A total population sample of players in their second year of their 2-year apprenticeship within an English Football League club was used. Included participants were required to have been a part of the club's academy for at least 3 years and have participated in at least one first team training session (i.e., the preparation phase of model). It is important to note that during the planning of this study it was unknown which of the participants would earn a contract and remain in the study. Traditionally, contracts are awarded at the end of the scholarship period in April, and data collection was planned accordingly. In total, six participants aged 17-18 years old (M = 17.85, SD = 0.38) agreed to participate in this study (see Table 1) from a total of nine who met the inclusion criteria. Participants had been in the academy between 4 and 10 years with an average length of (M = 8.5, SD = 1.9). At the halfway point of this study, the players' 2-year apprenticeship ended. At this point three participants were released from the club while three continued with their first professional contract. The players who were released no longer continued their participation in the study.
To better understand the participants' evolving experiences, a longitudinal process was developed using both video diaries and semi-structured interviews. While multiple interview formats have value (e.g.,) they result in timepoints of understanding rather than the evolving experience. With this in mind we chose to use weekly video diaries to gain deeper insight into the experience of the participants throughout the ongoing transition. cited the effectiveness of video diaries in younger populations, based in part on their use in pop culture television (e.g., Big Brother). Further, familiarity with the technology will likely lead to young populations being more confident in sharing their personal stories.
Following ethical approval from the researchers' institutional ethics committee, the lead researcher held a meeting to inform the eligible participants about the project and what would be required to participate. They were ensured that participation or non-participation would not affect their standing within the football club and all non-anonymized data would only be seen by the lead author and his supervisors (co-authors) and could not be accessed by coaches or other "gatekeepers" within the club. The data were collected on a weekly basis over 40 weeks. Weekly video diaries were supplemented by semi structured interviews (collected by the first author) roughly at the halfway point and at the conclusion of each phase of the study (see Figure 1 for a pictorial representation of the data collection timepoints over this period).
During the first week of data collection the lead researcher discussed with each participant the process of the video diaries and answered any questions. A well-known popular culture television show was used as an example of a "video confessional" to guide participants in how to talk about their current experiences both on and off the pitch for roughly 5 min. An individual written guide was provided each week to prompt participants, but instructions on the guide indicated that they were not required to answer these questions and could discuss anything meaningful to them. Prompts were created in response to the data participants provided in previous video diaries. Each guide was different for every participant and changed weekly. Participants completed the video diaries during breaks in their day as full-time scholars at an English Football League club or at home during their free time. Video diaries were collected using the participants' own mobile phone with printed questions to guide their diary reflections.
Following collection of the weekly video diary, the lead researcher transcribed and analyzed the transcript, following the first two steps of thematic analysis procedure. The collection and analysis of data followed an iterative approach where analysis preceded the collection of additional data. This iterative approach to data collection and analysis allowed for topics that were addressed in each week's video diaries to be readdressed or clarified, and for the guides to build upon one another, adding depth to the data being collected. This process was repeated up to week seven, when codes were sorted, and interview guides were developed to discuss potential themes and each individual's experience. The interviews allowed for potential themes that developed in the video diaries to be discussed in more detail. Interviews also enabled the lead researcher to probe using follow-up questions to gain further insight. The interview process also aided in the analysis of the data by allowing the lead researcher to better understand the position, opinion, and experience of each participant. The interview guides developed were highly personal, but also included general themes that had begun to develop across the participants.
This same iterative collection and analysis cycle was then repeated for the second half of the academy phase for all six participants and throughout the first team phase for the remaining three participants (see Table 2). Due to the differences in experience within the two phases of data collection they were separated in the final analysis. Codes for each phase were sorted into potential themes and reviewed against the coding by the lead researcher. The potential themes were discussed with the research team to ensure they accurately reflected the coding and the data. Using a thematic mapping technique higher and lower themes were developed for each phase. Once the higher and lower order themes were confirmed by the research team the report was generated with consideration given to the best way to represent the data.
Results should be reported in a way that best fits the data, whether that be by relevance or chronologically. With this in mind our data is presented chronologically by theme across the two different phases. We provide a straight description of the data giving voice to the participants' experience with limited interruption. The presentation by theme allows similarities and differences to be shown between the participants giving the reader a full picture of the evolving transition.