Playing Out....

…no, not from the back, just actually playing outside...in the fresh air.

“….in my day we went out and kicked a ball about every day until it was dark”.

Yes, we’ve all heard those words and many of us have said them, me included. The ‘in my day’ crowd look back fondly to their youth and bemoan the fact that playgrounds and playing fields in the UK are largely empty, even during the summer holidays.

Life has changed - and we need to change with it.

IPads, mobile phones, 500+ channels on the television, health and safety, the weather….take your pick as to the reasons but I don’t think we can deny that whilst it represents change, it also represents a problem that impacts on the development of the nation’s young footballing talent.

I’m sure here in Spain that similar changes have occurred…but there is a world of difference between what I see here and what I saw in the UK. Wherever I go, kids seem to be playing outside and I am constantly amazed by the number of public facilities available so that those kids have somewhere safe to play.

A typical Futbol 7 pitch - 7 a side for kids up to the age of 12

Quite apart from the fact there are so many grass roots clubs with incredible facilities here, the public provision in the form of neighbourhood sala courts, beach pitches, tennis courts, basketball courts and much more get used by kids so much. And not just in towns and cities – every village no matter how small seems to have a decent 3G pitch and a multisports court for the local kids.

The village pitch in Frigiliana

The emergence of soccer centres in the UK has been noticeable in the last 10 years or so…there are certainly more facilities around in the UK these days. But you have to pay to use them, often through the nose. And for every soccer centre with local office workers playing on floodlit 5 a side pitches, there’s 10 local park pitches barely used (and probably covered in dog shit).

Of course, the weather here is better…a lot better. Playing outside is possible 300+ days a year in shorts and t-shirt, and though for many months it’s simply too hot to play before 5pm, you have to accept that is a major factor.

But this is a cultural thing too. Local government, parents, teachers, restaurant owners…everyone here is supportive of the kids playing outside. They are a little less concerned about health and safety – not a bad thing IMO – and happy to kick a ball back if it goes astray.

So what are the consequences?

Well, my view is quite simply that it produces kids who are more technically gifted and also more competitive. If a 7 year old kid gets kicked around because they are the smallest kid in a 15 a side game on the sala court, they soon learn to look after the ball with their body or move the ball out of their feet quickly to pass to a team mate. And if that kid is good at sport, they play football. Football is still king in Spain…no other sport comes close. I’d hazard a guess that even if the facilities here weren’t so plentiful, kids here would be out playing on whatever space they could find.

So before they have even turned up at a club or met a coach, the kids in Spain are more physically and technically literate than I am used to seeing.

Is that a reason to criticize the establishment in the UK? Maybe not, but if it doesn’t learn from this I think it’s missing a trick. The concept of street football is a much debated one in UK football development circles. Is it an outdated concept? Is it possible to reinvent it? Do we just have to adapt formal coaching practice to make up for its absence?

The facilities at our club's 4th tier local rivals, CD El Palo 

For what it’s worth, the production line in the UK feels too sterile to me, too controlled. I have an image in my head when this topic comes up, one of a coach admiring all the cones he has set out on the pitch prior to a training session. I’ve done it, many times! But I can honestly say I’ve seen way too many sessions both in the UK and also here where the kids would probably have been better just taking a ball and playing amongst themselves for an hour.

Of course they need coaching too…it’s very important. But you get my point.

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The season here got off to a great start for Graham Jr….a broken arm sustained when playing on next door’s skateboard has meant he has missed the first few weeks of the season. I don’t enjoy coaching him anyway to be honest so I might put a skateboard on his Christmas list 😊

I am supporting Antonio the head coach….picking up cones, getting water etc but I am learning the language much quicker as a result of being there. I get in and coach a little to add to what he does but I’m happy sitting back and taking it all in.

Coaching 10 year olds when you have a limited command of the language is not easy – as I found out when Antonio was sick and I had to take a full session. Understanding what they say is difficult given the speed at which they talk and their strong Malagueno accents (almost every word is shortened) so it was tough to retain control at times. I also had to explain details more as they were not used to my sessions though I’m certain the second time I do it will be easier.

I’ve always preferred coaching senior sides or development/U21/U19 groups…it’s where I think I’m best anyway…but this is a good challenge for me in terms of adapting to the age group.

Hasta luego

KG