Thirsk
Falcons Juniors
to play for professional club academies
and others represent North Yorkshire
Schools and more still represent
Hambleton and Richmond
Schools.
We
want
our
players to be the best
they can be but the
pervading ethos is to
encourage football
for all, develop our
younger
players
through to senior
football
and
be
competitive in line
with the FA guidance!
As
mentioned,
the Junior Club has FA
Community Club status and each
team has at least one FA Level 1 qualified
coach with all coaches and volunteers
DBS checked, with many achieving
Level 2 status and above.
In addition, we are proud that Thirsk
Falcons Juniors is an international partner
with Celtic FC whose international
coaches run Celtic football camps in
Thirsk on a regular basis and provide
the opportunity for our volunteers to
attend their annual international coaches
conference.
We also partner with North
Yorkshire Soccer Academy to deliver
our fledglings group - fun football
sessions for 3-6 years and to provide
North Yorkshire Sport and Dales School
with regular training and a satellite club
for people with disabilities.
In our Junior section we have 21
teams with approximately 225 players
registered and over 25 business sponsors
which make a huge contribution to the
club and without whose support we
wouldn’t be able to function. The Thirsk
Falcons Senior club has two teams
and an affiliated veterans
team.
Part of our vision is
to achieve a minimum
of L6 status; playing
National
League
North at a senior
level with its own
attendant facilities.
Alongside
Thirsk
Falcons having its
own facilities, the club
is a key partner in the
town’s Sowerby Gateway
development and plans to
fully utilise the facilities available
for both junior and senior training.
We have a forward thinking
strategy and clear ambitions
and have already put
in place a stronger
committee to broaden
involvement, widen
the volunteer base
and
strengthen
our skills base. The
challenge does not
stop here though:
A/ We now need
additional
pitches,
spectator
facilities
(seated, covered grandstand
area) commensurate with semi
professional/professional
football
and our own clubhouse along with a
comprehensive volunteering strategy.
B/ We also have to address the
shortage of referees which remains a
constant challenge for the juniors. Young
people aged 14 or over can referee which
is a great opportunity to engage all U14’s
upwards, provide them with recognised
training and pay them to referee junior
matches. We wish to link more closely
with Thirsk School to provide a pathway
for new young referees through Junior
Sports Leaders, D of E etc.
C/ There is also a requirement for a
Coaching Recruitment and Development
strategy and a robust process to induct
new coaches and ensure they understand
the club ethos and the need to continue
to develop as coaches.
D/ We also are looking to embed a
well planned player recruitment and
retention strategy – a strategy that
allows good players to develop and
grow into tomorrow’s semi professional
footballers for Thirsk!
It’s by no means an easy
task! We are definitely
in it for the long haul
and see this as a long
term strategy but
with the support
of the community,
businesses,
local
politicians,
sports
partnerships
etc
we will take Thirsk
Falcons
forward
to benefit the next
generation – increasing
numbers of young people
leading and maintaining a healthy
lifestyle, increasing participation in
sporting activity leading to better
concentration in academic areas and
contributing to our community as well
as the promotion of football excellence,
developing talent and raising aspirations
to take sport to the next level.
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