A new era begins to emerge for performance analysis in the League of Ireland

Hailing from Co. Waterford, Colin Brett is a man on a mission to herald a new era of performance analysis in the League of Ireland.

Colin Brett is the founder and Chief Executive of PlayerStat Data. PlayerStat Data are a new firm looking make their way into the player performance market.

Formerly an office worker, the Waterford native set up and founded his business back in 2017.

Brett worked with Shelbourne and his hometown Waterford in the LOI last season as a trial run – liaising closely with both Ian Morris and Fran Rockett during the course of the year.

He has also teamed up with Shamrock Rovers captain Roberto Lopes in recent times along with Shels defender Luke Byrne.

Performance analysis is something that is not entirely new in the League of Ireland, it would be wrong to suggest that.

But it is an avenue that has begun to emerge as an even greater focus of attention by both players, managers, and even clubs, both at home and abroad as Brett explains.

“The interest in types of statistics depends on the type of player,” he said. “Players will always want to improve, and across other sports, this concept is a lot more prominent.

“It has come into football, and as a result it has began to come into the League of Ireland.

“Most clubs have some form of performance analyst and they all have access to wyscout through the FAI.



“People can see the value that it brings. At the end of the day, the numbers don’t lie, and they can often reaffirm what you thought or make you realise there’s something else that needs doing.”

PlayerStat Data – rather than producing the same type of report for players week in week out – they vary their reports for the needs of their client, something that has proven to be a hit.

“We offer the players the control as to what they want to see in each game. It does not always have to be the same statistics every game,” he adds.

“It’s not all about numbers as some might think it is. It allows players to track their progress and see where they can improve in training and in matches.”

The Covid-19 pandemic has brought its own challenges to Brett – although he is hopeful that he can expand his operations to other leagues across Europe quite shortly.

Under the system, players are able to access their individual performance data output on a game-by-game basis, identify trends across their season’s performances & tailor training plans as required. ?



They also offer monthly rankings amongst players. However, for clubs, PlayerStat Data can help enhance talent identification, which can also negate some elements of risk that come with player transfers.

“So far, we have got great testimonials from the players we had involved with us last season,” Brett finished.

“But we understand that this is not for everyone because that’s what our market research has told us.

“This is going to become more widespread across the league and players are becoming more open to it because they can see they can get an edge which can help them get over the season.

“The data they get is what they want, not what we think they want. I’d be confident that players will improve with the data we can show them.

“It’s the bespoke element that we’re looking to capture for clubs and players that others may not have when collecting the data.”