Last summer, Sunderland AFC was rife with change.
A new owner, new board, new manager, new coaches, new players and a new academy manager.
The man brought in to be the head of the Academy of Light? Former Barnsley captain Paul Reid.
“I started in mid-June, I was on holiday when the chairman emailed me and said he wanted me to start, so when I got back, I was straight up here and got to work.
“I’ve absolutely loved my time at the club, but it has been hard for me at times this season to strike a work-life balance, as my family is based near Southampton and although I am up and down between the two, I generally spend five or six days a week in Sunderland.”
Obviously, managing a facility like the Academy of Light is a very time-consuming role, but Reid not only deals with that, he is also studying for a Masters Degree in Sporting Directorship.
“The job itself is enough to take on board, and then you factor in the travel, family time and studying.
“I hope the studying will improve me in the role and it will be beneficial for me personally, though, so you just have to make time for it.
"Nothing truly worthwhile is ever easy, and I’m already looking at other possible qualifications once I graduate in September."
Last summer was one of change, as the new owners essentially started afresh after two years of decline that had seen the club fall from Premier League to League One.
But the Academy of Light remains a hive of activity.
“One thing that did surprise me was the amount of people involved - you are talking about physios, recruitment staff, physios, analysts, the admin team, psychologists, strength and conditioning, and many more.
“All these people are involved in the academy which makes it a huge operation, and there are a lot of opinions within that, so the biggest thing I have had to deal with is the amount of people that are affected by each decision made.”
Importantly, the relationship between the academy and the first-team is healthy – and that should see the progression between the two continue.
“The gaffer has been brilliant and he really supports the academy, as do all the first-team management.
"He has been terrific with all the staff and they tell me it is as good as it has ever been.
If there was one thing I would want to improve for next year, it would be to build on my relationship with him, as he is someone I admire and respect - I can learn so much from him.”
This summer will prove to be a big one for the club as they continue to rebuild in League One, and Reid already has plans to bring in additional staff to bolster the academy.
“We do have some new staff coming in this summer, and hopefully that will improve the quality of the programme we deliver, while also maintaining our category one status.
This season has seen some of the clubs more promising prospects leave for top Premier League clubs, and while it is frustrating, Reid accepts that it is part and parcel of football.
“It is frustrating to lose academy players, as we want to see our young players come all the way through the academy and make a difference in the first team.
“That is why we have the academy, and from a football perspective that is the main goal of it, but if some of the top clubs come in for our players, we aren’t protected as much as I’d like.
“If a young player at 14 decides he sees his future at another club, there’s not too much we can do about it, as we can’t sign them to five-year deals at that age.
"We have to try and show them what we can offer, but we have to be realistic and understand that we aren’t losing players to clubs lower down the pyramid – these are Europe's elite.
“We intend to fight tooth and nail to keep our best young talent, but if we do ultimately lose players to clubs like that, it shows how good our academy is.
"But we’re confident that we can rival any other category one academy in terms of development and pathway ”