to do.
“We want to get as many boys as we can, eventually, playing in the first team, and then, moving on from there, playing internationally.
“We want to achieve and strive to be the best.
“With the infrastructure here, with the coaches we have here already and the talented groups of boys we’ve got, that’s our job as coaches.
“My role is to try and nurture that.
“The vision first and foremost is to create a culture and identity that follows on and relates into the first team.
“It will allow a pathway for these guys to ultimately kick on and play out there.”
Gordon Duff – head of youth and academy operations
Duff vacates the role which Warren is now taking on, having navigated County’s academy through the challenges brought on by the Covid pandemic.
He will remain a key part of the team headed up by Warren, with the responsibility of co-ordinating youth programmes.
Warren insists Duff’s experience will make him a valuable sounding board in the months ahead.
Warren said: “There is a special thanks to Gordon because he has had probably one of the toughest jobs over the last three years in terms of getting boys through and building an academy.
“It has been one of the hardest periods and he has helped me immensely, especially in the last couple of weeks and over my first year of being here.
“He’s also been a great sounding board and I’ve learnt from him.
“If I can do half as good a job as he has done so far, then I’ll be happy.
“I bring in my own ideas and identity, but within that I need coaches around me who can help and bring their own strengths.
“He’s going to be an integral part going forward in heading up the whole youth programme.”
Carl Tremarco – head of professional academy and loans
Carl Tremarco, meanwhile, will be replace Warren in taking charge of the Staggies’ under-18s team, who play in the CAS Performance League.
He will also be tasked with overseeing the progress of loan players, with seven of the Staggies’ young players currently out on temporary deals.
Warren said: “The under-18s are now going to be led by Carl. I will still have an input, as I will for every team.
“His new job role is head of loans and he has a great opportunity as well to get his teeth stuck into that, as well as taking the under 18s.
“The under-18s have been brilliant, especially over the last two or three months.
“The boys coming up from the 16s have really developed and kicked on.
“It is exciting times for some of those boys, with them getting opportunities in the first team.
“It is a strong area where, this year, we’re hoping we can be successful.”
Ryan Farquhar – head of foundation
Ryan Farquhar has been involved in the Ross County Foundation for six years, during which time he has held the role of the head of children’s academy.
He will now head up the foundation, which includes the responsibility of managing numerous football camps they run across the Highlands and Islands region.
Farquhar said: “My new role is the head of the foundation, so I’m taking control of the running of the foundation and all the different programmes we do.
“It’s quite exciting. It’s a big responsibility, but I’m looking forward to it.
“A lot of the work I have done in the last few years has been out and about at schools, but it’s going to be more reaching out to different people and organisations to build our reputation further afield.
“There has been a lot of change. It’s a small team of four full-time staff, with a couple of volunteers.
“We cover a huge area so it’s a lot of work. We are looking forward to growing that, getting more people involved and more staff and volunteers in different areas to hit that demographic.”
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