The Anguilla Football Association officially launched its Grassroots Football Programme on Saturday, 26th September 2020, at the Raymond E. Guishard Technical Centre in The Valley. The event was a huge success as children from all areas of Anguilla came out in large numbers to the first ever grassroots festival.
The launch began with a march past around the football field, which allowed over 300 children to showcase their new colourful academy uniforms. This was followed by a short opening ceremony before proceeding into scheduled football activities. The one-day event gave youth players the opportunity to experience fun while playing small-sided football games – with no points being recorded – to shift the focus from winning to fair play.
Grassroots Football is generally geared to children ranging from ages 6 – 12. However, younger children were encouraged to take part and join academies to learn the fundamentals of the game. Over fifteen skill challenges and activity stations were set on the football field. The young participants were encouraged to express themselves, be creative and play the beautiful game without any inhibitions or worries. Players were grouped according to age including under 6s, under 8s, under 10s and under 12s.
The Anguilla Football Association was also happy to announce that it has expanded the number of grassroots academies from three to eight throughout the island. The eight football academies present at the launch were: Island Stars Football Academy of Island Harbour, Kicks United Football Academy from East End, Roaring Lions Football Academy from Stoney Ground, Valley Community Football Academy from The Valley, Aces Football Academy from Sandy Ground, Lyme Seed Football Academy from South Hill, Up Football Academy from Blowing Point and West End Predators Football Academy of West End. The Association is confident that grassroots football will play a key role in the development of young football players in Anguilla. The goals of the Anguilla Grassroots programme are to help identify and develop talent throughout the island, increase the number of children playing football and to ensure that children develop a love for, and loyalty to, the game.
The grassroots launch gave the young participants the opportunity to meet new friends from different backgrounds, schools and communities – who they otherwise may not have met.
The day ended with a small closing ceremony during which coaches – recently qualifying as D-License coaches – were presented with their certificates. Other attractions at the festival were a bouncing castle, a face painting station and free ice cream to top off the event!
The most notable thing about the launch was the smile on each and every child’s face throughout the festival. Under the grassroots slogan “Everyone Can Play”, the AFA wanted to afford every child the opportunity to play football.
The Anguilla Football Association would like to thank the eight academies for their participation in the grassroots launch, and the wider public for their support in this new initiative. Local companies and businesses, in the various communities, are also being encouraged to support a grassroots programme in their area.
