The Grassroot Magazine April 2014 by Grassroot Media

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Contents 4 MD’s Letter 5 Club Corner The saddest club corner we’ve ever run 15 Club Flooding News A combined Club Funding News and Diary Of A Flood Defence Officer, including an interview with Sport England’s Property Director 32 Sports Therapy What is ‘sports therapy’ and what can it do for your teams & players 36 Earn Money For Your Club With The Cricket Paper More detail on how your club can earn commission on subscriptions 38 Colin Smith Our fundraising guru, Colin Smith, is back. And this time he’s angry. Not really, he’s talking about clubhouse renovations at his club and how he got them funded

43 The Secret Non-League Footballer Scrapping for his future... 47 Sports First Aid This month’s subject is concussions; what to spot, how to treat 52 Club Sustainability Andy looks at changing environmental behaviour and division of responsibilities 34 Sports Psychology with David Harrison Forming, Storming, Norman, Performing... 58 Twitter Directory 60 Block Shop Protect skin & make £ for your club 62 Sponsor A Local Club Help build something to help you 63 Cricket Coaching with Andrew Beaven Andrew tells us to get outdoors! 67 VS Cricket

Grassroot Media Contacts Twitter @grassrootmedia Facebook.com/grassrootmedia Office telephone number 0800 8 20 21 22 or 01992 27 44 27 Mathew Court’s email address mcourt@grassrootmedia.com No part of this magazine may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system or transmitted without permission.

The MD’s Letter Hello everyone. Welcome to April’s magazine. It’s a big one this month at 72 pages, but hopefully you’ll find some of it interesting, or even better, useful. Especially the feature on page 15 about the aftermath of the floods. Part of this piece is made up out of an interview I was granted with Charles Johnston, Property Director of Sport England who talked me through, and answered my questions on, Sport England’s Flood Relief Fund. There’s also what I think is the most serious article we’ve ever got together for this magazine, a special club corner feature on the nowclosed Westinghouse Cricket Club. It starts on the next page and I think it’s a must-read for anyone running a cricket, football, or any other sports club. We’ve also got the usual great features from our contributors, and I’ve also taken the chance to explain in a bit more detail how The Cricket Paper’s affiliate scheme works - this is the scheme referred to in your cricket changing room posters this month and is a pretty easy way for you club to make a few more quid. Win-win is overused but I’ll use it anyway; the scheme is a real win-win for all involved. Happy reading, and if you’ve got any questions/comments/concerns about anything lease get in touch in the usual ways.

Mat Court - MD

The Club Corner

Phil Meek, Chairman of the now-closed Westinghouse Cricket Club in Chippenham, Wiltshire, talks to us about what the club was and why it is no more.

It is with great sadness that I heard about the fate of one of our member clubs, Westinghouse Cricket Club. They had been members of the Grassroot network since the start of 2013 but a couple of weeks ago I heard from Phil the club was to close its doors in advance of the new cricket season. I’ve never been involved with a club that had to take this final and most drastic action, and I spoke to Phil about what had happened. At the most difficult time for a Chairman of any type of club, Phil agreed to share the story of the club to show people who are interested just what happened, and why it could potentially happen elsewhere if the club does not receive the support it needs. It’s a story not just about money, but commitment too, or a lack thereof.

As I’ve mentioned before, I have a grand plan that I am working on to reduce the likelihood of this kind of

thing happening to our member clubs (and non-member clubs for that matter), but it’s a long term vision. We will get there though as this is just too important an issue to not address. I am steadfast in my belief of how important community sports clubs are to the people involved with them, I know I wouldn’t have gone down the path my life has gone if I hadn’t had the experiences I have in those important formative years of mine - there were many options open to me where I was growing up, a lot of them negative, but (without me realising it at the time) being involved in a sports club helped steer me away from the notso-good options. It gave me an outlet, it helped me gain social skills that benefitted me in all aspects of my life since, it helped me stay grounded. Over to Phil and the story of Westinghouse Cricket Club (19372014).

On the evening of Tuesday 25th March 2014, as Chairman of Westinghouse CC, I had the sad duty of e-mailing our league to advise them of our immediate resignation from this season’s competition & with it our decision to fold as a club. This deeply upsetting situation brought to an end our 77 year history and became the defining moment in what had already been a dramatic fall from grace.

“...in our prime we were more than holding our own in the WEPL...” We were by no means the best side in the County. We never had been, were never likely to be. However in our prime we were more than holding our own in the West of England Premier League set up. We had two strong Saturday sides, a youthful but competitive Midweek XI, a Sunday XI that played exclusively for enjoyment & cared not about the result, only for how cold the beer was afterwards. We had a thriving junior section, with teams in three different age groups, & over 40 junior members

attending training each week.

The club in happier times; an u9’s cricket festival Alongside the on field successes, we had an army of volunteers, all committed to maintaining our status as one of the hardest teams to beat, with one of the nicest grounds on the circuit. Each one dedicated to driving the club forward, to provide the very best opportunities for the next generation. Committee roles were often hotly contested, & the lead up to the AGM was frequently more like an American election preamble than a group of friends sharing one common goal. Arrive at the ground on any given evening, & there would always be at least one person either strimming weeds, or rolling a track, or doing some other small task purely because “I had half hour spare so thought I’d pop up”. So where did it all go wrong? Well, in simple terms we only had five players for this season. In the last

three seasons alone we have lost 26 players. Good players. Players that had taken us to the WEPL pyramid. We lost volunteers. Those same people that would give up their every spare moment to do their bit on the ground slowly but surely began to disappear. As a consequence, the burden of duty began to fall entirely on the same five or six people. By the time our demise was confirmed, only one of those people remained at the club. Me. The warning signs had been creeping into the club for the last four or five years. As players left it became harder & harder to find replacements. As volunteers reclaimed their free time, it became impossible to find others willing to step up. Committee roles became something people recoiled at the thought of.

â&#x20AC;&#x153;...our youth system crumbled virtually overnight...â&#x20AC;? Our youth system crumbled virtually overnight. Over thirty children attended the final training session of 2012, at which the Head Coach announced that he was stepping down due to work

commitments. Only four attended the first session of 2013. Nobody had stepped up to take on the Coaching role at the AGM. By the time I had persuaded someone to take the role on in an interim capacity it was too late. The birds had already flown to new nests. Our 2nd XI folded early in the 2013 season. Finding players from novel & increasingly diverse places was by no means a new challenge for the 2nd XI Captain. For the years before it was not uncommon for at least one of the 2nd XI players to arrive at the ground, mobile phone glued to their ear, trying to drag a mate along to make up the numbers. Somehow we had always managed it. Always found eleven people to fill gaps in the field & try & score a run or five. But as our regular numbers dropped, so too did the database of potential temporary signings. Playing with eight or nine became the norm, the defeats got heavier, moral got lower, and ultimately the fairest thing to do for the club & for the league was to fold the team. By this stage, we had already slipped from WEPL to Wiltshire League cricket. In 2012 the 1st XI were relegated to Division 2. The lowest standard of cricket in my 20 years at the club. The Midweek XI had long since gone; a combination

of young players going off to Uni & the older players not able to make 6pm starts after a day at work.

“... players that took us to a good level of cricket, & ultimately back down again, upped stumps & abandoned the club when it most needed them...” With relegation came a further glut of players departing. Those same players that took us to a good level of cricket, & ultimately back down again, upped stumps & abandoned the club when it most needed them. The final nails were being despatched from the tungsten factory ready to be hammered into our coffin.

The ground itself, so strongly heralded as a beautiful setting in which to play, began to fall into greater & greater disrepair. The list of work required became too exhaustive for what remained of our volunteer force to contend with.

The few that remained committed tried numerous things to engage the members. We introduced incentives for those that gave their time for the club. We joined a Time Credit Scheme, rewarding each volunteer with a “credit” for use in the local community for every hour they volunteered. We bought a ride on mower for the outfield. For years people had complained the outfield was too long. Only two people ever used it. People had complained that our track was too slow, too low & deteriorated dramatically mid innings, particularly when batting 2nd. We invested £250 at the end of the 2012 & 2013 seasons in hiring the Channel 4 trailer to carry out square maintenance. It was beginning to make a difference. Only one member volunteered to assist with the work on the day the trailer came, & the square & outfield had not been cut between the day the trailer came (four days after the last game of the season) & the day I folded the club. We began a weather lottery & joined Grassroot Media to generate much needed revenue. Only three current members joined our lottery scheme. People had complained the social events had become predictable & repetitive. So we arranged a night at a local comedy club. Only six people went. Our end of season presentation

evening, for years the highlight of the social season & the scene of many a high jape evening, was cancelled in 2013 as only three people booked a place. We acquired our own alcohol licence, in order to sell drinks in our pavilion after a match. We invested in a projector & set top box to provide televisual entertainment. More often than not it was the opposition outlasting our own members in the bar.

The club house So where did the apocalyptic apathy spawn from? Well, in 2008, Westinghouse Brake & Signals Ltd, the owners of our ground & the Company from which our club was born, sold an option to build on the site to a property developer. Within 48 hours of that deal going through, the recreation club on site had been boarded up & stripped out, taking with it a thriving indoor skittles league. A week later, the

bowls club, resident for as long as the cricket section, also left, robbed of its centrepiece & main facility. The tennis courts that frame the cricket field, for so long an integral part of a warm Saturday afternoon, became empty & barren & unkempt. Closing the rec club ripped the soul out of the club & the community. For many a year, it was the meeting point for bowls players & cricketers to merge, share a beer, & to chew the cud of the afternoons fortunes. There was however hope on the horizon. A bright new dawn beckoned. Due to the extremely hard work at the time of our then Chairman & a small subcommittee, together with the ECB, Sport England & The Playing Fields Association, a mitigation package was agreed. This would see us move to a brand new ground, based at our local rugby club, just a few hundred yards from our historic home. A ten track County standard square was promised. A new pavilion, covers, electric scoreboard, three lane floodlit practice nets. Everything you could possibly wish for as a cricket club was included in the package. It was even agreed that there must be continuity of cricket, removing the need for a temporary home.

Initially this situation was viewed positively within the club. It had been talked about for years, accelerated by the global recession undoubtedly, but now at last the speculation had stopped & we could look to the future with confidence. In the first year after the deal had been agreed, availabilities were at an all-time high, the 2nd XI finished as runners up to gain promotion, & the 1st XI missed out on a return to WEPL cricket by just three points.

“...as time ebbed away, doubts started to creep in...” But as time began to ebb away, with no further action or forward movement, so the doubts began to creep in. Rumours of deals breaking down didn’t help matters, but ultimately the river of enthusiasm that flowed so freely began to grow stagnant. It was three years before a planning application finally went in. In construction terms, probably not a long time, but for us as a club it was an eternity. The indecision, the “not knowing”, the silent stench of doubt, slowly but surely was corroding our club.

When planning was approved, after a tense & highly charged hearing by the strategic planning committee, we all thought, myself included, that this would be it. That we’d endured all the rain & we would now see the rainbow. That was in November 2011. Since then I have had just one moment of contact from the developer. In an email, in December 2012, in response to my request for an update on schedules & build programmes. The short response merely stated that the build was “part of the long term plan, & no date was under discussion to commence works”. I read that as: we’ve got the important bit, the precedent has been set in granting the permission, we’ll build when we’re ready & to hell with whatever consequence that leads to in your club. No further contact was made between then & my pressing send on the e-mail to the league. But as much as we can pinpoint the cause of the apathy, & believe me I do share the feelings of our members, it cannot hide the cold facts. Not enough of our members cared enough about the club to see it through to the end. Too many egos skulked behind rocks & into hiding when a once proud club was relegated not once but twice in the

space of a few years. When the time was right to fight for the club & return it to glory, too many seized the opportunity to desert the ship before it sank further.

pitch prepared for the Saturday match, because the person who was scheduled to do it heard criticism from other players about his efforts a few weeks previous. Being Chairman of anything is a desperately difficult task, particularly if you are Chairman of a recreational sports club. There is no open cheque book policy. Literally every penny matters. You cannot implement a three-line whip approach, for fear of losing what little commitment you do have.

The local press reporting the end.

Too few members were prepared to give up their time to help the club develop. Too many preferred instead to simply arrive on the Saturday & moan that the pitch wasnâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t cut straight, or not rolled enough, or some other such gripe. Negativity very quickly breeds resentment, & only too soon you find yourself in situations like we had only last season, where come Friday evening there was still no

Ultimately, a club is only as good as its members. Sadly, in the end, despite the best efforts of a small band of people, our members just didnâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t care. The club. The now. The future. None of it bore any significance in their lives. Even when I sent the e-mail out to our contact list, of the 37 members past & present, only three bothered to reply.

Dismantling the club.

So if you are reading this, & you don’t already value your club, perhaps it is time to evaluate your involvement. We went very quickly from lots of people doing a little bit each, to a couple of people doing everything. Don’t let that happen in your club. It will only end one way.

Be the change you want to see. Don’t be the one who sits at the back tutting & criticising. Get involved. Others will follow. Love your club, love your sport.

Nobody ever died because you scored less runs than they did, so play with a smile. Enjoy what you do & you’ll never work a day in your life. The same applies to volunteering. At the very least, if you cannot get involved, if you do nothing else, be sure you support those who are trying. Support the events, the get togethers, the requests for a hand now & again. But above all, cherish what you have. As I know only too well, one day, it might not be there.

Westinghouse Cricket Club - closed for the last time 12

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Club Flooding News This month we’re combining the Club Funding News and the Diary of a Flood Defence Office in to one where we talk to Sport England and the Kent FA.

There isn’t a flood defence diary entry this month – all that’s happened is The Great Sandbag Wall of Hertford has got a little taller thanks to some help from Mr Treasurer and a young lad doing the voluntary work part of his Duke of Edinburgh’s Award. In fact, I’ll take a moment to recommend that if you don’t have any links with any local organisations that host/arrange the Duke of Edinburgh Award Scheme for young people then please think about it. I myself went through the scheme to Gold level (check me out!) and I know it helped me personally, and now I am starting to see how a football club can benefit too; for example one of the young men here on the committee had his first taste of being involved with a football club through the DofE

scheme and he is now club photographer as well as running a fan site, as well as the volunteer work he did for the club directly as a part of the scheme. I doubt he would be part of the next generation of club leaders if he hadn’t been exposed to the club when he was. Anyway, back to flooding. I know a lot of clubs were affected by the floods, more than I had originally thought, and it was good to see government and sporting bodies coming out saying the cash was there and they were willing to help. But since then it’s gone a bit quiet. And it made me think, has what was promised been delivered? Has the money flowed (bad pun intended) to the right places? Have clubs had the right level of support from the people & organisations that should be supporting them?

On 27th February Sport England announced, via www.sportengland.org, its “Flood Relief Fund which would invest £5 million of National Lottery funding in to sports facilities that have been damaged as a result of the floods and storms. This dedicated fund will help safeguard community sport and get sports facilities back up and running as quickly as possible.”

“...it sounded like the powers that be realised the effect of the waters...” This all sounded good, it sounded like it was the right thing to do. It sounded like the powers that be realised the affect the water had on many clubs.

On the 26th March Sport England published a news article saying “Those needing funding to clean up and get up and running quickly can request up to £2,000 of emergency funding which could be awarded within three weeks.” and that “Organisations that do not qualify for the Flood Relief Fund will be given advice about other sources of funding that could help.” So what’s happened? Is the money going out the door and to the

places it is needed? According to the Chairman of one of our member football clubs, who wanted to remain anonymous, apparently not... “The damage to our club has been enormous; we played one home game in January and our next home game was played on 11th March. With no income, we still had to pay utility bills and find money to pay for repairs and pumping water off the pitch for two weeks, cleaning and disinfecting the dressing rooms. “Water submerged our mowers’ one has been written off completely, and the flooding has wrecked a wall and double gates. “Water damaged the dressing rooms, boardroom and manager’s office. The cess pit overflowed in to the changing room area through the waste pipes in the showers. We’ve made our ‘expression of interest’ but nothing since has happened, not even an acknowledgement. It seems we are left on our own to sort out the mess and it makes me wonder just how long our club can survive.”

“...it makes me wonder just how long our club can survive...”

And it’s not just football. Andrew Shields, Chairman, South Loughton Cricket Club in Essex told me, “Being located on the River Roding floodplain, we suffer flooding most winters. In the past it was only the ground that would be under water for a couple of weeks, and it usually dried out by March so we could get on with pre-season work.

“...over the last decade the problem has got worse...” “Over the last decade, however, the problem has got worse because flood alleviation works elsewhere on the river mean the floodplain now takes the major hit. We have been flooded during the season as well as during the winter, and our pavilion – which is about 200 metres away from the river itself – has been inundated as well. “This winter, the ground was submerged on three separate occasions for a total of about eight weeks, and the pavilion was also badly affected. The river leaves a layer of silt over everything, the internal plasterboard walls suck up water and go mouldy, and the bottom few inches of the internal doors rot. In the past, we’ve had a rat infestation caused by the dirty

river water and there’s no reason to doubt a repeat once we start peering into cupboards. Some internal building work on the bar has been cancelled for weeks on end and is behind schedule. And the football club that use our pavilion during the winter have not been able to get anywhere near the place for refreshments – that’s on the rare occasions that their pitch has been playable. “We applied to the Sport England flood fund as soon as we heard about it. We wouldn’t need a lot of money, probably a few hundred pounds to cover a professional deep clean of the floor and walls as I don’t want our club members having to deal with silt and rats, and replace the doors. “The promise was of quick, hasslefree help but all we’ve had so far is an acknowledgement of our application and an excuse that they have been swamped. My concern is that the cricket season is now less than a month away: do we wait for financial support which we may or may not receive, or pay for the work to be done and presumably invalidate ourselves from claiming from the fund?” Andrew made a very salient point regarding timing too (this was written 3rd April), “A big issue is

timing. It is Cricketforce this weekend when clubs will be doing a lot of work. Are they expected to hold fire to see if they will get funding for the clean up? Or go ahead because the season is only two weeks away - in which case, do they render themselves ineligible because presumably Sport England won't fund work already done? It all boils down to the speed of their process: for cricket, with the season looming, quick support has to be quick or it becomes worthless. And we are still waiting to hear from them.”

He added “If clubs do claim on their insurance policies, this means their premiums could rise and they may face the addition of flood exclusion clauses in future. This seems to defeat the purpose of setting up the flood fund – which, in our view, should be available to all clubs that have been affected, so they don’t have to claim on their insurance and risk additional costs and exclusions in future.”

“...we are still waiting to hear from them...”

“Once a pavilion gets flooded and an insurance claim made, insurance companies tend not to cover any future flood damage. This is a commercial reality, but what influence can Sport England bring to bear? In short, is Sport England prepared to underwrite flood damage insurance, not just for cricket clubs, but also other sports activities? Individually we have no clout or voice piece on this, so look to the likes of Sport England to be looking at the longer term issues of repeated flood damage and long term support.”

And then there is the issue of insurance, as one of the senior committee members of one of our member clubs said anonymously:

“A complicating factor is the question of insurance. The Sport England guidelines state that clubs can’t apply for anything that is covered by their insurance. Since flooding is usually a specific exclusion to policies, clubs will therefore be covered. In which case, who actually is eligible to apply for funding? Possibly only those clubs that didn’t have any insurance in the first place!”

While we’re on the subject of insurance, the Treasurer of one of our cricket clubs told me:

This is an interesting point, if Sport England is helping repair flood damage now but not for insured items, what happens if the clubs that claim are then not covered in

the future? Is Sport England ready to be even busier when the inevitable happens again?

“...is Sport England ready to be even busier when the inevitable happens again...” But the flip side is that some clubs have had support, and money, from Sport England. “As a recipient of a flood relief grant I would say what a relief it was to have such a quick turnaround and I would want you to congratulate SE on this.” said Joseph Noble of the Kew and Ham Sports Association. He did have a concern about the maximum amount allowed to be applied for as part of the emergency funding, “My only comment would be that at £2k limit the work we are able to do is only minor and given we needed to act so quickly In order to get ready for the season it would have been better for a limit of say £5k to be set to quick turnaround applications.” Another club, who has asked to remain anonymous, said this when I

spoke to them: “I have received £1500 from this fund. Or at least I was told last Friday by email that I had. It seems that Sport England have some serious admin problems because I'm still waiting for the official paperwork. This is supposed to be emergency funding, but speed isn't a strong point. How long it's supposed to take? And why are the requirements to apply to the main flood relief fund are so complex? Why do they need 3 months of bank statements, not to mention a Flood Plan, whatever that is? It is bureaucracy gone mad.”

“...It is bureaucracy gone mad...” Sport England has since told me that is doesn’t request a flood plan as an essential document to apply to the main fund but does ask to see it if a club has one. They say they will ask clubs to develop one as a longer term condition of the award as they “think it’s important that as much as possible clubs plan for the future especially if they are at risk of flooding. The Sport England website includes guidance on flood plans.” From their website I found it difficult to find help or guidance on how to write a flood plan by searching the site, but it is there

under the section.

‘tools

guidance’

So what’s happening? Why are some clubs finding it easier to get the Sport England money than others? What’s the issue with insurance and Sport England funds and what about the future when this happens again, because I think it will? I got in touch with Sport England and had a chat with Charles Johnston, their Property Director (who signs off all flood relief awards), to find out. [This interview took place on 3rd April 2014]

Grassroot Media: During your time at Sport England, have you seen anything like the flood damage that has come about this winter? Charles Johnston: The floods of 2008 were pretty bad, but not to this extent. Everyone you talk to says this has been the worst in living memory. I have lived near Runnymede, just above the flood plain of the Thames, for over 20 years and had never seen anything like it; Runnymede was a complete lake with all of the roads closed and all of the rest of the associated problems. So I can appreciate for a

lot of people this must have been the worst ever. Everyone keeps talking about “one in a hundred year floods” or “one in two hundred years” but we seem to be getting them every few years at the moment. So we have to recognise that it is a growing problem and although we haven’t seen it this bad in our living memory the recent experience points to the possibility that we might well find ourselves in a similar situation in a few years time so I think we need to be better prepared for the future. “...we need to be better prepared for the future...”

GM: Preparation is an important part of what I want to look at, both now and in the future, what do you think could be done? CJ: We ourselves have suffered on our own facility, the National Sports Centre at Bisham Abbey, which is in the flood plain of the Thames and we found, for example, circuits that had never been touched before water got to them and blew them all across the whole site. A lot of people say there are too many sports fields in flood plains, and that’s probably true, but the reality is that we are not going to be able to move all of the playing surfaces that we have got away from those

flood plains within the foreseeable future.

“...there are some real practical things we can do...” But there are some real practical things that you can do like moving your electrics & boilers and similar things as high as possible, putting bungs in and those sorts of things to ensure that even if the water does come through it’s not going to get to vital services.

So within the Sport England grant schemes we are paying for quite a lot of work to help people move their electrics, plumbing and other things that we can do to prevent expensive future damage given that your clubhouse is going to be there for the foreseeable future and your playing surfaces, too. GM: How many clubs do you think have been affected by the floods? CJ: It’s a big question. We know from the figures we are getting from rugby, for instance, that a good 10% of their clubs have been affected. We have estimated that anything up to 25% of the playing fields in the country might have been affected not just by flooding

but the storm damage over the winter as well. So we’re saying it’s within that range, which is a very significant number of facilities and some people haven’t yet found out the full extent of the damage, and I’m thinking of cricket when I say this.

“...we think 10-25% of clubs have been affected...” GM: And it’s going to hit them hard this weekend as they get down the club for their Cricket Force Weekends.

CJ: It is and that’s why our fund is staying open until the autumn to make sure people don’t think they have to get their application in straight away. Just because applications are not received straight away doesn’t mean they do not stand a chance; we recognise some people haven’t been able to inspect the damage, or do not fully appreciate the damage yet and we want to include these facilities. For clubs that have lost their roof then it’s pretty obvious what the damage is, we know many others have not yet assessed the full extent of it. GM: What’s the most common damage caused over the winter?

CJ: We are getting a lot of applications to do with immediate practicalities such as a tree blown over on to the pitch or blocking the entrance to the club, roads that have been washed away, fences that have come down or blown electrics, those kinds of immediate issues. Also a lot of mowers that have been stored in sheds that have been flooded. We’ve just had an archery club that had all of the bows and arrows stored and they had flood damage so they had no kit. We’ve even had goal posts washed away. It is the severity of the water and the pressure of the water that has been telling this time.

“...it’s the severity of the water that has been telling this time...” GM: The Environment Agency seem be hot on Flood Plans, have you seen any examples where Flood Plans have minimised flood damage? CJ: We are working very closely with the governing bodies of sport to put out guidance for that and cricket I think are leading on that front but there are a lot of lessons learned from 2008 that have

worked. We have a pitch support user group across many sports and there is a lot of shared information on mitigation. But we haven’t got the way withal within sport to build flood protection so it’s much more about mitigation. With the flood plain rules, again as we’ve found at Bisham Abbey, we can’t just build walls to stop the water coming in because it has to go somewhere. And then it moves on to the treatment of the surfaces afterwards with all that is left behind once the water has receded and again there is a lot of information available through the governing body websites, and our own website, that help people deal with it. We have a series of agronomists that are available to clubs who can help them with this too. It’s not just money as far as we’re concerned, it very much is guidance and expertise to help people deal with the consequences of flooding. GM: I agree, money isn’t everything but it is very important. I know the Sport England Flood Relief Fund is split between the sub-£2000 emergency fund and the main part of the fund, do you know how many clubs have applied for emergency funding? CJ: For the

emergency funding

we’ve had [as of Friday 28th March, remember this interview was conducted 3rd April – MC] 464 registrations of interest for flood relief funding. We’ve sent out application forms to 258, we’ve had 130 back and we’ve made 99 awards totalling about £180,000.

“...we’ve made 99 awards totalling £180,000 so far...” GM: What happens with those 206 clubs that have registered interest but not received the forms to go ahead and apply for the emergency funding? CJ: It’s all up on the website. If clubs want to register just to check they are eligible for funding, they’ll progress as and when they know the extent of the damage. GM: I have had two clubs tell me they have made their initial approach to register their interest with Sport England for the emergency fund about a month ago and they’ve not had anything back at all. They’ve been chasing trying to find out what they need to do to get help but they aren’t getting anywhere. Who do they go and talk to about that as they’ve received literally nothing back?

“...who do clubs talk to if they aren’t getting anywhere?” CJ: I’m amazed because the feedback we’re getting generally has been that it’s been fantastic, in fact some clubs have had the money already with money going out at around £30,000-£40,000 a week at the moment. So there must be a breakdown in communication somewhere. The forms are all there to download from the website so they should be able to fill the form out and send it in but there is a call centre at Loughborough so if clubs do have any problems. They can phone the call centre on 08458 508 508 and there should be somebody to help them. As I said there seems to be a breakdown in communication somewhere in these particular cases; they may think they are waiting for something from us but we may be waiting for something from them. What we are trying to do is make it as simple as possible through as an online application so they don’t need to wait for forms that they fill in to come through the post for instance. It’s all delivered online so I would imagine they

perhaps think they are waiting for something but it’s probably there on the website. But if they have any problems at all the first port of call should be the call centre (08458 508 508) and there will be somebody there to help and explain what needs to be done to progress things.

“...we’ve tried to make the process as simple as possible...” We’ve tried as far as we’re able to make this as simple a process as possible, we’ve slimmed down all our online applications forms to the very minimum that we need to distribute what is public money, so there are certain things we have to do to ensure it is a proper organisation that is applying and they have security of tenure over the sites that we are putting money in to. GM: One comment I have had from one of my clubs that has actually received money from the emergency fund was that they did have an issue about the speed – they had to wait over a month which doesn’t fit with the nature of an emergency. When the fund was launched one of the lines was that funds could be given out in under

three weeks so I’d like to know if any clubs actually had that experience of three week funding. CJ: We undertook on the emergency fund that we would try and process the award, not necessarily the money flowing through, within three weeks. Most of them are running at an average now of 7 ½ days and we are getting the money out.

“...we are getting the money out...” Again there are one or two governance things that need to be gone through before the money goes out but the money is going out in the tens of thousands of pounds a week.

“...most clubs are getting the money within four or five weeks...” I think most clubs at the moment are probably getting the money within four or five weeks and I don’t think that’s too bad for a scheme that started recently. We try and respond quickly as we understand the issues. On our

other schemes, for example the very successful Inspired Facilities scheme we run at around 16-20 weeks so we do recognise people need this money as quickly as possible. We are doing everything we can to make it speedy, and we are exceeding the targets we gave to people. But again, if they are desperate and they haven’t got anything then there’s always a friendly person on the end of the line at the call centre that can help them if they are worried about the speed or anything else to do with the process. Please phone up and ask, don’t feel as though you can only sit there and worry, we honestly want to help, tell you where we are at with your application, find out where your application is in the system and give some reassurance it hasn’t been lost anywhere.

We know when clubs are applying that it is volunteers applying in their spare time so we are trying to make it as simple as possible which is why it is online but we also know that some people are happier in that online environment than others so there is always the person to person contact of the helpline.

“...we want to help...”

GM: Insurance is an area of concern for some of our clubs. What is the situation regarding insurance when it comes to the fund because they is a belief among the clubs that they can’t apply for anything covered by their insurance. But, if they then go and claim against that insurance then the insurer could turn around at renewal and say they aren’t covering for floods anymore, or hike up premiums to an unaffordable level.

“...insurance is a tricky one...” CJ: This is a tricky one. We have an active discussion ongoing with the insurance companies to clarify this issue for the clubs. A number of clubs are saying to us they don’t want to claim because they are very worried about what it will do to their premiums and those sorts of things so can they claim with us instead, or can Sport England pay the excess. So we are looking at all of those sort of options and we are talking to the governing bodies to get some clarity because I think it’s important that we get some clear answers to these very real concerns that people have got regarding insurance. What we have

is the ability to ask the more direct questions to the insurers that some clubs are worried to ask in case it tips the insurers off that they are a flood problem and we are asking them without mentioning particular clubs. As soon as we can we’ll issue what we believe to be the position so people can take a clear view. Clearly if there is insurance money that is available and it’s not going to cause, for example, a trebling of premiums then we would encourage people down that route, but we recognise there’s a great deal of fear and trepidation of the consequences of claiming at the moment. We’re trying hard to clarify that for everybody. [Sport England did ask me to include the following postinterview: Of the 493 Interest Registrations Sport England received, 420 – c.85% of clubs reported that they did not have insurance to cover the losses – only 21 – said Yes, they were covered c.4%.] GM: It could be a bigger issue in the future than it is now as if the clubs do claim for this damage, get refused flood cover in the future and then in a few years time we get flooding like this again it could be a lot more expensive for Sport England.

CJ: Yes, definitely. Some people say is £5m enough, but we don’t know the answer to that. We hope it will make a very significant difference and what we are seeing is a lot of innovative ways of spending the money; we know from Inspired Facilities that £25,000 goes an awfully long way in a community sports club environment so we hope that will get a lot of reach from the Flood Relief Fund. But, at this time we don’t know whether it’s enough or not; if it’s not enough then we’ll have to consider what we do but at the moment our intention is get this £5m spent and make sure the clubs are getting the benefits from it as soon as possible. GM: Last couple of quick questions for you. First off, are we right in thinking that clubs that have been successful in applying for emergency funding can then go on and apply for the main Flood Relief Fund? CJ: Yes they can and we have quite a few that were allocated money from the emergency fund and are already processing their main fund application. GM: The last question is about the application process itself, one club has made the comment that the

application is quite complicated or complex, for example, they get about proving the lease on the facility but why does Sport England need three months of bank statements and the other paperwork that needs to go with it?

“...We only ask for the absolute minimum paperwork that the National Audit Office will accept...” CJ: It’s purely down to proving it is a fit and proper organisation that is making the claim I’m afraid. This is the minimum the National Audit Office will accept from us as proof of them being an actual organisation. It’s our mitigation against fraud and that sort of thing.

We only ask for the absolute minimum the NAO will accept as due diligence for giving out public money. We do appreciate that for volunteer clubs it is difficult and we really do try to minimise the bureaucracy that we ask clubs to go through and to prove they are a trading organisation and have control over the asset we are investing in.

I was impressed by Charles’s passion for sports clubs and the funds. I really got the impression that he and Sport England are trying to make things as easy as possible for clubs, but that their hands are tied with certain aspects to do with the process – yes it’s public money but there comes with that a responsibility to hand out our money to the right places, which I guess I hadn’t thought of before. I went in to the chat expecting a politician-type person but what I got instead was a real person, someone who does give a monkey’s about the situation; what I took from our chat was that Charles really wants to help as much as possible, as quickly as possible, and that’s a good thing as he signs all of the cheques! He understands that all of the volunteers at clubs across the country are trying to do their best and he wants to help. A quick reminder of the Sport England helpline again - 08458 508 508 – please give them a call if you are having any difficulties at all with the process as if it’s not working they need to know about it and if you are still struggling after calling them then let me know and I’ll pass you concerns and issues on to Charles. Sport England are also very keen

to hear about success stories as well regarding the Flood Relief Fund so if you fancy showcasing what your clubs has done give them a shout. There hasn’t been much news that I’ve seen about football clubs being helped but then one of our member clubs, Seven Acre & Sidcup FC, got in touch saying they were more than happy with the help they’d received from their County FA, Kent. So I thought I’d get in touch with Darryl Haden, County Development Manager at Kent FA.

“Seven Acre & Sidcup FC said they were more than happy with the help they’d received from the Kent FA...” Darryl said “It has been a particularly hard start to 2014 for a lot of clubs across the county. We’ve been trying to help as much as we can to ensure clubs feel supported and have some assistance in applying for funding to rebuild after a horrible period.” Darryl goes on to explain what the

Kent FA has been up to: “We have provided clubs with the guidance produced by Sport England on dealing with and planning for floods; this was up on our website, sent through our e-zine and put on social media. We have also provided clubs with information on the Sport England Flood Relief Fund and we have had a number of clubs already apply to this funding stream. We try to help and support them in tailoring these bids for funding and offer advice and expertise to any Kent club that contacts us. “We have tried to be creative as well and launched a social media competition with Rigby Taylor to provide a Kent club with a Mini iGo Line marker and over 1.5 litres of paint. We also provided vouchers to runners up. And we worked with Rigby Taylor to offer clubs in Kent £100 off the machinery to help make the running of their facilities easier and more cost effective. “And lastly we have a Pitch Improvement programme where we utilise the expertise of a professional grounds people to provide support to grassroots football clubs. We work closely with Dougie Robertson, Head Grounds man at West Ham United FC, and we are visiting Faversham Town FC and Herne Bay FC on 9th

April. We’d like to think we are supporting our clubs as best we can.”

“...we’d like to think we are supporting our clubs as best we can...” So what have I learned from doing this? I think the main thing is communication. With email, social media and the internet in general I believe we’ve lost some of the personal touch of communicating with each other and I think this goes beyond what we’ve been looking at in this article. There are people out there that want to help but by automating and relying on websites this desire to help sometimes doesn’t make it through emails, websites and tweets. I’ve learned a lot by having a conversation and it’s changed my opinion a bit. Perhaps it’s time we, myself included, got back to picking up the phone a bit more.

“...I’ve learned by having a conversation, it’s changed my opinion...”

And on that note I’ll give you the line for Sport England one last time, please give it a call if you are having any issues at all regarding the flood relief fund: 08458 508 508. Next month I’ll have an update on the Great Sandbag Wall Of Hertford and hopefully some of the plumbing work I plan to do down here to stop stuff you don’t want coming back in to the building when we next get flooded. I’m also on the look out for grant and funding sources to feature in the next few months, if your club has found a grant that you think could be suitable for other clubs please drop me a line on mcourt@grassrootmedia.com. Update - since writing this article South Loughton CC referenced earlier in this story called the helpline and received their Emergency Flood Funding. Sport England said: “South Loughton Cricket Club received notification of their successful Award on 4th April. The delay in some decisions was due to consulting with National Governing Bodies. Once invited to apply, South Loughton submitted an st application on 31 March and received Award notification 4th March.”

Sports Therapy with Square One In a new regular feature, Daniel Foster from Hertfordshire-based sports therapists ‘Square One’ looks at what you can learn about Sports Therapy

Is The Fixture Pileup Causing Injuries At Your Club? Sports Therapy Can Help. Sports Therapy is a fast growing industry within sport and leisure; it combines the treatment of a physiotherapist with the skills of a coach combined with a great knowledge of a sporting environment. It utilises the principles of sport and exercise science incorporating physiological and pathological processes to prepare a player for a full return to sport after injury. Sports Therapy is at the forefront of sports injury and rehabilitation and can be seen in elite level sport on a regular basis including Scottish

Premier League Football, London 2012 Olympic Games and English Championship Football.

“...I can hear you asking, what can sports therapy offer my club...” I can here you asking; what could a Sports Therapist offer my club or sports centre. When working within a sports team of any level, a Sports Therapist will be able to offer pregame preparation including taping and massage, match-day cover during the game providing immediate treatment and first aid to your players and post-game assessments and treatment plans for your team. Working within a sports centre a Sports Therapist will be able to run an injury clinic or treatment facility for your

members or run specific rehabilitation and fitness sessions for small groups.

will be happy to advise you. Email: danielfoster@squareonetherapy.co .uk or call: 01727 809867.

Square One Therapy are the leading providers of Sports Therapy services in Hertfordshire, they offer a great opportunity for any club to have access to highly qualified sports injury professionals whether it is for match-day cover or to treat injured players at training sessions. Square One currently work with eight sports teams across Hertfordshire providing all of the services previously spoken about for a wide variety of sports including Football, Cricket and Rugby. They also run an injury and sports massage clinic in London Colney where anyone muscle aches or injury complaints can receive the same service on a one to one basis.

In this magazine column we will be providing you with tips on how you can look after your players during the season; we will share our knowledge with you to help your club look after its players. We will start things off right now with our first tip on how making your warm ups sports specific is a vital part of match day preparation and preventing injuries.

Square One Therapy have found that clubs who work with us have seen an increase in training participation, a reduced number of players leaving the club and players becoming more aware of their physical limitations and how they can reduce the aches and pains of playing competitive sport. If you feel your team may benefit from a high quality service or you would like more information please contact us and Square One Therapy

“...today we’ll show you how making your warm up sportspecific is a vital part of match-day prep...” By warming up before exercise you increase blood flow to muscles and other soft tissues gradually, which is an important factor in avoiding damage to ligaments, muscles, joints and tendons. A general warm up should include five to ten minutes of light cardiovascular activity, such as fast walking or slow jogging, to increase your heart rate gradually, promote blood flow to your muscles and supply them with more oxygen.

Knees and ankle injuries are common amongst many sports so in addition to your cardiovascular warm up, aim to build the following moves into your preparation to allow your body to be ready for the physical exertion of a competitive fixture:

•

Lunge walk – Move forwards with your legs in a long, exaggerated stride pattern. Keep your upper body straight but move your arms in time with your legs. Side stepping / sideways running – This movement will help to stretch the hips and inner thighs. Controlled leg swings – Standing on your left leg swing your right leg backwards and forwards in a controlled manner. Swap legs.

then put a racquet in their hands. This will create a more game specific feeling for the players and allow them to physically and mentally prepare for the sporting event.

“...if it’s football, introduce a ball...” I hope these tips can help your team reduce the chances of injury and aid preparation before your games; we will be giving monthly tips and advice on lots of different topics including; footwear, training, injury treatments and much more. And of course, if you want to get in touch with me or my team please feel free to call 01727 809867, email me on danielfoster@squareonetherapy.co .uk or visit our website www.squareonetheraphy.co.uk

Another key warm up point is to get your players into sporting activity through the warm up, so if it is a warm up for a football match then introduce a ball, if it’s tennis

Square One in action.

Earn Money For Your Club With The Cricket Paper We chat with Neil Wooding, Trade Marketing Manager of Greenways Publishing, the company behind The Cricket Paper As many of you will be aware April saw us bring on board The Cricket Paper as our newest changing room poster advertiser. The deal is a nice one as it not only brings money in to your clubs through the poster advertising, but the campaign itself is all about giving clubs the chance to make more money through The Cricket Paper’s new club affiliate scheme so it fits nicely with what Grassroot Media is all about.

I sat down for a chat with Neil Wooding from The Cricket Paper to let him explain how the affiliate scheme works and how it can make your club money... So, what’s it all about? We recognise that grassroots cricket club players, members and supporters are our readers and wanted to give something back to them in return for helping us grow our readership.

We wanted to do something new and we’re not aware of any other publication trying to work with sports clubs in the way we’ve come up with. Can you give us a little background on The Cricket Paper in case our readers aren’t familiar with it? The Cricket Paper is the UK’s number one selling cricket title. It’s all about covering cricket matches from around the world in unique depth. We cater for all cricket lovers, featuring more than 60 match reports in each weekly issue as well as round-ups from all 26 ECB county leagues and featureled interviews. How does the affiliate scheme work? We are giving clubs the chance to earn a commission on all subscriptions with The Cricket Paper .

We’ve tried to make it as simple as possible – either download our manual order form or process orders on-line via Affiliate Future. To do it manually ‘offline’, download our form here. You can then collect orders and payments from individuals, deduct your club commission and return the form to us, along with a cheque made payable to The Cricket Paper Ltd, to the address provided on the form. The same commission rates apply whether you do it manually or via your website. To run the scheme on line follow these three simple steps: :

1. Sign up for a free Affiliate Future Account: here http://www.affiliatefuture.co.uk/ registration/affiliates.asp 2. Visit The Cricket Paper’s Affiliate programme either by finding us in the Affiliate Future Merchant Directory or by clicking here: http://afuk.affiliate.affiliatefutur e.co.uk/merchants/AddProgra mme.aspx?id=6278 3. Then click on “Get Link” and choose website banner/s to embed on your website. Once the banners are live on your

website, you can then start promoting to your members and supporters straight away and begin earning a minimum of 10% commission on all referred subscriptions. Commission increases to 15% on five or more subscription orders per month. Do you offer any help to clubs in terms of them promoting or marketing the opportunity? As well as investing in the changing room posters we are also keen to help you as much as possible. As I mentioned previously, we have the web banners & adverts that clubs can place on their websites, and we have also made posters and flyers available for clubs to download and print off, just click here: A3 Poster & A5 Flyer. And of course if you’ve got any other question at all on the scheme then feel free to get in touch with us directly by emailing: subscriptions@thecricketpaper.co m If our football clubs are feeling a little left out have you got anything for them too? Yes - we have,. Our three football titles (as well as our other sports publications) will be running similar schemes soon. You can keep to date on the progress of the other titles’ schemes if you follow @GreenwaysP on Twitter.

Colin Smith Colin Smith from Elvington & Tilmanstone Colliery Welfare Cricket Club continues his monthly column with more tips for our clubs.

ÂŁ45k Clubhouse Renovations Funded At Elvington & Tilmanstone CWCC For the last four months my club volunteers and I, at Tilmanstone Miners Welfare, have been busy renovating the interior of our new clubhouse in Lower Eythorne, Elvington near Dover in Kent. I have learned many lessons along the way and the path has been quite bumpy, so I will try and share some best practice here with you.

Hopefully then you will not make the same mistakes as me. Donâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t get me wrong the renovations now completed are quite superb and we are blessed with a new state of the art clubroom fit for the 21st Century. This will in turn increase revenue from function hire and further increase our sustainability as an organisation. We now have a new clubroom with increased floorspace, new ladies and gents toilets, a new disabled toilet, a family friendly baby changing area, more storage, new kitchen and a new bar. All of these facilities mean we can now use the building to achieve funding objectives of increasing bookings and creating new activities. These include indoor bowls, Zumba and Karate. All good healthy activity for all ages within our community. These all formed a major part of

my funding bids totalling £45,000 to three separate funders. These were the Colyer Ferguson Trust, Bernard Sunley Foundation and the Henry Smith Foundation. We also contributed an in kind contribution and £10,000 of our own fundraising. As previously stated it is important to make an effort yourself if you want funding from others. In fact most of them insist on some form of match funding either in kind from volunteers or revenue raised by you.

The clubhouse before & after

to a sealed bid tender, a tender review appraisal of the bids was completed and we chose our contractor. This leads me onto our first mistake. Not only do you need a very detailed description of what you are getting from the builder you also need a detailed schedule of works linked directly to payment schedule. We did have these, however, after a few weeks it became apparent that the schedule of works did not have enough detail. We were therefore paying for work that was behind schedule. This was not good for mind or spirit and led to many hours of stress for our committee. We were stuck in a situation where we had paid for work not completed. Luckily we stuck with the builder and eventually all was well and the project caught up with the schedule of works. It is a tough lesson that I have learned and it is really to take control of this at an early stage and don’t allow work to be paid for that hasn’t been signed off as satisfactory. Withhold payment until work is completed.

“...withhold payment until work is completed...” Once we obtained planning permission our project was put out

The other lesson is to really tie down the builder with the quote.

You will need to know exactly what to expect for your money, and at what stage. Simple when you think about it, but my human nature is to trust people and this can lead to mistakes being made. Perhaps I trusted our builder to much to deliver what he said on time and within budget. Don’t make this mistake get it in writing and in great detail before you start linked to timescale for delivery. Impose agreed fines for late delivery of final project. This tends to hurry up the builder who won’t want to lose money.

“...fines for late delivery tend to hurry up builders...” Make it simple, for example you could say first fix stage payment to be made of one quarter of budget after 4 weeks. This again will tend to make the builder want to get the project to that stage on time, so he can pay his workers. This was mine and the committee’s first venture into a major refurbishment for a long time and although we made mistakes with the delivery the end result is what we were hoping for. All’s well that ends well but please learn from my mistakes, so as to avoid the stress

of hoping that the work you have paid for is eventually completed to your satisfaction. After all you also have funders to answer to not just your management committee. In the ideal world you would also like to go back to these funders for future projects so good management is crucial. It will also give you the edge over other bids if you have previously delivered good monitoring reports and publicity for grant funders, when reapplying. So the main lesson for today is do not go ahead with your capital build project without a detailed schedule of works linked to staged payments and fines for late delivery. You may be thinking the fines for late delivery is a bit harsh especially as some elements of the build could be unforeseen or unknown. My counter argument for that is allow a contingency fund and remember that if you don’t open on time you as an organisation will be losing revenue. Consider the fines for late completion compensation in case this happens. The bar takings and venue bookings will suffer if you are not open on time.

Why should you lose money if the builders cannot deliver as promised ?

My top three tips: 1. Obtain very detailed schedule of works linked to staged payments at first fix, second fix and completion approved by your project manager or Architect, when work is signed off as satisfactory. 2. Sign a contract with your builder agreeing a contingency fund for unknowns, and late completion fines. Fair on both sides I think. 3. Have a committee member on site every day to monitor progress. Have a rota for this. Now our clubhouse is complete we are very proud of it, so it was worthwhile. Here are a few interior pictures:

Best of luck with your bids, let me know if you need any help with writing them. I am willing to help providing you do the groundwork like Simon Jasinski has done at Bosham FC in West Sussex.. Next month we will find out how Simon got on with a £45,000 bid to Sport England Inspired Facilities Fund for ground and clubhouse improvements. This could be the first successful funding collaboration between clubs brought together by Grassroot Media. Fingers crossed for Simon and Bosham F.C. The good news for Simon and Bosham F.C. is Sport England have approved contractors, who I believe are paid directly by them on completion of work and production of invoices. This will make life a lot easier for project delivery if Bosham are successful with their funding bid. Let’s hope it’s good news and congratulations to Simon and his partner, Kate, on the birth of their first baby boy, Thomas Peter Jasinski. Come on Bosham bash those funders, we are all rooting for you. All the best Colin Smith

We make money for football and cricket clubs by putting frames up in changing rooms, selling the space and then paying a rent for you letting us do it. It is easy, does not cost the clubs a penny and all you have to do is take a photo each month of the posters once youâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;ve changed them (we send them out in the post to you).

If you would like to find out more about what we do at Grassroot Media: Go to our website www.grassrootmedia.com Call 0800 8 20 21 22 or 01992 27 44 27 Email info@grassrootmedia.com Be part of the team...

The Secret Non-League Footballer Each month we print an article from the excellent Secret Footballer website – you can see more at www.thesecretfootballer.com

Scrapping for your future

As the season comes to an end, the concluding few weeks tend to be an edgy and tense time for players. My current position is that I’m approaching the end of my contract, like thousands of other players out there. When this happens, it becomes quite nervewracking and anxious. You find yourself counting down the days, hoping you will be offered that new contract you are

yearning for, whether at present club or elsewhere.

your

When a dozen or so players in your team are in the same position, you start to see the true colours of some team-mates. As the rollercoaster season progresses, with mixed emotions along the way, their character and mentality can change, which is evident in training and even in matches.

I’m no sports psychologist but, over the years, I’ve known players who can take the pressure and those who simply fold like a deck chair. And, sure, I’m beginning to feel the pressure. When your contract is due to expire in a few months, you naturally begin to worry about your future, your security and how the mortgage will be paid if you aren’t offered a new one. This, ultimately,

leads to tension when you turn up at the training ground.

All of a sudden, it becomes a place of work that isn’t as happy and welcoming as it was at the start of the season. Players enter the changing-room with their guard up, protecting themselves and not allowing anyone to expose their weaknesses. The amount of testosterone is high and all it takes is for some “banter” to go too far and a fight breaks out. I have witnessed this numerous times. A few weeks ago, a player was winding up another by throwing ice cubes at the back of his head. The lad on the receiving end was taking it well until the culprit throwing the ice continued to irritate him. This is how it usually works in football. Once a player gets a nibble back, gets a reaction from the other, he feels he has won. That’s the game.

On this occasion, the other lad reacted physically – as opposed to the usual few verbals exchanged – and the pair squared up, throwing “handbags” at one another, until it was broken up.

“...Regardless of the team spirit built up, there will still be the odd fight...” Every dressing-room is different. Regardless of the team spirit built up, there will still be the odd fight and, most commonly, arguments. When 20 lads come together in a work place, which involves being aggressive and competitive, it is natural that there will often be disparity. In an office job, if there are any disagreements, I guess it is sorted out verbally or the debate meekly settles down. In football, most disagreements are best solved by having a good old-fashioned scrap, after which both players shake hands and move on.

It may sound like childish behaviour but, much of the time, changing-rooms can resemble a schoolyard. Most experienced managers tend to encourage players to sort it out between themselves but make sure that they kiss and make up after. Job done, over and done with. This is

much

better than the

Web: thesecretfootballer.com Twitter: @tsfnonleague Facebook: /TSFootballer

animosity continuing between players until, eventually, one lad sticks a dagger in the back of the other, which can affect the team’s performances. In the last couple of months of the season, if you don’t know whether your contract will be extended, you can find yourself unsettled and panicking. This is usually very much dependent on the club’s league position. Call it weakminded but this does affect players mentally. Yet, once the contract is sorted, you do get a psychological boost. Players generally play better when they are stress free. But why should football be stressful? It’s only a game, right? In my experience in lower-league football, I have gone from being on a month-to-month contract as a first-year professional to a deal that extended to three months. At the time, this wasn’t an issue as I had no commitments or responsibilities.

But being an older pro, the first thing I need to be sure about is that the mortgage gets paid every month. It’s essential that my wages cover this and the bills I have to pay.

“...In football, it’s hard to predict what will happen next week let alone, in some cases, next year...” Security is something everybody wishes to have but, in football, it’s hard to predict what will happen next week let alone, in some cases, next year. The longest contract I signed was two-and-a-half years. I was even sceptical about signing that as I could have waited until the end of the season and, knowing that I was leaving on a “Bosman”, gambled on signing a more lucrative deal elsewhere. But when a club in the Conference offered me that length of contract, I had no qualms about accepting it. You have to have something concrete … or be a very brave man to turn it down. This article published by Paper.

was originally the Non-League

Web: thesecretfootballer.com Twitter: @tsfnonleague Facebook: /TSFootballer

Sports First Aid

Sophie Hoskins from Physical Sports First Aid continues her column on Sports First Aid see more at www.physical-sports.co.uk

Concussion Basics For Team Sports Concussion in sport is a topic of increasing concern due to evidence now showing that it could prove to be fatal, especially in young players, and sports bodies are being pressured to take it more seriously. If you are involved in sports first aid in any way you’re probably already aware that concussion is not something to be ignored or ‘shaken off’ for a quick return to play. It’s very important to be able to recognise and properly respond to concussions when they first occur to help prevent further injury. With this in mind, here is a brief summary of some of the things to be aware of when dealing with head injuries in team sports.

Obviously, what follows is not an exhaustive guide to concussion, nor is it a substitute for appropriate first aid training. What is Concussion? Concussion is the sudden disturbance of mental function caused by a twisting or tearing of the structures and blood vessels of the brain when the head is subject to strong acceleration forces and the brain bounces against the inside the skull. Often this is the result of a direct bump or blow to the head, but it can also happen as result of other sudden, forceful movements – for instance, a hard impact to the body that causes the head to move rapidly back and forth. Given this, it is a very common injury in competitive team sports such as football and rugby. While concussion is a form of 'traumatic brain injury', it’s actually considered one of the mildest

forms of brain injury and in most cases it does not cause long-term problems and the player will be back to normal quite quickly.

“...it might take several weeks for someone to be considered fully recovered from a concussion...” However, it might still take several weeks for them to be considered fully recovered, and in a small number of cases, much more serious complications can arise. If a second head injury occurs before the brain fully recovers from the first concussion it can slow recovery or increase the likelihood of them having long-term problems. There is also some evidence to suggest that repeat concussions can cause rapid brain swelling and even death. Therefore, any head injury or suspected concussion warrants close and careful attention and a concussed player still needs to sit out the rest of the game even if they appear ‘back to normal’ quite quickly.

How Do Concussion?

Recognise

If a player has experienced a bump or blow to the head or body you should look for signs and symptoms of a concussion. Some of the most obvious include confusion, a short period unconsciousness and loss of coordination and balance.

“...confusion, unconsciousness and loss of co-ordination or balance are all symptoms of concussion...” But it’s important to be aware that not all – or even any – of these will necessarily be present in every case of concussion. It can be difficult to tell whether or not a person has suffered a concussion after a collision because you can’t see a concussion and the symptoms and signs may evolve over a number of minutes to hours after the injury. However, you should look out for most common signs and symptoms that make it reasonable for you to suspect concussion.

These signs include:

• • • • • • • • • • •

and

symptoms

Recognition Tool’ is not a substitute for clinical assessment by a doctor.

Confusion Headache Memory loss Not fully alert – e.g. does not respond to simple questions quickly and clearly Slow movements Dizziness Stumbling or unsteadiness Change of personality Brief loss of consciousness Disturbances in vision Ringing in the ears

What Should I Do if I Suspect Concussion? It’s important that any player with a suspected concussion is withdrawn from the game, and does not play again that day. They should not be left alone and they must see a doctor for diagnosis and assessment.

If any one or more of these signs or symptoms are noticed, a concussion should be suspected and the player needs to see a doctor. Medical professionals have a number of methods that they can use to perform a formal evaluation of the injury, so do not try to assess the severity of the concussion yourself; the diagnosis needs to be made by a doctor. The ‘Pocket Concussion Recognition Tool’ can be used to help identify concussion. This is a structured guide to assessing players who have suffered a head injury and can be easily found online. It is a good idea to print copies of this document and keep them in your first aid kits. But remember, the ‘Pocket Concussion

If you recognise any of the warning signs for concussion – or if you have any doubts at all about a player with a minor head injury – your immediate action should be: 1. Immediately withdraw the player from the game 2. Carefully monitor the player’s condition for any changes 3. Do not allow the player to ‘play on’, even if they appear to recover 4. Refer the player to a medical professional for assessment as soon as possible Most people who have suffered a minor concussion do not require any treatment as they normally get better by themselves. However, even in the case of a mild concussion, the player will need to be carefully monitored for signs and symptoms that could indicate a much more serious problem, such

as difficulty speaking, drowsiness that goes on for longer than an hour, or a worsening headache. If the player exhibits these signs and symptoms, or if the condition of the casualty deteriorates, take them straight to hospital or call the emergency services.

Looking for:

TROPHIES AWARDS MEDALS SHIELDS SALVERS And want 30-40% off RRP? And free engraving? And free centre caps? Go to grassroottrophies.com Or email Mat at Grassroot Media on mcourt@grassrootmedia.com

“...the safest course of action is to withdraw the player and seek medical attention...” In short, the safest course of action if a concussion if suspected is to withdraw the player and seek medical attention. Even for a mild bump to the head, the player will need to take at least 7 to 10 days to recover before returning to any form of sport.

I’ll be back next month with more on common injuries and ailments your players might experience on the cricket or football pitch. Remember you can find more about what we do on our website www.physical-sports.co.uk where you’ll find everything you need to kit your club out First Aid-wise along with 15% off our ‘Pitch Side First Aid Kit’ (see page advertisement in here for details).

Club Sustainability With Andy Carmichael

Andy Carmichael from www.sustainablecricket.com gives us more food for thought on sustainability and grassroots sport.

Changing environmental behaviour Last month we looked at how to simply audit facilities, deciding on the best use of resources and whether it would be worth spending on new features. The one resource that was not included in this, your most important one by far, was people. Without your staff, officials, players and volunteers we have an empty building sitting next to a piece of grass. Somewhere for pigeons to roost and worms to burrow. It is not even sustainable as eventually the building will fall down and a forest will develop on the outfield. So you have to manage your facility, and to best do that you need to manage your club personnel.

If you have identified a number of issues with your existing practices; inefficient consumption, wasteful application, possible pollution, then what we are really talking about is modifying people's behaviour. This is a very big subject with numerous theories proposed by eminent authors and some very large and expensive studies done to help understand how best to implement them. A DEFRA study in 2008 into how best to promote pro-environmental behaviour change acknowledged that the literature in this area was 'vast'. Over the next 500 pages I will....or maybe not, for both our sakes. What it comes down to is this, you can change some behaviour by changing your facilities - if you swap a turn tap for a push button one then no one can leave the tap turned on. Problem solved, no need for big brother style notices, everybody's happy. If,

however, you would like the volunteer who cuts the outfield, and has done so for the last thirty years, to swap pretty patterns for circular cuts (as it halves the fuel consumption) that is more delicate.

“...it can be difficult to ask the volunteer who cuts the outfield to move to a circular cut to halve your fuel consumption...” So, where to start?

An LIRC study, commissioned by Sport England in 2003, identified that only 1% of sports clubs had a volunteer strategy. That is a large number of clubs and a huge resource of people with no coordinated plan for what they are doing, when, how and to what end. And yet in a sports team those roles are very clearly defined, you are all familiar with what a captain does, how and why the batting order is organised, which player takes the penalties, you probably even organise yourselves into car sharing groups. Yet aside from deciding on a number of positions within the club

with some particular functions there is very little by way of aims and objectives. Where does the club see itself in ten years time? How are you going to recruit the next generation? Who is responsible for ensuring you do not get an enormous energy bill as the last five years have been estimated? I have seen the last one happen, it can potentially bankrupt clubs and send the poor committee member over the edge.

“...it should be clear within the club who is responsible for what...” Responsibility is a key phrase in an audit. Who is responsible for what? This should be clear within a club if you want to read your meter every quarter, who does it? Who checks to see all devices are turned off at night? Who makes sure you are not using 'red diesel' for the wrong purpose? (I had to open a case with HMRC to establish that one!) Please make sure they, and everyone else knows. But please do not just give someone the

responsibility; you need to give them the authority as well.

All too many examples of organisational failure to implement change come about because people in lower positions of authority are given jobs to do but are unable to compel others to assist them in their goal.

It is vital to sell this to them, this should never be an imposition, after all they are there because they want the club to do well and if you can demonstrate that not cutting outfields into chess boards means the nets can be modernised or the bar keep the price of a pint down then who is really going to argue?

Senior management must ultimately become involved. In an ISO14001 review the environmental policy must be defined by this group.

Host an open session where you simply explain that you want to try and reduce waste so that you can improve the club and you need their help.

“...time barriers may exist; is it fair to ask a person with three jobs to do another?...”

A lack of awareness is a regular feature of failed interventions. Combining education with asking people to commit to the principle appears to work even more effectively in contrast to the way that simply sticking a poster above the recycling bin and not telling anyone so often merely wastes blu tac.

Other barriers exist. Time - is it fair to ask the person with three existing jobs to take on another? Budget - can you get grants, can you get loans, can you get things for free? The designated person needs some resources. Possibly the most important, however, is creating that environment where people actually want to change and are willing to accept someone suggesting ways of modifying their activities.

Identify roles, come up with some targets and give people the opportunity and the reason to meet them. As DEFRA concluded, “Enable, encourage, engage, exemplify”. Thanks for your time, and remember you can visit my website www.sustainablecricket.com for more.

Sports psychology David Harrison from Pinnacle Performance (www.pinnacleperformance.co.uk) continues his monthly look at what we can learn from Sports Psychology.

Group Development We are currently in the final stages of developing a team building kit that will help coaches develop groups and teams you work with and this month I thought I’d share with you some of what we’ve been working on. Working as part of a team is an integral aspect of sport, business and any performance environment (education, military and performing arts). If we can function effectively as team then we will maximise our chances of winning and being successful.

“The whole is greater than the sum of its parts.” - Aristotle Stages of Group/Team Development Tuckman proposed a stages team development (Forming, Storming, Norming and Performing, see diagram below). If you are aware of the key characteristics within in each stage and what to look out for then you can implement strategies to assist your team to move quickly through each stage and get as close as you can to PINNACLE PERFORMANCE, giving your team the best opportunity to be successful and maximise chances of winning. Stages of Team Development Diagram:

There is a great clip on YouTube that uses clips from the film Remember the Titans and really encapsulates these four stages.

Here is the link: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v= hEJaz3sinEs Forming The forming stage is where team members first meet and they familiarise themselves with other team mates (think back to your first day at college!). Team members will compare themselves against each other and assess each team memberâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s strengths and weaknesses. Individuals in the forming stage will identify whether they belong in the group and what their respective role in the team will be and after role identification individuals will start to form interpersonal relationships which will be tested.

There was another American Football example which was a Channel 4 programme on the preseason training camp of an NFL

team (Cincinnati Bengals). This programme was called Hard Knocks. This was a 4 part series that clearly highlights the Forming, Storming and Norming Stages of the Tuckman's Stages of Group Development. There are lots of players fighting for spots on the team and the coaches have a difficult job to get the squad from 90 players down to the 52 needed at the start of a season. Storming This stage is categorised by resistance to the leader and their rules they have implemented within the environment. This resistance occurs when team rules are made and developed. There is also infighting between team mates (e.g. social/emotional and even physical can occur in the storming stage as roles within the team are established (e.g. joker etc). Within the storming stage coaches need to communicate openly and objectively about rules, expectations and responsibilities and implement strategies to decrease stress.

Norming In the norming stage the resistance and hostility seen in the storming stage is replaced by solidarity and cooperation as a sense of unity forms. Individuals work together toward common goals and group

cohesion is increased as members pull together and build team unity as roles in the team are stabilised and accepted so instead of competing against each other the team strive for task effectiveness. Within the norming stage coaches should reinforce effort and performance and highlight memberâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s unique roles and responsibility. Performing This stage is where the team channels their collective energies for team success and are achieving PINNACLE PERFORMANCE. The role within the team are well defined. Great examples are the LA Lakers of the early 2000's and the Chicago Bulls of the late 1990's. The interpersonal relationships are stable and individual success is respected as the primary goal is team success. This links to task and social cohesion. If you have any comments then Iâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;d love to hear them by email or you can also visit the website here: pinnacleperformance.co.uk for more info on sport psychology and the Team Development Kit. Reference: Weinberg, R. and Gould, D. (2007) Foundations of Sport and Exercise Psychology (4th Ed.). Champaign, Ill: Human Kinetics.

We are performance enhancement company based in South Yorkshire, UK who specialise in team building and working with individuals and teams to maximise performance and chances of winning in sport, business, education and performing arts. Read our blog and get in touch by clicking one of the links below: Website Twitter Facebook

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List your clubâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Twitter account in here so everyone else can get following you. Only those clubs that are members of the network like yours are allowed on this list. To get listed just drop Mat a note at mcourt@grassrootmedia .com or on Twitter @grassrootmedia Grassroot Media recommends: @birminghamfa @fvhtweets @sussexcountyfa @meadonscricket @4grants @chance2shine @vscricketsn

Help players look after their skin while making money for your club We’ve found out about a new entrant to the sun block market, called Block Shop – and they’re keen to be stocked in your clubs – and you can make money out of it

I came across a company called Block Shop on LinkedIn – if you’re not on LinkedIn I’d recommend it, especially if you’re involved on the coaching side of things, yes there’s a lot of rubbish but every now and then you see something that’s incredibly useful. But I digress. I ended up having a chat with a new company called Block Shop about their zinc sun block and whether we could get it stocked in some of our clubs. Well James was already ahead of me and had already got the product in a few cricket clubs and the model was working well.

We all know the damage the sun can do to our and our kids’ skin, and it should work well being stocked behind your bars or elsewhere in your clubhouse; I remember constantly having to borrow other people’s when I’d forgotten to pick some up on the way to a match.

So I’ve agreed to promote the product to you, our clubs.

You can see a bit more detail on the page advert we’ve put in towards the front of the magazine, but you can always take a look at their website here: www.blockshop.co.uk or drop James an email on james@blockshop.co.uk or give him a call on 07900338863. They are also on Twitter @blockshop01

Being mostly blokes we are mostly pretty rubbish at remembering to buy things, especially products like sun block so I think that clubs stocking this is very much making the right product available to the right people at the right time.

The deal for you guys is quite simple, if you want to stock the product, you buy it at £2.50 per tub and then sell it to your players at the RRP of £5.95, or whatever other price you want.

Use grassrootmedia.com to showcase your sponsorship opportunities A quick update on an idea I’ve had to help you sell sponsorship and advertising in your clubs to local firms. I’ve imaginatively called it ‘Sponsor A Local Club’...

Just another quick reminder on the “Sponsor A Local Club” page on the website we launched last month. We’ve got a few opportunities up on there but space for plenty more. What we’re trying to do is build up a portfolio of sponsorable opportunities that businesses can have a look through and hopefully find something they want to buy. I’ve no idea if it’s going to work but it feels like a good idea. I don’t want Grassroot Media to make anything out of it and all we’ll do is effectively put the idea in the shop window and then market the shop window. You guys will still need to talk directly with the companies that show an interest but my plan is that if we can get plenty of ideas on there I can go to organisations such as the Federation of Small Businesses, the Chamber of Commerce and other small business organisations and try to

get them spreading among their members.

the

word

So if you want to get your club listed up on there just drop me a line with what you want (try to keep it as short/punchy as possible) and one or two images and we’ll get you listed. We’ll never charge for it and will never look to take a cut of anything you end up selling off the back of it - that’s not what this is about. Instead it’s about promoting the fact that small businesses can really benefit from getting involved commercially with the one of the most important hubs of their local community, their sports clubs. If you’ve got any questions/comments/concerns please give me a shout in the usual way, you can see the page itself here: http://www.grassrootmedia.com/s ponsor-a-local-club

Andrew Beaven

This month Andrew Beaven, Coach at Oakfield Parkonians Cricket Club in Barkingside, Essex gives us his thoughts on outdoor training.

The clocks have gone forward time to move outdoors for practice

So rather than going into the outdoor nets as soon as the ground is dry enough, why not aim to run practice sessions with a bit more imagination?

By the time you read this, some of your Clubs might already have played their first games of the 2014 season â&#x20AC;&#x201C; I am writing in late March, in the south-east of England; for want of a final cut on the pitch (and removing the footballers from the outfield) our Club ground looks almost ready for the new season.

Set up a series of cricketing activity "stations" each evening (batting, bowling, fielding drills), then have the players rotate around the stations, so no-one stands still for too long and gets cold, and no-one spends their evening doing the same skill. Variety and involvement are the key words.

Get outdoors!

But the reality is that April is about preparation, and that is the subject for this month's article. Spending an evening in early April queuing up to bowl in the nets is not exactly an attractive proposition. We need to keep everyone involved, and engaged.

Perhaps two batting stations, one bowling (fielding for wicketkeeper and non-bowlers), one fielding, 10 minutes per station, 10 minutes warm-up and time for a 5 minute cool-down. Work hard for one hour, then anyone who is super keen can do a couple of laps of the field afterwards (or retreat to the bar to talk tactics).

For the first few weeks, we have come up with the following activities. Range hitting (hitting the ball as far as possible) is a good confidence booster early season, and also provides fielding practice. Record the longest hit for each batter, and make the session competitive. One-hand one-bounce – played on the outfield (with a cricket ball and protective gear, or with a softball), this becomes a real challenge even for seniors (handeye, soft-hands...just like batting in a match, in fact).

“...one-hand onebounce on the outfield is a real challenge even for seniors...”

To make this competitive, count the number of balls faced (but set a limit - 18 balls, say - or you might end up with someone batting all day. Soft hands, quick runs – a variant on “block and run”, with a pair of batters playing against a fielding team; fielders are positioned facing away from the batter, and have to react after a stroke has been played and try to run the batsmen out before they complete a run – requires 6-8 players. Target bowling – set targets appropriate to bowling style(s); highest total wins. Ideally, in a net; failing that, with a back-stop/net for this, or a willing retriever stood well back. Fielding – close fielders and wicket keepers • 5 minutes (intense) on CrazyCatch/Katchet/slip cradle • 5 minutes chase and retrieve You will want to get the throwing arms working, as well – Sam Lavery has a great post on PitchVision Academy on this subject [1]

“You will want to get the throwing arms working as well...” 64

For non-bowlers – replace the bowling challenge with fielding (any of the numerous fielding drills can be run) – yes, that might mean that a non-bowler will do two fielding stations.

BTW - Quite deliberately, I have not suggested stand-alone "fitness" stations. S&C is probably best kept to a separate session. By providing a variety of skill drills and tactical challenges, everyone will be moving in a "cricket-specific" style, which can serve as a gentle(r) introduction to your S&C programmes. I know it's cold and wet outdoors – but get out there and enjoy your pre-season! N.B. Most of these games should be pretty self-explanatory – they are mostly adopted from ECB CA training sessions, or from playground games - but if you do want more detail on any of the activities, I have a post (http://wp.me/pUKG1-49) on theteesra.com on how we tried to use this approach last year. [1] see Get on with it: Outdoor Cricket Training in the Cold and Wet is Possible (http://www.pitchvision.com/geton-with-it-outdoor-cricket-trainingin-the-cold-and-wet-is-possible)

Looking for:

TROPHIES AWARDS MEDALS SHIELDS SALVERS And want 30-40% off RRP? And free engraving? And free centre caps? Go to grassroottrophies.com Or email Mat at Grassroot Media on mcourt@grassrootmedia.com

VS Cricket is a new social media service to cricket clubs, players and fans giving them the chance to discuss all things cricket from international level to local teams

Remember when Channel 4 broadcast the cricket and mambo no5 was what we listened to prior to start of play? Remember the ground breaking graphics and analysis that accompanied the telecasts? Well the company behind those stats and graphics has just launched a social network devoted to cricket and grass roots cricket clubs in particular. Virtual Spectator is an Australian based sports graphics company with offices in the UK and USA and is well placed to develop VSCricket.com, the cricket social network.

revenue share any advertising income back to the grass roots clubs that participate on the network. "The idea is obvious, most local clubs have strong links to their local communities and VSCricket.com now gives businesses in those communities a vehicle by which they can support their local clubs financially" said Peter Lamb, CEO VS Europe Ltd.

It is early days but it is hoped that VSCricket.com will become the Facebook of cricket. A welcome twist from a multinational company is that a core element of the network is to

A screen shot of a club page on vscricket.com

“... a core element of the network is to revenue share any advertising income back to the participating clubs...” Each club that wishes to can have their own page on VSCricket.com where people can interact, post photos, videos and links related to the club. On each club page there are advertising spots available and for just £10 per month, local businesses can sponsor their club. The business gets their ad seen by all who visit and use the page and the club gets much needed additional revenue (50%). The more people use the network, the greater value it will be to a sponsor. In addition, all clubs that are on VSCricket.com will automatically be entitled to a FREE Ipad based scoring system developed exclusively by Virtual Spectator for VSCricket.com.

uploaded to the network and displayed in the form of batting and bowling cards on a clubs page. This has a number of benefits:

.It means every team can see their results in professionally produced digital content .More people will visit the page every week to check stats .Sponsors will get their ad seen by a bigger audience .It gives the smallest of clubs the same scoring capabilities as broadcast TV The scoring app is due for release in April 2014. In addition to club pages, major series will be covered. For instance in the current Ashes series, Virtual Spectator has a pundit at every game who is posting match summaries and photos through the day. Feel free to go over to www.vscricket.com and have a look around and see what it could do for your club.

If clubs score their games using this app, the scores will be