Archive for month: March, 2019

Following the success of last year’s EFL Trust Futsal All Star event, the best futsal scholars and coaches from the EFL Trust network will once again get the opportunity to showcase their talents at the iconic St Georges Park on Wednesday 3^rd April.

The event combines the best players from the 26 EFL Community Trusts involved in futsal at EFL Clubs.

Each Club has the opportunity to nominate players and coaches to take part and represent their regional team (North, South West, Midlands and South East).

All the nominated players are aged 16-18 and are studying with an EFL Club whilst also playing futsal.

Whilst education remained their main aim, in the past, students such as Joe Kenny, Alex Turfrey and Nathan Davies went on to gain full international honours with futsal and travel the world.

Read Alex Turfrey’s story here

Mark Dick, National Futsal Development Manager at EFL Trust, said: “Last year’s event was a great success. 

“To play at the home of England Futsal at St Georges Park is a fantastic reward for students for all of their work both in the classroom and on the court.”

At this year’s event, at least one coach from each of the regional teams will have been a former player on the EFL Trust Futsal programme that has now gone onto full-time employment with their Community Trust.

Callum Avent, is a prime example of one of these coaches. As a former EFL Trust Futsal player at Peterborough United, Callum went on to securing full-time employment at the Club’s Community Trust after completing the course and undertaking a Futsal Coach Education at Level 2 and obtaining a UEFA B Futsal Licence.

Talking about Callum’s story, Nick Shepherd, Community Manager at Peterborough United said:

“Callum originally did work experience with us as a shy 15 year old, during this time he came out of his shell and had a very good work ethic. 

“He joined the EFL Trust Futsal games programme with Peterborough United at Year 12, despite not coming out of school with the best GCSE results. 

“During his 2 years on the games programme, Callum volunteered as a coach on the soccer schools programme and it became clear he had a keen interest and good potential as a coach. 

“He worked so hard at his education during the futsal course and ended 6^th Form with very respectable results, and because of this we offered him a coaching apprenticeship.

“After two years, he has since become an integral part of our coaching staff and I am delighted to see him once again selected to represent the Midlands at this year’s EFL Trust All Star Event.”

The announced coaches who have been selected to represent their regions this year are:

North – Graeme Atkinson (PNE) and Declan Bacon (Scunthorpe United)

Midlands – Callum Avent (Peterborough United) and Duncan Gilchrist (Stoke City)

South East – Chris Day (Albion in the Community) and James Phillips and Ted Jones (Chelsea)

South West – Jordan Guard and Gary Bell (Bristol City) and Jack Richardson (Bristol Rovers)

Last year’s winners South West lifting the trophy

To watch highlights of last year’s EFL Trust Futsal All Star Event click here

Blackburn Rovers Community Trust have taken the opportunity to mark Down’s Syndrome Awareness Week and today’s World Down Syndrome Day by launching a brand new Down’s Syndrome coaching session for children.

The first session of its kind took place on Monday evening at the Blackburn Rovers Indoor Centre to coincide with the start of the worldwide week of awareness, with the intention of making football more inclusive for children regardless of any challenges that Down’s Syndrome might present to them.

The new offer is an expansion of the consistently popular weekly coaching for children with a wide spectrum of disabilities, which has been running throughout the season and is regularly attended by around 20 children aged eight to 16 (though younger children are also welcome with their parents or guardians’ consent if they believe that they will be safe in an environment alongside older children).

Matt Pilkington, disability sports officer with the club’s official charity, is excited by the opportunities that the new weekly concept – hosted every Monday from 5pm to 6pm – will provide to the wider community, explaining:

“The thinking behind our ever-expanding disability football coaching is to offer opportunities in areas where we’ve identified a local need, and a niche offering for children with Down’s Syndrome was definitely one of those areas.

“The response to this new initiative has been phenomenal and we’re receiving a very steady run of requests from families who would like their children to be part of this new offer, so we look forward to seeing how it grows.

“The recent fundraising at the Preston North End game through the ‘Bring A Pound To The Ground’ concept and a generous donation from the football club means that we’re looking to offer the chance for representative teams suiting children with a range of disabilities with the chance to play for Blackburn Rovers at tournaments or at one-off fixtures.

“If the demand is there, we look forward to potentially being able to field a Blackburn Rovers Down’s Syndrome side if the right opportunities are available, so the more families that are interested in getting involved, the better chance we have of being able to let children live that dream.”

To express your interest in securing a place for your child at forthcoming sessions – which are normally priced at just £3 per week – please contact Matt Pilkington via 01254 508256 or [email protected].

All 72 EFL Clubs to demonstrate the power of football in changing people’s lives

All 72 EFL Clubs will come together to highlight the work undertaken to tackle some of society’s biggest issues for the EFL’s Day of the Action 2019.

On Tuesday 19 March, EFL Clubs across the Sky Bet Championship, League One and League Two will each host events designed to showcase the very best of their work to tackle a diverse range of social issues, from homelessness and mental health, to community cohesion and the battle against plastic pollution.

Up and down the country, managers and players from the EFL’s 72 Clubs will also be attending events to pay special visits to participants and turn their hand to some of the activities taking place throughout the day.

• In the Sky Bet Championship, Aston Villa’s Albert Adomah has been distributing essential supplies to homeless people in Birmingham. The Villa star joined the Outreach Angels – a group of local volunteers – to hand out hot food, toiletries and warm clothing
• Bolton Wanderers’ will be showcasing their ‘Inside Out’ Programme which aims to reduce the risk of offending by 17-25-year-olds in the local area through positive activities such as sport and exercise
• In Sky Bet League One, Luton Town caretaker manager Mick Harford will be welcoming the Club’s Every Player Counts disability players to the training ground for a unique coaching session whilst Walsall players will be giving out 300 tickets and t-shirts to local school children as part of the Club’s commitment to engaging with the younger generation of fans in the area
• Cambridge United of Sky Bet League Two have been recognised nationally for improving mental health literacy in young people. The ‘Mind Your Head’ project raises awareness about mental health, tackles stigma and promotes good mental health, whilst crucially helping secondary school pupils understand and manage their own mental health, avoiding potential issues in the future

This is just small sample of some of the fantastic work due to take place during the EFL’s Day of Action by EFL Club Community Organisations – the largest network of sporting charities in the UK.  The EFL and its Clubs invested £80m in communities in 2018.

EFL Chief Executive, Shaun Harvey said: “The EFL Day of Action brings together all 72 Clubs to highlight the special role they play in enhancing the lives of millions of people around the country.

“The scale of ground-breaking projects across our network of Clubs continues to grow year-on-year and their delivery is integral to our aims of improving lives in a range of areas including inclusion, homelessness, education and health.”

The football club’s official charity helps inspire youngsters to reach their potential and improve their health and wellbeing via the power of football, engagement and education. James Constable, known as Beano, played for United between 2008 and 2014 and scored 106 goals, making him the club’s all-time second highest goal scorer. As Patron, James will share his expertise and help shape and support initiatives where appropriate. The appointment comes as Oxford United in the Community celebrates its 30 year anniversary.

James said: “It’s an absolute honour to have been asked to be Patron of Oxford United in the Community and I jumped at the chance. I’ve such fond memories of my career at Oxford and have so many friends there. Community is so important and football clubs have such an opportunity to engage and help people and I’ve always viewed it as a privilege and responsibility. Oxford United in the Community plays a vital role in supporting people in the county and I’m looking forward to supporting the charity in any way I can.”

Chris Lowes, Head of Operations at Oxford United in the Community, said: “This is a major step for the charity. Having such a popular and engaging figure like James on-board will help us elevate the profile of Oxford United in the Community and empower us to deliver more results. We can’t wait to work with him and know his patronage and contribution will strengthen our cause.”

Greig Box Turnbull, Vice Chair of Trustees of Oxford United in the Community, added: “We wanted to appoint someone who understands the club, our community and the importance of the work the charity does. Plus, someone with an affinity for the club, fans and charity and who could help raise our profile. Beano was the obvious choice. He is a real role model who inspires so many in our community. When we spoke to James he jumped at the chance, which demonstrates his passion for Oxford.”

James joined fellow United legend Peter Rhoades-Brown as a Patron of Oxford United in the Community. Rosie was one of the pioneers of the community football initiatives in the late 1980’s which became the football charities of today.

Oxford United in the Community’s coaching staff deliver programmes in nursery and primary schools across Oxfordshire. They are qualified not only in football coaching, but in teaching interventions including Real PE, which focuses on the development of agility, balance and coordination, healthy competition and cooperative learning. The charity also delivers the popular Manor Club to the over 50’s to help tackle isolation in the older community.

As part of International Women’s Day, we are celebrating the fantastic transformation of  participants who believe that working with our Community Trusts have given them incredibly valuable experiences as they look to progress in their careers and studies.

Georgia Ward, aged 18, was a very shy and quiet individual when she first signed up with with Bristol City Community Trust (BCCT), but at the end of her course, involving education and playing Futsal, her hard work, determination and development in confidence enabled her to achieve her dream of securing a scholarship in America.

Making the decision to start a course in a new place around new people is never easy for any 16-year-old, and Georgia initially found this part difficult.

However, over the two years on the course, she came out of her shell and her confidence soared. She believes it’s the best decision she ever made.

She said: “It was a tough decision to study at Bristol City Community Trust as it meant going to a different place to all of my friends and meeting new people.

“I’m so glad I did it though, it has been a great experience and it’s definitely helped me get closer to my goals as the only path I see for me is one in the sports industry.”

Before playing futsal for the first time with BCCT, Georgia had a huge passion for football and states that she wasn’t sure about the differences between the two sports at first, but in time realised the many benefits that the smaller sided game has to offer.

“BCCT  have helped me to improve massively in both the skilful and control side as well as helping to make quick decisions.”

During her time on her course, Georgia really made the most of the Clubs fantastic reputation in the community [Bristol City Community Trust were recently voted South West EFL Community Club of the Year 2019] by volunteering and engaging in over 200 hours of work experience.

Georgia had the opportunity to work alongside talented coaches and inspire a younger generation of children.

Chloe Rogers, Sports Lecturer at Bristol City Community Trust, who was Georgia’s coach at the time said: “To witness the development of Georgia’s confidence and watch her go from a quiet and shy individual to presenting in front of the other students and inspiring many little girls around our community as a volunteer coach is so fulfilling.

“Her work was always at a high standard and the endless amount of effort she put into helping the community was so impressive, from volunteering on our holiday camps, taster sessions, sports days, Bristol City Women’s matches and in primary schools with Maths and English. She really was a model student.

“As a reward for hitting a certain amount of volunteering hours we presented Georgia with a signed first-team shirt.

“However showing what a kind hearted girl she is and her passion for helping the community, she auctioned it off and donated the money to a local charity.”

After successful completion of the course, BCCT supported Georgia’s dream of playing in America and after organising her athlete profile she received a number of offers from colleges all over the USA. In the end, she chose to take advantage of a scholarship at Parkland College.

This is what Georgia had to say about her experience so far:

“After spending a couple of days in the nearest big city, Chicago, and moving in, meeting my roommates, the rest of the team and the coaches, I am very pleased with my decision.

“I would just like to thank everyone who was part of my experience at BCCT as I don’t know where I would be without it!”