Jump to content
Cornwall Football Forum

is the Cornish football bubble about to burst ?


Recommended Posts

with more teams pulling out of leagues this season [ including my home town club hayle] is the football bubble about to burst?

is it because there are to many leagues ?,to few players ? commities getting older ? or to much money at some clubs ? lack of facilities ? are theccfa aware of these issues in their area , even the clubs who have been successful at higher levels are finding it a struggle [ falmouth,penzance] clubs with big catchment areas for players fans seem to struggle , is this season just a blib or will it get worse ? or have we ourselves as football people been to complacent over the seasons and have left things lapse , this post is not a dig at any clubs but a genuine concern for local football at all levels from junior ,senior sunday or womens football as like minded football fans can we come up with some answers?

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I think its all about attitudes myself, I remember having to regularly work on a saturday morning and getting myself to a game in order to play the second half or the last 20 minutes if required.

Now its all about priorities, mobile phones are full of excuses, players dont want to travel, committees are tired, money is either too high or too low, managers and coaches get the brunt of the excuses and the backlash when results dont go their way.

Now I really do feel old!!!

(I am)

MQx

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Would it be such a bad thing if some teams at the junior level of the game folded anyway? The Duchy and Trelawney Leagues seem to be pretty enormous in size and, in a county with a relatively small population like Cornwall, there must be a finite number of enthusiastic players and supporters to go around.

Perhaps a bit of downsizing would lead to a greater concentration of resources, with improved standards of play and better attendances?

Maybe I'm wrong, but it's just a thought.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I think schools have to share some of the blame because they do not advocate competitive sport any more and so the youngsters struggle when they try it. Also agree that there are too many other options for weekends rather than play football. Dont think evening games help either - many dont finish work much before half 5 - 6 o'clock and so its a rush for all those trying to get to a game.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I know the title of this thread is, `is the Cornish football bubble about to burst` but the downward trend has been happening for years in both Cornwall and in Devon. In the late 70's and early 80's the Plymouth and District League boasted a Premier League and 5 further divisions all of which had 14 to 16 teams. The Plymouth Combination League could see a further Premier League and 4 more divisions of the same number of team. All in all. this could have added up to as many as 176 teams playing regularly on a Saturday afternoon. Now... the Plymouth and District Combination (Saturday) League has just three divisions. How times change.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I think schools have to share some of the blame because they do not advocate competitive sport any more and so the youngsters struggle when they try it. Also agree that there are too many other options for weekends rather than play football. Dont think evening games help either - many dont finish work much before half 5 - 6 o'clock and so its a rush for all those trying to get to a game.

I agree with most of what you say le boss - this pathetic attitude rife now that you don't advocate competitive sport because you mustn't have losers. The kids will have an awful shock when they get into real life if they don't learn about winners and losers. In life there are those who succeed and those who don't. In sport you have to learn to be a good loser, and, that breeds an attitude of determining not to lose again and a will to win. Competition in life is part of living and the best or better ones succeed, whether talking about sport or business.

I'm afraid that every school that I know and work with/alongside invest a huge amount of time and effort into the competitive element of sport. There was a time when the non-competitive brigade had their way, but those days are gone.

All primary schools are playing inter school competitions and all secondary schools are playing inter/intra schools competitions. Add to that the Cornwall Sports Partnership investing money into the Cornwall Schools Games for a variety of major and minor sports, the "pathetic attitude" that you mention simply does not exist in any school I've seen.

If you knew how much actually goes on and the time teachers and other staff spend on competitive sport, you might actually take back your statements.

There are clubs who do not invest enough time and trouble to provide exit routes for kids at all ages, and those clubs will continue to suffer as national governing bodies of sport will not invest their money into clubs who cannot prove their sustainability or provide details of a long term development plan. Would you?

The CCFA/FA have invested thousands of pounds in Cornwall over the last few years. New astro pitches at Newquay Tretherras, Mounts Bay School, Camelford School, Cornwall College, Brannel School, Penryn College, to name but a few. Over £600,000 at Wendron and grants to a whole host of other clubs for a variety of different reasons and projects.

Tescos Skills Coaches and FA club mentors have been employed to give help and advice to clubs in Cornwall and there's superb coach education opportunities rolling out throughout the county for both new and improving coaches.

Yes there are lots of other things to do these days, and I do believe that just as Martin McHugh has alluded to earlier that there is a culture where players are finding easy excuses to miss games or training, it never occurred to me that missing training was an option when I played. Players are judging how good they are by how much they're being paid and that's apparent by some of the attitude shown towards managers and officials by "Big Time Charlie" types who wouldn't have got in some of the sides I played in.

But there are still a huge amount of people trying to make sport accessible and still plenty trying to get qualified to ensure they're giving the best advice to all young players.

There are also a lot of people who have a moan about things but never put anything back into sport. You all know who they are. Maybe if everyone gave just a little back to all sport we wouldn't be having this debate.

Sorry for the rant but I've spent the last 20 years trying to make a difference!

Link to comment
Share on other sites

You are absolutely right regarding the competitive sport concept, we hated it when it was supposed to be high on the agenda and as a teacher it was horrendous to see many youngsters being encouraged to take part for no other reason than to help out. Even though this was a good lesson to learn , team spirit and bonding etc, it was detrimental to the pupils that wanted and in some cases needed to be competitive.

I couldnt imagine my school days without competitive sport!!

MQx

Link to comment
Share on other sites

it has been proved that we lag behind other European countries in the amount of qualified coaches we have. how many adult teams are managed/coached by qualified people!!! if a youngster has coaching all through his/her school life would they go to a club who have not got one? it is okay saying that the county/fa does nothing for adult clubs but if you do not help yourself to improve off as well as on the pitch them you are likely to fold eventually

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I think schools have to share some of the blame because they do not advocate competitive sport any more and so the youngsters struggle when they try it. Also agree that there are too many other options for weekends rather than play football. Dont think evening games help either - many dont finish work much before half 5 - 6 o'clock and so its a rush for all those trying to get to a game.

I agree with most of what you say le boss - this pathetic attitude rife now that you don't advocate competitive sport because you mustn't have losers. The kids will have an awful shock when they get into real life if they don't learn about winners and losers. In life there are those who succeed and those who don't. In sport you have to learn to be a good loser, and, that breeds an attitude of determining not to lose again and a will to win. Competition in life is part of living and the best or better ones succeed, whether talking about sport or business.

I'm afraid that every school that I know and work with/alongside invest a huge amount of time and effort into the competitive element of sport. There was a time when the non-competitive brigade had their way, but those days are gone.

All primary schools are playing inter school competitions and all secondary schools are playing inter/intra schools competitions. Add to that the Cornwall Sports Partnership investing money into the Cornwall Schools Games for a variety of major and minor sports, the "pathetic attitude" that you mention simply does not exist in any school I've seen.

If you knew how much actually goes on and the time teachers and other staff spend on competitive sport, you might actually take back your statements.

There are clubs who do not invest enough time and trouble to provide exit routes for kids at all ages, and those clubs will continue to suffer as national governing bodies of sport will not invest their money into clubs who cannot prove their sustainability or provide details of a long term development plan. Would you?

The CCFA/FA have invested thousands of pounds in Cornwall over the last few years. New astro pitches at Newquay Tretherras, Mounts Bay School, Camelford School, Cornwall College, Brannel School, Penryn College, to name but a few. Over £600,000 at Wendron and grants to a whole host of other clubs for a variety of different reasons and projects.

Tescos Skills Coaches and FA club mentors have been employed to give help and advice to clubs in Cornwall and there's superb coach education opportunities rolling out throughout the county for both new and improving coaches.

Yes there are lots of other things to do these days, and I do believe that just as Martin McHugh has alluded to earlier that there is a culture where players are finding easy excuses to miss games or training, it never occurred to me that missing training was an option when I played. Players are judging how good they are by how much they're being paid and that's apparent by some of the attitude shown towards managers and officials by "Big Time Charlie" types who wouldn't have got in some of the sides I played in.

But there are still a huge amount of people trying to make sport accessible and still plenty trying to get qualified to ensure they're giving the best advice to all young players.

There are also a lot of people who have a moan about things but never put anything back into sport. You all know who they are. Maybe if everyone gave just a little back to all sport we wouldn't be having this debate.

Sorry for the rant but I've spent the last 20 years trying to make a difference!

i take my hat off to you Tommy and anyone at the grass roots level of football and as you state plenty stay on the sidelines having a pop and put nothing back in ,your point about sports pitches [eg 3g] is very good but are they enough for the area and the costs for hiring are not cheap ? Wendron have done really well with their funding and have great facilities as do st.ives , but a few seasons ago i went to a meeting with the ccfa at holmans and the meeting was well presented with facts and figures and the usual pr stuff the majority of clubs there all said that most teams only needed a small amount for upgrading their facilities eg toilets repair or decorate , but we were all left with the opinion that the intrest was only in the BIG PROJECTS and not helping the village teams so at the time a lot of clubs left feeling deflated and thought the ccfa was only intrested in making money of the small clubs , things may have changed since then i hope so , in my own opinion i think finance plays a big part in local football , i am not talking about paying players thats for others to discuss , i mean kits, insurance ,refs , hiring pitches , players subs ect Cornwall is on average a very low paid area with a lot of people in seasonal jobs i think this may have a large part to play especialy in junior football where there is no gate money coming in , the money from top flight football [prem league ] doent seem to filter down to the lower levels of the sport

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I think schools have to share some of the blame because they do not advocate competitive sport any more and so the youngsters struggle when they try it. Also agree that there are too many other options for weekends rather than play football. Dont think evening games help either - many dont finish work much before half 5 - 6 o'clock and so its a rush for all those trying to get to a game.

I agree with most of what you say le boss - this pathetic attitude rife now that you don't advocate competitive sport because you mustn't have losers. The kids will have an awful shock when they get into real life if they don't learn about winners and losers. In life there are those who succeed and those who don't. In sport you have to learn to be a good loser, and, that breeds an attitude of determining not to lose again and a will to win. Competition in life is part of living and the best or better ones succeed, whether talking about sport or business.

I'm afraid that every school that I know and work with/alongside invest a huge amount of time and effort into the competitive element of sport. There was a time when the non-competitive brigade had their way, but those days are gone.

All primary schools are playing inter school competitions and all secondary schools are playing inter/intra schools competitions. Add to that the Cornwall Sports Partnership investing money into the Cornwall Schools Games for a variety of major and minor sports, the "pathetic attitude" that you mention simply does not exist in any school I've seen.

If you knew how much actually goes on and the time teachers and other staff spend on competitive sport, you might actually take back your statements.

There are clubs who do not invest enough time and trouble to provide exit routes for kids at all ages, and those clubs will continue to suffer as national governing bodies of sport will not invest their money into clubs who cannot prove their sustainability or provide details of a long term development plan. Would you?

The CCFA/FA have invested thousands of pounds in Cornwall over the last few years. New astro pitches at Newquay Tretherras, Mounts Bay School, Camelford School, Cornwall College, Brannel School, Penryn College, to name but a few. Over £600,000 at Wendron and grants to a whole host of other clubs for a variety of different reasons and projects.

Tescos Skills Coaches and FA club mentors have been employed to give help and advice to clubs in Cornwall and there's superb coach education opportunities rolling out throughout the county for both new and improving coaches.

Yes there are lots of other things to do these days, and I do believe that just as Martin McHugh has alluded to earlier that there is a culture where players are finding easy excuses to miss games or training, it never occurred to me that missing training was an option when I played. Players are judging how good they are by how much they're being paid and that's apparent by some of the attitude shown towards managers and officials by "Big Time Charlie" types who wouldn't have got in some of the sides I played in.

But there are still a huge amount of people trying to make sport accessible and still plenty trying to get qualified to ensure they're giving the best advice to all young players.

There are also a lot of people who have a moan about things but never put anything back into sport. You all know who they are. Maybe if everyone gave just a little back to all sport we wouldn't be having this debate.

Sorry for the rant but I've spent the last 20 years trying to make a difference!

i take my hat off to you Tommy and anyone at the grass roots level of football and as you state plenty stay on the sidelines having a pop and put nothing back in ,your point about sports pitches [eg 3g] is very good but are they enough for the area and the costs for hiring are not cheap ? Wendron have done really well with their funding and have great facilities as do st.ives , but a few seasons ago i went to a meeting with the ccfa at holmans and the meeting was well presented with facts and figures and the usual pr stuff the majority of clubs there all said that most teams only needed a small amount for upgrading their facilities eg toilets repair or decorate , but we were all left with the opinion that the intrest was only in the BIG PROJECTS and not helping the village teams so at the time a lot of clubs left feeling deflated and thought the ccfa was only intrested in making money of the small clubs , things may have changed since then i hope so , in my own opinion i think finance plays a big part in local football , i am not talking about paying players thats for others to discuss , i mean kits, insurance ,refs , hiring pitches , players subs ect Cornwall is on average a very low paid area with a lot of people in seasonal jobs i think this may have a large part to play especialy in junior football where there is no gate money coming in , the money from top flight football [prem league ] doent seem to filter down to the lower levels of the sport StevieB When I went to watch Helston 3rds few weeks back a guy came round with a pint pot wanting us to donate money to help to pay for the referee. This week when we played them they even had the gateman asking supporters who had come to watch our game to pay to watch. Now that's not against the league rules as far as I am aware but wonder what theirs spectators would say if they had to pay at other grounds.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

As the quantity of people who volunteer in all areas of the sport are dwindling the quality and participation levels drop.

Leagues struggle for referees

Clubs struggle for volunteers, coaches and managers

Teams are struggling for players

Players struggle to commit due to work, attitude, travel and cost.

Due to all this the level of competition to get into a team is less and subsequently the quality of football is suffering.

It doesn't help either that lots of very good players just want to play with their mates in the lower leagues rather than test themselves at senior football.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

marazion in answer to your question i am really suprised a club the size of helston would need gate money on a junior game . its the 1st time i have came across this at junior level apart from cup semis or finals ,perhaps someone from helston could answer or are more junior clubs doing this ? where they asking for a set amount or donations?

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I think schools have to share some of the blame because they do not advocate competitive sport any more and so the youngsters struggle when they try it. Also agree that there are too many other options for weekends rather than play football. Dont think evening games help either - many dont finish work much before half 5 - 6 o'clock and so its a rush for all those trying to get to a game.

I agree with most of what you say le boss - this pathetic attitude rife now that you don't advocate competitive sport because you mustn't have losers. The kids will have an awful shock when they get into real life if they don't learn about winners and losers. In life there are those who succeed and those who don't. In sport you have to learn to be a good loser, and, that breeds an attitude of determining not to lose again and a will to win. Competition in life is part of living and the best or better ones succeed, whether talking about sport or business.

I'm afraid that every school that I know and work with/alongside invest a huge amount of time and effort into the competitive element of sport. There was a time when the non-competitive brigade had their way, but those days are gone.

All primary schools are playing inter school competitions and all secondary schools are playing inter/intra schools competitions. Add to that the Cornwall Sports Partnership investing money into the Cornwall Schools Games for a variety of major and minor sports, the "pathetic attitude" that you mention simply does not exist in any school I've seen.

If you knew how much actually goes on and the time teachers and other staff spend on competitive sport, you might actually take back your statements.

There are clubs who do not invest enough time and trouble to provide exit routes for kids at all ages, and those clubs will continue to suffer as national governing bodies of sport will not invest their money into clubs who cannot prove their sustainability or provide details of a long term development plan. Would you?

The CCFA/FA have invested thousands of pounds in Cornwall over the last few years. New astro pitches at Newquay Tretherras, Mounts Bay School, Camelford School, Cornwall College, Brannel School, Penryn College, to name but a few. Over £600,000 at Wendron and grants to a whole host of other clubs for a variety of different reasons and projects.

Tescos Skills Coaches and FA club mentors have been employed to give help and advice to clubs in Cornwall and there's superb coach education opportunities rolling out throughout the county for both new and improving coaches.

Yes there are lots of other things to do these days, and I do believe that just as Martin McHugh has alluded to earlier that there is a culture where players are finding easy excuses to miss games or training, it never occurred to me that missing training was an option when I played. Players are judging how good they are by how much they're being paid and that's apparent by some of the attitude shown towards managers and officials by "Big Time Charlie" types who wouldn't have got in some of the sides I played in.

But there are still a huge amount of people trying to make sport accessible and still plenty trying to get qualified to ensure they're giving the best advice to all young players.

There are also a lot of people who have a moan about things but never put anything back into sport. You all know who they are. Maybe if everyone gave just a little back to all sport we wouldn't be having this debate.

Sorry for the rant but I've spent the last 20 years trying to make a difference! i take my hat off to you Tommy and anyone at the grass roots level of football and as you state plenty stay on the sidelines having a pop and put nothing back in ,your point about sports pitches [eg 3g] is very good but are they enough for the area and the costs for hiring are not cheap ? Wendron have done really well with their funding and have great facilities as do st.ives , but a few seasons ago i went to a meeting with the ccfa at holmans and the meeting was well presented with facts and figures and the usual pr stuff the majority of clubs there all said that most teams only needed a small amount for upgrading their facilities eg toilets repair or decorate , but we were all left with the opinion that the intrest was only in the BIG PROJECTS and not helping the village teams so at the time a lot of clubs left feeling deflated and thought the ccfa was only intrested in making money of the small clubs , things may have changed since then i hope so , in my own opinion i think finance plays a big part in local football , i am not talking about paying players thats for others to discuss , i mean kits, insurance ,refs , hiring pitches , players subs ect Cornwall is on average a very low paid area with a lot of people in seasonal jobs i think this may have a large part to play especialy in junior football where there is no gate money coming in , the money from top flight football [prem league ] doent seem to filter down to the lower levels of the sport StevieB When I went to watch Helston 3rds few weeks back a guy came round with a pint pot wanting us to donate money to help to pay for the referee. This week when we played them they even had the gateman asking supporters who had come to watch our game to pay to watch. Now that's not against the league rules as far as I am aware but wonder what theirs spectators would say if they had to pay at other grounds.

Think you need to put this into context. Nothing in the rules,as far as I am aware, to prevent you from asking for donations as in your first experience. For your second experience, you have forgot to mention that there was a Peninsula League game being played on the main pitch and the man on the gate was charging,as per league rules, for persons wanting to watch that game - all it would have taken is for you to say 'I am here to watch the other game' and they would have let you thru - did you watch any of the peninsula game after you saw your team get beat? I bet you had a little peep!!

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I think schools have to share some of the blame because they do not advocate competitive sport any more and so the youngsters struggle when they try it. Also agree that there are too many other options for weekends rather than play football. Dont think evening games help either - many dont finish work much before half 5 - 6 o'clock and so its a rush for all those trying to get to a game.

I agree with most of what you say le boss - this pathetic attitude rife now that you don't advocate competitive sport because you mustn't have losers. The kids will have an awful shock when they get into real life if they don't learn about winners and losers. In life there are those who succeed and those who don't. In sport you have to learn to be a good loser, and, that breeds an attitude of determining not to lose again and a will to win. Competition in life is part of living and the best or better ones succeed, whether talking about sport or business.

I'm afraid that every school that I know and work with/alongside invest a huge amount of time and effort into the competitive element of sport. There was a time when the non-competitive brigade had their way, but those days are gone.

All primary schools are playing inter school competitions and all secondary schools are playing inter/intra schools competitions. Add to that the Cornwall Sports Partnership investing money into the Cornwall Schools Games for a variety of major and minor sports, the "pathetic attitude" that you mention simply does not exist in any school I've seen.

If you knew how much actually goes on and the time teachers and other staff spend on competitive sport, you might actually take back your statements.

There are clubs who do not invest enough time and trouble to provide exit routes for kids at all ages, and those clubs will continue to suffer as national governing bodies of sport will not invest their money into clubs who cannot prove their sustainability or provide details of a long term development plan. Would you?

The CCFA/FA have invested thousands of pounds in Cornwall over the last few years. New astro pitches at Newquay Tretherras, Mounts Bay School, Camelford School, Cornwall College, Brannel School, Penryn College, to name but a few. Over £600,000 at Wendron and grants to a whole host of other clubs for a variety of different reasons and projects.

Tescos Skills Coaches and FA club mentors have been employed to give help and advice to clubs in Cornwall and there's superb coach education opportunities rolling out throughout the county for both new and improving coaches.

Yes there are lots of other things to do these days, and I do believe that just as Martin McHugh has alluded to earlier that there is a culture where players are finding easy excuses to miss games or training, it never occurred to me that missing training was an option when I played. Players are judging how good they are by how much they're being paid and that's apparent by some of the attitude shown towards managers and officials by "Big Time Charlie" types who wouldn't have got in some of the sides I played in.

But there are still a huge amount of people trying to make sport accessible and still plenty trying to get qualified to ensure they're giving the best advice to all young players.

There are also a lot of people who have a moan about things but never put anything back into sport. You all know who they are. Maybe if everyone gave just a little back to all sport we wouldn't be having this debate.

Sorry for the rant but I've spent the last 20 years trying to make a difference! i take my hat off to you Tommy and anyone at the grass roots level of football and as you state plenty stay on the sidelines having a pop and put nothing back in ,your point about sports pitches [eg 3g] is very good but are they enough for the area and the costs for hiring are not cheap ? Wendron have done really well with their funding and have great facilities as do st.ives , but a few seasons ago i went to a meeting with the ccfa at holmans and the meeting was well presented with facts and figures and the usual pr stuff the majority of clubs there all said that most teams only needed a small amount for upgrading their facilities eg toilets repair or decorate , but we were all left with the opinion that the intrest was only in the BIG PROJECTS and not helping the village teams so at the time a lot of clubs left feeling deflated and thought the ccfa was only intrested in making money of the small clubs , things may have changed since then i hope so , in my own opinion i think finance plays a big part in local football , i am not talking about paying players thats for others to discuss , i mean kits, insurance ,refs , hiring pitches , players subs ect Cornwall is on average a very low paid area with a lot of people in seasonal jobs i think this may have a large part to play especialy in junior football where there is no gate money coming in , the money from top flight football [prem league ] doent seem to filter down to the lower levels of the sport StevieB When I went to watch Helston 3rds few weeks back a guy came round with a pint pot wanting us to donate money to help to pay for the referee. This week when we played them they even had the gateman asking supporters who had come to watch our game to pay to watch. Now that's not against the league rules as far as I am aware but wonder what theirs spectators would say if they had to pay at other grounds.

Think you need to put this into context. Nothing in the rules,as far as I am aware, to prevent you from asking for donations as in your first experience. For your second experience, you have forgot to mention that there was a Peninsula League game being played on the main pitch and the man on the gate was charging,as per league rules, for persons wanting to watch that game - all it would have taken is for you to say 'I am here to watch the other game' and they would have let you thru - did you watch any of the peninsula game after you saw your team get beat? I bet you had a little peep!!

perhaps confusion with the gate and of course they would have a little peep as you put it as the junior game would finish half an hour before the senior game finished as do all senior games before october

Link to comment
Share on other sites

No Le Boss they tokd the gateman they were here to watch Marazion. It was our groundsman and his son he was in his Marazion Hoodie so obviously was known who he was there to support. They turned around and walked out. Then came in through the housing estate instead. The point is your gateman wouldn't let them in unless they paid 50p to go to watch the game. They would have purchased a drink or 2 at the tea hut or even more a drink in the bar. At the end of the day didn't do either or pay so you're the ones that lost out.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I assume you charge your third team players match fees for playing so that's the ref paid for. Perhaps you should stop paying players in the peninsula team then you could afford the referee for te junior games.

Cant not pay the first team or we would lose a topic for discussion on here!! You are starting to sound like a bad loser now tho lol

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I could go on forever about this but as I'm typing on a mobile I won't

Councils need to take some blame. Take tms for example, they play at boscawen park because the local council won't allow the field to be used as a football pitch. What else is it going to be used for? It's crazy. I would like to be able to walk up with my boy and see a game being played so he gets into it.

As for coaching badges. For me, they are too easy to achieve. Especially the level 1. It was embarrassingly easy a few years ago to complete and it seemed as though it was ticking a box for the fa. Some people with the badge can't kick a football properly let alone teach someone else how to do it. Yet they're qualified to take coaching sessions.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I assume you charge your third team players match fees for playing so that's the ref paid for. Perhaps you should stop paying players in the peninsula team then you could afford the referee for te junior games.

Cant not pay the first team or we would lose a topic for discussion on here!! You are starting to sound like a bad loser now tho lol

Never been a bad loser. At the end of the day your team wanted it more than us. Perhaps they were on a win bonus too!!! You never did say whether the junior sides pay match fees

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Don't see anything wrong with doing a football card or raffle in the bar afterwards or even donation, but to stand on the gate demanding that you pay is not on. Especially when you're talking a swpl team that attracts a pretty reasonable attendance

Yes, agree with that. Nothing wrong with walking around during the match selling cards and raffles, quite a few clubs do that.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Don't see anything wrong with doing a football card or raffle in the bar afterwards or even donation, but to stand on the gate demanding that you pay is not on. Especially when you're talking a swpl team that attracts a pretty reasonable attendance

I don't think many clubs 'demand' that you pay. But surely a pound or even two quid to watch a match isn't too much to ask. Running a football club, even at this level, costs a lot of money. Registration each season, players insurance, maintenance of the clubs premises, new footballs, kit etc,. etc,. Every club has to have some solid income or a benevolent backer, just to survive.

Well said Keith B.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

well guys and gals plenty of opinions and many valid reasons for the decline in leagues , volunters ect but are there any way we as football people can help to halt the decline or do we let things stay as they are and only the fittest survive ? my daughter has played ladies football from the age of 14 until she went to uni and we was only talking yesterday about were since she came back home how many ladies teams have disappeared and ladies football a couple of years ago was one of the fastest growing sports , sunday football has lost lots of teams as well so it is across all levels in cornwall , perhaps not enough local coverage in the local media , eg the cornishman in our area [penwith ] in the summer months there are pages of match reports on local cricket even down to the lower divisions , rugby gets good coverage as well locally but apart from maybe penzance or at present mousehole and maybe a couple of reports on combo games nothing about the trelawney league perhaps we could start here to publicise our local teams these are my own opinions and not connected to any club or pointing the finger at any club or persons involved with local football ,but as someone who played the game [lower level] and is still involved on a small scale with my home town club i have made many friends through football and had great fun and downs along the way but i would hope that there will still be football for the next generations to enjoy hope to hear some upbeat comments as i would expect nothing other from the forum community .

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Steve. with regards to the ladies game. Do you think that numbers are down because clubs get the ladies teams in to help to achieve the Chartered Status (or whatever its called) to gain funding and other things that are available then the ladies team are the first to go once it has been achieved.

I know that Mandy at St Agnes puts in a lot of work to keep things running, especially at St Agnes, she and Martyn have done incredibly well to keep that running for what must be more than 10 years now. However, for all clubs its still another team to run and pay affiliation fee's for, and clubs nowadays just can't afford to keep things running, it all costs, sponsorship, kit, pitches.

I personally fear that it won't be long until the bubble does burst and a lot of clubs won't be around. Or, I could be totally wrong and it will really take off and all the youngsters of today will think that watching all this football on TV will make them get out and play the game.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

As I 've posted on another site on this forum , Devon and Cornwall arn't alone in seeing a decline in the number of clubs . Here in God's other county we've seen 6 teams fold in our league of 32 teams since the beginning of August . Our county FA don't seem unduly concerned as they're more interested in their own lucrative 5 and 6 a side league . The reasons for the shortage of players has already been outlined on this thread . BUT !!!!!!!! Purely out of interest I did a small survey of my own to see why young men don't play football . The one reply I got from a 20 year old stunned me . he said " is there any reason why young people have to like football "? . And to be fair he's right , why should we assume that people will like football for eternity , why can't droves of them over the next few years have an interest in motorbike racing , squash , tennis or skateboarding and do that instead .Perhaps the saturation of football on TV has caused this .Another interesting point a colleague of mine picked up is that nearly 500 players are banned sine die in our county for non payment of fines . How many are there in Devon and Cornwall ?

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Steve. with regards to the ladies game. Do you think that numbers are down because clubs get the ladies teams in to help to achieve the Chartered Status (or whatever its called) to gain funding and other things that are available then the ladies team are the first to go once it has been achieved.

I know that Mandy at St Agnes puts in a lot of work to keep things running, especially at St Agnes, she and Martyn have done incredibly well to keep that running for what must be more than 10 years now. However, for all clubs its still another team to run and pay affiliation fee's for, and clubs nowadays just can't afford to keep things running, it all costs, sponsorship, kit, pitches.

I personally fear that it won't be long until the bubble does burst and a lot of clubs won't be around. Or, I could be totally wrong and it will really take off and all the youngsters of today will think that watching all this football on TV will make them get out and play the game. ihave a lot of time for mandy and martin and what they have done for st agnes and local football is outstanding they are two leading lights in local football , as for your question about womens football iam not sure about the charter standard has affected the ladies game perhaps as in my daughters case lots of young ladies now leave cornwall and go to uni and because of the way of the world they stay away the ladies game has come a long way over a few years with newquay in cornwall the leaders for a long time but perhaps someone who has been involved in the ladies game maybe can throw some light on this

Link to comment
Share on other sites

As I 've posted on another site on this forum , Devon and Cornwall arn't alone in seeing a decline in the number of clubs . Here in God's other county we've seen 6 teams fold in our league of 32 teams since the beginning of August . Our county FA don't seem unduly concerned as they're more interested in their own lucrative 5 and 6 a side league . The reasons for the shortage of players has already been outlined on this thread . BUT !!!!!!!! Purely out of interest I did a small survey of my own to see why young men don't play football . The one reply I got from a 20 year old stunned me . he said " is there any reason why young people have to like football "? . And to be fair he's right , why should we assume that people will like football for eternity , why can't droves of them over the next few years have an interest in motorbike racing , squash , tennis or skateboarding and do that instead .Perhaps the saturation of football on TV has caused this .Another interesting point a colleague of mine picked up is that nearly 500 players are banned sine die in our county for non payment of fines . How many are there in Devon and Cornwall ?

a great response my son is one who likes football but rather play ps3 with his mates i have tried encouraging him but he is not into the game like i am or come to that my daughter but i dont come from a football background as none of my uncles or my dad played the game , your point also about tv football is a very valid one as you can pick a game on sky 24 hours a day 7 days a week from all over the world and on ps3 you can be any team/player in the world without getting soaked cold or bored in the comfort of your own house and you can dictate how long it takes to play the game ,skateboarding is very valid as iwas involved with the committe for our campaigne to get a skate park in hayle which is a great succes and youngsters just turn up and ride their boards no fees no memberships maybe sport has changed for younger people

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Stevie your'e the first person to reply to any of my posts on the forum , I was beginning to think that Norfolk people were as disliked as the rest of England .

Seriously though , I was suprised how popular skate boarding is among young people I gather that one of the attractions apart from the fitness and co-ordination bit , is that you can turn up when you like , for as long as you like , leave when you like and you don't have to rely on other people to make up a team .

Link to comment
Share on other sites

There's a lot more to do these days than when we were kids. On the way to watch Port one Afternoon, there was about 50 kids in the skate park - watching the football, maybe 20. That says it all to me. Football today is at saturation on the TV, and for me carries the majority of the blame.

Add to that the lip service paid to grassroots football by the FA, and there lies another part of the problem. Local football is in decline, and will continue to be so for a long time before it stabilises. A lot of clubs will fold in the coming years.

Bad discipline, mainly smart mouths and bad language will also discourage parents from encouraging their children to take part, particularly the vitriol aimed at referees. Unfortunately the empowering of youngsters has done no favours to anyone.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Stevie your'e the first person to reply to any of my posts on the forum , I was beginning to think that Norfolk people were as disliked as the rest of England .

Seriously though , I was suprised how popular skate boarding is among young people I gather that one of the attractions apart from the fitness and co-ordination bit , is that you can turn up when you like , for as long as you like , leave when you like and you don't have to rely on other people to make up a team .

glad to be of help sir ha ha the skate park at hayle was started by a very small goup who attended meetings raised funds and with a lot of persuasion and a little luck i am pleased that my wife and i was involved with the park it is used everyday and when i drive past young and old use it it fills me with a feeling that in a small way i helped with my wife and others to make this happen , but when it opened and we had a photo call all of a sudden there were people i had never seen before up to get their pictures in the local rags the main people who were involved were shoved to the back , i know i digress from football but i think this may happen in this sport as well there are the doers in the background looking for no thanks and the ones who propel themselves to the front when the time arises for plaudits perhaps the fa needs to get down to the grass roots in the counties and have a look at what is happening or try to reduce the costs for people which in most cases are from working class backgrounds to get access to say 3g pitches spread the money around local rural areas and maybe we can get youngsters back into football

Link to comment
Share on other sites

There's a lot more to do these days than when we were kids. On the way to watch Port one Afternoon, there was about 50 kids in the skate park - watching the football, maybe 20. That says it all to me. Football today is at saturation on the TV, and for me carries the majority of the blame.

Add to that the lip service paid to grassroots football by the FA, and there lies another part of the problem. Local football is in decline, and will continue to be so for a long time before it stabilises. A lot of clubs will fold in the coming years.

Bad discipline, mainly smart mouths and bad language will also discourage parents from encouraging their children to take part, particularly the vitriol aimed at referees. Unfortunately the empowering of youngsters has done no favours to anyone.

i have in the past reffed some kids games and some parents language towards myself in the middle would make a navvy blush and also the parents try to live their lives through their kids on the pitch , some dont know the rules tell their kids how to play and ignore the coach butt in when he tries to give team talks and then some of them clan up on other kids who may not at that age have the ability of their own little darlings ,some also as i have been informed use it as a glorified babysitting service and when things dont go their way move on to another club and leave others to pick up the pieces i know this is the minority but it does it happen older i have seen it first hand

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Youth football is definitely a cheap crèche, have watched my grandchildren play with a few parents, and I mean a few.

A lot drop them off with a wave - and have the morning off. You're right about the gobby parents ( not all ) some are unbelievable, some trainers too, its the world cup to some.

Youth footy should not be too structured, jumpers for goalposts at the early ages would encourage enjoyment and foster natural ability, the must win, play the strongest team to win a league should be removed. Give all the kids a game, it is after all a game, especially at the real young stage,

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I'm really going to turn people against me now !!!!!!.I've seen my children and grandchildren play in kids teams and I've watched bits of kids games on local parks . Rightly or wrongly I'm against the majority of this sort of football and I believe it's one of the reasons why the English , Irish , Scottish and Welsh teams international teams are so poor . Also it's one of the many reasons why lower level football is decreasing in popularity ( I think ) .

In the days of poverty in the big towns and cities kids had to play with jackets down for goals , plimsoles or rubber boots on their feet and a ball of some sort , tennis size ball or a cheap plastic ball with a puncture . They played for hours and continually swopped players to balance the scores ,and learnt terrific skills in ball control etc. Individually some of these boys would be kicking some sort of a ball against fences and walls practicing passing , hence the phrase wall pass , running for the return off the wall and controlling the return . Pairs of boys would play keep up with feet and heads . Unknowingly they would be learning vital football skills and as a result when they were able to play school football or adult football they were very good players They were raring to get playing with adults and represent their village , town or whatever .A lot of the better ones were picked up by scouts at 16 , 17 playing for their village teams and progressed to the big leagues .The same thing happened in many sports all over the world .Now it's the poor nations of the world who are producing the top talent , for the same reason . Most kids don't learn these skills now , they are playing from 5 upwards in an organised team being screamed at from the sidelines , and it must be an unerving experience for some of them acting out their parents dream for them .They arrive at 16 having played for 11 years and suddenly theres a whole new world out there , their parents leave them alone and they have a choice with their lives .Football goes out of the window and work and other things take over their lives . Many of you will disagree with me but is it a coincidence that since the creation of youth football in the 70's that the standard of British players has gone down ? Is this because players have'nt been able to hone their skills in the streets .Where are the maverick geniuses like Best , Willie Johnstone , Charlie Cook , Stan Bowles etc etc . Have their skills and flair been stamped on by youth team coaches whereas before they would only to have their mates moan at them for not passing ? Is it a co incidence that clubs are folding at the rate they are nationally with youngsters having had their fill of football , since the 80's .I'm not saying I'm totally right , but those of you involved in teams of under 13's look inwardingly and ask is there and element of truth in what I'm saying .

I might have a lot of explaining to do after this and stay away from Cornwall for the next few months .

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Excellent post fenman (see, we are friendly), particularly like the "street footy" angle. Just to widen it a little .. having played league snooker, darts, cribbage, euchre, 5-a-side, table tennis, bridge and other pastimes in my day, all of these have been in decline in terms of the number of participants. Blame sky, video games, the internet or whatever but the numbers in "traditional" activities are not there and footy is one of them.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I'm really going to turn people against me now !!!!!!.I've seen my children and grandchildren play in kids teams and I've watched bits of kids games on local parks . Rightly or wrongly I'm against the majority of this sort of football and I believe it's one of the reasons why the English , Irish , Scottish and Welsh teams international teams are so poor . Also it's one of the many reasons why lower level football is decreasing in popularity ( I think ) .

In the days of poverty in the big towns and cities kids had to play with jackets down for goals , plimsoles or rubber boots on their feet and a ball of some sort , tennis size ball or a cheap plastic ball with a puncture . They played for hours and continually swopped players to balance the scores ,and learnt terrific skills in ball control etc. Individually some of these boys would be kicking some sort of a ball against fences and walls practicing passing , hence the phrase wall pass , running for the return off the wall and controlling the return . Pairs of boys would play keep up with feet and heads . Unknowingly they would be learning vital football skills and as a result when they were able to play school football or adult football they were very good players They were raring to get playing with adults and represent their village , town or whatever .A lot of the better ones were picked up by scouts at 16 , 17 playing for their village teams and progressed to the big leagues .The same thing happened in many sports all over the world .Now it's the poor nations of the world who are producing the top talent , for the same reason . Most kids don't learn these skills now , they are playing from 5 upwards in an organised team being screamed at from the sidelines , and it must be an unerving experience for some of them acting out their parents dream for them .They arrive at 16 having played for 11 years and suddenly theres a whole new world out there , their parents leave them alone and they have a choice with their lives .Football goes out of the window and work and other things take over their lives . Many of you will disagree with me but is it a coincidence that since the creation of youth football in the 70's that the standard of British players has gone down ? Is this because players have'nt been able to hone their skills in the streets .Where are the maverick geniuses like Best , Willie Johnstone , Charlie Cook , Stan Bowles etc etc . Have their skills and flair been stamped on by youth team coaches whereas before they would only to have their mates moan at them for not passing ? Is it a co incidence that clubs are folding at the rate they are nationally with youngsters having had their fill of football , since the 80's .I'm not saying I'm totally right , but those of you involved in teams of under 13's look inwardingly and ask is there and element of truth in what I'm saying .

I might have a lot of explaining to do after this and stay away from Cornwall for the next few months .

very good post fenman your an adopted cornishman

Link to comment
Share on other sites

fenman has thrown up some valid reasons for the decline ,the main difference with a lot of us older people is that back then there was very little traffic on the roads now most households have one maybe two cars ,can remember 20 a side on Hayle rec with one ball between us all and the jumpers for goal posts ,most estates even had a team and would play against each other for hours but parents are worried about leaving their children out of their sight and i am afraid society has changed through the eighties as people are now more insular and dont mix . the selling off of playing fields did not help as well ,perhaps there are many reasons or none of the above to the decrease but on the whole it is a post which hopefully has made some people think, guys if any of you can add anymore thoughts on this post please do ,it would be great if we could have some input from rappo who is cornwalls outstanding striker , or dave deacon has he has been around local football for yonks , perry bullock who has been a successful player and manager or maybe someone who has never posted please have ago dont forget you dont know what you have until its gone ask players of teams that have disappeared completely it hurts and i am talking from first hand knowledge , good postigs guys and girls

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Create an account or sign in to comment

You need to be a member in order to leave a comment

Create an account

Sign up for a new account in our community. It's easy!

Register a new account

Sign in

Already have an account? Sign in here.

Sign In Now
×
×
  • Create New...