Inside the football clubs making sure EVERY child can play as Harry Maguire and Phil Foden back our grassroots scheme
AFTER years of desperately wanting to be picked first for the football team, Eddie finally found somewhere that let him play every match.
The nine-year-old, who is affected by autism and skull birth defect craniosynostosis, has found confidence with a group of friends.
And it’s all thanks to Ashford United –– one of the football clubs that The Sun wants to benefit from our Footie For All campaign to help grassroots sport.
Eddie’s grandmother, Linda Burrows, credits the Kent club’s under-11 disability team, run by Dan Ambler, with giving her grandson new confidence.
She said: “When Eddie first went along he was hiding behind his mum, but now he is straight out of the car and playing with the other kids.
“It’s amazing what it has done for his confidence. He believes in himself now.
“He’s always smiling when he’s playing — even if he doesn’t always get a chance to touch the ball.
“It’s really nice seeing Eddie do normal things that he wasn’t comfortable doing just a few months ago.
“Dan and the team have made a world of difference. Eddie was never going to be able to play in a traditional team, but this club has made sure he doesn’t miss out.”
Figures show the cost-of-living crisis is forcing kids away from football, with 94 per cent of grassroots clubs voicing concern about the impact of soaring prices on their membership, according to the charity Sported.
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Clubs across the country have told The Sun how parents are struggling to afford to keep their children playing sports as the cost of everyday essentials continues to spiral.
England stars John Stones, Raheem Sterling, Jarrod Bowen and Eric Dier, who all started out in local football, have already lent their support to our campaign.
Ashford United ace Dan, 37, set up the disability team when he realised his autistic son Jack could not keep up when playing alongside mainstream kids.
He said: “I saw him being left out, and I wanted to do something about it. I thought other parents might see their children in the same position so I asked around — and within a few days I had 17 other parents whose kids wanted to play.
“It’s been amazing seeing the kids coming out of their shells. They’ve formed close friendships and the confidence they’ve developed is incredible.
“Eddie went from being very shy to doing the “worm” celebration in front of everyone at our last match.
“It’s incredible. It doesn’t matter if you have the skills of Ronaldo or can’t kick a ball — all are welcome.”
Kids who play on one of the two Ashford under-11 teams have a mix of disabilities, from neurodivergent conditions to physical disabilities such as a missing limb.
Ashford Town United has been heavily involved in keeping the team going and it provides a lot of support to Dan, a podiatrist by day, to get everything right.
But he has to raise around £800 to keep things afloat, on top of the £25-a-month payment from parents.
Thanks to huge interest, he is opening up three new teams for this season, bringing the total to six, all of which will need sponsorship.
Dan added: “I never turn anyone away.
“They are welcome whatever disability they have, and I don’t want that to change.
“It’s going to be quite a challenge, but I’m always up for it and we are used to overcoming difficulties. Hopefully, we’ll make it all work.”
Today, England footballers Harry Maguire and Phil Foden back our campaign to keep kids playing.
Two teams also reveal how they are dedicated to making sure all children have access to the sport amid the cost-of-living crisis.
Phil Foden
GRASSROOTS football is where it began for all of us. Whether you play in the Premier League, for your country or on your local park, we all started out playing for our grassroot teams.
For those of us lucky enough, it goes on to become our jobs. But the grassroots game is for everyone, and it’s important that we continue to support it so that boys and girls across the country can benefit from everything it has to offer.
For me, playing for my local team gave me the chance to make new friends and learn new skills.
I loved football then as much as I love football now.
Knowing you could go and train with your mates during the week and play at the weekend was such an important part of growing up.
It brings happiness for so many people across the country and it’s so important nothing gets in the way of everyone having that opportunity.
Harry Maguire
I SPENT my childhood with a football at my feet whenever I had the chance.
My first memory is having a kickabout with my brother.
Playing in youth teams for Brunsmeer Athletic, then later Barnsley and Sheffield United, gave me a chance to make football into a career, not just a passion.
Kids these days should have that same option, no matter what else is going on around them.
There is nothing better than playing with a team, winning and learning how to lose.
It also gives them an outlet and a chance to learn discipline, teamwork and friendship with people they might otherwise not have met.
I loved my time in grassroots football. Those memories never leave you.
Beacons FC, Kidbrooke, South East London
BEACONS FC has recently launched a boot swap shop to help families keep their kids in footie footwear without breaking the bank.
Club secretary Adam Gillham said: “They are a necessary item parents have to shell out for each season but they can be so expensive – especially when kids outgrow them so quickly.
“At the swap shop, they can donate a pair of boots their child has outgrown and swap them for a pair that fits. Anything we can do to help them save a few quid helps.”
The club started in Kidbrooke, South East London, in 2001, and now fields eight teams of boys aged seven to 17.
To play for the season, each player pays a one-off £50 registration fee and £245 in subs which parents are able to pay off in monthly instalments.
Praising the Sun’s Footie For All drive, Adam said: “We are well aware of the impact of the cost of living on our players’ families in the past year, so any campaign like this will certainly help the grass- roots game.
“We deliberately kept the fees as low as we could this season, for that reason.
“We have not increased them since before the pandemic because we know times are hard for so many families – even though we have seen our own costs going up year on year. Football should be for all – not just for those who can afford it.
“As a club, we do everything we can to help mums and dads who may be struggling financially.
“If a parent comes to us and says they cannot afford the subs any longer, then of course we would not stop their child playing.
“Each child deserves a chance to play football – no matter their ability or background. It’s the people’s game.
“I would like to see more money filter down from the Premier League to real grassroots football – youth football in parks and recreation grounds around the UK – where it is truly needed.”
Blackburn Eagles FC, Lancs
BLACKBURN Eagles has seen more kids struggling to afford to play – but it never turns anyone away.
The Lancashire academy’s vice chairman Chris Hughes says prices haven’t been raised in around eight years, in a bid to maintain access for all children.
Kids as young as two take part in the Little Eagles under-six mini-kicker sessions, which cost £15 a month for weekly training.
As the kids progress through to teams, parents pay £25 a month for a one-weekend game, and £30 a month if kids play Saturdays and Sundays every weekend.
The club’s team keeps on growing and now has 650 players on its books, making it the biggest in the area.
Chris, 39, said: “We don’t turn anyone away. We just take on more children, create new groups, create new training sessions and create new teams.”
The Eagles has a hardship fund to help out families who start to struggle with the costs of subs and kits.
The club has also recently taken teams out of the Junior Premier League due to the cost of the regular four-hour round trips to play against other teams across the North West.
Chris said: “There have been conversations about the cost of living and cost of petrol.
"Stuff is getting expensive, so we’ve brought some of our teams back a little bit more local to help with that.”
To give even more kids the opportunity to play, Blackburn Eagles is currently looking to link up with local schools and charities to potentially start providing free after-school sessions in poorer communities and deprived areas.
And Chris believes every child should have the opportunity to play football, due to its benefits for physical and mental wellbeing.
He added: “It gives kids a good focus and we find that football can be a massive part of certain children’s lives.
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“That might be the one thing they’ll look forward to all week, and sometimes it gets them out of situations where they don’t want to be at home all the time.”
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