Simon Dunn

Over my 5 year period as a 1st Team Performance Analyst I have specialised in different areas. Upon my promotion from Under 21s analyst I was positioned as the 1st team Set Piece Analyst.

In this role my primary responsibilities were as follows;

• The collection, filtering and presentation of all opposition set pieces (corners, free kicks, throw ins, kick offs) in video format.
• Presenting my findings to the coaching staff in charge of set pieces in the form of a fully telestrated Sportscode organiser. This would detail different routines, examples of their strengths/threats and examples of how best to nullify that threat. It would also include their defensive set ups; weaknesses in their chosen system and examples of how teams had exploited these.
• Creating supporting slides containing data on KPIs using MatchTracker eg. 1st contacts, delivery type, number of attacking/defenders in the box, value of chances created vs delivery etc.
• Working closely with the coaching staff to offer insights and context to what was being presented, allowing more informed decisions on how to optimise our own set pieces going into the week leading up to game day.
• Review of or own set pieces and databasing best practice examples.

Other responsibilities in this role included:

Penalty Analysis:

I created 2 separate interactive keynote presentations, both for the goalkeepers and our penalty takers. These presentations would include video and data visualisation on penalties taken/faced to build a clear picture.

Open Play Chances:

A Sportscode Organiser categorising an opposition's chances created and conceded from open play, supported by data detailing (but not limited to) where shots originate, passes leading the chances, player's most likely to be involved. This would evolve under different coaches to pay closer attention to factors deemed of greater importance by the staff.

Opposition Data Report:

I created a bespoke statistical report detailing a wide range of aspects of the opposition's style of play. This report would include (but not limited to) visualisations of predicted lineups, player profiles, crosses, goals scored & goals conceded breakdown. This also includes highlighting KPI metrics against league benchmarking.

After 3 years I was promoted to Open Play Analyst where my overseeing of the penalty analysis, open play chances and opposition data report remained. In place of set pieces I was tasked with putting together a breakdown of the opposition's style of play in the form of a telestrated Sportscode organiser. This would be presented to the coaching staff, again offering insights and context, to help inform decisions on our tactical approach to the game. In this role I was able to bring data and video together to create a succinct picture of the opposition's playing style. The succinctness and clarity of this was of great importance given the often short timeframes and preparation periods between games.

Aside from the tactical knowledge and technical proficiency I was able to showcase in this role; soft skills such as delegation, communication, time management, problem solving and adaptability were paramount and something I was able to not only apply but strengthen.

My association with Luton Town first started as a years internship as an academy performance analyst with the under 16s when I graduated from university. I was tasked with filming matches and producing detailed statistic reports for the coach's use.

After a season with the under 16s I was offered a part time role with the under 18s. This position was similar to the previous one but allowed me more license to find ways of progressing the use of analysis within the academy.

I was then offered the Head of Academy Performance Analysis role where my responsibilities remained similar to previous positions held within the club, with addition to a few aspects. I was in charge of delegating responsibilities to interns to ensure the academy analysis needs were met for each age group. I would also have designated times working with these interns to improve their skillsets both for a career in football and outside football.

I developed a real passion for academy football during this time, built strong relationships with my colleagues; both professional and social and gained proficiency in a variety of field leading softwares e.g Sportscode, Gamebreaker, Longomatch, NACSport and Coach Paint.

As front of house staff I was one of many faces of the company with direct interaction with the guests. My main responsibility was to deliver activity sessions to guests ranging from archery, cake decorating and roller skating to football, tennis and fencing.

In addition to delivering these sessions I was responsible for taking bookings, resolving any problems guests may have had and contributing towards the efficient day to day running of the department.

As a more experienced member of my team I was also heavily involved in decisions of how to make departmental procedures more efficient, running staff training nights, stock checks and risk assessments.