Hints to Junior and Amateur Clubs.
It is an old adage that the boy is father to the man, and this applies
casually to football circles. The boy of to-day has a great advantage
over a boy of say ten or fifteen years ago. Every possible opportunity
is put in his way for developing his play, as schoolmasters take a
bigger interest in their boys than in olden days. Schoolboy
Internationals and shield competitions are the order of the day, while
years ago boys used to meet together, pick sides, put their jackets down
for posts, and go full speed ahead without any referee or any official.
I have followed closely these schoolboy competitions, and in my heart
think they are really a mistake. A boy of twenty years ago had to do all
the initial work, which amounted to carrying the goal-posts to the field
of play, whether it were a common or any other open space. They had to
find their own ball, and many times I have given a few pence to an
aspiring club. The blowing up of the ball was another great event, and
in those days it took a lot of doing, the youth with the strongest and
biggest lungs having the privilege of giving the ball its last few
blows. The captain always had the honour of carrying the ball to the
field of play, and could do practically what he liked with it. Nowadays
things seem completely altered. The boy, instead of doing everything for
himself, has everything done for him, and all he has to do is simply
turn up in time to change and go on to the field of play. I think this
is a great mistake, and if the youth of to-day had to go out of his way
to a great extent for his Saturday pastime he would be all the better
for it. When I was a youngster it was nothing unusual for an enthusiast
to get out of bed at an unearthly hour in the morning and make all the
preparations for the day's game, go back to breakfast, and then turn up
at the office at the usual time. To do this one must be very fond of the
game, and such a spirit will carry any club or player right to the
front. I have been secretary to both amateur and professional clubs, and
my sympathy goes out to the secretary of the first-named. The
professional secretary or manager has only to say to the player "Do
this," and he does it, like the centurion of old, but the man who holds
the reins of an amateur club has to put up with many disappointments
through the thoughtlessness of members of his team. I should like to put
this point very strongly before these players, and ask them to consider
their secretary in every way. Charles Reade wrote a very fine novel,
_Put Yourself in His Place_, and this applies to the case in point. The
hon. secretary of an amateur club as a rule is a very busy man, and
takes the position from mere love of the game. It must be admitted that
it is rough on him to find on Saturday morning that many players cannot
put in an appearance at the match and could have saved him all the
trouble of wiring and sending round the district for another player if
they had only let him know a day or two before, so that he would have
had a chance of filling the places they had vacated. It means a great
deal of trouble to him which, for the sake of a little thought, could
have easily been avoided. I am speaking feelingly now, and if any player
happens to read this chapter I hope he will consider this matter
seriously. Junior and amateur clubs have a few failings that I might be
permitted to point out. I might start in the first place with
punctuality. Although this is considered by many a virtue, it is not so
considered by them. Probably before a match starts twenty players have
to wait for the dilatoriness of the other two. Of course there are
exceptional circumstances which are excusable, but the unpunctuality of
the players in junior and amateur matches has done a great deal of harm
from a spectatorial point of view. Professional clubs soon realise this
point, and much of their success in league matches is due to players and
officials being invariably ready to start at the advertised time of kick
off. If a professional is late a severe penalty is imposed upon him, and
the Football League are most autocratic in knowing that the referee and
linesmen are always there at the correct time, and if they are late they
are liable to be fined. Regarding training for juniors, it only behoves
a boy to be thoroughly fit and well. If he indulges in some summer game,
such as cricket, tennis, or golf, or if he plays regularly lawn tennis,
he should start the season quite fit and well. If, however, he feels in
the summer not inclined to follow any of these pastimes, he ought to go
in for walking or swimming, so as to reduce his weight, and thus enable
him to go on the field and play as usual. In recent years one has heard
and read a great deal about special training, and I may remark that
special training is not really necessary, even from a professional point
of view. What is necessary is to keep the players well together, regular
hours for meals, and off to bed in good time. It is the _esprit de
corps_ that must be cultivated. The junior who is at business all the
week should require but little training. His match on the Saturday, if
he leads a regular life, should be quite sufficient to enable him to
turn up on that day as fit as possible. Still, if he has a little time
to spare a few short sprints once or twice a week will do him a great
deal of good. He may probably add two or three yards in a hundred, and
speed is a great asset in modern football. Probably one yard in twenty
is of infinitely more advantage than say five in a hundred, and for that
reason alone I have always encouraged a player, if he can possibly do
so, to go in for short sprints from twenty-five yards to fifty. Should
he not be able to run on an open piece of ground there would be no harm
in putting on a pair of canvas shoes at home and sprinting for fifty
yards on the pavement opposite his house or on the road if the district
is fairly quiet. Nobody will take any notice, especially after the first
once or twice, and on coming indoors take a hot bath; if going out again
never forget to have a cold plunge afterwards. I am a great believer in
hot baths for taking away any nasty knock or soreness, but they must be
taken with the greatest possible care so as to avoid catching cold.
There is no finer sensation after having a hot bath than to jump into a
stone cold one or to stand under a shower. It makes you tingle all over,
and after having a rub down you feel like a giant refreshed. "Am I a
believer in Turkish baths?" is a question often asked me, and I must
admit that I generally qualify my reply. Once now and again does no
harm; to indulge in them regularly to me seems a great mistake, as they
are certainly most lowering. Another point I should like to dwell upon
is that the junior of to-day makes a practice of playing with his cap
on, especially in wet weather. I must honestly state that I hate to see
anyone playing with a headgear. It seems to me strange, and I know many
a player who has caught a very bad cold through playing in this way, and
after changing, going home in the same. If he has a change it is not so
bad, but it takes a longer time for this cap to dry than his hair, and
it is some considerable time before the former is fit to wear after
getting soaked. Just a word in conclusion to the juniors. Play the game
as it should be played. Do not hold your opponents up to ridicule by
beating them two or three times when once will suffice. Get as many
goals as you possibly can, for a team will prefer to be beaten by double
figures rather than know that their opponents were toying with them and
could score whenever they chose. Be loyal to your club and clubmates,
and do not forget that enthusiasm is the great thing that will carry you
to the front in football as well as in other spheres in life.
Unselfishness is also another great point. Should your captain or
committee choose another man as your superior, do not grumble, but turn
out for the second eleven, and play with all your heart and soul, and if
you have the merit you will soon regain your old position in the first
team. Above all, play the game fairly and squarely, and you will succeed
either as a professional, senior, junior, or amateur.
[Illustration: PASSING WITH THE INSTEP.]