At last some common sense in (Grassroots) Football

[Loki]

http://www.guardian.co.uk/football/2011/jan/22/summer-football

This is something that I really applaud the Tyne an Wear Youth league for. Essentially they are moving the start of the season from August to 1st of June and playing through to November then restarting again in February.

As a coach and manager of a youth football team it makes it really difficult to work on any skill development in winter. Since November last year, our team has played an average of 1 week on and 2 weeks off. Is it any wonder that the other European nations are ahead of us.

Although Platini gets lambasted for some of his ideas, I think that Football (at least at Junior level) should be a summer sport.

 

[semi-pro waster]

I think that's quite a sensible idea (although Platini is still an eejit), it's never seemed entirely logical that we should play the bulk of our football at the time of year when the weather is most inclement and pitches are at their worst. I appreciate that it may now clash more with cricket or other summer sports and force people to choose earlier but overall I think it could be a benefit to football.

 

[Fubsy]

Pfft, I'd rather play in rain and wind than the heat we had in June last summer.
The weather is in a way an unofficial winter break (for players and the pitches).

 

[Loki]

I think that's quite a sensible idea (although Platini is still an eejit), it's never seemed entirely logical that we should play the bulk of our football at the time of year when the weather is most inclement and pitches are at their worst. I appreciate that it may now clash more with cricket or other summer sports and force people to choose earlier but overall I think it could be a benefit to football.

Indeed matey. If the Kids can play more football on decent pitches and at night compared to not playing football, poor overpriced indoor facilities then I am all for it

 

[Gribs]

To me it doesn't go far enough. Start the season at the begining of april and have it completed by october so there's much more light to train in, the pitches should be better and there's less risk of injury. It'd hopefully allow a greater emphasis on skills rather than just hoofing it up a muddy pitch as well. It's no coincidence that the countries with a warmer winters tend to produce more technically skilled players.

 

[drunkenmaster]

You have two options in professional football in general, play in summer and rest in winter and play on astroturf pitches, or leave summer free and play part of the season in winter.

Grass doesn't grow over winter, at least, not particularly well. Theres a reason pitches are rested during the fastest growing season, they'd all be playing on muddy rubbish pitches if they played all summer and the pitches got a rest over winter.

Youth football, different, you can't afford raised pitches, great drainage and undersoil heating for your average youth team, makes sense, for the league teams, it doesn't make sense AT ALL unless you want the best league in the country to be played on artificial pitches or just utterly crap ones.

PItches for youth/lower/non league/sunday leagues will all end up worse if they are used mostly in summer and barely at all in winter, but its at a level that matters less and has less good pitches in the best of conditions.

Also people are a little over the top this year because leagues took their worst hit in a long time, worst snow for 30 years or something, ok, so that would suggest it would never be this bad again for another 30 years.

Remember, a drought during the worst summer in 30 years will mean the pitches you play on will be utterly destroyed, and because you only don't play on them in winter, they'll get worse over winter, and be no where near fixed by the time you play again the next year. LIkewise, what if you have the hottest summer for 30 years, and you can't play in part of June, all of July and part of August because parents don't want their kids getting, I dunno sunburn, skin cancer, getting dehydrated and sick?

Its pretty simple, grass pitches grow over summer and don't over winter, if you damage them in their growing season the pitches will become a joke.

It IS a coincidence with warmer winters and more technically skilled players, its what happens when you have better coaches on the continent.

 

[rypt]

LIkewise, what if you have the hottest summer for 30 years, and you can't play in part of June, all of July and part of August because parents don't want their kids getting, I dunno sunburn, skin cancer, getting dehydrated and sick?

Err, what?