T,
I agree with you up to a point. I am not sure if you are Trinidadian or not, but neary every patch of grass, road, or open space are used in what we call "small-goal". However, although "small-goal" develops a youth's individual skills (and believe me, we have a lot of "small goal" champions), most of the time, without the proper training, those same "small-goal" skills don't transcend into big-goal teamwork, hence we have 11 players who all have individual skills but cannot string 10 passes together. A football academy will take those "small-goal" skills and harness it from individuality into teamwork. I just used Ajax as a case-in-point because they are recognized globally as the premier academy. Obviously, Trinidad will have to start on a smaller scale, but in time, the under 12 will turn into under 14, then under 16, then under 18, then under 21, then under 23, then olympic team, then national team. You see my point. This is exactly how France won WC1998. Not only that, an academy will give the national team a wealth of players to choose from locally, who has been playing together for 10 to 15 years. Anyway, that said, good luck with The Netherlands team, they are doing pretty good so far, they have a knack of falling down in International Competition though, maybe it's because of all the concrete fields, just kidding.....good luck.
Sanchez