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Last Updated: Apr 13, 2017 - 1:01:34 PM |
One of this year’s star coaches Abbie Sadler at work with an attentive audience
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Freeport, Bahamas - Youngsters attending this year’s Sir Jack Hayward Soccer Camp will be getting a double bonus – a cheaper price and a better deal. But their parents need to act quickly to take advantage.
The fee to attend this iconic Grand Bahama youth sports event has been pegged at $175 for more than 10 years. This year though – in recognition of the impact of Hurricane Matthew and other island hardships – organisers are slashing the price by a whopping 43% - to just $100.
At the same time the number of professional coaches leading the camp is being increased from three to FOUR, meaning the coach-to-player ratio for that week – June 19 to June 23 - will be better than at some pro clubs.
Registration has already started and the need to act quickly comes because of another change. The number of attendees at this year’s camp is being pegged at 100. That’s way lower than the attendance figure for every year since it all began 13 years ago.
“Waiting until the last minute isn’t going to work this year. Those who do will find that all the places have already been taken,” said one of the organisers, Derek Archer.
“Quite apart from that there is every reason to get signed up quickly and not miss out. The most pro coaches we have already had helping out is three but this year we have been lucky enough to sign up four of them. They are top class too – award winners for coaching youth soccer.”
Two of them are returnees from previous camps –
Abbie Sadler and
Robbie Pringle. Both were then working for the sport’s governing body in the UK, the FA, as youth coaches. Abbie is now working for Premier League team Swansea helping develop their youth academy and Robbie, having done a stint at another Premier League club Sunderland, is now doing college coaching in another famous soccer city, Newcastle.
They will be joined by two US college coaches,
Chris Kranjc and
Chris Clements, whose advice could be a great help to local youngsters targeting a soccer scholarship in that country. Kranjc is head men’s soccer coach at the University of Alabama at Huntsville and Clements is head women’s soccer coach at Hastings College, Nebraska. They may coach different sexes but each has an outstanding record for developing winning teams.
“Given the strength of the coaching team this year we would have been well justified in raising the price for the camp but we have seen the growing hardship over the years on this island without natural events like Matthew making things worse and we decided the least we could do was to help out and make the camp more affordable,” continued Archer.
The camp will be held as usual at Freeport Rugby and Football Club at East Settlers Way and will run from 9am until 3pm each day with lunch and uniform included.
Registration forms are available at Town and Country, Yellow Pine Street; Barefoot Marketing, West Mall Drive; and Freeport Rugby and Football Club, East Settlers Way (evenings and weekends). It will be first come, first served in allocating uniforms.
© Copyright 2017 by thebahamasweekly.com
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