TIGER TALK
TTFC NEWLETTER | WINTER EDITION 2023
IN ASSOCIATION WITH
TTFC NEWLETTER WINTER EDITION 2023
TIGER TALK
SPONSORED BY:
#01
#02
#03
#04
#05
Congratulations!
A huge well done to Thurlby Tigers U9 Oranges who have progressed to the knockout stages of the U9 Hereward Cup! The Oranges won 5 out of their 6 group games to progress onto the next stage of the competition. A huge achievement for the team and we wish you the very best of luck in the next round!
Remember, if you want news to headline our newsletter, send photos and a little detail to [email protected]
Player spotlight
Charlie Wise is our first player to go from U6s – U18s representing the club as well as completing 3 years as a DofE Volunteer for the U5s.
Read more below.
Join the team
We are into the planning stages for the end of season presentation and require some assistance on the day (set up, tidy up & admin duties. Anyone willing to offer a little help, please contact the club secretary.
#01
From the chairman
A time to reflect
As the year draws to a close, I want to take this opportunity to reflect on the incredible success of Thurlby Tigers Football Club. This year has been one of remarkable achievements, both on and off the pitch.
Now into our 18th season, we now have over 375 playing members with in excess of 25 squads/sessions. All of these teams have excelled at all levels, with our (22/23) U14s securing their third successive promotion and our U12 Oranges crowned league champions. These victories are a testament to the dedication and hard work of our players, coaches, and volunteers.
Beyond the competitive arena, we have also made significant strides in promoting inclusivity and diversity within the club and we have continued to provide a safe and welcoming environment for all our members.
This year has also seen us forge stronger relationships with our local community. Our partnerships with local sponsors has helped provide numerous teams with new playing and training kits. I would like to take a moment to say thank you for sponsoring Thurlby Tigers Football Club. Your support and partnership plays a key role in the success of our club.
As we look towards the festive season, I want to express my sincere gratitude to all our club coaches and members for their unwavering commitment to Thurlby Tigers Football Club. Your passion and dedication are the driving force behind our success.
I wish you all a very merry Christmas and a prosperous new year. May 2024 be another year of growth, achievement, and shared joy for our beloved club.
Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year!
Chris Seggie,
Chairperson
A quick reminder…
Thurlby Tigers now have an agreement with the Methodist Church on the High Street to use their Car Park on Saturday mornings. If you are attending a match or session today and are familiar with the area, please consider parking here to reduce congestion at Lawrance Park.
#02
WORD FROM WELFARE
More players than ever!
It’s been a busy start to the season with more registered players than ever, but we wanted to thank you all for your assistance during the registration process, for the details and communication that you shared with us to make recording details so streamlined. We take the wellbeing and safety of all of our players extremely seriously so the effective and efficient collation of such information is extremely important to us.
WE’RE HERE
FOR YOU
Remember that the Welfare Team can be contacted via the button below or via the links on the website about any concerns or assistance you may need.
Safeguarding for parents course
With the continued FA ‘Silent Sideline’ initiative and the new ‘Enough is Enough’ campaign, as a club we are promoting once again the short free online FA course that helps parents to understand their role in Safeguarding of all players, members and officials, find more details here;
Notice about training kit
The Welfare Team and Football Development Officer have noticed that on occasion, players are training without shin-pads and / or boots in wet / muddy conditions.
Please be aware that under FA regulations and insurance purposes all players must wear shin-pads when training and please ensure that appropriate footwear is worn for the weather (ie studded / moulded stud boots for wet / muddy weather).
This includes the ‘Little Kickers’ U5 & U6 Teams.
We only do
POSITIVE
Thurlby Tigers continue to have an exceptional record of positive coaching and support. Whilst we are aware of (and sometimes share!) the frustrations over the Silent Support weekends, we know that all we want to do is cheer on the players.
We know that all of the Thurlby Tiger Community will continue to set a positive example of the highest standards as we support the FA in their decision.
Supporters
We only do positive
In silent support weekends we applaud all play (our team and the opposition). Otherwise, we make as much positive and encouraging cheering and support as possible!
Coaches
We only do positive
Support, encourage, engage and motivate at all times. We always support the referee’s decision and expect players to do the same.
Players
We only do positive
Smile when you’re playing, enjoy yourself! Respect the referee decision at all times (even if you think it’s wrong)
NOW TAKING CONTACTLESS PAYMENTS!
Remember on Saturdays to bring a few pennies or your smartphone / debit card for a hot drink and refreshments in the Community Centre.
#03
PLAYER SPOTLIGHT: CHARLIE WISE
“When and why did you first join Thurlby Tigers and what was the Club like then?”
I joined Thurlby Tigers in 2011 because Baz started a team and most of the boys in my class at school got involved. We payed 50p a week for training in a small group (roughly 7/8 children). The club has grown massively since then!
“Who has been your most inspirational professional player to watch?”
David Beckham (although he was slightly before my time) and of course Jamie Vardy.
“Tell us a little bit about yourself, who you support, your other hobbies and what interests you?”
I am currently studying A Levels at Bourne Grammar and hoping to go to Loughborough University next year to study sports science and pursue a career in sports physiotherapy. Obviously I love to play football and support Leicester City. I also like playing the guitar and travelling.
“What has been your highlight during your time as a Thurlby Tigers player?”
My highlight would have to be being made full time captain of my team over any goals i’ve scored or important wins my team has accomplished. I will always remember how proud I was to be made captain. That being said, the whole journey has been a major highlight of my life and the memories and friends that I’ve made will stick with me forever.
“What would be your advice to a Little Kicker joining Thurlby Tigers for the first time?”
Go to every training session or game to enjoy it, but always try to give 100% effort and stick with it. Even if you feel like you’re not the best on your team, keep working hard and you’ll definitely get there.
Sponsor packages
As a not-for-profit organisation we are continuing to seek sponsorship and grants available to us. If you’d be interested in more information or how your business may be able to support the club, equally receiving the benefits brought then get in touch or check our packages online.
#04
FEEDBACK & QUIZ
Your opinion
MATTERS
Please tell us how we’re doing so we can continue to improve!
Help develop our practice
We hope that you saw in the last newsletter that we shared a link for you to talk to the Club about your experiences. We welcome anyone who didn’t contact us to do so on the link below for all positive experiences and areas for improvement:
If you ever need to speak to a member of the Committee look out for people wearing White TTFC Polo Shirts on Matchdays. If you can’t find them and want to talk to us, you can contact us here.
TAKE FIVE
Please take 5 minutes to complete our survey.
XMAS
QUIZ
Q1
Which club has won the most Scottish Premiership titles?
Q2
Which stadium is known as “The Theatre of Dreams”?
Q3
In which year did the Republic of Ireland national team make their first appearance in the FIFA World Cup?
Q4
Which country won the UEFA European Championship in 2004, causing one of the biggest upsets in tournament history?
#05
COACHING TIPS
10 TOP TIPS
for winter training from the FA
Over the coming months, our coaches and young Tigers will brave the winter conditions for coaching sessions! Here, we share the FA regional coach development manager, Martin Dighton’s ten top tips to help fully engage with players when working outdoors.
#01
Young children are not mini-versions of adults
As much as they will be adults one day, the young players in your care are certainly not there yet. We must understand and recognise that we can’t treat them in the same way as we would our peers.
We must always have the well-being of each of the children in our care as the priority. The session must fully engage the young players no matter what the weather.
#02
Get the players moving as soon as they arrive
In poor weather keeping the players busy is vital. Young children will go cold quickly – almost without noticing – and once they are cold they will really struggle to warm up again. Telling them to run around a bit more won’t help either unfortunately – it’s too late by then.
An arrival activity is vital. The children should arrive warm and getting them active early is crucial. Little games of tag, mini 1v1s or 2v2s, and small fundamental movement games will all do this. Make sure you have this section in your session plan ready to go whatever the weather.
#03
No queues and keep all the players involved
Having queues of children waiting for their turn is a big no-no in any session let alone on a cold, wet day. Can you find ways to make sure all the players are all involved all of the time?
If you are struggling for equipment could you set up two or three smaller areas rather than one in order to cut down any form of waiting?
#04
Use games during training
Consider what the players expect football to look like. What’s the first question they ask: ‘When are we playing a match?’ Wet and cold sessions are perfect for match time as it keeps them all involved and active.
Play mini 3v3s on a couple of pitches to keep all involved and then carefully manage how you intervene to coach.
#05
Work with individuals rather than stopping the whole group
Children don’t like coaches talking for ages at the best of times but on a wet day it’s even more important to keep communication concise. Can you coach individuals whilst the game plays on around them? Could you give quick challenges to players ‘on the fly’ as they pass you? Could you set yourself a challenge to intervene for no longer than 30 seconds? The kids would really appreciate this.
#06
If in doubt: play matches
If you’re ever in doubt or get caught by the rain or bad weather half-way through a session revert back to several small matches. Smaller sized matches promote ball contacts, in and out of possession play, transition and game craft.
They also ensure that players are never more than one pass away from the ball, so engagement and activity levels stay high.
#07
Consider practice design and progression
Spend time on planning the session. Will you use a technique-skill-game format or whole-part-whole or a myriad of other templates? Which will increase playing time the most and which may lead to times of relative inactivity? How can you create excitement and therefore engagement? Can you always have a scoring system in place? Can you ensure that if any defender wins the ball they have a way to attack and score too to keep games flowing?
How you progress the session needs to be thought about too. Can you progress some players without stopping all of them at the same time? Think about working the session with players in groups; perhaps advance the better players first before gradually progressing the weaker players later on, meaning that they’ll get the extra practice time they need. This also means that as you talk to each group two-thirds of your team are still active and warm.
#08
Find a way to use the weather to create memories
Some of my fondest experiences as a kid were playing outside in terrible weather. I still remember my first game in snow and the excitement playing with an orange ball for the first time gave us, the sliding tackles that seemed to last a full 30 yards through the midfield mud-pit and the diving headers that gave such a splash landing that if you timed it well could soak the watching parents.
We must appreciate that we could be building memories for our players; let’s make sure they are positive ones where the kids can’t wait to play the next time it rains. Starting to implement all of the above is a good foundation to start from.
#09
Have some rules about correct kit
It’s important to have some rules or conditions regarding kit. I’ve had children arriving in t-shirt and shorts to sessions in December and I’ve had to take the hard decision to turn them away. Parents sometimes feel that it’s okay because they’ll be running around at football – yes, but they will only be warm if they start warm in the first place. Perhaps having a club wet-weather policy would be a good idea?
We can take note from cricketers playing in early April or late September. They wear lots of thin layers rather than a couple of large ones to keep heat in. Encourage your players to do the same. It’s nothing different to what my mum used to shout as I ran off to training:“You can always take some off, if you get too hot”.
#10
Safety and welfare are top priority, but each individual is different
We have a responsibility to the children and their parents to look after them and always to make decisions in their best interests. Safety and welfare are the top priority but we also mustn’t shy away from playing just because the weather isn’t great.
In a grassroots setting I worked in previously we had a rule – if the kids turned up then we would play. It was the choice of the group and their parents if we played. This meant that sometimes we played for just 30 minutes instead of the full hour, sometimes the session plan went out of the window and we just played little games and sometimes we led sessions with only three or four kids.
What we must always understand is that every child is different, some will love and thrive in the terrible weather whereas others will hate it. Either way, they are both likely to remember it for a life time.
We must make certain that our coaching fosters a love of the game and a love of playing it. Make sure that when you are next faced with bad weather you make decisions and plans based on the best interests of the little people that turn up each week to play the great game of football with you.
#06
TTFC PARTNERS
SPONSOR OUR NEWSLETTER
Make your organisation the talk of the town!
Sponsor our next newsletter and we’ll include your company logo in the masthead, your ad in our partners listing and a section in the next newsletter dedicated to your business.
For more details and to book your space contact:
[email protected] to book your space and detail.
CONTACT THURLBY TIGERS
You can find the contact details of the Committee Members or Club Members via email on the details provided on the website at any time. Select the image above or click below:
*TTFC will never publish images and / or names of players without express permission from parents / carers