how do we get the young into football

[foggy dewhurst 0]

this morning i passed the toryglen football complex at 11.30 and out of all the pitches only three were being used i know for a fact when i was young we never had pitches like that black ash and we played when ever we could what has gone wrong with the youngsters today maybe they get things to easy but football will suffer if we dont get the young off their backsides and out there playing

[Super Cooper 0]

Blame Sony and Microsoft. Simplistic but true. They are a factor.

[pete 2,499]

this morning i passed the toryglen football complex at 11.30 and out of all the pitches only three were being used i know for a fact when i was young we never had pitches like that black ash and we played when ever we could what has gone wrong with the youngsters today maybe they get things to easy but football will suffer if we dont get the young off their backsides and out there playing

 

I am looking from a distance but the whole amateur\youth system in Scotland is poor. In Holland nearly every community has an amateur team with senior and youth teams. There are more teams for every age group meaning players not making the first team are not lost to the game. I have said before a team like Renfrew Juniors should have a host of senior amateur and youth teams playing under the same club. That way it means players from youth level and also the senior teams can have a goal of fighting to get into the first team right through their football lives.

 

As happened to my nephew after he was too old for a youth team he had to go and search for a senior team to play for. Crazy.

[54andcounting 0]

You've got it or you haven't...might have something to do with...erm TV?

[UCF2008 0]

One of the reasons I can think of is a reluctance from supervising adults to organise games for the kids these days. In this country at least I think it's become too much of a liability to take responsibility for large groups of youngsters. Even teachers are less involved in extra curricular activities these days.

[Gribz 919]

I am looking from a distance but the whole amateur\youth system in Scotland is poor. In Holland nearly every community has an amateur team with senior and youth teams. There are more teams for every age group meaning players not making the first team are not lost to the game. I have said before a team like Renfrew Juniors should have a host of senior amateur and youth teams playing under the same club. That way it means players from youth level and also the senior teams can have a goal of fighting to get into the first team right through their football lives.

 

As happened to my nephew after he was too old for a youth team he had to go and search for a senior team to play for. Crazy.

 

Think I mentioned before but when I took a train from Amsterdam to Rotterdam I was amazed at the amount of 5-a-side facilites I saw and everyone of them was full of people playing. This was on a cold Feb evening

[craig 5,199]

Blame Sony and Microsoft. Simplistic but true. They are a factor.

 

If we are to blame Sony and Microsoft (and I am not saying we shouldn't) then surely we should be blaming the parents, for it is the parents that can curtail, or limit, young kids playing of Xbox or Playstation or Vita or Wii etc etc ?

 

We have the Wii, PS3, Xbox, PSP and iPad in our house. My 8 yr old rarely plays any of them, unless given a "chill day" which only happens when he is burnt out from his other activities or ill - but even when he DOES get to play them he is given an allocation of time to play them - it isn't unlimited time.

 

To be fair he is more of an active kid anyway - he trains with his footy team on a Monday, Tuesday and Thursday and has running club on a Tuesday and Thursday (yep, has running for an hour on Tues & Thurs and then goes straight to footy training for another 90 minute training session) - the only nights he gets off are Wednesday and Fridays - and even then he always asks to come to my footy on a Wednesday so he can "practice".

 

My Mrs goes running with him and I take him to footy. We also hang out together on weekends too. I often think that Xbox or PS are a parents way of getting peace and quiet from their kids, which is why the kids play so often. But we hang out as a family very, very often. I may be wrong on this though.

 

I have the same issues here in Bermuda if it is any consolation - we have a really nice artificial pitch and when I play indoor 5's it is EMPTY - in fact, often the only people who are on the pitch are me and my kid - he had me training him on it for 2 and a half hours a couple of Fridays ago - and the only reason I could get him to leave was because his team had a game the next day.....

[Super Cooper 0]

If we are to blame Sony and Microsoft (and I am not saying we shouldn't) then surely we should be blaming the parents, for it is the parents that can curtail, or limit, young kids playing of Xbox or Playstation or Vita or Wii etc etc ?

 

We have the Wii, PS3, Xbox, PSP and iPad in our house. My 8 yr old rarely plays any of them, unless given a "chill day" which only happens when he is burnt out from his other activities or ill - but even when he DOES get to play them he is given an allocation of time to play them - it isn't unlimited time.

 

To be fair he is more of an active kid anyway - he trains with his footy team on a Monday, Tuesday and Thursday and has running club on a Tuesday and Thursday (yep, has running for an hour on Tues & Thurs and then goes straight to footy training for another 90 minute training session) - the only nights he gets off are Wednesday and Fridays - and even then he always asks to come to my footy on a Wednesday so he can "practice".

 

My Mrs goes running with him and I take him to footy. We also hang out together on weekends too. I often think that Xbox or PS are a parents way of getting peace and quiet from their kids, which is why the kids play so often. But we hang out as a family very, very often. I may be wrong on this though.

 

I have the same issues here in Bermuda if it is any consolation - we have a really nice artificial pitch and when I play indoor 5's it is EMPTY - in fact, often the only people who are on the pitch are me and my kid - he had me training him on it for 2 and a half hours a couple of Fridays ago - and the only reason I could get him to leave was because his team had a game the next day.....

 

Absolutely. Parents must also take their share of the blame. I admire your dedication to your sons life and future, it is very impressive but sadly not nearly enough people work as hard as you, or even i do, to work with their kids properly. As you rightly point out, computers are a good get out for parents who can't be bothered spending time with their kids.

Edited June 16, 2013 by Super Cooper

[craig 5,199]

Absolutely. Parents must also take their share of the blame. I admire your dedication to your sons life and future, it is very impressive but sadly not nearly enough people work as hard as you, or even i do, to work with there kids properly. As you rightly point out, computers are a good get out for parents who can't be bothered spending time with their kids.

 

Thanks SC, much appreciated.

 

I readily admit that all those years ago I wasn't ready to have kids.... but the wife was desperate so I eventually gave in. However, once I had him it was the best decision I have ever made in my life. He and I are like best friends (I say to him pretty much every day "We will be best buddies forever right ?") and have so much in common.

 

I completely agree with you about computers being a get out for many parents. Funny thing with us is..... the vast majority of the time that my kid DOES play console games.... he and I are playing together - we had a quick game on FIFA yesterday but we played together - I played first half and he played second half. And the last time he played the Wii he played Skylanders whilst cuddling into me.

 

In fact, my wife goes away on a girls trip every year and I look forward to it, not to get rid of the wife but because the wee fella and I get to have "guy time" for 4 or 5 days.

 

I also agree that it is sad that not enough parents work hard enough with their kids. I coach U10's and I have a couple of kids who are under-priviledged and I try my best to be a father figure or role model to them - one is overweight and when we have training I make a point of getting there early and running round the pitch with him just to get him more active and asking how he is doing at school etc. Another one his mother has asked me a few times to have words with him about his attitude at school so, again, I try to be involved in these kids lives as much as I can be, without stepping on toes.

 

Kids.... they are our future.... and we need to nurture them !

 

Rant over.

[Super Cooper 0]

Thanks SC, much appreciated.

 

I readily admit that all those years ago I wasn't ready to have kids.... but the wife was desperate so I eventually gave in. However, once I had him it was the best decision I have ever made in my life. He and I are like best friends (I say to him pretty much every day "We will be best buddies forever right ?") and have so much in common.

 

I completely agree with you about computers being a get out for many parents. Funny thing with us is..... the vast majority of the time that my kid DOES play console games.... he and I are playing together - we had a quick game on FIFA yesterday but we played together - I played first half and he played second half. And the last time he played the Wii he played Skylanders whilst cuddling into me.

 

In fact, my wife goes away on a girls trip every year and I look forward to it, not to get rid of the wife but because the wee fella and I get to have "guy time" for 4 or 5 days.

 

I also agree that it is sad that not enough parents work hard enough with their kids. I coach U10's and I have a couple of kids who are under-priviledged and I try my best to be a father figure or role model to them - one is overweight and when we have training I make a point of getting there early and running round the pitch with him just to get him more active and asking how he is doing at school etc. Another one his mother has asked me a few times to have words with him about his attitude at school so, again, I try to be involved in these kids lives as much as I can be, without stepping on toes.

 

Kids.... they are our future.... and we need to nurture them !

 

Rant over.

 

I am exactly the same with my son Craig. Sometimes it is hard separating us being friends to me being his dad but he is growing to understand the difference and i am managing both aspects better too. It is such a joy. Now i have another wee boy to bring up as well with our youngest who is just 6 weeks old.

 

Again, i know what you mean, if mine isn't asking me to play split screen with him on some RPG, it is Fifa, playing in the same team against Celtic or playing cup competitions together. He loves winning cups with his daddy!

 

Strange you talk about guy time because even with my Mrs being here, my son has really become much closer to me than he ever was, he is a complete daddies boy where as for his first 5 or 6 years he was a mummies boy. He loves spending time with me just now. Last night he was in his room creating a fathers day poster for me and writing out my card, he came into the living room and said "daddy i have a couple of things for you in my room but you cannot see them until tmrw morning" I had honestly forgot about fathers day and this morning he was up before me and ran into our room with his poster, card and box of chocolates for me. He was so happy with himself. The poster was of him and i in the park playing football.

 

That is great that you are trying to help kids out Craig. You sound like a really nice guy. Your wee boy is so lucky.