The Coach Diary Football Blog

Category: Irish Grassroots Football

  • “We can offer more”

    “We can offer more”

    I had originally posted this on Facebook.
    “The absolute cheek of a coach from ‘you know where’ to approach one of our players directly after the final whistle and suggest he join them, as they can offer him more, to quote “Trials in UK”. The child is TWELVE,, Let me tell you something MR., I am 100x the teacher of the game, mentor and life coach you will ever be and to insult my club and all the volunteers who work hard for it, by suggesting we can’t assist in the development of children, is absolutely disgusting. However, after speaking to you, unaware of the fact that you had gone behind my back and approached our player, I don’t expect anything less from an imbecile like you. Ps the next time you send members of your club over to our side of the pitch and continually stare at our kids, I’ll take this further. Development of players is much more than erroneous promises”.
    Some replies suggested, I name and shame and asked of the location of events? 
    ” No point in saying, most can guess. It was down at Kells. I don’t want this to turn into witch hunt. I just wanted to highlight the fact its completely and utterly wrong to approach children like that, even if its within the so called rules. Not forgetting that there are plenty of great coaches working and doing fantastic things with community clubs all across Ireland. Working with kids is much than teaching them about the game”.
    To Conclude
    I watched a documentary about depression in football and its scary to think that it can begin at a very young age and its all related to winning and losing, achieving success, false hopes and the pressure of being a professional in the game. If youth clubs weren’t motivated by MONEY, kids would be allowed enjoy the game without pressure and focus more on fun and their schooling. Ultimately that should be the number one goal. Football is a short career, 15 to 20 years and many leave the game with little or no Education or experience of real life.
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    I always like to hear your opinions. Please comment below or email me info@thecoachdiary.com If, you don’t have anything to add then please forward this on to a friend. Thanks for reading.

    I’m also on twitter @Coachdiary

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  • FIFA Small Sided Games Pitch Dimensions

    FIFA Small Sided Games Pitch Dimensions

    Download the FIFA Approved Pitch Dimensions for the Small Sided Games

    Download The Coach Diary doc here SSG Pitch Dimensions

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  • Elitism and why experts don’t like it.

    Elitism and why experts don’t like it.

    As we move away from non competition football at under age (SSG), it’s time we looked at our selection process. Meaning, why do we still grade (stream) kids at young at 9 & 10 and separate them into As, Bs and C teams?

    The Answer: Well, because we have always done that.

    “Approximately 99.8% of children will not make it to the professional level”

    Specialisation Fuels Elitism

    Some kids are early bloomers they enjoy success in sports because they develop faster, not because they have more ‘raw’ athletic talent. Some children – even if they appear to only be average athletes or lag behind his peers – may be late bloomers whose athletic talent will only become apparent later when they are 12/13; they may ultimately be more gifted athletes.

    Which leads me to discuss specialisation in a sport:

    One of the most dramatic developments in kids sports over the last ten or fifteen years has been the explosive growth, of  at earlier ages, of the number of highly selective, highly competitive sports teams (I’m referring to the so-called elite, select, premier and Development teams), and the related trend toward early specialisation (playing a single sport on all year-round and excluding all others).

     “Waiting to specialise until age 12 or 13, when the child is more physically and emotionally mature, helps ensure that he or she is participating in that sport because he or she wants to, rather than trying to fulfil a parent or coach’s dream,” Prof. Sickle explains, She notes that during this time period, parents should maintain a supportive role and be careful not to pressure their child to specialise in only one sport.”

    It’s crazy to think that parents are getting their children involved in academies as young as 3, 4 and even 5 years of age. In the increasingly winner takes all society, parents, coaches and clubs are desperate to get ahead of the rest. Looking ahead to future success in a sport or just keeping up with their neighbours. We have lost the playground.

    “Although there are sports programs designed for preschoolers, it’s not until about age 6 or 7 that most kids develop the appropriate physical skills or the attention span needed to listen to directions and grasp the rules of the game.”

    Many are under the illusion that playing for an Elite team is the only way to future success in a sport and it doesn’t help that Leagues, Coaches, Clubs and Representatives squads are fulling these illusions. Unfortunately very little study has been done in this area of sport in Ireland too erode this believe and that is why we continue to grade kids at young at 7, 8 and even 9. If we didn’t grade kids so young then parents wouldn’t be pressurised to getting their little ones involved so soon, but for most it’s a matter of competitive survival, my child is in the A team etc etc.

    “The number one reason (why they quit) is that it stopped being fun.”

    It’s time we rethink how we present youth sports to kids. 

    Last year the American Academy of Pediatrics challenged the conventional wisdom about the benefits of sports for young kids–namely, that it makes them better athletes and boosts their self-esteem.

    “Basic motor skills, such as throwing, catching, kicking, and hitting a ball, do not develop sooner simply as a result of introducing them to children at an early age.” – FACT

    The academy said. Too often, coaches teach skills that kids don’t have the physical maturity to learn. The result? Coaches get frustrated, and kids feel like failures, nobody wins! 

    Advantages for Early Bloomers

    Here are some of the advantages an early bloomer tends to receive:

    • More positive reinforcement and encouragement from adults;
    • Earlier and more extensive socialisation into sports;
    • Access to better coaching, facilities, and competitive experiences (i.e., places on “select teams”) and
    • The benefit of a “residual bias” from being viewed as a talented athlete at an early age.

    As a 2004 article in the Journal of Sports Behavior observes:

    Early selection for elite sport participants [thus] can become a self-fulfilling prophecy for athletes and coaches. Players begin to think of themselves as talented and are thus likely to invest more time and effort into their sport with predictable results. As the identity of previously selected players becomes known to coaches and administrators, they watch those players more closely lest they miss an elite performer.

    “Many studies have shown that specialisation in one sport at an early age, is actually detrimental to their performance.” “Certainly throughout later primary years and early secondary years – between the ages of ten and fifteen – kids should be given the opportunity to experience as many activities as they wish without pressure to select one or two to specialise in.” So says Dr. Martin Toms, Senior Lecturer in Sports Coaching at the School of Sport, Exercise & Rehabilitation Sciences at the University of Birmingham. See Early Specialisation

    Downsides to being early bloomer

    Although numerous advantages are conferred on an early bloomer, if your child experiences early success in sports, such success also has some downsides.

    An early bloomer:

    • Is often able to exploit his or her physical ability without having to work as hard at developing skills as less precocious players in order to stay competitive. When the others catch up physically, they may end up being better players because they have been forced to develop their skills while they grew into their bodies.
    • Often has to try to live up to heightened expectations; this may lead him to train and play more (e.g. multiple teams during the same season, for instance) than his young body can handle in order to live up to his reputation. Playing under this kind of pressure often leads to burnout and all that extra wear and tear on his body can lead to overuse injuries. We all know of kids who play for multiple teams.
    • May define himself by whether he wins or loses; if he or she is unable to maintain the success he had early in his sports career, if that self-image is shattered, the results can be disastrous and may lead them to quitting sports altogether.
    • May tempt her parents to push her to specialise too early and/or train too hard. Excessive training too often leads to burnout and/or overuse injuries, some of which don’t show up until high school or college, but can be traced to excessive training when the player was nine, ten or eleven. Parents need to avoid being lulled into valuing short-term success more than their child’s long-term future. If they don’t, they may be placing their child’s physical safety and emotional health at risk.

    Parenting Late Bloomers: Emphasise Skill Development

    If your child is an average athlete or lags behind his peers, he may be a late bloomer. Late bloomers receive markedly less social support and reinforcement from parents, coaches, and peers. Worse, the adults charged with the responsibility of evaluating “talent” – most of whom don’t understand developmental variability in children – may unfairly nip her career in the bud by concluding that he or she lacks the potential to play sports at the highest competitive levels. Denied a place on a elite, club, school, or secondary school team, the late bloomer is more likely to drop out of sports rather than keep playing until he/she blossoms (that is, achieves his full sports potential).

    Here are six important lessons for parents of potential late bloomers:

    1. Take a balanced approach. Do not to get too down if your child is not immediately a superstar or too high if he is. The important thing is that he continues to play, to develop and learn new skills.
    2. Emphasise the process and the journey, not the results achieved; therefore, avoid praising the outcome and instead praise effort;
    3. Help your child see herself as a whole person, not just as a player;
    4. Be realistic about possible reasons for early athletic success. Make sure your child understands that early success is not a guarantee of future success (and vice versa), working hard can be!
    5. Select a club that understands child development. Pick a club or sport that recognises that variability in the way children’s athletic talent develops by offering all children a chance to play as long as they want to.

    “Kids who delay sports specialisation are more coordinated and physically fit, studies show. Whether result of sports sampling or because better athletes play multiple sports is unclear.”

    Sampling sports Recommended For Most

    Based on their findings, the authors said it was “important that children before the age of 12 years [be] encouraged by their coaches, parents, and other training professionals to participate in sports other than just their ‘primary sport’, preferably in combination with many hours per week spent in their sports.”

    The study also recognised, however, that the fact that those who specialise early may experience a more rapid improvement in performance provides some support for those who argue in favour of early specialisation, at least in the case of sports, such as figure skating and gymnastics, in which athletic careers are shorter and attaining peak performance at a younger age may be advantageous.

    It therefore concludes that “an awareness on the part of coaches, parents, and training professionals of the advantages and disadvantages associated with early specialisation and early diversification” is essential.

    Elitism

    Many studies as far back as 1990 has proven that selecting the best over the rest at a young age generally has a negative impact on the so called weaker kids, but has absolutely no influences on the development of the ‘better’ kids.

    “The fact that it is close to impossible to predict with any degree of accuracy which players at age 8, 9 or 10 will be “stars” at age fifteen, sixteen or seventeen, makes more sense to mix the kids”.

    In fact there is no proof that forcing “best” players to play with those who appear at an early age to be less skilled somehow keeps them from developing their “talent.” – As Michigan State’s Daniel Gould observes in a 2004 article,

    “All children need coaches who are trained to be positive and encouraging,” and that “young athletes who play for such positive and encouraging coaches have higher motivation, enhanced self-esteem, lower anxiety and lower dropout rates than children who play for coaches without these qualities.”

    I can understand why we are still grading teams at age 9 and 10, because it’s something we have always done and no one has suggested otherwise. If it’s the case that the weaker players can’t play with better players then the same should be of the so-called “better” or “more talented” players do not deserve to play with “gifted” players. Grading should not commence until u12s level. Every child deserves the chance to play, have the best coaching, and to play on the best pitches. After all, every kids pays the same amount of money, so he/she deserves the best return for that amount.

    The fact that it is close to impossible to predict with any degree of accuracy which players at age nine, ten or eleven will be “stars” at age fifteen, sixteen or seventeen, makes more sense to mix the kids.

    “development is age related, it is not age dependent.”

    I would like to here your thoughts on this, do you think grading kids at age 8, 9, 10, is acceptable? Do junior schools still stream?

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    Reference: Home Team Advantage: The Critical Role of Mothers in Youth Sports (HarperCollins 2006) by Brooke de Lench

    1. Franzen J, Pion J, et. al. Differences in physical fitness and gross motor coordination in boys aged 6-12 years specializing in one versus sampling more than one sport. Journal of Sports Sciences, DOI:10.1080/02640414.2011.642808 (available online ahead of print: 03 Jan 2012).

    2. Jayanthi N, Pinkham C, Dugas L, Patrick B, LaBella C. Sports Specialization in Young Athletes: Evidence-Based Recommendations. Sports Health: A Multidisciplinary Approach 2012;20(10). DOI: 10.1177/1941738112464626 (published October 25, 2012 ahead of print).

    See also the  The Beautiful Game

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    I always like to hear your opinions. Please comment below or email me info@thecoachdiary.com If, you don’t have anything to add then please forward this on to a friend. Thanks for reading.

    I’m also on twitter @Coachdiary

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  • My Core Values

    My Core Values

    I had a very positive meeting with a fellow coach the other day. I enjoy meeting up with other coaches because just like coaching sessions you always learn something new.

    We spoke about about core values and how to develop your own. I have them in my head but never wrote them down. That meeting has made me do just that.

    What Are Core Coaching Values?

    For example, some people love to repair or fix stuff – as kids, they took apart their toys only to put them back together, and as adults they still love fixing in the garage. So “Repairing” is a value for them – they don’t have to force themselves to fix stuff, they just do it.

    The values underlie our work, how interact with each other, and which strategies we employ to our mission.  The core values are the basic elements of how we go about our work.  They are the practices we use (or should be using) every day in everything we do. I believe that one of the best way to make a positive impact on your team and teach your players life lessons is to develop your own list of core values.

    This is a list that you carry with you all the time and you should clearly emphasise these core values with your team.

    “It is your consistency in behaviour which creates respect and trust in your players, leading to a quality relationship”. – Not Sure who?

    It MUST be written down…

    Research suggest this is one of the best things you can do as a coach. Your message will get clearer. You’ll have a more profound impact on your players. They will respect you. They will work harder. And you will feel better about the impact you’re having on the team by implementing them.

    When JOHN WOODEN, the great coach at UCLA finished 2nd year, his father gave him a card entitled, 7 Suggestions to Follow.

    They were:

    • Be true to yourself.
    • Help others.
    • Make each day your masterpiece.
    • Drink deeply from good books, especially the Good Book.
    • Make friendship a fine art.
    • Build a shelter for a rainy day.
    • Pray for guidance and count and give thanks for your blessings each day.

    Wooden kept a copy of the card in his pocket the rest of his life and used these philosophies in coaching.

    “Let’s face it. You can’t teach your players all the hundreds of life lessons there are to teach. But if you FOCUS on a small set of core values every day in your practices and actions, you can have a tremendous positive effect on your players”.

    Consistency is vital. Focus is vital. Repetition is vital.

    “Repeating the same things over and over again until the players themselves are the ones repeating it back to you.”

    All coaches should have their own list of documented and clear core values

    I’ve just finished my own list. All of the things on my list will have special meaning and make sense to me. I believe in them. I have been working on them for sometime now (in my head) and when you do yours, spend the time needed to get them just right. Try and spend sometime developing yours but then again you might want to put yours together quickly, so you have them for the coming season. Either way, just by having something written down you’ll be helping the players you coach.

    “The goal of the staff at La Masia is to provide young kids with an education that goes far beyond football tactics and technique; it makes them good people, with strong values.” FCB

    The idea of core values as discussed here was first presented by the late Thomas Leonard, a pioneer in the field of life coaching.

     List of Core ValuesMy Core Values: 

    Mission: To improve Participation, Positive Learning and Development.

     
    Playing Sport is one of the greatest journeys in life that begins from a very young age and can continue throughout our lives, culminating in lifelong memories of joy, despair, happiness and friendships.

     

     

    LEARNING (Care, Education, Growth, Personal Growth)

    I’ll always be a learner – always educating myself to improve and do better for the players I coach. The heart of education is learning, so it is my belief that I should model this at all times.  But I also try to create an environment that supports coaches and players on their journey as well. I want every player I coach to know that I was once a player and that I care about how they perform. I want to learn from them, just as much as they will learn from me. You will learn that mistakes are part of the process, however at all times we will work and focus on success not failure. I will place the interest of the the people I work with first in everything I do. The Fundamental goal is to keep kids enjoying Sport for life.

    “The very best coaches teach you more than technique and tactics of a sport, they teach you about life.”

     “Tell me and I’ll forget; show me and I may remember; involve me and I’ll understand.”

    HEALTH (Food, Mindset, Lifestyle, Fitness, Fun & Habits)

    I value my health more than anything in my life. Without it, you have nothing; you can’t do very much and it can also affect you mentality. I value my mental, social, physical, emotional and spiritual health and will encourage others do value theirs. Creating a culture of health and well-being is important to me. There is no better feeling in the world, than that feeling after you have worked out, this is what fuels my fire.

    “Physical fitness is not only one of the most important keys to a healthy body, it is the basis of dynamic and creative intellectual activity.” John F. Kennedy

    TEAMWORK (Enjoyment, Eagerness, Goals, Improve, Pride, Relationships & Respect)

    I believe in the value of teamwork and spirit of cooperative effort. Every member in the team has to perform and contribute in his best possible way to achieve a common predefined goal. Individual performances do not count in a team and it is the collective performance of the players, which matters the most. I take pride and everyone plays a part.

    Teamwork in football is the most important aspect of the team dynamic.

    • I will demonstrate compassion and respect for each other.
    • I will always work hard to create a team environment and fun atmosphere.
    • I will make sure we always work together and help each other.
    • I will encourage growth and positive learning, a will to win and desire to never stop learning.
    • Developing strong relationships, respecting others, and showing sincere care to everyone around you.

    This is something we will embrace as a team. Healthy competition will be encouraged and team members will be motivated to perform and improve. Teams members will learn to appreciate individual skill and game intelligence. We play to win but not at all cost and recognise both endeavour and achievement. Working for the welfare of the team. Each individual working for the team not himself. 

    “Coming together is a beginning. Keeping together is progress. Working together is success.”

    “I’ve worked too hard and too long to let anything stand in the way of my goals. I will not let my teammates down, and I will not let myself down.” – Mia Hamm

    ATTITUDE (Choice, Discipline, Focus, Performance, Positivity, Train)

    For success attitude is equally as important as ability. I will strive to have a positive attitude in practice, games, and all aspects of my live. My attitude is what defines me. My attitude affects me and the people around me. My attitude affects my performance in games and training. As a coach, I should spend most of my time thinking about the positive things, the players are doing – versus dwelling on the negative ones (mistakes). I focus on the things I can control. I must always consciously train and perform. I will always have a “proactive” attitude.

    Just remember that every moment, every situation, provides a new choice, the effort is the same. This means that life is what I make of it. I choose happiness. I choose sadness. I choose decisiveness. I choose success. I choose failure. I choose courage. I choose fear and in doing so, it gives me a perfect opportunity to do things differently to produce more positive results. Having a proactive attitude is about taking responsibility for my life. I will have a positive and proactive attitude in everything we do.

    “Attitude is a little thing that makes a big difference.”

    “Talent wins games, but teamwork and intelligence wins championships.” – Michael Jordan

    HONESTY (Integrity, Morality, Sportsmanship & Trust)

    Some believe Honesty is the beginning of education. For us to succeed we must have honesty and we must trust each other. This is one of the most important things you can do. Honesty applies to your life in countless ways and it can have different meanings. I must search for those meanings.

    • An honest person is someone that can be trusted and relied upon.
    • An honest person completes their agreements and promises.
    • An honest person is also someone that lives with integrity and character, is reliable and someone that others can count on.

    Be responsible. Live with integrity and character. Be a good sport. Be true to yourself.

    The trust I hold will be fulfilled with professionalism, conscientiousness, and respect for the people I coach. Trust is an important part of learning; if a player trusts me then he/she will do their best for the team. If there is trust, then players are more apt to take risks.

    Integrity, it’s a big word and one that gets used a lot.  However, I believe it’s essential to build trust and relationships. I think it imperative to be true to what I say and what I believe. It is important to walk the walk and follow through with promises.  I will observe fair play both on and off the pitch and will be generous in victory and dignified in defeat. Mutual respect forms the basis of our team. Without integrity, my message is lost.

    “Each time you are honest and conduct yourself with honesty, a success force will drive you toward greater success. Each time you lie, even with a little white lie, there are strong forces pushing you toward failure”. 

    “I am a member of a team, and I rely on the team, I defer to it and sacrifice for it, because the team, not the individual, is the ultimate champion.” – Mia Hamm 

    HARD WORK (Determination, Discipline, Effort, Mental Strength, Patient, Perseverance, Success & Toughness)

    In life there are certain things you cannot control. But there is one thing you can control 100% of the time — YOUR EFFORT. I have 100% control of my effort. I have a choice give 1% 10% 50% or 100%,  because of that I expect the same from the people I coach to ALWAYS give their best effort. Even 1% more is working harder. There is no excuse I can give because I have control over it.  As a players, you might miss a few chances. You might give the ball away, but it’s the effort you make to get it back. You won’t always play well, but you can always give it your best effort. As a coach I can live with mistakes, it’s part of the process, but what I can’t live with is anything less than your maximum effort.

    • You will always get 100% from me.
    • It’s important to be in the moment!
    • Focus on what you’re doing, when you’re doing it! 
    • There is no substitute for hard work. Hard work almost always pays off. 

    “Sportsmanship for me is when a guy walks off the court and you really can’t tell whether he won or lost, when he carries himself with pride either way.” – Jim Courier

    “The harder you work, the luckier you get.”

    My Teams

    My teams we will strive to show incredible perseverance and resiliency, with a never say die attitude. We will play through mistakes and always stick to our philosophy. I believe it’s critical to always persevere — never give up and don’t be afraid to make mistakes. Anything is possible through hard work and perseverance. Through perseverance, hard work and determination, we are committed to bringing success to our team. All the very best Olympians achieved success to participate in world-class event because of their enduring persistence and how they keep on going in spite of all the challenges they face along their journey. Perseverance brings Success. Not only in sports can we find perseverance a common characteristic of people with success, we can find this to be common in all different areas of life. I will keep reminding myself that success only likes people who are determined and keep going no matter what it takes!

    “Perseverance is the hard work you do after you get tired of doing the hard work you already did.” – Newt Gingrich

    “Desire is the key to motivation, but it’s determination and commitment to an unrelenting pursuit of your goal – a commitment to excellence – that will enable you to attain the success you seek.” – Mario Andretti

    That’s them all, for now!

    All my players will play with a smile (and always have fun…)

    The single most important aspect of playing sport is having FUN. We are going to work hard, but enjoy the process and hopefully with lots of success, but always having fun. Enjoy improving and learning at every opportunity. My playing days, were some of the best times of my life, they still are. No I didn’t always play, start, or do well – I wasn’t always on the A team and Yes, it was hard work at times but, I loved it and learned from it. I say to my players to focus on the things you are good at and work to improve at each and every opportunity. Enjoy the process and put your energy into the positive things. (Always give thanks)

    For now, these are my core values, which I can’t imagine will change much. Hopefully you can get some inspiration to write down yours. These will help me remember what is important. Thanks to Mike O’Toole for suggesting I write them down.

    I particularly like these quotes, along with all the others ones:

    “The Spirit of Sports: The spirit of sports gives each of us who participate an opportunity to be creative. Sports knows no sex, age, race or religion. Sports gives us all the ability to test ourselves mentally, physically and emotionally in a way no other aspect of life can. For many of us who struggle with ‘fitting in’ or our identity – sports gives us our first face of confidence. That first bit of confidence can be a gateway to many other great things!” – Dan O’Brien 

    “In the end, it’s extra effort that separates a winner from second place. But winning takes a lot more that, too. It starts with complete command of the fundamentals. Then it takes desire, determination, discipline, and self-sacrifice. And finally, it takes a great deal of love, fairness and respect for your fellow man. Put all these together, and even if you don’t win, how can you lose?” – Jesse Owens

    I’d like to know what you think and please send me yours.

    -End

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  • How to Develop Speed with Mike Antoniades – BOOK NOW

    How to Develop Speed with Mike Antoniades – BOOK NOW

    SPEED WORKSHOP

    NOTE: DATE NOW CONFIRMED – SATURDAY 7 DECEMBER 2013

    BOOK NOW

    CALL 087 218 3837 For Further Info

    How to develop Speed & Acceleration

    Without doubt, one of the greatest concerns among today’s athletes and coaches in all sports is how to improve Speed and Power. The workshop will focus on developing Speed and Acceleration for multi-directional sports, covering the theory, coaching methodology and practical demonstrations.  This 1 day workshop is for both coaches and athletes who want to learn how to develop and coach Speed.

    No matter what your starting point you can always get faster!

    Speed and quickness are skills that can be taught and not just something you were born with. By using a number of specialised acceleration training techniques and football specific conditioning protocols, which stimulate both the muscular and the nervous system, athletes can improve their speed, agility, acceleration and power. These techniques have been used with academy and professional football teams in the UK and Europe with great success in injury prevention and multidirectional speed development.           

    Did you know?

    65% of footballers over the age of 13 are slower turning on one side than the other, by up to 0.65 of a second.

    Many footballers can improve their speed and quickness just by correcting their running biomechanics.

    Reactive Speed can be improved by up to 30% with the correct training in just four weeks.

    If youngsters don’t acquire the basic movement skills by the age of 12 then they will very rarely make professional footballers

    Speed Workshop Agenda

    1 Day course

    1. Theory Presentation 

    • Biomechanics of multidirectional sport
    • How to develop Speed & Acceleration
    • Long term athlete development
    • When & How to train?
    • The Importance of functional movement
    • Case Studies
    • Question & Answer session

    2. Practical session –

    • Running Bionechancis
    • Dynamic Movement Skills
    • Quickness
    • Turning Ability
    • Acceleration & Deceleration

    3. Q&A

    4. BREAK

    5. Practical session 

    • Explosiveness
    • Speed Development
    • Strength & Power

    6. Question & Answer Session – Finish at 5.30pm 

    Details:

    When: Saturday 7th December

    Time: Start 12.30 – Finish 5.30pm

    Cost: €25

    Location: NDSL Academy – Oscar Traynor Coaching & Development Centre

    Oscar Traynor Road – Coolock D17

    Email: info@thecoachdiary.com

    Mobile: 087 218 3837

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  • Understanding our Children. We have a lot to learn.

    Understanding our Children. We have a lot to learn.

    Just finished an event on Child and Adolescent Psychology (ESCAP 2013) which ran for 5 days at the Convention Centre in Dublin. One thing came to mind, why do we have so many Child Psychiatrists?

    The answer, I have come to believe is because we have failed our children, we have failed to understand them, we also put to much pressure on them to understand things before their time. In a way we allow them to grow up too quickly and then expect them to understand everything a adult does. We no longer let kids be kids and when they do cry for help, we don’t understand them or the support is not there to help them.

    Stigma, mental health, child abuse, we have failed our children and continue to do so. There are over 30 organisations in Ireland devoted to child services and over 50 devoted child and adolescent. These services are busier than ever and in fact are under huge pressure to stay up and running. The Child Mental Health coalition was set-up to put pressure on the government to do more for the kids of Ireland. Their vision is..

    “That Ireland should be one of the best places in the world to be a child, where every child’s right to mental health is realised. Not only does the Government have an obligation to improve the lives of children in Ireland, it has the power to make this happen”.

    If you put child mental health into google search, you will be very surprised to see the vast amount of organisations operating in Ireland in this field. So that tells me that Mental Health is now an everyday issue, so there should no longer be stigma attached to child mental health or mental health in general. The quicker we accept it and understand the quicker we can help our children and this might prevent another death by suicide and devastation for another Irish family.

    95% of Irish people believe that talking to a friend or family member is helpful for looking after mental health. Reports have also shown that many are socially isolated and don’t have many friends or get out and about very often. That’s why we must encourage people to not only look after their own mental health but also that of others. It is no wonder there is still such a stigma surrounding mental health problems when the “mental” word is not even part of the child health vocabulary of parents and service providers. It is as if mental health is irrelevant to small children and it shouldn’t be. Your mental health is so important.

    Obligations

    As people who are regularly in touch with children of all ages we have an obligation to keep them in sport for as long as we can. Reports have proven that the positive, direct effects of engaging in regular physical activity are particularly apparent in the prevention of several chronic diseases, including: cardiovascular disease, diabetes, cancer, hypertension, obesity, depression and osteoporosis. A number of studies have shown that exercise may play a therapeutic role in addressing a number of psychological disorders and it has also shown that sport has a positive influence on depression.

    “Be careful how you speak to your children, one day it will become their inner voice”

    Physical self-worth and physical self-perception, including body image, has been linked to improved self-esteem. The evidence relating to health benefits of physical activity predominantly focuses on intra-personal factors such as physiological, cognitive and affective benefits, however, that does not exclude the social and inter-personal benefits of sport and physical activity which can also produce positive health effects in individuals and communities.

    Let keep kids healthy, let’s keep our kids in Sport.

    Worth a Listen

    Jim McGuinness on the benefits of Sport   (Mental Health piece starts 28mins in)

    Gever Tulley talks about ‘5 dangerous things for kids’ 

    Ruby Wax on Mental Health

    ===================================================

    I always like to hear your opinions. Please comment below or email me info@thecoachdiary.com If, you don’t have anything to add then please forward this on to a friend. Thanks for reading.

    I’m also on twitter @Coachdiary

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  • DDSL SSG Changes are very Positive..

    DDSL SSG Changes are very Positive..

    After several weeks of much discussion, meetings of various clubs around Dublin, the SSG working Group along with the DDSL have come with the following changes starting this summer with immediate effect.

    They stressed that the main focus remained to introduce a more soccer friendly and non-competition environment. The focus is ensuring that players get to play more football; more focus on coaching and to educate parents to remain behind the rope, not coach the kids and support the coaches/managers. They also want clubs to work together and make sure that soccer in Dublin is much more player focused and less about adult egos.

    “SSG Group to remains in place for a minimum of 12 months to monitor and improve any changes accepted. This would also allow for improving in coaching and assisting DDSL clubs, coaches and players”.

    This is what is going happen:

    Under 7 to remain within their club academies for further development and coaching.

    Under 8s (2006) & under 9 (2005)

    Focus on the following: 

    • Children should play in relevant age group.
    • Aim is to bring these age groups into a more soccer friendly and non-competition environment.
    • Focus is on ensuring players get to PLAY more and encourage managers to become more skilful.
    • We need to educate parents on how to their behaviour affects children’s playing/learning “Don’t cross the line” roping of all pitches is to encouraged in all clubs. 

    How the game is played:  

    • Team of 10 to make of two games
    • Play in regionalised events
    • DDSL to set fixtures every week
    • Teams to play across the current small-sided pitch, enabling 2 games to take place at the same time i.e. if a team arrives with 10 players and the opposition also have ten, then 2 x 5v5 games can be played. If a team arrives with 9 players, then a 5v5 and 4v4 should be played.
    • 7v7 Goals should be turned on their back to make a smaller goal or use a 5 aside goals.
    • Each game to be 3×10 mins with a 2 minuted interval between each quarter.
    • No ref/Non-Competition (It doesn’t count for anything, just FUN)
    • No Match cards
    • No Results
    • No league Tables
    • Play for fun and learn foot-skill
    • Pitch Roped Off (Standard is 5 feet away from the line)
    • Size 3 ball must be used
    • All players must play
    • All groups will be renamed to colours rather then grading of A, A1, B etc
    • Each Group will be made up of 10/12 teams so no moving at Christmas
    • No playing on Bank Holidays weekends
    • If teams missing players they can still travel with 8/9 players (play 2 x 4 aside)
    • Pitch dimensions: play across current SSG pitch then the two matches can take place at the same time.

    Under 10:

    • No change with current playing system
    • Play 7 aside
    • DDSL to set fixture every week
    • For the coming session this will be competition football as they are coming out from playing u9s which was competitive.
    • Official refs to be appointed by League €15.00 (Unless FAI alter fee)
    • Play 20 mins each way.
    • All players must play.
    • Size 4 ball to be used.
    • Play in 6 team divisions up to Christmas and re-grade after Christmas for League.
    • Pitch Dimension: 70 yards Long and 50 yards wide.

    Under 11:

    • Play 7-a- side.
    • DDSL to set fixtures every week.
    • Official referees to be appointed by League – €15.00 per match.
    • Play 20 mins each way.
    • All players must play.
    • Size 4 ball to be used.
    • Play in 6 team divisions up to Christmas and re-grade after Christmas for League.
    • Pitch Dimension: 70 yards Long and 50 yards wide.

     Under 12:

    • Play 9- a- side on Saturday ONLY (for this year as teams played for top 5 Sat & top 5 Sun from u11s).
    • Play on 11 a side pitch from 18 yard line to 18 yard line (different colour paint can be used to mark out the pitch lines).
    • Use same 11 aside sidelines.
    • Play 30 mins each way.
    • All players must play.
    • Official referees to be appointed by League – €24.00.
    • Small Sided Goals to be used. (Would be great to bring in the European style 6x2m goal)
    • No Offside.
    • Play in 10 team divisions to streamline the transition into u13 next season.

    Next Season (2014/2015) both Sat and Sun top 5 teams from each A division get 13 Premier.

    Other Suggestion by the SSG group:

    • Bringing the u10’s into non- competition football from the season 2014/2015
    • u11’s into non-competition football from the season 2015/2016.
    • This would mean that no leagues, no cups until u12s.
    • SSG Group to remains in place for a minimum of 12 months to monitor and improve any changes accepted.
    • This would also allow for improving in coaching and assisting DDSL clubs, coaches and players.

    All in all I think this is a very positive move by the DDSL, it may not be what everyone wants but it’s certainly a step in the right direction and the SSG working group is going to be in place for another year which is fantastic news.

    I would also like to see the following eventually brought in:

    • A retreat line from to u9s
    • 9v9 played at u13
    • 9v9 up to u14s for certain levels
    • Move to 11v11 at u14s
    • Size 4 ball for u13s
    • Roll on and roll off up to u16s (Minimum)

    Let me know what other leagues are doing the coming season and of course I’m always interested in hearing your views.

    Another great post from Blueprint for football Great Coaches=Better Players

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