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England boss Gareth Southgate gives memorable training session to young footballers

It's not very often that your PE lesson is delivered by the England Football Manager, but for some very lucky pupils from Oulton Primary School, that is exactly what happened. They were treated to a training session with Gareth Southgate at the West Riding County FA's new all-weather pitch.

Southgate, who has been a Foundation Ambassador for many years, spoke glowingly about the new pitch, "We are a nation of footballers – fans, players and coaches alike. Facilities like this help us to discover, or rediscover, our love of the game. These projects help a huge number of people find a way to keep active, have fun and just enjoy football, and I’m excited to see more of them in the future.” 

The new surface was funded by a £481,338 grant from the Premier League & The FA Facilities Fund. It is projected that the facility will create 16 new sides for local grassroots clubs, with major improvements in football participation across all age groups from youth football to veterans leagues. Participation increases of 1,900% are also predicted for the women's game in the area, with disability football similarly benefiting through the creation of an Ability Counts League.

West Riding FA's Chief Executive, Hannah Simpson, said, "Our community now has the facilities they deserve to enjoy the game of football all year round at this state-of-the-art pitch. Our mission is to create enjoyable and lasting memories of football, and we now are well positioned to deliver those experiences to the entire football family."

The national team boss dropped in to lead an FA Lidl Skills session with the pupils, before answering questions in the youngsters' very own press conference. Aimed specifically at children between the ages of five and 11, the FA Lidl Skills scheme is designed to help youngsters get active, learn football skills and have fun.   
 
Click the images to view the picture gallery from the event & read the full story of the day here.
Two of our Ambassadors, Chris Powell and Nigel Adkins, have been announced as members of the new FA Deception Panel, which will review alleged instances of "successful deception". Players adjudged to have deliberately deceived an official will receive retrospective disciplinary action, which could include a two-match suspension. Chris and Nigel join a pool of former managers, players and match officials who will review cases of alleged misconduct.
More than 62,000 grassroots youth teams will benefit from The FA’s recently launched Youth Football Guide. The easy-to-follow guide aims to improve the matchday experience for younger players, with Gareth Southgate saying that the move will “help to maintain a positive environment that allows children to play freely.”

The downloadable documents provide tips to help every volunteer, coach or manager of a grassroots youth team on everything from codes of conduct to providing refreshments. An ‘at-a-glance guide for junior football’ also details the appropriate size of ball, pitch and goal, as well as the correct length of the game depending on the age group taking part.

 
The Special Olympics GB National Games recently took place in Sheffield and it was a tremendous success. 2,600 athletes with learning disabilities took part in 20 sports events between 8-11 August, making it the largest disability sports event of 2017, with the public offered free entry to all of the sporting action.

Around 1.5 million people in our country have a learning disability – 2% of the population. Special Olympics GB is the largest registered charity providing year round sports training and competition opportunities for people with intellectual (learning) disabilities.


Lawrie McMenemy MBE, Football Foundation Ambassador, also serves as President of Special Olympics GB and got behind the Games. His fellow FF Ambassador and England boss Gareth Southgate, also took time out to meet some of the athletes before the competition. Both Lawrie and Gareth are also Vice President and President of the League Managers Association (LMA) respectively. In total 16 LMA Ambassadors lent their support to the event.

You can view a gallery of images from the Games on the Flickr page here. To learn more about the Special Olympics visit their website.

 
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Following the news that he would join the FA Deception Panel, we sat down for a chat with former Premier League and England defender Chris Powell to ask about his time as both a player and a manager.

Q: What is the best piece of advice that a manager has ever given you?
A: Always be ready and prepared, as in football you never know what’s going to happen next. That was great advice to receive because, as I experienced many times during my career, the unpredictability of the game is incredible.

Q: Since moving into management yourself, what is the best piece of advice that you have ever given to a player?
A: Be trustworthy. That means you must be trustworthy on the pitch, both with and without the ball. You must also be a trustworthy teammate off the pitch. That’s a trait that I strived for in my career and I think it’s invaluable.

Q: Who is the best player that you played with and against?
A: I was fortunate to play alongside some brilliant players throughout my career, but the best would have to be Paul Scholes. I played with him on England duty and his ability, particularly his passing range and accuracy, never ceased to amaze me. The best I played against would be Cristiano Ronaldo. I faced him a few times when he was at Manchester United and even when he was developing, he was such a special player, and a very difficult opponent.

Q: Is there a moment of your career that stands out as your greatest achievement?
A: The proudest moment of my career has to be making my England debut. It was a game at Villa Park against Spain in 2001, and we came away with a 3-0 victory. To represent my country was the fulfilment of a lifelong dream. 

Q: What is the funniest story from your career? 
A: There are just too many to mention, and also some that I wouldn’t get away with! I think I’m lucky in the fact that I had so many laughs throughout a really enjoyable career.


Q: And finally, what is one thing that people may not know about you? 
A: I can play the drums. I learned when I was eight-years-old and played in a band during my twenties alongside the football. I haven’t used them for years but I still have a drum kit at home, so you never know…

 
England World Cup winner Ron Flowers features in this month's 'Out On The Ground.' We take a look back at some other sites we developed with our Funders' cash to have been unveiled by his teammates from that legendary 1966 England side.
Starting at the back with one of the best English 'keepers of all time, it's Gordon Banks OBE. In 2014, he opened our all-weather pitch at Dimensions Leisure Centre in Stoke-on-Trent. With him around, the event was definitely in safe hands!   
Moving up into the defence, we find George Cohen MBE. George was on hand last year to help us unveil Langton Green Community Sports Association’s new changing pavilion. The former right-back was joined on the day by Foundation president, and good friend, Lord Pendry.
 
Next, Jack Charlton OBE, who rolled back the years whilst opening our football hub at Meadowfield Leisure Centre in Durham. Despite recovering from a hip operation, Jack couldn't resist firing a fine penalty past a stunned young 'keeper in the process.
Not to be outdone by his brother, it's Sir Bobby Charlton. Back in 2007, he unveiled our all-weather pitch at Blessed Thomas Holford Catholic College in Altrincham. Shortly after, England chose to train on the pitch to acclimatise for their trip to Russia in the qualifying stages for Euro 2008.
Last, but by no means least, hat-trick hero Sir Geoff Hurst. He opened Castleford Academy's new pitch for us in 2015, and was joined by Yvette Cooper MP to cut the ribbon.  
Westfield Academy were able to refurbish their run-down sand-dressed pitch, thanks to a £223,088 grant from the Premier League & The FA Facilities Fund. With the existing facility coming to the end of its usable life, the works at the Watford-based school also included the installation of new floodlights and perimeter fencing. The site was officially opened by former Watford FC striker Gifton Noel-Williams during a visit in February 2016. 
Here are some jobs currently open for applications within the world of sport:
Senior Press Officer West Ham United FC
Tournaments Co-ordinator The FA
Broadcast Engineer
Eurosport
Head of Spectator Activations
The ICC
Academy Secretary
Manchester United FC
  • He'll be looking to compete for this season's Golden Boot, so it's a good job that Gabriel Jesus got misses like this out of his system in pre-season! 
     
  • If you're going to go for an over-the-top celebration, make sure to not make a fool of yourself like this goalscorer did!
     
  • Initiation songs are an awkward affair for everyone involved. That was until England Under-21 international and Swansea City loanee Tammy Abraham stepped up with this effort. What a voice! 
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Top Corner e-newsletter - June 2017
 
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