Grass Roots Football - How Can We Learn From Holland?

[Frankie 8,150]

Cracking comparison between best practice in Holland and Scotland from pete...

 

http://www.gersnetonline.co.uk/newsite/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=800&Itemid=2

 

For those not aware, Scottish football is to be given a thorough and extensive review from the grass roots through to the professional game. Henry McLeish the former First Minister and an ex-East Fife youth player is going to examine Scottish football from the availability of facilities at grass root level right up to the professional game. As Holland has been one of the best countries in the world for producing world class players I would like to give an idea on how things work in Holland.

 

Firstly football in Holland is based on being a community sport. Clubs are formed in Holland to give anyone who wants to play football the chance to play football. There is no looking in newspapers to try and find a team if you want to play - no matter how good or bad you are then there will be a club within a ten minute bicycle ride.

 

These clubs differ in size with the biggest in being Quick Boys (Katwijk) who have 1783 members. They have 19 senior teams, 6 under 19 teams, 8 under 17 teams, 10 under 15 teams and 11 under 13 teams. Below this age group teams drop down to seven players and play on a half field. Players at all levels pay contribution money to the club so if you take 1783 x ââ??¬15 (average) per month that is a lot of money being pumped into your football club.

 

The youngest age to join a club is five years old or to become five before a certain date. The first few years the cubs as they are called, normally just play within the club. They play 4 v 4 so as they will get as much time possible on the ball. At the age of six they move up to 7 v 7 on a half field with corners being half corners and a penalty from eight meters. The goal is the same size as a handball goal. No offside is played. Because the idea is to let everyone play football, every age group in the youth has the possibility to play 7 against 7. If there are too many players to form an eleven-a-side and too few to form two teams, then teams of seven-a-side can be formed.

 

There are 83000 inhabitants in the town where I live and there are 8 football clubs . In total there are about 70 senior football teams. Behind all these senior teams come all the youth teams. These clubs are all set up to feed the top senior team (the first team).

 

While most kids have the dream of playing for a professional club, getting into the first team for his club and the first team in his age group is also driving factor. A player who just fails to make the grade for the first team in his age group this season is not lost to the club and can go on to develop in the second or lesser team in his age group. That is where I feel many good players are lost in Scotland, as most boy�s clubs only have a first team per age group.

 

The football clubs all have there own complex of pitches which are mostly owned by the council. The amount of pitches differs by the size of the club, most having between two and six full sized grass parks and a training pitch. The upkeep of the pitches falls partly under the cap of the council and often their social work department who employ subsidised workers.

 

A 'canteen' where beer and wine is allowed to be sold is an important part of these clubs as it is a huge boost on the financial front. If you take the example of Katwijk above, then they have 19 senior teams. That means that they can have ten teams playing at home on match-days. Including reserves that is the possibility of having 140 people having a drink. Most away teams drink at least one beer or soft drink with the opposition before they return to base. That means you have the possibility of 280 people buying at least one drink. As I know for certain through experience many players spend the full afternoon in the canteen. The money these clubs make on match days, many pubs would be happy with the same amount in a week. All of the profit goes back into paying for trainers and the upkeep of the facilities which are partly the club's responsibility. Clubs are not permitted tax wise to make a profit through the bar so every penny earned must be put back into the running of club.

 

Here is a quote from Edward Sturing - Head Coach at PSV:

 

ââ?¬Å?The top clubs do not work alone. Without the thriving local football scene they would struggle. There is no organised schools football, but there are nearly 3000 local clubs of which 95 percent have a fully functioning youth set-up. Every weekend all those clubs play competitive matches in the age groups between seven and 19. Thatââ?¬â?¢s a lot of football and a lot of footballers.

 

 

ââ?¬Å?In Holland the pyramid is very big,ââ?¬Â explains Sturing, making a triangle with his two hands. ââ?¬Å?To have so many local clubs for such a small country is amazing, because the base of the pyramid is so big there is a lot of quality at the top.ââ?¬Â

 

 

Regional Scouts are regular visitors of club's youth games and the region's top 40-50 youth players are invited to be involved at regional level. A final region team is picked to play against other regions.

 

Almost all youth training in Holland is based on the 'Coerver' training methods which is based on all training being done with a ball. Practice making perfect is preferred to jogging round a football field. Youth players have a natural stamina and working on the ball improves technique and stamina.

 

In the youth setup there are not enough girls yet to form female youth teams, so female players play football with the boy youth teams. I have seen one female who made it as far as the under 17 first team. Not every club has a female team so at about 16 females have to look at moving to a club who do run one. That is perhaps one aspect of the system that should be improved in Holland.

 

I think this article shows the big difference between Dutch football and Scottish football is at grass root level. Youth training and possibilities to play at a young level and grow through from cub to a senior first team level are hugely important principles often missing in our country. The chance to grow from five to fifty without searching newspapers to find a team. Football in Holland is community related, where grandfather, son and grandson will probably play for the same team. No fighting over football fields just 100% grass fields or sometimes synthetic these days. A football association which realises that the youth of today are the players of tomorrow and a government that puts money into sport without a lottery grant.

 

Cambuslang Rangers, Pollock, Maryhill, Renfrew Juniors, etc. should be large clubs where anyone can play with the clubs thriving on a larger pyramid and contributions from players from all levels. There should be a full youth and senior program behind these clubs.

 

Scotland has to build a pyramid with a proper youth football set-up being the foundation. Investment in the future is the way the Dutch look at things. Scotland should be doing the same.

 

:spl:

[Bluedell 5,329]

My son has just started at a new club. There are apparently 750 boys at all age groups and it's wonderfully organised. They make sure that there is a ball for every boy and there are plenty of coaches. They even gave him a strip on his second visit, which is a great way to encourage boys to come back.

 

It sounds similar to the set-up described by Pete, and it's great that there are clubs like this in Scotland that are copying the Dutch methods.

[Frankie 8,150]

Great stuff BD...

 

I'm sure there are many clubs in Scotland following the oranje model but the more the better. Hopefully the McLeish led project will help facilitate this.

[Jon 0]

My son was the same here a couple of seasons ago, turned up for his first training session and was immediately given his strip.

 

All the kids also give their old boots to someone to store so if kids get stuck for a new pair, there is a shed full to choose from.

 

The soccer 7's here is now in it's 14th year beginners, intermediatte and seniors. Not sure on the exact number of players but sure it is in the region of 1500+ which is not bad for this area.

 

The organisation is also first class for all the league and cup games and then an overall competition involving other leagues and schools.

[Jon 0]

Great stuff bt the way Pete....

[Gazza_8 233]

My son has just started at a new club. There are apparently 750 boys at all age groups and it's wonderfully organised.

 

Must be pretty tough to get picked in the starting XI.

[Bluedell 5,329]

Must be pretty tough to get picked in the starting XI.

 

Starting 7, so even harder!

[pete 2,499]

My son has just started at a new club. There are apparently 750 boys at all age groups and it's wonderfully organised. They make sure that there is a ball for every boy and there are plenty of coaches. They even gave him a strip on his second visit, which is a great way to encourage boys to come back.

 

It sounds similar to the set-up described by Pete, and it's great that there are clubs like this in Scotland that are copying the Dutch methods.

 

Great to hear the youth is well organised BD but what happens when these kids are 19? Are they kicked out the door to find a senior team or is there also a senior set-up? If there is no senior possibilities many of these players will just stop playing and that would be a pity.

[calscot 0]

Great article Pete - I've thanked you on your last message as if I thanked your article it would go to Frankie...

 

It's gratifying that it echos stuff I've been suggesting for a long time - organised teams with coaching in every town subsidised by the government and the crucial factor that EVERYONE who comes along gets a game and coaching.

 

It would create a massive increase in participation of the sport that would obviously bring benefits to our professional and international game as well as creating more fans who go to games and even reducing obesity which I'll bet is a lot lower in Holland.

 

I would have loved to have such a set-up when I was young as what we had was a first team at school and if you didn't get in, tough. That's not good for late developers or those without much coaching by their dads etc.

 

I found most player in the teams had active dads who played themselves which gave all of them a head start; whereas, my dad was away at sea a lot, didn't like football anyway and my parents were divorced by the time I was 8.

 

I therefore didn't learn to play football well enough to get in the school team and so didn't play much and certainly didn't get any coaching - and at that time you couldn't learn from the internet or dvd's either.

 

I didn't actually play really regular kickabout football until I was about 30 and started as one of the worst players. However, I worked at my game learned from websites, dvds and things that are really obvious when your an adult but not as a kid - like pulling your foot back to kill the ball which is so natural to those who have been coached as a youngster - but was something I really had to concentrate on for a long time; or always being half-turned when receiving the ball.

 

I improved dramatically and enough to eventually be of a standard to play for my work's veteran team by the time I was 37.

 

I really regret not being able to play and develop my game as a youngster and throughout my life - and that Dutch system would have made my footballing life so much different...

[Bluedell 5,329]

Pete, it starts at under 7's and goes up to under 21's and then they would move onto the amateur side(s), so there is a home for them there.

 

There isn't an association with any professional or semi-professional (junior) teams as such.