Gravesham Schools FA

HALF TIME: Punjab United 2-0 Fisher FC An unbelievable showing in the first half with goals from Johnson-Cole and Jack Hopkins. Both assisted by Chris Edwards.

⚽️Play football at School ⚽️Play football for your School ⚽️Play football for your District ⚽️Play football for your County ⚽️Play football for your Country

💥Spot the difference💥 Let us know if you can spot the difference 👀 Tag your mates in the comments below 👇 We will share the answer to our Instagram story next week ⏳ 🔴🔵⚪

Tonight I coached and something broke 💔 Tonight I coached an U12 game. And I know this first truth already: I can’t change the whole culture of adults shouting from the sidelines in one evening. But something has to change. 👉🏻 This wasn’t encouragement. 👉🏻 This wasn’t support. 👉🏻 This was adults coaching from the side. ❌ Constant instructions. ❌ Constant corrections. ❌ Constant noise. You could see it on the players. Heads turning to the sideline. Arms dropping in frustration. Focus breaking. Enjoyment leaking away, minute by minute. These were children trying to learn while being remotely controlled. Then it crossed a line. One adult deliberately moved closer to the pitch. ⚠️ Not to see better. ⚠️ Not to encourage. But to position himself next to his younger brother so he could instruct every action. ▪️Pass. ▪️Move. ▪️Turn. ▪️Press. ▪️Don’t press. An 11-year-old being coached like a PlayStation controller. No space to think. No chance to decide. No freedom to play. And you could feel it, the joy draining out of the child in real time. This isn’t help, it isn’t in the child’s best interest. 🤯 It’s ego-driven. I had to intervene. Not as a coach protecting tactics. As an adult protecting a child. I politely asked the referee to move the adult back to where all other parents were positioned. And then the question that should make every adult uncomfortable: ➡️ In what other learning environment would this be acceptable? 💬 You wouldn’t stand next to a child in a classroom shouting answers. 💬 You wouldn’t hover during an exam dictating every choice. 💬 You wouldn’t control a child learning to write by grabbing the pencil. So why do we tolerate it in sport? Football is a learning environment. The pitch is the classroom. Mistakes are part of the lesson. Children cannot learn when they are constantly managed by adults who confuse involvement with control. If you want to help: 👉🏻 Encourage. 👉🏻 Applaud effort. 👉🏻 Support the coach. 👉🏻 Trust the process. But stop coaching from the sideline. ✅ Let the children play. ✅ Let them think. ✅ Let them struggle. ✅ Let them learn together with their coach and their team. Because tonight wasn’t about football. It was about a child almost losing their love for the game because adults couldn’t step back. And that should never be the cost of youth sport. (Posted about my experience last Friday night)

🛡️Safeguarding is everyone’s responsibility🛡️ 🗣️Stay Safe in Schools’ Football. Parents and carers play a vital role in creating safe, positive environments for young people in football. Please take a moment to read the do’s and don’ts. Together, we can keep the game safe for all! ⚽ 🔴🔵⚪