Next time you have a game try not to say anything for 5 minutes and listen to all the shouting that is going on, you will be amazed. What I find astonishing is the many instructions people are shouting at the kids.

Someone asked me where is the best football being played in the world? My answer was, on the streets, where it’s always been played, in the neighborhoods and towns in Europe and South America. Some Children still hit the streets for hours every day, playing on bad surfaces, kicking at lap posts, dribbling around bins and parked cars, weaving and dodging various obstacles. Not a single coach or parent in sight. After many years, some of these kids emerge as the most formidable and elite football players in the world.

Is it still happening in Ireland?, I think not; well I certainly very rarely see a kid walking with his mates with football in hand. I never see kids on the streets playing ball anymore. I worry for football in Ireland, every year less and less kids go to England, less and less go to the top clubs. Every year more kids then ever leave football and go and play other sports, like GAA and Rugby why we ask? Well no-one has asked why in Ireland and no report has ever been done about grassroots football, scary as it may be, I think its time we went deep into the roots of the game to see what is really happening to our beloved game and why kids are losing interest and some even walking away for good. In terms of facilities and coaching we have never been in a better position, we have more coaches now then ever and most clubs facilities are top, bumpy pitches and limited equipment are a things of the past, well in most areas!