NEWS - DECEMBER: FDS FUTSAL TOURNAMENT

We hosted our second annual Futsal Tournament at Kettering Leisure Village on Saturday December 20th. The facility is outstanding for Futsal with 3 courts and a great viewing area for spectators. This year we played at Under 9, Under 10 and Under 11 and had both Academy and Development Centre teams form FDS and also teams from Colchester United, Histon AFC and Boston United. The quality of football on display once again proved why we believe so strongly in this form of the game. After the tournament we received this pleasing e-mail from Marc Tracey at Colchester United,

'I would just to thank you and your staff for a great futsal tournament on Saturday.

Our players really enjoyed the experience and it was great for the players to be given an opportunity to express their talent in an environment which encouraged players to play and practice their technical aspects.

As you are aware our players would not normally play in an organised competitive festival, so this experience also provided them with new challenges.' Marc Tracey (Colchester United Youth Development Officer)

and also had nice comments from Histon and Boston, who expressed a dsire to be involved next time around. Those who know the FDS way of doing things may be surprised to see us playing a tournament and recording results, when we often preach how this approach can hinder development. Ordinarily this might be the case because an emphasis on winning can reduce the risks players are prepared to take with the ball and encourage the sort of football which is not always conducive to improvement. By playing Futsal, the main way to get success is by focussing on being positive with the ball, passing the ball quickly to feet and taking risks to beat defenders, and also taking opportunities to shoot when possible. In addition playing a tournament is very exciting for the players and helps them to really enjoy the whole experience, so overall we felt that it was a big success from the coaching side of things and also from the playing side as well.

Colchester United must have been pleased that they made the journey as they claimed victory in the under 9, under 10 and under 11 competitions.

We would like to thank all the clubs who participated and look forward to the continued growth and development of the tournament year on year. We would also like to thanks the FDS Academy U13 squad who worked hard to help run the tournament, again showing an excellent attitude and taking responsibility well off the pitch.