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Billy's Philosophy

In my opinion, kids play sport for one major reason: to have fun. If they’re not having fun, they won’t keep playing and then the other reason they might play sport i.e. to get better at it, doesn’t matter anymore.

So I make sure my training sessions are fun, and within that framework, I help the kids improve their skills. I’ve got a number of games for the kids which over the years I’ve found best combine fun and learning. I also teach them various soccer manoeuvres – e.g. dragbacks, sidesteps, wipers, stepovers, stop-goes and shielding - which I encourage them to use in the games we have, and it’s satisfying to see the kids learn the moves and identify the right times to use them in a game.

When I was a kid, I found a game or practice session wasn’t as much fun if other kids were mucking around, so there’s no mucking around in my classes. If you see one of my classes, you may well see a child running the length of the field or doing star jumps. That’s a child undergoing “correctional therapy”, and it usually has the desired affect pretty fast. However, not always. I’ve had dozens of students who have ADD, ADHD, aspergers and a number of other learning difficulties, and with those kids I’ve discussed with their parents the best way to manage them. If your child has anything I should know about, just let me know.

Soccer is a great game because the rules are simple, and it’s easy to play (but difficult to master). Once learned soccer is a great social skill to have. All over the world, a soccer player can stroll down to a park and find a casual game to join in and meet people. Also, soccer provides great opportunities for New Zealanders. For instance, there are more and more young Kiwis – male and female - earning scholarships in the United States. And dozens earning big bucks in the professional game. Not that a player need get to a high level to be a success. With the high dropout rate of kids from sports, it pleases me just to hear that a child I taught five, ten or fifteen years ago is still playing.