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Balls, cones and kids
the footy4kids soccer coaching
newsletter
Issue
22 - November 2006
"I know a lot of
younger players don’t love the game now, but it is not a game you
love anymore. When I was young we played in the street, had fun,
identified with great players, thought & talked nothing but
football, lived for a Saturday game on telly. Now there’s too many
games on TV & you see the kids now in their teams at 9 years old, &
its do this, do that with their parents on the touchlines screaming
at them…"
Gordon Strachen
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The footy4kids soccer
coaching forum has seen many debates about
the way the 'beautiful game' has been taken away from children by over
competitive coaches and parents.
This is just
one of them.
There is a general consensus
that screaming, over-excited parents and coaches who treat players as
brainless puppets are spoiling the game and stopping our children from
reaching their full potential.
Many coaches ask "why
doesn't someone do something about it?".
Well, now someone has.
Give Us Back Our
Game is the name of a campaign run by Paul Cooper in the UK to 'give
the game back to the kids'. Support for for
Paul's campaign from all sections of the soccer community is growing by
the day and an international soccer Fun Day is being planned for June
2007.
footy4kids is pleased to offer it's support
to Give Us Back Our
Game.
You can support the campaign too. Visit the
Give Us Back Our Game site, send Paul an e-mail and remember....soccer is
The Children's Game - not yours!
The Children's Game
* Fun &
development before winning
* The
game is the best teacher
* Plenty
of free play
* No
coaching or shouting from the sidelines
* Let
children find their own solutions
*
Encourage expression & creativity
* Play in
different positions
* Freedom
to fail
give us back our game!
by Paul Cooper
As coaches we should be
concerned that 'the beautiful game' is in decline.
Football for children is now very
different from earlier generations when the only adult involvement was a
call from your mum that your tea was ready. Football is no longer
beautiful for our kids anymore: it's ugly.
(note: in this article, football = soccer)
In a world where children
can no longer play outside without supervision, parents and coaches have
taken over. And the competitive drive adults bring to the game means
youngsters no longer have time to fall in love with football, to play for
fun and thus truly to develop their skills.
Today's
children learn from the grown-ups. Without the freedom of the streets and
playing fields, their early experiences of football are organised,
supervised and coached. They have no real say in what happens, and they
don't have time to develop, learn and fall in love with the beautiful
game.
We at Give Us Back Our Game feel that the problem areas
are:
We need a game that is both child and player centred where
children can be children, have fun and express themselves.
We are holding a Give Us Back Our Game 4v4 Fun Day on 17th
June 2007. Please support this campaign, whether it is getting involved on
the day or including your name and club on our support page.
For further information about the ethos and philosophy of
the Give Us Back Our Game campaign go to:
Give Us Back Our Game 4v4
Fun Day publicity material
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"I fully support the 'Give us back our game'
campaign. It is about letting children be children and having fun. We have
started to play 4v4 games at the under 9s age group in the Academy, and not
only has it improved their skills and insight but the children, coaches and
parents love it. During a break between games one of the teams said 'We want
to swap positions'. We say, 'You decide for yourselves, it is your game'.
They love having the responsibility to make their own decisions both on and
off the pitch. It makes them better all round footballers and develops
their communication and social skills." David Godley - Watford FC Academy |
Links
Hyped-up soccer parents taking fun out of the game
"Most coaches agree that packs of parents
hanging around on the sidelines puts too much pressure on young players"
In Youth Soccer,
Smaller is Better!
"It simply doesn't make
sense to ask young players to play the adult version of soccer"
The fun is gone, now
kids must learn to play games
"Sports
used to be a healthy pursuit for children, but have we turned it into a
harmful obsession?"
"Playing games is as
vital for children as sleep: necessary for the health of their body and
their mind. As children learn by playing, the central part of each
training session is the practise and understanding of a simplified game."
motivation
is more than a question of winning or losing
"The child at [U9]
understands that winning is important, loves to compete, but does not
understand winning and losing in any systematic sense. Because of this,
they will not feel sad until a parent or coach informs them that they
lost..."
Parents & Motivation: What's your role?
"Your children's motivation to participate
and excel in a sport is something that should come from within them, not
you."
a soccer
coaching philosophy
"Football
is just that - a game. It’s not about how many wins and losses are
accumulated. And, it is surely not about how many trophies are collected."
Too Much
Organization for Young Players; Let’s Allow Them to Learn With “Free Play”
"...why is it that soccer
players in Latin America are so good? [is
it because] they have little to no adult supervision
when they are young soccer players playing in the street or park?"
why children want
to play soccer
street soccer or P.E lesson?
86 ways to say "very good!"
4v4 games
how to use
small sided games in youth soccer coaching
newsletter archive
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