Future of Schoolboy Football

Wish I'd noticed this thread before!  Interesting reading.

FYI This year subs are $80 for Well Coll.  Last two seasons were $60. 

Additional costs are 

• Shirt $63  - get to keep it
• Socks - keep these as well. Bonus!
• Shorts - PE shorts so have to get them anyway.
• Boots - two pairs a frikkin season (blimmin teenagers)

Politics aside the cost is a no brainer.

I met the principal for a Wgtn boys school last week and got a chance to have a good chat to him and we discussed this issue. He was not a football man at all so apart from watching his school teams he had little knowledge of the club scene. I think that's the first issue, the principals do not understand the link or pathway (hate that word, overused but the right word in this instance).

The other thing is that despite my sales job on him by telling him that one of his pupils was a good central league footballer with very good potential and by standing him up in assemblies to celebrate this and use this as an example he still could not get pass the success of "his premier team". He only was only interested in telling me how they might achieve top 16 at the national tournament. Was not really interested in hearing about the 16 central league games his 17 year old pupil had played last year!

He seemed a very nice guy and I don't blame him for this focus because it's his job to have his sports teams succeeding, he uses his Saturday to see them all regardless of the level. Successful sports teams = pride at school = good environment = better learning environment.

He was not against Wednesday football so then lads could play for club on Saturday and when I asked him to float it at the next principals meeting he said he would raise it. Interestingly he bemoaned the local rugby clubs for pinching the top players but it was kind of "well its rugby and they have a pathway" he knew the pathway and sort of accepted it. 

So I think we (football) need to engage the principals, give them some insight to the football scene, display the steps and potential opportunities in football (is there many in NZ?) and then work with them not against them. Its not easy and I don't have the answers but I know one thing Ole academy telling its participants that they cannot play Cricket for the school in the summer does not help!   

I guess its like some clubs. Their focus is on how their club goes and not the development of the players and the future beyond that. Schools are 3 years cycles in some sports. Get them in 5th Form or whatever it is these days and they have them in the top team for 3 years then cycle again. Its not the kids development and future that matters, its the results schools get. I guess when you are a principal and have KPIs (and I have zero clue if any are sporting) then that is all that matters.

Contrast that with the ASBP where you could make a case that NZF have gone more down the development of young player path than premier league in the country path (if you get what I mean)

It certainly an interesting topic and I guess the question is where is the midpoint to satisfy both winning and player development.

Schools certainly like to take the credit for all it's worth when one of their former pupils plays for the national team in whatever sport though don't they? Regardless of whether they played much for the school.

They do because it gives them glory and thus sell factor. Its cool by association and that's not limited to just that.

You can bet any high school that had McCullum and McCaw at it will row that boat as far as it can go. Media do the same with sport. Right now is the Black Caps when 2 years ago, they rubbished them for as much as they were worth. 6 weeks ago, every one wanted to be on the Phoenix band wagon and last week we were chumps cause of draws, this week we are a finals team again (Sam Malcolmson). If you can be the man that says this and that and its cool, you instantly look like you've got something worthy. Wairarapa have signed Ifill to coach. Not all players make good coaches but I bet you the pull factor has just gone up though cause its "former EPL star and Phoenix legend Paul Ifill" not because Paul Ifill is a coach that is going to help make the footballers he has better. Auckland Grammar are recognised as being a powerhouse for school rugby (do I have that right?) and in more modern times, MAGS for football. Granted its not quite the same but nothing sells success like success and if you are a school that consistently wins, where are you going to try to send your son whom has a bit of talent at a certain sport? If you are a school that wins, you are going to attract a better calibre of schoolboy sportsman to continue that cycle. I think there was discussion about Fallons kids a while back and rough guestimate that of perhaps 250 kids that passed through his teams at MAGS, maybe 10 went on to be AWs. I have no idea if thats a fair reflection statistically but was MAGS more interesting in winning, or churning out kids that could be AWs? As much as Declan Edge is a Twit, he is producing kids that can play at higher levels than ASBP and HAL. Like him or loathe him, results mean nothing but development is everything.

For every school that gives more of a hoot about the development of players over results, there are probably 3 or 4 that care more about results than player development and I base that on nothing more than my own generalising. In Auckland its gotten stupid so I can only speak about what I read in the media (and I guess you should never believe what you read in the media) and what you hear others say. I read one school has $250k invested in their 1st XV. That is astounding. I bet you a million bucks there are a couple of departments at NZF that don't have that kind of budget (futsal)

I digress but the general point is there.

Is 10 in 250 a bad strike rate? I'm not a fan of Fallon but it seems okay to me.

The question, if you are correct, is would clubs be any different? I think clubs care just as much about results for the same reason that a school does. If a club has a good first team then that is going to attract young players to go and play for that club. 

I think one of the problems that clubs have is that clubs don't have much resources any more. Schools right now can use teachers to help coach. If football was just a club game then the teachers would be unlikely to go down to their local club and volunteer. I don't know how many clubs would have the resources if they suddenly had to find coaches for ten or so new junior teams.

Help the aged

Anyone know where the NZSS Natinal futsal results are?

Have found steaming games but want raw data please

Individual match results being posted on twitter

#NZSSFutsal‬

thanks

Just see my boy running around

Now steam is not going, crikey

Right.  Grade 15 this season.  Young strapping lads in shorts running around kicking balls. Marvellous!

Starts a week or two into Term 2.  I have no idea how big the various leagues and catchments are.