Football

If not you, then who?

Andy Watters

Andy Watters

Andy is a sports reporter at The Irish News. His particular areas of expertise are Gaelic Football and professional boxing but he has an affinity for many other sports. Andy has been nominated three times for the Society of Editors Sports Journalist of the Year award and was commended for his inventiveness as a sub-editor in the IPR awards.

Mighty Oaks from little acorns grow.... Conor Glass was nurtured by the hard-working coaches at his club Watty Graham's. Picture Margaret McLaughlin.
Mighty Oaks from little acorns grow.... Conor Glass was nurtured by the hard-working coaches at his club Watty Graham's. Picture Margaret McLaughlin. Mighty Oaks from little acorns grow.... Conor Glass was nurtured by the hard-working coaches at his club Watty Graham's. Picture Margaret McLaughlin.

MAYBE it’s just me but isn’t it hard dragging yourself out of bed these days? The mornings are dark and damp, the nights are darker and damper and there’s no mention of a ‘quare stretch in the evenings’ yet.

But the melancholy month of January is when all clubs have to get their underage coaching teams in place. Although it doesn’t feel like it, spring must surely be in the post and then, if we’re lucky, there’ll be those long summer evenings when the leagues are up-and-running and batches of eager youngsters gets the boots on and show off their skills.

If the coaches aren’t there to take the teams, that ain’t gonna happen.

Most years there’ll be a couple of fall-offs from the previous season’s coaching roster.

“Just letting you know I’m taking a step back from it this year,” reads the standard text message.

Why? What’s up? Something wrong?

“Ah just feel like taking a break from it…”

That’s ok, it’s a free country, but when the person taking charge surveys the list of teams that need looked after, there’ll be more than a few blank spaces under the heading ‘coaches’.

So, right now, carefully-worded appeals which are to be posted on WhatsApp groups, are being drafted and lists of potential coaches (who may be new faces in the area) are being drawn up.

The hunt is on for some new blood and, since people who actually volunteer their services (in any sport) are an increasingly endangered species, don’t be surprised if you get ‘door-stepped’ at the school pick-up or drop-off, or when you’re out for a bite to eat, or at the shop.

There’ll be a tap, tap on your shoulder and you’ll turn to find a smiling man or woman wearing that club half-zip and bobble hat they never seem to take off, who you may or may not have seen around, standing behind you.

“Aye, well, how’s things?” they’ll say and you’ll know something is coming.

But what?

It won’t take long for them to get to the point. No small talk, no buttering-up…

“Aye, just wondering if you’ve any interest in getting involved in the club this year?” they’ll ask.

“What’s that?” you may ask, buying a little time.

“Would you be interested in getting involved in the club?”

“Me! Doing what?”

“Coaching… Anything.”

If the intrepid club stalwart is lucky their target will be chuffed to have been asked and they’ll agree to get involved on the spot but these days everybody is so busy. Work, school, homework, kids’ activities, elderly parents, Netflix, Liverpool, United, snoozing on the sofa…

There are a million-and-one things out there that soak up our time and attention and a combination of those excuses/reasons are routinely trotted out as the could-be coach side-steps the invitation and goes on about their business with a: ‘Thanks for asking, I’ll maybe give you a shout next year’.

“That’s fair enough,” the thick-skinned club person will reply and then move on to their next target who’ll get the same tap on the shoulder and the same invitation.

Coaching is not for everyone but if you’re a parent and you want your children playing sports there’s no better way of ensuring they will than by getting involved yourself.

So the question is: If not you, then who?

Many are put off because they worry that they’re signing their life away. People don’t want the hassle of being committed to looking after others peoples’ kids week after week.

So how much time are we talking about there?

Not much more than a couple of hours a week - one evening and a weekend morning would do it.

At underage level – U11 and below – coaching really boils down to just being there reliably a couple of times a week. It’s helping to put the cones out, moving the goalposts and encouraging the kids. Experience of playing Gaelic Games, although handy, is not required. Enthusiasm is the essential ingredient and at U6 or U7 level probably the most important part of it is supervising the regular toilet and drinks breaks.

What do you get in return for your time? You might get a club half-zip of your very own and maybe even a whistle.

But, much more importantly, you get to be part of your community, you’ll get to know your fellow coaches, you’ll learn the highways and byways of your county when you go to the matches, you get fresh air and exercise, head space…

Ultimately and crucially, you’ll get to know a group of kids who will benefit so much from your input because, if you aren’t there, they won’t be there either.

Yes, it is hard getting out of bed these mornings but having the football, or hurling, or camogie or whatever it is to look forward to, and being involved in it, will make it a little easier.

BORUSSIA Newtownabbey. There’s a catchy name for ya. The new club on the Ards Peninsula has made impressive strides since Jonathan Round got the ball rolling a couple of years ago.

Jonathan, born in England and raised in Donegal, has been living in the Newtownabbey area for the past eight years. His fondness for the bright yellow jersey Borussia Dortmund wore when they won the Champions League in 1997 is what inspired him to give the new club its Germanic tagline.

“I wanted something to make the club stand-out and I wanted to stay away from the ‘X-Y-Z, Rangers-Celtic-United’ sort of thing,” Jonathan explains.

“I wanted something totally different but something that still gave us an anchor to this area.”

Borussia’s primary focus is positive mental health through sport.

A team has been entered to take part in the six-a-side league at Seaview on Sunday-week and next year Borussia hope to field an 11-a-side team. Numbers shouldn’t be a problem if early expressions of interest are anything to go by.

“We’ve got 43 players registered since August,” says Jonathan who says he’s “just the guy in the background trying to organise it”.

“It’s always said: ‘Men don’t talk’ and this is giving men a safe space and using football as a vehicle to get out there and have the opportunity to talk if they’re feeling bad,” he added.

“The boys want an outlet and a place to meet. We went out for a night before Christmas and a few of the lads were talking about their situation and it was humbling to see the idea for the club working because, if people talk about their issues, they’re starting the journey to recovery.

“Hopefully we can build the club to where it’s not just a men’s team – there’s a ladies’ team, there are kids’ teams, maybe a basketball team… All under a big umbrella.”

The fundamental aim of the club isn’t to bring home trophies - for Borussia it’s positivity, not points, that matters.

“Our strapline is ‘positive mental health through sport,” says Jonathan.

“It’s all about getting fellas out. We can go 10 games unbeaten or 10 without a point… It’s just about getting out and getting active.”

Borussia will play PwC at Seaview on Friday, February 10 to raise funds for Orchardville, TAMHI (Tackling Awareness on Mental Health Issues) and their club.

To get involved, reach out on Facebook, Twitter, Linkedin or Instagram or email enquiries@borussianewtownabbeyfc.com.