Swagger is Back

I have had a brilliant summer watching hundreds of games as part of the Give Us Back Our Game fun days.
Although the main fun day was back in June, most weekends since have seen at least one event staged.

Kids, football & failure

In 2006, when the Three Lions failed at the World Cup again and England was once more gripped by the inevitable heart-searching, analysis and post mortems, did anyone remember the words Sir Bobby Charlton spoke after the 1966 triumph: “The World Cup wasn’t won on the playing fields of England. It was won on the streets.”

An Alternative Match Day Programme For Clubs

The current match day programmes have not always been working in the best interest of children, especially the younger ones.
There is at present little choice and as early as U7s, coaches are sucked into a competitive environment which makes it difficult to cope with and let all the children play as well as keeping parents happy. 

No More Subs

Why do we have substitutes in children’s football? The simple answer is that they are in the adult game which we see on TV and this is sadly what children’s football has become.

4v4 Fun day 2007

The worldwide fun day was a fantastic success with events taking place in sixteen countries. I would like to thank everyone who gave up their time to make sure the kids had fun. Your kindness and generosity will be remembered forever.</p>

The Adult Impact

Nobody is born a great footballer. Every Rooney, Ronaldo, Henry or Cannavaro has to become that good. Top players have to have had the right mix of attitude and capability otherwise they would not have stayed the course and made the grade. LEARNING is at the core of this process.

Win at all costs VS Development

Are you a new coach starting out with a bunch of bright eyed children, and thrust straight into a seven a side friendly league? You will find a mixture of ‘win at all cost’ teams and development teams in the league and probably also a mixture at you club.

Sausage Rolls for Goalposts

The loss of imagination and creativity starts the first time a child kicks a ball, always using their toes. “Not that way, this way.”

Trouble in the Playground

The lunatics have definitely taken over the asylum and built a £46 million super school in Peterborough for 2,000 pupils without a playground.

'Park Life'

With summer here it is time to get down the park for a game of footie.