20th October 2014

U7s put focus on the players

Congratulations to U7s coach Trevor Heffernan who recently successfully completed Module 1 of the FA Youth Award.The four day course is part 1 of the Youth Award which was introduced by the FA to compliment the mainstream "badges" and give youth coaches a more in-depth understanding of the needs of younger players - "In order to coach Johnny to play football, it's not enough just to understand football, you first of all have to understand Johnny" as the course strapline neatly puts it.

Trevor joins U10s coach Paul Davis who has also started down the Youth Award track and successfully completed Module 2 over the summer, and both are looking to spread the word of the best practice they've picked up on the courses and disseminate this through the club so all our players can benefit from the young player-centred approach championed by the Youth Award.

Trevor has been greatly enthused by his experiences on the course and is already starting to put it into practice with the U7s, commenting "The Youth Award is fantastic in encouraging a Coach to look beyond the footballing requirements of a young player and look at each player as a person. It has taught me the importance of recognising that each player has different support needs based on a number of factors such as confidence levels, personality, athletic ability, even the size of a player versus his/her peers. I now feel better equipped to identify the areas where each individual requires extra support and what I can do to support them in that area. The knowledge gained on the course will prove invaluable in helping me create the right environment for our players to help them reach their full potential."

All Robins FC coaches have to attain the FA Level 1 as part of our certification as an FA Charter Standard club which means parents can rest assured their children are being trained by qualified coaches in a safe and fun environment. But we don't just do the bare minimum and leave it at that, many of our coaches look to extend their education with additional courses such as this one, or the "mainstream" Level 2 qualification that U7s coach Phil Trueman and U10s coach Jason Rawlins have taken, or simply by attending one of the many CPD (Continuous Professional Development) In-Service training events put on by Wiltshire FA and the FA nationally. Because the more we develop our coaches, the better our coaches are able to develop our young players. And they are at the heart of everything we do!