Oxidate: Driving sports performance and coaching in Australia

Oxidate Football Pitch

When speaking to brothers (and footballers) Jacob and Dominic Falla about Oxidate Performance, one begins to understand the true passion and insight behind their work. Oxidate Performance is Melbourne’s newest training centre dedicated to delivering football and performance coaching like never before.

Oxidate is much more than just activities and training drills, the performance centre was established by the pair in an effort to take athlete development and education, injury rehabilitation, recovery and football development to new heights. In addition, Oxidate currently have the lowest injury statistics across the state of Victoria.

Currently plying his trade with Heidelberg United in Victoria’s National Premier Leagues 1, Dominic previously spent five years in Europe learning from the elite schools of Spanish and English football. Jacob has had his own experiences in working with footballers across various levels, often with an eye on what could be done to provide athletes with the right tools to continue to evolve throughout the remainder of their career.

What is Oxidate?

Jacob: So, we’re a sports performance and coaching company who specialise specifically in the football development and physical development sectors. We tie a few pillars of performance together; including strength and conditioning, nutrition, skill development, massage therapy and myotherapy and physiotherapy. Working closely within the sports science realm and exercise science realms.

Undoubtedly there are a range of things on offer at Oxidate, how did it all come together though?

Jacob: Dom and I have been footballers for all our life, and we’ve figured out that there’s a good portion of development, help, education and training programs that have been missing. So, we thought, based on our experiences, our studies and our expertise that we’d develop the missing link, and provide the training content that is Oxidate Performance.

And now, the launch of our new performance centre in Coburg is very much that. It’s your one stop performance destination where football athletes, of all ages and skill levels, can come and receive the right types of help, training and guidance to enhance their opportunities overall.

How do you go about educating your clients?

Dominic: The big thing we think is missing is the educating of the parents. So, every single session when a client comes through, we spend time describing what the session is, what it entails, and what we’re looking for in terms of the performance and how we can maximise each session. It’s about giving them an education on what we’re actually doing in the session, rather than coming in and just running through training drills and skills.

MentoringSo, giving the education to the player or the client, as well as the parent, is key to the overall experience so that they can learn in the short term and long term. They can then implement these things throughout the remainder of their career.

What are some of Oxidate’s other points of difference when compared with other football and performance coaching places?

Jacob: We pride ourselves on the physical development of our clients and the fact that we have the lowest injury statistics in Victoria. And we’ve held that statistic since 2016.

We track the metrics and the data of every club that we work with, from the grassroots level all the way through to the NPL. So, we’re recording these stats and each year we are progressing and developing by fine tuning our programs. Which in turn continues to provide these opportunities for athletes to develop and hopefully reduce that risk of injury as well.

How do you want Oxidate to impact the football industry?

Jacob: For us, it’s about bridging the gap between professional football and semi-professional football, or the elite to sub-elite. There’s a lot of areas that we can improve on, from the football fundamentals and the basics right through to athlete development.

We pride ourselves on the athlete development side of things more so, to us, this is what is currently lacking when comparing Australia to other nations. It’s the level of athleticism, and the ability to play the game at high tempo and speeds, or having the engine to cope with the physical demands of training two sessions per day, 6 days per week.

We’ve got an awesome gym setup here focusing on strength training not just in the off-season and pre-season, but in continuing the right types of training throughout the season. Because a child or athlete’s career should be seen from a progress standpoint, as every season they’re getting stronger, fitter and faster and developing their skills.

How similar is Oxidate’s coaching philosophy to your own personal coaching philosophies?

Dominic: Pretty much Oxidate, for Jacob and myself, is our baby. So, it is our own personal philosophies that we’ve built together through years of experience. I personally spent five years in Europe learning from different coaches, different teams and different types of football in Spain and England.

So, we’ve molded these experiences, including the missing links together to create our own version of football performance, now trademarked as the Oxidate philosophy. And that is what Oxidate performance is. We practice what we preach and teach. It is our mission to help improve the standards of Football in Australia.

What is the science behind Oxidate?

Jacob: We do a lot of performance analysis, and that may be viewing players on the pitch as we get a lot of parents request that we go and watch their child play, but also, we work in the sports science realm as well. That involves bringing players in, whether that be teams or individual clients, and testing them through a range of different things.

So, we do a full-body assessment and screening, where a physiotherapist assesses ankles, knees, hips, range of motion and the likelihood of where injuries could arise. And then we look at the performance testing as well with strength and power tests, and speed and agility tests. From there, what we do with those metrics is we build the training program specifically and then retest that client or athlete before the next training block. This is the pinnacle of individual performance.

We’re taking individual performance to the grand scale as well. We’re working with Heidelberg United, so what we’ve done is we’ve formed a collaboration with that club and launched an Athlete Development & High-Performance Program that includes working with over 100 athletes to provide these same opportunities. 

What does the week-to-week look like for Oxidate?

Jacob: We’re here seven days a week and our coaches and staff are available for a range of high-performance sessions, recovery or rehabilitation. We’re here to provide opportunities for everyone that would like to enhance their careers.

Obviously, we follow a set structure, we set up a weekly schedule for each of our clients and we give them our opinions based on when and how they should train, and we setup a weekly forecast for them. So, for example, it might look like a Monday day recovery where (tying back into that point of difference) a lot of footballers, coaches, teams and clubs are taking a recovery day as a lesser option where they’re not really doing too much. Whereas, recovery can be enhanced if you stick to the science and stick to a proper structure.

Recovery at Oxidate includes our recovery pools. Hot and cold contrast water therapy. We do a lot of active recovery style sessions and a lot of injury prevention stuff too, including strength training. So, that’s a huge point of difference here as our clients are always progressing, instead of plateauing due to doing nothing. Rest is not always the answer for recovery.

A midweek session on a Wednesday will be your heavy strength power sessions, and then we do a Friday session which is game day -1. And we do what’s called a neural priming session, which involves a lot of work on the nervous system, a lot of stimulation work, a lot of low volume work at a high intensity. We do some sprints and agility training as well. All of our systems and programs are designed purely to make sure our clients dominate on game day, week in, week out, all season long.

It sounds like there is a huge variety of coaching and treatment on offer, who are the type of coaches working with Oxidate?

Jacob: All of our coaches have exercise science and sports science-based backing. So, every coach has a university degree of either 3 or 5 years. But, they’re also more importantly either current football players or previous players, so they understand the demands of the sport. They’re not just gym-goers or lab-tech gurus, they know what it feels like to play and they know what the demands are of a coach or a club. So, I think it really gives us a unique backing which then ties into that unique experience that you get when you step into our doors and come train with us.

It sounds like you both have an in-depth knowledge about performance coaching, but what inspired the way you approach things? Was it a particular coach or club experience?

Dominic: For myself, I have had some really good football coaches throughout my footballing career. There’s one or two here in Australia, but over in Spain the standard of actual coaching over there is on another level. And I guess, throughout my 4-5 years over there in Spain and England, I was consistently speaking with Jacob and saying how crazy the coaching was and how different it was.

From that I think I learnt a lot. I don’t need to name drop anyone because they’re overseas, but there were a few coaches who really took the technical side of the game to another level. And I think it shows in the way, for example, the way international teams like Spain and England play when compared to Australia.

So, that experience of training 4-5 times a week in Spain compared to here where it’s 2-3 sessions in a club setting, that contact time in terms of football development, hours spent in terms of load and actually improving the physical aspects as well made a massive difference. For me, learning all that from those coaches and that experience is where I personally got all the knowledge, we have today that I have passed on to Jacob.

Jacob: It really just comes from trial and error. So, I like to call it being “in the trenches”, and I’ve sort of been in the trenches for the last 10-11 years in the industry. That has involved trialling, erroring, testing, reassessing and shaping this hybrid program, philosophy and format. So, my knowledge has come from years of working with 100s and 1000s of different athletes, trialling different areas and just tweaking and always improving them.

We’re very grateful Dom and I, that we’ve still got youth on our side. We’re still optimistic and open-minded, and we’re not too set in our ways. Which gives us that edge of adaptability and that’s probably a key word, ‘adaptability’, and that includes being adaptable to the client, situation, team or performance that’s needed.

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Melbourne Victory’s brand-new infrastructure strategy

Melbourne Victory & SEDA

A-League giant Melbourne Victory has revealed a brand-new extensive infrastructure strategy to foster and support tomorrow’s footballing stars.

The strategic infrastructure plan set out by Victory will aim to develop youth and women’s football programs by providing improved access to world class footballing facilities and player pathways across Victoria.

To achieve this, Melbourne Victory has opted for a campus model to enable players access to connected and consistent facilities across the North, East, South and West of Melbourne, all within an hour’s journey of Victory’s club administrative centre and the A-League Men’s training facilities at Gosch’s Paddock.

The club also intends to build another campus within the Melbourne city centre, with the first campus location to be announced by the club soon, as it continues to review and assess possible sites across the city.

Melbourne Victory Chairman, John Dovaston, explained why the club had chosen the campus model.

“The announcement of this project, and the direction taken, is aimed at ensuring we are best placed to attract and retain football talent across the State,” he said in a press release.

“Our innovative approach will allow us to have a number of campuses with not only an elite focus, but also, an eye on building our community to ensure that all Victorians have an opportunity to participate and engage in our game.”

Melbourne Victory Managing Director, Caroline Carnegie, outlined why the new infrastructure strategy was so important to the club.

“It is well understood that sport and football can influence social cohesion, and it’s our responsibility as a Club to establish infrastructure and programs that can positively impact members of the community, regardless of gender, background or location, whether that be through training the next generation of football stars, or using football as a vehicle to lead, unite, connect and inspire the community more broadly,” she said via press release.

“By enabling Victory to connect with communities across the North, South, East, and West of AAMI Park, our spiritual home, we can truly grow the Victory family and set new standards for elite facilities in our Pathway and community programs.”

The infrastructure project is an important move for the club, allowing it to grow, improve and future-proof its current suite of footballing programs. Currently, Victory operates nine elite and 23 pathway programs, providing services to over 16,000 participants across Victoria. Through the campus model, the club hopes it will be able to more efficiently develop the new generation of A-League and national team players.

“The priority is to provide not just an entry point for individuals to engage and participate in football, but to keep them engaged and provide a holistic journey to grow the Victory family across the State,” Carnegie continued.

“We are excited about the opportunities that the project can provide and the potential for growth for our Club and for football in the future.”

Melbourne Victory will continue to issue updates as it sets on the 5-year-plus journey to complete the entire project. For more information on the club’s major infrastructure strategy, access the plan HERE.

 

PFA issues legal threat to Premier League over new financial rules

The Professional Footballers’ Association (PFA) has issued a legal threat to the Premier League, warning of potential legal action if new financial rules are passed without union consultation and approval.

The PFA alleges that the league and its clubs have deliberately withheld critical information about the proposed squad cost rules (SCR) and top-to-bottom anchoring (TBA). These changes, according to the union, could severely impact player wages and club finances.

Legal Warning Over SCR and TBA

The Premier League and its 20 clubs voted on the proposed rules during a meeting on 13 February. In a letter addressed to the league and its stakeholders, the PFA’s legal team stated they “anticipate being instructed to commence legal proceedings” if the rules are approved without adequate consultation with the union.

The union has demanded a written guarantee from the league by 4 pm on 11 February, confirming its intention to fully consult the PFA on the matter. Failure to do so will also trigger legal action.

The PFA described the proposed squad cost rules and top-to-bottom anchoring system as “fundamentally flawed” and expressed deep concerns about their potential consequences for players and clubs alike.

What Are the SCR and TBA?

The squad cost rules (SCR) would limit clubs to spending a maximum of 85 per cent of their revenue on squad-related expenses, aligning with similar rules introduced by UEFA. From next season, UEFA plans to reduce its revenue-to-spending cap to 70 per cent for clubs involved in its competitions.

The top-to-bottom anchoring (TBA) system, however, is more contentious. It would enforce a strict cap on how much a club can spend on squad costs, calculated as five times the amount received by the club earning the least from central Premier League funds.

Critics, including the PFA, argue that TBA effectively introduces an indirect cap on player salaries. Some clubs, such as Manchester United and Manchester City, have also expressed opposition to the proposal, fearing it would weaken their ability to compete with elite European teams.

Accusations of Withholding Information

The PFA has accused the Premier League of failing to follow proper consultation protocols, which are required for any matters impacting player wages or conditions.

Under the rules, the Premier League and English Football League (EFL) must consult with the PFA through the Professional Game Negotiating and Consultative Committee (PFNCC). Any changes that affect players cannot proceed without the union’s agreement.

However, the PFA’s lawyers, Mills and Reeve, claim the Premier League missed its own deadline to provide an updated version of the SCR before Christmas. Instead, clubs received the document on 9 January—too late for meaningful discussions during a PFNCC meeting held on 8 January.

The union further alleges it only received the full 87-page SCR manual after an ad-hoc PFNCC meeting on 20 January, despite indications that clubs had access to the document as early as July last year.

PFA’s Position on the Financial Rules

The PFA remains firmly opposed to the introduction of TBA, stating it imposes an unnecessary cap on player wages under the guise of financial regulation.

The union believes such measures are not only unfair to players but also risk undermining the competitiveness of Premier League clubs on the international stage.

In their letter to the Premier League’s legal team at Linklaters, the PFA’s lawyers described the handling of the proposed financial rules as “flagrant breaches” of the league’s obligations to consult with the union.

As the 13 February vote has taken place, the tension between the PFA and the Premier League appears to be escalating, with the prospect of legal proceedings looming should the union’s demands for consultation remain unmet.

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