Thanks to Paul O'Brien for this one........

We are 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.

I knew I was better at football than the others in the playground, although the teachers just looked at my size and that was against me from the start."
Alan Ball (Ball was never selected for his school side despite winning a World Cup winners medal some 4 years later at the age of 19)


As parents, if we're looking to develop a positive attitude in our children, we would do well to watch our own behaviour at matches. Do we give positive encouragement, or critical judgmental remarks? Do we show a calm demeanor, or heated overreactions to mistakes?
Do we praise participation, or match statistics, or the final score?
Next time you go to a match, remember, your attitude is showing, and your kids are watching.
Darell J. Burnett - Clinical & Sport Psychologist


I listened to an interesting interview the other day with (I can't remember his name) a top sports scientist, who said the evidence now shows that coaching in sessions only improves the performance in the session itself. It does not transfer over into games very well, and the best way that kids will learn, is by themselves. It really is about providing the environment and letting them get on with it.
I went to a christening on Saturday and back to my brother's house after for a bun fight. My 4 year old nephew and his mate played football non stop in the garden from about 12.30 up until it got dark.

At one point they set up two goals made from a pair of flip flops at one end and two sausage rolls at the other, about 5 yards apart. They were lying on their sides taking alternate shots. When someone told them to get up, my nephew said "NO, we’re playing sit down football!"

It was great, but what struck me was the technique they picked up stretched out on their sides. They were getting a lot of power for 4 year olds and were very accurate! They just made it all up by themselves.

It was a brilliant day and I learned something else about kids and football.”
Richard Webb - Coach

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