We came across this fantastic breakdown of activities that occur during a football match presented by Ray Power, author of Making the Ball Roll – A Complete Guide to Youth Football for the Aspiring Coach, and it holds several insights for grassroots coaches on how to train our young footballers.
Football Game Activity Breakdown
Source: Ray Power
A story that truly resonates with grassroots football. Do you identify with it? We certainly do!
There’s been so much action in the Hero U15 Youth League over the last couple of weeks that we’ve barely been able to keep pace with the developments! Here’s a quick summary of the results from weeks 6 and 7 from around the country:
This weekend, the U15 Youth League saw 8 matches being played. But before we take a look at what happened over Friday, Saturday, Sunday and Monday, let’s quickly recap the Goa Zone’s (Group C) last Monday and Tuesday matches. Last Monday, Dempo Sports Club U15 played host to Salgaocar FC U15. The match started off on an interesting note when Dempo’s Aaron S. Alvarez was shown a yellow card in the 20th minute. Nine minutes later, their opponents faced the same fate, when Salgaocar’s Riston Colaco was also given a yellow by the ref. Both teams were unable to score, and the match ended in a goalless draw. On Tuesday evening, Sporting Clube de Goa U15 took on SAI-Goa U15 at the Don Bosco Ground. Things got interesting just before the half time whistle, when the ref showed SAI-Goa’s TH London a yellow. Early on in the second half, Sporting Clube de Goa’s Sahil Sunil Halankar netted the ball off a pass from Desmond Fernandes in the 51st minute. SAI-Goa was unable to recover from the goal against them, and the match ended 1-0 in favour of their opponents.
Contributed by Maxon Sequeira
Rural Development Trust’s (RDT) Anantapur Sports Village (ASV) could still hear blissful echoes of the 2015 Andhra Pradesh Junior Women’s Hockey State Championship from the preceding weekend. Women’s sport in Anantapur got another boost as the Anantapur Football League (AFL) 2015 officials decided to start the first ever Anantapur Football League for Girls towards the end of the first leg of the 2015 AFL.
The AFL 2015 officials organized a meeting with all the Anantapur Sports Academy (ASA) mandals to finalize guidelines and rules for the Girls AFL that shall kick off its inaugural season towards the end of this year. The ASA, through this meeting also assessed each mandal’s contribution towards the AFL, in terms of participants and officials. This would also ascertain the way ahead for the Girls AFL.
Tata Football Academy cadets in training
Source: www.thehindubusinessline.com
We’re now well into the Hero Under-15 Youth League for Groups A & B. Having started off without any known or recognised favourites a little over a month ago, the stronger teams are gradually putting some distance between themselves and the chasing pack.
One of the biggest surprises, however, has been the underwhelming performances of an institution that has prided itself in producing India’s best footballers – Tata Football Academy. Languishing at the bottom of Kolkata-Jamshedpur Zone (Group A), with one draw and three losses from their four outings, it’s not the results that have been disappointing, it’s the performances too. In the four games played, TFA haven’t yet managed to score and, worse still, have allowed 11 goals in. True, these are still very young boys with a lot of football to be played in their careers, but from a development perspective, TFA seem to have their work cut out.
It’s been 4 weeks since the Hero Under-15 Youth League kicked-off, and the competition is really heating up! The Goa Zone (Group C) started off the week’s proceedings, when Dempo Sports Club U15 handed Sporting Club de Goa U15 a 5-0 hammering on Tuesday. Dempo were quick to start, scoring as early as the 9th minute. Baggio Fernandes then netted the ball in the 30th minute again, giving Dempo a 2-0 lead before half time. In the second half, Aaron Alvarez fired a brace, and assisted a third to give Dempo a massive 5-0 victory.
Image Credit: Mumbai FC Facebook Page
The Hero U15 Youth League is well underway, and the Kolkata-Jamshedpur Zone (Group A) is ready to kick-off this weekend’s matches. Mohun Bagan AC U15 will host East Bengal FC U15 at 2:00 p.m. today. This match is sure to be a close one. Will Mohun Bagan AC be able to claim their 2nd win? Or will East Bengal FC fight hard for their 1st victory of the season?
On Saturday evening, the Maharashtra Zone (Group B) will see Kenkre FC U15 lock horns with Steadfast Mumbai Rush SC U15 at the Cooperage ground in Mumbai. Both teams are currently fighting for their first win, and this match could be a game changer for either Mumbai team.
Other fixtures lined up this weekend in the U15 Youth League are:
As coaches & parents of incredibly energetic, dynamic and active children, patience is the one attribute we cannot leave behind at home before stepping on to the training ground. There are, however, those odd days when we are really at the ends of our tether – it could be tensions from home or work or just an ‘off’ day when we’re ‘not up to it’. Even the best have them. Those are the times when we, as educators and mentors, are most prone to yelling or punishing the kids. It takes a lot of control to hold oneself back, not scream and do the ‘right’ thing. The lesson for us is clear – and it’s not like we don’t know – screaming & punishments are mostly counter-productive and useless.
But children have a way with words and an ability to drive home the message in the most unique way. This is one fantastic example:
Have a great day!
Written with inputs from Samira Kumar.
Dempo Sports Club is an institution that stands for passion, strength and will. They are passionate about constantly trying to change the definition of football in India, and lived up to their beliefs when they conducted an outreach program with the special children of Sanjay School in Mapusa. The Duler Stadium hosted Dempo’s youth development team, as well as 100 boys and girls of the school in October this year. The club’s Technical Director, Katz Naidoo is of the firm belief that football is for everybody, and is thrilled that the club’s outreach initiative gives every child an opportunity to play the sport.
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