Four Bermudian budding footballers have been chosen to attend training sessions at Croatian club NK Istra 1961.

Quinn Farnsworth of Bascome FC, Somerset’s Cove Bailey, and X-Roads duo Ibraheem Talbot, and Isaac Wookey, all aged between nine to 13 were identified by Andro Fistonić, the club’s head of youth development – who spent the last week working with the island’s young players.

Fistonić got to impart his knowledge to Bermuda’s up and coming players at a talent identification camp hosted by X-Roads Football Club at Bermuda College.

Thaaqib Talbot, the X-Roads head coach indicated that it was up to the families to decide when they want to take up the offer.

“There’s no time frame on when they will go,’’ Talbot said. “It’s up to each individual family to decide when they will go. It’s an open invitation for them go over there, and have a training experience with NK Istra 1961.

“It all depends on the parents, the timing of it, it’ll be up to two weeks, potentially.”

During his time on the island, Fistonić, 32, shared his thoughts on what could be done for the up and coming footballers – to assist them to reach their full potential.

“I believe Bermuda has a huge potential, but to reach that potential, there needs to be investments on the side of the infrastructure,’’ Fistonić said.

“Government, maybe some private entities should do that if they want football growth.

“The potential is huge but at this moment they’re reaching the limit of what the coaches can give them.

“For the next level, they need artificial pitches or the real grass pitches to be perfect so the ball does not jump away from them.

“They need to have good balls, they need to have better competition, better organisation of the processes like who plays against who, but I think it all starts from infrastructure.

“Bermuda has a good environment for developing footballers, there’s a lot of sunny days which is a prerequisite for children to develop.

“Second thing, there’s many mixed races here, many mixed cultures, this is also the second thing that always bursts the development of the football. What in my opinion is missing is the step up in the infrastructure.”

Asked if there is a possibility of Bermuda’s budding talent moving to his club in Croatia, Fistonić stated that this only happen as per the Fifa regulations on the movement of minors.

“The only way is if they get older,’’ he told The Royal Gazette. “In terms of the rules, children cannot move before the age of 16. It’s also important from a psychological point of view, that the child is ready to leave home.

“There’s always options that mum and dad go with them if they have a top potential, but I think there should be more focus on how Bermuda can create a better environment for them, so that they can develop here as long as possible and when they get to the right age, they can go somewhere else.

“Bermudian children, they will have to leave when they’re 12 in order to have a chance to be a professional footballers.”

Fistonić, a holder of a Uefa A coaching qualification came to the island following years of communication with X-Roads coach Thaaqib Talbot – after the pair was linked by Robert Calderon, a former Bermuda Football Association president.

“We were talking about development, I did some sessions with their coaches,” he added.

“After three years of sharing knowledge and co-operation, we organised that I come to Bermuda, understand a little bit of culture, the holistic environment of the football and also to be present at this identification camp to see what Bermudian football potential is.’’

During the time he spent with the youngsters, Fistonić created tasks for them to see their kind of potential, so as to make recommendations to the coaches of these players to keep improving and maximise their potential for the future.

The camp, for the ages from 7 to 13 saw the players spend an hour on each of the days with Fistonić. X-Roads conducted the talent identification exercise with Bermuda’s Brazilian Football School.

X-Roads coaches, from juniors up to the senior team too got to gain from the Croatian’s presence on the island, since he got to work with them in evening sessions at their clubhouse.

“We’re in discussion on what the forward steps look like,’’ Talbot said.

“Whether it’s going to be bringing him every other year or it’ll be another coach coming in, coaches go there or players go there for training camps.

“There’s a lot of opportunities that’s going to be opening up for Bermudians to be able to gain more exposure, in Croatia and other countries.

“It was great having him here, from day one we saw that Andro had an in-depth knowledge of football, he has a good personality.

“It’s great to have the knowledge but if you can’t convey it and then you don't have the passion, it could rub people the wrong way.”