Headed by Micky Engwell, Boreham Wood’s Community Department is currently running strongly, with regular activities going on in the community of Borehamwood.
Increased participation, new tournaments and more sports are all on the agenda for the department. Here, we take a further look at exactly what they are working on at the moment.
Curriculum Coaching
The Community Department are running their Curriculum Coaching at local schools, they currently coach at Kenelworth and Parkside, but are actively looking to expand to more schools in the area.
The Key Stage One and Two students receive first class football training from the club’s UEFA B licensed coaches.
The department are also planning to add multi-sports into the curriculum, with tag rugby, quick cricket, volleyball, hockey, badminton and volleyball amongst a variety of new sports that they would be introducing.
As top sports coaches, they would deliver quality sessions that teach the children the basic, and more advanced techniques of these sports.
Schools Football League
Boreham Wood’s coaching department are also exploring the exciting idea of creating a school’s football league.
The league would feature a variety of schools in the area, all ran by the club’s UEFA B coaches.
There would be weekly fixtures for all of the schools, who would compete to be champions at the end of the year.
If the plans go ahead, then Boreham Wood believe that this would be a unique opportunity for schools and children in the local area, with the teams all managed by Boreham Wood’s professional coaches.
Mencap and Boreham Wood Day Centre
The Mencap and Boreham Wood Day Centre football coaching sessions are one of the most enjoyable parts of the week at Boreham Wood
The sessions run every Friday, from 1-2pm and are coached by Mark McManus and Cameron Mawer.
The numbers of these sessions have increased greatly over the past year, and the club are looking to develop them further. The Community department are hoping to host a disability tournament in the near future.
Boreham Wood Football Club have now been successfully working with Mencap and the Borehamwood Day Centre for over a year.
Both Mencap and the Day Centre are all-inclusive groups in Borehamwood and they run a variety of activities from sport, such as football, to arts and crafts days.
Walking Football
There has also been a large increase of numbers in the Walking Football sessions, to the extent that the group now need two pitches.
The walking football teams train every Tuesday, from 7-8pm and they now have over 25 players.
The teams play in-house matches every week to an extremely high standard, with them now looking to join a walking football league, with weekly matches against other teams.
After Schools Coaching
Boreham Wood are currently running the Wednesday After Schools Football Coaching programme and the numbers have again increased massively. The sessions are for 3-11-year-olds, with three different age categories.
There is the youngest category, which is the little learners, running from 4-4.30pm for 3-5-year-olds, where the sessions focus on improving the youngsters basic football skills.
The other two categories run between 4-5pm, Junior Trainers, is for 6-8-year-olds and looks at the next step in their development, covering a wider range of skills in more depth, with specific passing, shooting and dribbling drills.
The final category is the future stars, for the older children, aged 9-11, these sessions cover more advanced techniques, with match-related drills that improve the player’s understanding of formations and movement.
The quality of the sessions is first class, with children being taught by UEFA B licensed coaches. There are also regular giveaways within the sessions, as children often receive a FREE ticket, and a discounted adult ticket, to Boreham Wood home matches.
These tickets allow the children to watch their favourite Wood stars in action, who they then attempt to emulate during the sessions.
October Half-Term Soccer Courses
The Community Department are also now taking bookings for the October half-term Soccer Courses.
The course run regularly throughout school holidays, on the club’s brand new 5G astro pitch.
Each week is full of fun games, matches and exciting prizes. The courses provide the children with the perfect opportunity to progress their footballing skills.
The courses are perfect for all abilities; the club’s professional coaches teach the participants brand new skills and help them to perfect the more basic techniques of passing, ball control and shooting.
All of the courses are open to both boys and girls aged 4-12, prices begin at £55 for the first child and decrease to £45 if you book an additional participant from the same family.
The courses will take place in the October half-term, starting on Monday, October 23 and finishing on Friday, October 27. Each day runs from 9am-3pm.
From the pitch – Micky Engwell
“The department is increasing all of the time. I have recently been to an AGM and we have looked at updating our curriculum time coaching, so we are able to get into more schools. That will enable us to have more teams involved in the mini-leagues that we are trying to set up.
“The October half-term soccer courses are looking good; the participation is strong so far and that means that we should be running them with large numbers. The after-school coaching is also looking very good and we have again increased numbers
“We are also finalising our plans for non-league day, which is coming up shortly, so in general, the department is working well at the moment.
“There is still a lot of work to do of course, but it is certainly going in the right direction.”
For more information on the Community Department, Click Here
