Our Philosophy

1. We believe sport is for all kids and should be accessible and enjoyable. The enjoyment kids get from their activities should be an incentive for them to continue being active throughout their developing years as kids, teenagers and adults.
2. The best coaching and development opportunities should be available to all, especially the very young. These opportunities shouldn’t be something you have to trial for or be selected to attend. During the most critical period of development (3-12) young players should be presented with the best development opportunities run by the best development coaches.
3. All players, whether considered talented or not, are just at a particular place on the development continuum. During the formative years, all players need to continue all aspects of their development from where they are on the development path. In our minds there is no such thing as an “elite” junior player and to use the term seems to be counter productive.
4. Development programs should focus on improving the player’s competencies. This improvement should be progressive, measured with a focus on long term development. Only this way can development best serve the child now and the teenager and adult player of the future.

Our Influences

The philosophy, program design and overall approach of Kids FC has been influenced by many years of research and application in the sports and coaching field. During this journey there have been some guiding lights:

1. ‘Long-term Athlete Development’ written by Istvan Balyi, an acknowledged world expert in sports development.
2. Horst Wein whose books on ‘Developing Youth Players’ and ‘Developing Game Intelligence’ are pivotal works in the football world.
3. Laureano Ruiz, The Spanish Soccer Coaching Bible, Volumes 1 and 2.
4. The International Youth Conditioning Association.
5. Adrian Faccioni.    A pioneer in the area of sports conditioning for kids. Anyone who meets Adrian can’t help be influenced by his knowledge, passion and enthusiasm.
6. Clive Mackillop.    A coaching treasure, friend to Kids FC and mentor.
7. Ian Protheroe.      Martial Artist extraordinaire, Sifu, shining example of an artisan coach, mentor and friend
8. Active After School Community Coaching Program – Sports Commission

With these guiding lights and 1000′s of hours of field experimentation and testing, our focus is clearly on providing opportunities for young players to develop in a fun and progressive way. We know that when a child enjoys their activities, it’s easier to challenge them to improve. Small progressive improvements bring satisfaction which in turn increases their enjoyment.

One of the measures for our success is the enjoyment our young players get each time they come to a session.