Interview: Noelle Francisco on how amateur football players are improving their game with GPS tracking vests

As a football influencer and player for Ashbourne United in Ireland, Noelle Francisco is always looking out for the latest innovations in the game. A regular PLAYR user, GPS tracking technology is a feature of Noelle’s training and match experience.

We recently caught up with Noelle to talk all things PLAYR and find out how she’s using the football GPS tracker to take her game to the next level.

How did you first hear about PLAYR?

NF: I first saw professional players wearing these tracking vests, then I saw PLAYR on social media. When I looked into it, I realised PLAYR made a version for aspiring professionals! I loved it straight away and haven’t looked back since. During the season I wear it for all training sessions and matches…to be honest it’s become addictive! If I’m not wearing my device I feel like I’m missing a limb!

Has PLAYR helped you to improve your performance?

NF: PLAYR has helped me to improve in so many ways. I’m always pushing to be better, so metrics like top speed and total distance are really useful. I’m always aiming to get near the 10km mark for distance in each game, and as a winger it’s important to keep an eye on how my speed is progressing. My top speed is currently 26.8km/h, which makes me one of the quickest on the team!

Tactically, PLAYR has massively helped my awareness on the pitch. My coach was always telling me to do more defensive work, so the heat map in the app has been great for improving my positional awareness. It’s helped me to be better at tracking back on the defensive side of my game.

What’s your experience of the PLAYR SmartCoach app been like?

NF: The first time I used the app I was a bit flustered as there is so much information available! After I’d been on it once though, I realised how simple it is to use. The layout of the app is really cool and it’s great to get so much feedback on my performance. I always use the SmartCoach advice to help with things like recovery and nutrition as well.

To be honest, I love the whole experience of using PLAYR in general, I believe it’s the best football GPS tracker available. Things like the automatic switch on when you put the device in the vest, the wireless charging, and the comfort of the vest itself make it really fun and easy to use the technology.

Are you seeing PLAYR being used more by your teammates and social followers? What’s their response been?

NF: I get questions about PLAYR all the time on Instagram! And not just from people in Ireland, but from Australia, Africa…all around the world! I’ve seen a lot of the players at my club and some of the kids I coach starting to use it too. I remember when I first wore PLAYR to training a lot of them were like, “What’s that?!”, but I’ve been able to tell them about the technology. When they see that the pros are using this type of tech, then they start to realise how it can be beneficial at our level too.

Join Noelle and thousands of players around the world by using PLAYR to improve your game.