I was a lowly qualified football coach and assisted a team for eight years.
I remember the FA kept pushing the fact that it wasn't about the winning, but about developing the kids. We were coaching them from 4 to 12.
Anyway my son played, he wasn't great but he was a hard worker and was always striving to play properly.
Thing is he was the youngest because of the way his birthday fell and a year meant huge physical differences. And that meant he hardly ever got chosen to play.
The coaches were only interested in winning and could do that by playing bigger and often lazy kids.
Now my young lad at 16 has been picked up by Stevenage FC, the only kid from that old club to get anywhere.
Poor sod got nowhere playing by the rules as a kid, but kept it up and it's paid off.
POW! Congratulations...hope he does well!
My boss manages one of the Biggleswade United teams, just up the road!
No illusions of grandeur, he is still at college and they insist he finishes that. Whatever it'll look good on his CV.
TBH he want's to be one of the back room boys.
My son has a new coach, they've lost all their games this season and it doesn't matter at all to him. As long as they play better each game that's all he cares about. He has no favourites and has no hesitation in taking off the best players if they start getting stroppy. Everyone who turns up regularly for training gets to play in the matches.
Best of luck to your son.
And that's how it should be. It's all bout the long run.
You've probably seen it yourself, parents moving their 5 year olds from club to club because they actually think they'll get scouted at that age.
I hated it, all that nodding in agreement with the FAs plans for the future of football. Then turning into aggressive morons at every match.
Mate's son hated all that nonsense, so ended up playing rugby league (they live in Wigan - it's like religion there). He loves it. It's highly inclusive and does all the things sport shoukd at that age: fresh air, running round, teamwork, fun.
That's brilliant, well done to the pair of you.
Will they support him through coaching qualifications, if that's what he wants?