Abolish Leagues/Points in Grassroots Football?

Abolish Leagues/Points in Grassroots Football?

Hashtag campaign #ban3pointsinkidsfootball started by @Soccer20_Hodga and @MarkProSkills got me thinking this week. There were some great and lengthy debates about the subject over Twitter and I thought it warranted a blog post.

It’s plain to see that there are major problems in the Grassroots game in our country, a large number of these problems seem to stem from the over-competitive, over-aggressive, controlling attitudes of parents and often coaches.

Far too often on a Sunday morning you can find a parent or so-called coach on the touchline of a young child’s football match screaming at players, the referee, the opposition, and creating a very negative atmosphere – do the young players want this atmosphere whilst they’re trying to enjoy themselves on the pitch? Of course not. Far too often, you will find a parent or so-called coach on the touchline shouting instructions to young players on the pitch, how can young players learn to make decisions for themselves when spectators are trying to control them from the sidelines like they would a computer game? Far too often, you will find parents or coaches telling a youngster to “stop being greedy”, “stop showing off” or even to pass the ball when they are attempting to be creative and positive on the ball with a trick or skill, how can we create the next generation of Lionel Messi’s when youngsters are afraid to attempt something special?

People look at the professional game on the TV and think that whatever goes on with the professional clubs must be imitated in kids football, I honestly wouldn’t be surprised if I heard parents chanting from the sidelines. They see the likes of Barcelona passing the ball to great success and think that is the quick way to success with a young team of footballers… Here’s a question, how do you define success in terms of a Grassroots football club? Is it about the club lifting a plastic trophy after winning a cup? About winning the league at any cost? About building a team of the best players you can find and turning away players of lesser ability? Or is it about developing and challenging young players as individuals, regardless of current ability and allowing them the freedom to choose and express themselves with the ball and to play with REAL enjoyment and confidence in a positive, supportive, pressure-free atmosphere?

Why do parents take this over-competitive, controlling stance and view of their child’s game? Some suggest it’s living out their own failures as a player through their child, maybe so in some cases. I believe that this problem stems from short-sightedness, I believe the parent who has this controlling, competitive view who wants their child to win believes that success in terms of results is the only indicator of their child’s ability as a player and with a little education in the matter most would come to realise quite easily where the real successes lie.

There is no question that children are competitive, naturally; especially when it comes to sport. This is not a bad thing by any means, however, when this competitive streak is pushed by adults to the wrong uses, it can become a huge hindrance to the child’s development. A child WILL be competitive in sport, specifically in this case – football, regardless of the “meaning” or “importance” (I use these terms VERY lightly) of the match. A child will put just as much effort into a kick around in the local park with friends as they will into a friendly match for a club, as they will into a Cup Final for a club.

My point here is that do league standings and 3 points in a meaningless Sunday League actually benefit the child in anyway? Do children only play football for the competitive nature of a league or do they play for the other benefits (social, developmental, health or plain old fun)? My belief is that the league systems at Grassroots level are actually a massive hindrance to the child’s development as a footballer and should be abolished. I’m not suggesting the removal of clubs and fixtures, just merely the league standing and points systems themselves. Keep clubs in place, and keep local leagues (although not under the term ‘league’), these can be used to organise non-competitive, developmental fixtures where the result is irrelevant. I would suggest that this be the case for at least the “Golden Age of Learning” at Grassroots level (Ages 5-11) perhaps starting competitive league standings at the age of 12/13 when children are in Secondary school.

This system would render any of the aforementioned competitive parents and coaches views irrelevant. I believe this would stop (or at least massively reduce) the instructions called from the sidelines, the pressure and abuse from parents and coaches on a matchday and the negative atmosphere created by these problems. This would hopefully begin to create a pressure-free environment with a positive atmosphere where youngsters are actively encouraged to be creative and positive with their play, allowed to make their own decisions and learn the game in a much better way. Children, in my opinion, would still be just as motivated to join clubs and play football as they are now and it would not affect their own effort toward matches due to their natural competitive nature.

These changes could encourage more developmental approaches to Grassroots football in comparison to the current state of affairs which seems to be dominated by totalitarian coaches who want to be in control and appear to be a local Jose Mourinho figure by trying to win leagues.

Although by no means is this proof or sufficient research, I asked a group of lads at an after-school football club last week their thoughts and whether they'd be affected by the removal of points/league standings and all said they wouldn't be affected in the slightest and would still carry on playing for clubs. One said that getting "a trophy or medal is nice but that's not why I play football".

Now I must add that by no means am I suggesting that all Grassroots coaches act or think this way, as I’ve met, spoke with some superb coaches who give up their time to develop young footballers. On the same note, I respect all, parents or coaches, who give up their time voluntarily to allow young players the opportunity to play football and I’m aware that some of the types of coaches mentioned in this post are not purposefully trying to hinder the progression of young players, and believe that their way is how to develop players, however, further education is required massively in the Grassroots game.

Hopefully this post has been thought-provoking and an interesting read, if you agree or disagree with anything mentioned, or would like to discuss further I’d love to hear your feedback, you can tweet me at @Richhhhhhh, e-mail me at Richard.jw.holmes@gmail.com or even leave your thoughts on a comment in this post. I would massively appreciate it if you would take the time to subscribe to the blog and support it by sharing it with friends/interested parties.