A leading community football club has issued an open letter to governing bodies in a bid to get the game back for kids.
Giffnock Soccer Centre felt the need to appeal to both the Scottish Football Association and the Scottish Youth Football Association in a bid to ‘save’ grassroots football.
Many youngsters haven’t kicked a ball in over a year since the coronavirus pandemic first began and they’ve lost the opportunity to develop their skills.
And Giffnock, who host 1000 kids as part of their club, are urging the SFA and SYFA to put a proper plan in place for the return of football for youngsters.
They want summer football put in place to allow the players to get to action in the coming months to ensure there's not more players lost to the sport.
In the letter, the committee outline five important areas they feel people inside Hampden need to work on going forward.
That includes:
- a clear action plan from the SFA and SYFA outlining how we can return our young players back to football safely in a way which saves clubs and reclaim as much of the playing time they have lost as possible
- practical plans for the introduction of Summer football this season for all youth football leagues to offset the health impacts of lockdown
- a framework of collaboration with Scotland’s 32 local authorities to make facilities available for summer football
- specific plans for reaching young people in circumstances of social isolation who may have dropped out of the game and also supporting clubs who are facing financial challenges and an uncertain future
- an explanation of how going forward governing bodies will consult with members to ensure grassroots voices are not only heard, but any policy/actions taken are informed by and properly represent grassroots’ concerns
Committee member Fergus Reid insists those running the game need to stop treating youth football as an afterthought.
He said: “We don’t question that the people running the game in Scotland care and that they have been working hard and under pressure during the pandemic.
"However all too often youth football has been communicated as an after-thought or missed out altogether. There’s no point in waiting until lockdown is lifted to think about salvaging the grassroots game.
"We need action now. It’s critical our governing bodies lead on bringing the clubs and other partners together to create a plan to support clubs focused on bringing all youth players back to the game. Concrete planning to introduce Summer football this year would be a good starting point.
"This is our national game and we risk losing a generation of players to gaming consoles and ill health.”
