Bracknell School children show off their footie talents.

Monday 12th and Tuesday 13th December saw pupils from local primary and junior schools converge on Bracknell Town's Large's Lane ground to take part in a friendly tournament to test the skills they have learnt as part of the Club's Schools Coaching scheme.

The scheme involves a team of FA qualified coaches taking PE lessons in a total of 21 schools in the Bracknell district. The schools participating on the Monday 12th are Whitgrave Primary, Winkfield Primary, Birch Hill Primary and St Josephs C of E. Tuesday 13th will see Great Hollands Junior, Harley Spring Junior, Sandy Lane Primary and Warfield School take to the pitch, with plans to run a further tournament that will involve schools from the Crowthorne area to take place in the New Year.

Local developer Millgate Homes, which funds the Schools Coaching Scheme will sponsored the event and presented the awards at the end of each day.

Monday's tournament saw Winkfield Primary triumph, with the Player of the Day award presented to Patrick Fitzgerald of St Josephs C of E, while Tuesday saw Sandy Lane Primary take the main prize.

Community Project Co-Ordinator at the club, Gavin Taylor, who leads the team of coaches explains:

"This presented a fantastic opportunity for the children to test the skills they have learnt over the last term. Due to the young age of the children involved and the fact that both boys and girls play equally, there is a strong emphasis on having fun while learning skills.

"However, a bit of friendly competition is the best way to introduce sportsmanship and instil values of fair play - and the atmosphere was great as the kids played in a stadium as opposed to on their school fields. Millgate's ongoing support of this scheme has been fantastic - they also presented the 'Player of the Day' award to the player whose sportsmanship most stood out on each day."

Director and General Manager of sponsor Millgate Homes, David Simpson says:

"As keen sponsors of Bracknell Town FC and of a number of local youth sporting initiatives in the area, it seemed natural for us to support this excellent scheme and help give local kids the chance to build their skills under professional guidance. We particularly like the idea that it doesn't just nurture those with natural talent, but focuses on teaching skills and fair play so that all players have the chance to play to the best of their ability.

"Now in our fourth year of sponsorship, it was great to get the chance to see the children put their skills to the test."

The tournament was such a success that there are plans to run further events in the New Year for schools in the Crowthorne District and potentially also a girl's tournament.

ENDS

For further information please contact
Lorraine Morrissey or Charlotte Rhodes at Mitton Marketing Solutions
tel: 01889 584 808 e-mail: lorraine@mitton.co.uk or charlotte@mitton.co.uk

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