It’s 8 am, on a cold foggy winter’s day in Sydney. Buses slowly arrive to Jamieson Park in Penrith for the 2010 Primary CSSA NSW Cup. Excited 9–12 year olds scurry across the eight fields, all of which were given an international alias. For these 100 youngsters, playing in the ‘MCG’ may not be too far away.
I had been given three days notice beforehand to rock up to Penrith and referee these kids from all around the state. The standard I had expected was similar to a general consensus.
I was pleasantly surprised, however, as were many of the other officials.
It has been commonly argued that Australian Football officials have not turned to the next generation of footballers. With our golden cohort hitting their mid 30s, no one has really hit the title of the next ‘Tim Cahill’ or the next ‘Harry Kewell’ (notable exception being James Troisi, who crashed whilst at Newcastle United).
I mean sure, we do have the likes of Nicky Carle, Adam Federici and Scott McDonald, but we will lack the strength of the 2006 golden boys.
But enough argument on public opinion. I’m sure these boys will be able to step up and hold their own on the international scene. We should stop whinging about our next World Cup, but turn our focus to the future.
Here’s an idea, FFA, let’s turn our focus on the grassroots.
And yes, we have already started, but take a good look. We’re not trying hard enough. These kids are going to grow up with the names Sydney FC, Melbourne Victory and Central Coast. The effects are already showing.
In five years, the standard of junior football has almost doubled. The FFA needs to seize on that.
The NRL have already done a good job of this, and we need to take a leaf out of their book, especially if the Rovers want to successfully crack the competitive Western Sydney market.
Ideas would include community visits: get the professional players down to the local mall on occasion. Include the interaction factor. Bridge the gap between club and community.
And then there are implement membership strategies. Thankfully, Sydney FC are already trying this method, with their ‘Junior Blues’ campaign. Any junior player in the Sydney region is eligible to join, giving limited membership, access to matches, shirts, lanyards and so on.
As it currently stands, this has not much of a bearing on attendances. However, such a program needs time to take effect.
The NRL’s alternative is a league wide program, giving all junior players access to any NRL league match (except if sold out, finals, and special matches such as State of Origin). Members of junior rugby league clubs are eligible, giving a huge amount of people access and exposure to the game.
The FFA needs to emulate this.
If junior players are given more exposure to the game, it’s more likely to give them that push towards taking their hobby to the next level.
Let’s not worry about our next campaign, let’s worry about staying at the top level, embracing the growing talent of the junior players. Let’s give these 10 year-olds a chance.
jimbo
Roar Guru
The FFA needs to create the future now. Not just developing the players which we have an abundance of, but converting the players and their parents to follow the local game and support it financially. Football crowds are still OK but there needs to be a marketing strategy and plan to grow it and get all the people involved in football in this country to be proud to support the game financially. Without money, those dreams cannot be paid for.
Stevo
Guest
Agree wholeheartedly. There is a lot of goodwill towards football in the general community but at the sharp end, at the professional end of the market, it lacks the punch that NRL and AFL have. To fix this we need a long term plan. These days kids know about the EPL and probably wouldn't be fazed about wearing a ManU top along side their favourite NRL or AFL team shirt. This is a tremendous change from the '70s where roundball was called 'wogball'. We have to get the FFA and the a-league teams to work with the local communities to spread the word. I think HeartFC have that as one of their missions and it wouldn't hurt for GCU to do likewise. One of the best community events I've seen in recent times was the Homeless World Cup in Melbourne. It was played in the centre of the city and drew large crowds. Why not similar events for our local schools. Say a lightnng premiership over a couple of days in the full glare of the public in the centre of towns.
drew777
Roar Pro
Coever is the way to go. I know of players in the NSW Premier League who spent their time as a youngster in Coever programs, without playing for a club at junior level. If every coach was educated in the Coever coaching system then we would be miles better off. I am a product of it and the coaches labelled me "The best ball playing midfielder in the club" at premier league level and I am still in my teenage years in a team with players who are up to 30 years old. It does wonders for touch, awareness, skills, dribbling, vision, movement, passing, control. I could go on for days. You'd be surprised the amount of people who have difficulty putting together a 10 metre pass consistently, or controlling a ball so they can easily run onto it consistently. Coever all the way!
Michael Turner
Roar Pro
The FTA argument is something I am going to touch on in a bit, when I write my next article. The idea of those coaches....brings to mind the Football NSW's Project 22. The new revolutionary program should provide that sort of grassroot training...however we must wait for its outcome.
Midfielder
Guest
Mike Excellent read and something I have been banging on about for yonks... every park club I know is trying to develop players... Some better than others.... there is huge goodwill out there by parents and clubs to develop and improve standards. What is missing and missing in a big way is quality coaches HMMMM well coaches that understand ball skills / how to teach them and as kids get older the importance of shape, off the ball movement etc... There is no simple answer .. well there is but we need to go FTA so broadcasters can highlight play. Great article .. and things have been happening despite the SBS outrage over the last 4 years...