Youth football teams, or boys clubs as they are often referred to in Scotland, regularly place advertisements in the local area in order to attract new players. A couple of recent adverts, both for the Under 12 age group, stood out – at the bottom of each was a requirement:
Previous boys club experience required
Basically, any 10 or 11 year old hoping to play for either of these teams, must have played for another side previously. While nobody is expecting a kid who has barely kicked a ball to go straight into a competitive game, surely this type of rule is harsh?
With this way of thinking, potentially talented young players who do not meet the criteria will slip through the net. For instance, some kids will have played non-competitive games at Primary School or attended skills classes organised by the local council or private organisations.
Then there are youngsters who are multi-talented, and divide their attentions between more than one sport, before deciding on football. Also, some boys and girls at this age may have simply played with friends for the enjoyment of kicking a ball around. They will be denied the opportunity of displaying and developing any natural ability, simply because their ‘CV’ isn’t up to scratch.
So who are the beneficiaries of this policy? Clearly it’s not the kids looking for a game of football. More likely it’s some of the coaches. Unfortunately, there are still some out there who think that, regardless of the age group, it’s all about winning.
You know the type – the wannabe Jose Mourinho’s who patrol the touchline, constantly barking orders, and thinking nothing of tearing a strip off any young player who dares to misplace a pass. Learning the basics and improving is secondary to moving the ball upfield as quickly as possible, and aiming for three points on a Saturday or Sunday morning. Granted, kids have to be exposed to football with a more competitive edge eventually, but for kids of Primary School age, the result isn’t the be all and end all.
These coaches will tell you how many trophies they’ve won and how good their team is, but will forget about those kids who faithfully turn up to training every week, and other than the occasional 5-10 minutes on the pitch, spend match day standing on the sidelines as a sub. What are they going to learn there, other than to wear a warm jacket in winter?
Then there is the social aspect. We don’t all turn out to be like Messi or Kaka, but youth football isn’t all about developing future talent. It’s about allowing kids to enjoy themselves while working as part of a team, and learning the importance of self-discipline. It also provides regular exercise, which is crucial in an era when childhood obesity is a huge problem in the UK. Ignoring youngsters because they haven’t played for another team could drive them away from the game altogether. There are plenty of other distractions nowadays, both health and unhealthy.
This isn’t an attack on youth football. Every week, thousands of selfless, dedicated people help children to play the game they love. In recent years the emphasis has moved away from the pressure of league titles and cup finals to small sided games, where kids become more involved and have more touches of the ball. Sadly, some clubs have failed to move with the times. Next time one of them places an advertisement for a coach, perhaps it should read something like this:
Experience of allowing young people to participate in, and enjoy, football is required.
Written by William Heaney
William, interesting stuff. Like you, I can’t understand what the benefit of that rule is. It just stops kids playing and could make clubs miss out on good players.
I was interested in what you said about the coaches putting the emphasis on winning rather than developing their players. I remember when I was a kid, training sessions for my Sunday league team were just running exercises and then a 5-a-side game at the end. We did hardly any work on skills. During the matches themselves, you’d hear the parents shouting “Get stuck in” and “Battle”. Any kid trying to beat a man would be told to stop fannying around or something similar. If there was a skilful kid on the other side, we’d be told to “Hit him early” to frighten him a bit.
When we got to a cup final, we played at the local non-league side’s ground, a full-size senior pitch, we were only 10!
I’ve done the level 1 and 2 FA coaching badges and the way they plan to teach youngster is way behind the times. One particular incident which I could not get my head around was their attitude to slide tackling.
I asked them how we would show a child how to do it and they said we don’t teach them that as if they get the basics right then they’ll never need to use it. I find ignorance absolutely absurd as they could be teaching kids how to win the ball cleanly and effectively. If they acquired that skill then it may also cut out the terrible tackles that happen in the modern game today.
The FA are too rigid and way behind the times – Geoff we played all our home games at my town’s full size stadium – great experience but the pitch was massive and if you weren’t a good player you’d hardly get a touch!
One positive development I have heard about is that in some kids leagues, when the keeper has possession of the ball, the opposition must retreat to their own half. This allows the team with the ball to bring it out from the back, rather than going for a hopeful punt up the park.
I had a similar experience of a big pitch when I was at Primary School. We played a league decider on an old-fashioned ash park where we would have needed a bus to travel from one end to the other. It rained constantly so there were puddles everywhere…and we lost.
It’s absurd isn’t it, you should never have played 11-a-side football until you are 16 years old or so. Keep it to 7s all the way through until that age and you will get players used to receiving the ball and having to move intelligently to find pace on the small pitches. You would also get more teams from the same school so including more players, you effectively have a team of 14 rather than 11.
One other aspect I like that occurs on the continent yet seldom on these shores is the rotation of positions. You may have a player say who is clearly the best striker in the team, yet in Holland he would play in a different position every week. That experience is brilliant I think in developing them as players, they learn how to deal with situations in every corner of the pitch, what team-mates expect of them and what they want in return. In terms of reading the game and learning how to move intelligently into space it’s a great tool.
The competitiveness of the grass roots game is important, but placing an emphasis on results only discourages players from taking risks and trying something new. When a player gets to the professional game, how many people will be interested in what he won as an under 14 in Bristol? What I don’t understand is why the coaches have the mentality they do, as you say they want to appear successful, but if I were still coaching kids football, I would see myself as successful if those kids went on to better things even if they won nothing whilst under my charge.
William, great piece, plenty to think about. I have some experience coaching kids soccer here in New York, where my 8 year old son has been playing in leagues for about 3 years, and his 5 year old brother is just about to start. What I’ve found is that it’s all about balance; enjoying the game while remaining competitive, nurturing roles while ensuring experience of all positions on the pitch, helping the talented kids to really develop their skills while making sure the less talented/focused don’t feel left out.
What you invariably find is that the kids themselves want to win. The US can be a very politically correct place, and in one of the leagues I’ve been involved in, there’s a prohibition on keeping score, lest the losing team should feel even more hopeless. Fact is, the kids themselves keep score, which means you get the amusing sight of a bunch of 7 year olds yelling, “we’re winning 4-1″ while the adult ref forlornly intones, “hey guys, we’re not keeping score, remember?”
They key to success lies in regular practice, which creates a team identity – the matches are the most fun part of the week, but they are not the most important. If a player picks up something new at practice and has the confidence to try it out in a competitive situation, then the games become a learning experience. An intelligent coach who is also mindful of the desire to win will be more likely to experiment, rather than just playing the kids in exactly the same positions as when the team last won a game.
One final observation. If you are coaching your own kid’s team, be discreet with what you say in front of them. After an encounter last season, I told my wife that I’d nicknamed the coach of another team “Mad Dad”. A couple of weeks ago, we rolled up to play this fellow’s team; “Look Daddy,” my 8 year old said to me loudly, pointing at him. “It’s Mad Dad”. Honestly, I wanted the ground to swallow me up!
Ben, thanks for your comments. I agree with your point regarding finding a balance. A lot of 7 and 8 year olds in Scotland (and I’m sure elsewhere) play matches were there is a scoreline, thus providing some kind of competition, but no league table. I’m in favour of this approach as kids of that age don’t feel demoralised by seeing their at the bottom, but are exposed to winning and losing.