Soccer Coach Weekly Issue 109

I recently went on a weekend away with a group of women I play soccer with.

We play casually at a Just Play Centre – an initiative set up by the Football Association to get more women in England into playing the game.

The weekend involved lots of eating, socialising and a football tournament. 

One of my favourite bits though? Jumping into the kids' paddling pool one player had brought as a surprise.

All of us - a group of 17 women aged between 25 and 63 - had so much fun just making use of the pool.

I am telling you this as a reminder that we all have a child within us, no matter what age we are. And it is very likely that we don’t nurture that inner child as much as we really should.

I’ve provided three sessions for this week’s issue of Soccer Coach Weekly. 

On initial glance, they are really well-suited to the younger age groups. And they are - I have run them to great success with under-sixes, under-eights and under-10s. But I have also had a brilliant time running them with my under-14s. 

I usually save them for a session when I sense the players may need a bit of a break, or to let off some steam. 

Watching them get into the games, be silly and forget about the challenges of their lives for a short while, all with a ball at their feet, is extremely rewarding.

Who knows, I might even run them with the Just Play players one day and see if we can recreate the joy of the paddling pool.