To enhance the policies and practices which support talent development, there is a need to understand factors which influence strategic decision making, whilst also considering efficiency, effectiveness and resource implications. Adopting a pragmatic, mixed-methods approach, this thesis aims to investigate the male English rugby union talent system, investigating factors influencing Premiership player development with the intention to inform policy and practice. Chapter three presents a retrospective analysis of academy player conversion rate into the Premiership, considering differences between the fourteen academies and player sub-populations. Results highlight substantial differences between the academies, indicating highly differential effectiveness in the development of Premiership players. Aiming to explore these differences, Chapter four investigates how player development is influenced by contextual factors. Findings indicate that structural and organisational features, concurrent development environments, and resource constraints shape academy operations. There were strong perceptions that the schools and populations within each academy boundary influenced the academies’ ability to develop players. As such, Chapter five quantitatively investigates the influence of resources (finances, staff, talent pool, and schools) on academy outcomes (number of Premiership players developed and number of appearances achieved). Results indicate that financial, school and population variables had little influence on academy outcomes, potentially indicating quality and strategic use of resources are more important than total resourcing. Finally, reflecting the need to consider processes of development, Chapter six presents a study exploring different successful routes through the talent system. Results indicate a player’s position, relative age, academy, and Premiership club may influence how a player progresses to the Premiership. Overall, findings from this thesis reflect the complexity of talent development, and suggest a need to balance centralised control, academy autonomy, and resource allocation, while considering impact on players’ developmental experiences.