Stars Fanzine October 2017 - Half Term Review

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STARSFANZINE - Football Camp Issue - October 2017

Our team
Welcome to
Starsfootball
SIMON WENTWORTH DARYL WILLARD SARPONG BOATENG
Program Director Director of Football Pastoral
Welcome to Starsfootball, the UK football brand
created to provide quality football resources and
guidance for parents and players.
At Starsfootball we organise all things relating
to football and education. Our products range
from full time education in a professional soccer
academy to one week taster visits and football
training camps.
the tools to express his talent and develop as a
player whilst maintaining a strong educational
perspective and pathway.
In essence this dual pronged methodology
produces young men who are either ready for
professional football or ready for university and a
life without professional football. In other words
they will have found their level and be ready to
progress to the next stage of their life with emotional
equilibrium.
Simon is a registered Intermediary with the
English FA (football agent in old money) and
Director of the Starsfootball program.
His experience is centred within the commerical
world with the most recent years having
seen him diversify into the international
education market. He worked at a British
Boarding school as Admissions Director and
has extensive knowledge of the international
education and immigration marketplace.
Daryl has so much experience it is hard to
know where to start:
1. Former Tottenham Youth Coach
2. Former Chelsea Youth Coach
3. Former Assist. Coach to Tony Adams
4. International Sporting Director
5. Assistant Club Mananger
6. Academy Manager
Sarpong is a relatively new addition to
the team but has proven himself to be an
excellent member of the pastoral group. He
always takes the time to listen to the boys
and monitors their well being and emotional
health and has weekly one to ones to ensure
they are thriving and to troubleshoot any
problems..
He enjoys being in and around football and
working with the boys to help them develop
their wider life skills.
If you know him then you will be aware of his
We are a truly global operation with groups from
easy nature and professionalism. He talks
as far afield as New Zealand and Australia having
Simon is a father with his eldest children being
sense and is honest with both the boys and
19 and his youngest a baby. Having lived families expectations. He works hard with He also gets involved in all of the outings
visited recently and students from Bangladesh, We support and manage thse boys whether
Egypt, Nigeria, Brazil, India and Italy to name but they be in boarding schools or in one of our own
through the challenges of UK education and the group and individuals and has a superb and away day matches and training.
a few studying in our own programs.
programs to guide them to the point of stepping
worked in football placement he is ideally reputation in the wider professional game.
forward in life.
positioned to advise and guide families. Contacts galore and a father of 1 too!
Sarpong is the father of a 4 year old boy.
We are experienced in helping young boys transition
into UK football and education and to help Of course we also run holiday football training
TEAM
them develop and find their level and potential. camps and short term programs for people who
want to come and develop their skills in the UK
In recent years we have developed boys that are too. We can cater for groups or individuals please
now plying their trade as fully fledged professional
footballers and getting paid for the privilege! find out more.
drop us an email to info@starsfootball.co.uk to
Our ethos is to create a situation where the player
is provided with the platfrom for success and
there’s no i in
2 /  / 3

Soccer Camp
oct 2017
EIGHT CONTACT SESSIONS
Daryl our fantastic Director of Football
had eight full contact sessions wth the
boy during their week with us ranging
from tactical sessions through training
and recovery. The boys responded so
well to his work with them and he was
able to get a good guage of their current
level and immeidate potential.
PREMIER LEAGUE SCOUT
Daryl brought in Alf a Premier League scout
(the man who discovered Tammy Abraham
who now plays in the Premier League) to
talk to the boys and give them advice and
insight into what they need to do to keep
themselves in contention for full time football
careers. This direct one to one advice
is invaluable and they had a great Q & A.
TRAINING AT MAIDSTONE
STADIUM ON MAIN PITCH
Starsfootball have access to the full academy
facilities at a full time professional
club - this is unique. We are lucky enough
in our partnership with Maidstone
United to be able to use all of the facilities
there. The benefit the boys received
from training on the pitch then watching
the first team play was immense.
TECHNICAL WORK
I never forget how lucky we are to have
Daryl Willard as our Director of Football,
his immense experience from the top level
at Chelsea and Tottenham youth teams
and his international experience blow the
competition away. For the boys it means
they have technical sessions and oversight
with a UEFA PRO coach - ‘Nuff said!.
2 CLASSROOM SESSIONS.
We held two anlaytical sessions with
the boys based on one live non league
match and one TV premier League game
to help them think like a manager and
really examine the tactical side of the
game. The footballing brain is worth
50% of any footballer. We help the
boys to be intelligent rounded players.
RECREATIONAL PLAY
Without fail boys play football because
they love it. We believe it is so important
that this love of the game is not trained
out of them so we include recreational
soccer sessions in all of our programs- this
half term we played beach football using
our jumpers for goalposts, braved the ever
encroaching tide and had a great day!..
Football Camps
that balance
recreation and
high quality
training
Our football camps are designed carefully
to create an environemnt where
the boys can train and focus on their
football development and also let off
steam in their free time.
This October we held a football camp
based at our 60 room ensuite facility in
Hastings, East Sussex.
An hour and a half south of London on
the safe and secure East Sussex English
coast. We benefit from being close to
lots of amenities whilst also having
beaches, cities and Premier League football
clubs on our doorstep.
It is difficult to explain how blessed we feel
to be living in this region and the boys really
got a taste of what is on offer here from
their time with us.
This year we held an 8 day training camp
that included training sessions at Maidstone
United, our professional club partner
with full ‘access all areas’ behind the scenes
privileges and stadium tour.
Inspite of all the activities the boys undertook
in their busy week when asked what
the best bit was they unanimously shouted
‘the football’. These boys are not football
camp novices either and hold strong opinions
on what consititutes ‘good training’.
We were so proud to hear this, it’s great to
be good at our core business:training.
I am assured they loved the other activities
but these boys were here for one thing only
and that was to further their careers and
experiences around football.
We believe in the confidence through experience
method of growth and by training
on a fulltime professional pitch in a 4,000
capacity stadium where they later watched
the first team play on we know they related
to the feel of the pitch, the challenges of
playing on 4g and the feeling of looking up
at the stands around the pitch. By spending
two hours touring Brighton FC asking
questions about the life of a professional
footballer and sitting in a Premier League
changing room (many for the first
time - yes not you Sami!) it normalises the
professional lifestyle in their minds and
breaks down some of the barriers to entry
to the professional footballers life. Working
with a UEFA PRO coach for the week who
has been there, seen it and done it at the
highest level and can answer any questions
and direct their development with direct
player references and anecdotes means
they will not be phased in similar situations
in the future. We loved having them to stay
and look forward to them coming again.
4 /  / 5

Fun
safe FUN
TRAMPOLINING - LIVE FOOTBALL MATCHES - BOWLING - PIZZA NIGHT -
CINEMA - MOVIE NIGHTS - FIFA 18 - ROLLERCOASTERS...
A visit to Nandos
to finish the week
in style
The boys worked so hard this week in their
training we decided to push the boat out on the
final night and took them to the infamous Nandos
at the end of an action packed day. It was
a time for us to thank the boys for their efforts
and behaviour and to reward the committment
and dedication they had shown to their parents
in taking the opportunities they are fortunate
enough to experience in pursuing their football.
PASTORAL CARE AND PERSONAL
DEVELOPMENT ARE AT THE TOP
OF OUR AGENDA.
The modern world is dominated in the
education sector by welfare and safeguarding
procedures. We take this aspect of our
time in charge of the football camp boys
very seriously. We have trained professionals
in charge of the activities and run an age
appropriate policy for all of our activities and
sleeping arrangements.
For this football camp the boys had named
activity leaders and a welcome pack that
explained house rules and gave names of
all the adults they would come into contact
with, we also explained the people they
could talk to if they needed to in confidence.
We also employ waking night security staff
who ensure the building is safe, secure and
patrolled throughout the night. The boys
also had a sleep in adult on their floor they
could contact rapidly if the need arose. That
being said fortunately the week passed
without negative incident and our safety and
back up procedures were not called upon.
I started writing about safeguarding becuase
we also have to put together a risk assessment
for any trip out of the premises or for
any activity the boys might undertake. Each
trip also passed safely without incident I am
pleased to say. I am proud of our team and
that their professionalism allowed the boys
to have a safe secure fun weeks holiday with
us. Starsfootball will always prioritise safety,
health and wellbeing of all its visitors.
So, what led me to thinking about risk
assessments and talking about safeguarding
was the activities list I set out to write which
the boys enjoyed in their week with us. Look
right to see the definitive list but I must confess
I was quite content to sit the visit to Gravity
trampolinig park out on the sidelines whilst the
boys bounced their way round and round the
room on Saturday night!
Afterall ,this is the boys half term holiday as
well as football camp and having studied
hard at school they need the chance to let off
steam - although to be honest a 50 inch TV, a
playstation 4 and a copy of FIFA 18 would have
probably satisified their holiday idleness urges
but we didnt allow that to prevail and packed
them up and out at every opportunity.
We started the week with a trip to Staines to
watch Leatherhead play under the watchful
eye of Daryl who has been brought in as the
Assistant Manager a couple of weeks ago to
help save their season, all good so far and they
are into the first round of the FA Cup this weekend.
The boys watched a league game and got
an introduction to the inane beauty of the ‘Oh
Leather Leather, Leather, Leather, Leather, Leather
Leatherhead’ endless chant. Dirty burgers
at half time and a move to the stands for the
second half followed. We finished the day with
an epic team bowling competition where we
all dusted off our ‘football names’ and shouted
and cheered at the strikes and jeered and hollered
at the gutter balls!
The next highlight for me was the trip to Brighton
where the boys spent an hour or so on the
pier on the rides, then we went to the shopping
mall and finally did the stadium visit to Brighton
FC. The rest of the week was great fun too, no
doubt they will fill you in with their own stories
but a good time was had by all.
••
STAINES VERSUS LEATHERHEAD LEAGUE MATCH.
••
BOWLING AT TUNBRIDGE WELLS - EPIC TEAMS
••
THE DREADED MACDONALDS - DON’T TELL JIM!
•
••
BEACH FOOTBALL AT CAMBER SANDS
••
CINEMA TRIP WITH WENDY TO THOR: RAGNORAK
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MAIDSTONE STADIUM AND FACILITIES TOUR
•
••
MOVIE NIGHT AT THE LODGE
••
LOCAL SHOPPING
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•
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• SUNDAY ROAST AT THE LODGE AND TOTTENHAM V LIVERPOOL ON THE TV
• BRIGHTON PIER - SUSSEX BY THE SEA AND ROLLERCOASTERS
• BRIGHTON SHOPPING CENTRE - RETAIL THERAPY IN SPORTS DIRECT!
• BRIGHTON FC (PREMIER LEAGUE CLUB) ACCESS ALL AREAS STADIUM TOUR
• MAIDSTONE UTD LEAGUE MATCH V CHESTER (92 MINUTE WINNER TO MUFC!)
• GRAVITY TRAMPOLINING PARK - BOING BOING BOING BOING BOING BOING...
• NANDOS VISIT - WHAT? ARE YOU CHICKEN? HOW HOT CAN YOU GO?
• TV: FIFA 18 AND BRIGHTON V SOUTHAMPTON - FOOTBALL AND FOOTBALL:)
6 /  / 7

BOOK NOW
STARSFOOTBALL.CO.UK
FOOTBALL AND EDUCATION
info@starsfootball.co.uk
+44 1424 236 222
PLAY
SHORT TERM COURSES
Starsfootball.co.uk offer football camp weeks
in all school half terms and during the Easter
and Summer holidays at our locations
across the South East of England.
a way of life and to reduce the ‘wow factor’
when encountering new places and people
in the profession. This means when they go
for trials or to district and county try outs
they can concentrate on their game and not
on the environemnt.
PERFORM
For those who sons have visited previously
we hope you have had a positive response
from your sons and will look to rebook the
boys with us. For those that havent used
us before we can happily provide parent
testimonials.
Our intention is to continue the exposure to
high level football for our camp boys and to
take them behind the scenes at professional
clubs to normalise professional football as
Weekly Camp
£875 per week
2 to 12 Week Training Term Time
£835 p/w
They will continue their technical training,
assessment and guidance under Daryl and
we will also get the holiday balance right too.
We will continue working on the mental
side of things with them and help to answer
questions and support them in their burgeoning
development as young men trying to
break into the men’s game..
If the boys have exams or the need for study
periods we can readily accommodate this
too and are happy to replace the lions
share of fun with supervised revision and
homework sessions by trained tutors whilst
maintaining their football training too.
LONG TERM COURSES:
We operate our flagship program for 16 year
olds and over in association with Maidstone
United Football Club. This is the only
program an International player can join in
the UK where they are part of a full time professional
academy whilst studying a Sports
BTEC with A levels where necessary and of
course IELTS.
Some of the main features of this program:
1. Training full time at the stadium
2. College program with UK academy boys
3. Training led by club first team manager
4. Development and pathways run by Daryl
5. FA Youth Cup, Alliance League games
6. University application management.
7. Enusite 24 hour managed accommodation
8. Two match days per week
9. Exposure to professional football lifestyle
10.Strength and conditioning program
11. Full physio support
12. Full MUFC kit
SUCCEED
We are proud to say this is the highest level
academy program available to international
students.
Maidstone FC Per Term (3 per yr)
£10,000
Education remains our priority for the boys
and a robust program allows them to have
options at 18 that will lead to university or for
the lucky few a career in football.
2 Week Managed Trials inc 1to1
£2,500
You might have some questions or be ready
to book now in any event please email either
:
simon@findaboardingschool.com
or
dw@starsfootball.co.uk
STARSFOOTBALL.CO.UK
8 /  / 9

Training Review
On Sunday 22nd we had our first training
session together. I wanted the boys
to know and ask questions about what
we are improving and how we are developing
as young players during training.
We began by working on individual technique
and skill acquisition. This
is fundamental to young players.
We then progressed into 1 vs 1s
and 2 vs 2s with lots of skills and
goals being the main objective.
A football match is full of 1 vs 1s all over
the pitch so this is vital for a young player.
Tuesday was an incredible day for all involved.
We arrived at Maidstone UTD at 10am and
had a tour of the football club, seeing behind
the scenes and getting a glimpse of
‘Fantastic week! What a standard! Full of good players
keen to learn and develop. They all worked so hard and
with focus on getting to the next level. Great group,
good fun, excellent work!’ - Daryl Willard
the first team. Lots of selfies were taken!
We then had 4 hours on the first
team pitch! We all had a great day.
Alf Blandford who has worked for Chelsea
FC as a scout and who found many current
premier league players (Tammy Abraham)
came down to speak to the boys about
what it takes to be a pro footballer. Hardwork
and desire were words that were used
often. He also commented to me afterwards
how polite and respectful the players
were. This is something all scout looks for!
Ibrahim (an U19 Nigerian player) had
a question and answer with the players.
Ibrahim has came from nothing
and now has many opportunities including
trials in Belgium so this was a
very special experience for the boys.
On the Friday, we had another intense
training session where the boys played
mainly small sided games. What we worked
on was ‘what are you doing off the
ball when your team is in possession’. Its
vital that players are scanning and seeing
the picture before they receive the ball.
The main thing that struck me during the
week was the attitude of the boys. All very
down to earth and always wanting to learn.
I am looking forward to seeing the progression
of the boys through the years. Its all
very exciting. The boys were a joy to have
coached and been with during the week
and I hope to see them all soon with District,
county and school matches coming up!
Classroom sessions are so important to
the development of the boys game intelligence
as it allows them to consider what
they would do in different scenarios and
realise there is always more than one option
in every case.
October Camp
For a parent a good training session is such a difficult
thing to quantify. As a UEFA PRO coach I have
been through all levels of FA education and also
have extensive experience in the real world in Premier
League Academies and at National Level. I feel
the key to successful training is enabling boys to
make decisions for themselves. Some of the areas
we covered this week are shown below. I am a real
advocate that all training should be game realistic,
put simply this means that the scenarios boys find
themselves in during matches are prepared for in
training. All trainings include elements of transition.
The key to success is the environment: I like to
create an environment where the players have fun
and are able to express themselves to enable their
learning and development without fear of making
mistakes and of course to score lots of goals.
••
1 V 1’S
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
• BALL MANIPULATION
• FINISHING
• COMBINATION PLAY
• SECTIONAL AND UNIT PLAY
• TEAMWORK
• POSITIONING
• GAME MANAGEMENT
• RECOVERY
• PRO GAME ANALYSIS
• NON LEAGUE MATCH ASSESSMENT
Reality Check
source: No Hunger in Paradise by Michael Calvin
0.012% of players make the Premier League
that’s 180 only
1.5 Million play organised
youth football in the UK
NOBODY SAID
IT WOULD BE
EASY!
Most Won’t Make
it, only 0.5% of
players who enter
academies at
the age of 9 make
it as a pro...
NO RETREAT
NO SURRENDER
10 /  / 11

STARSFANZINE - Football Camp Issue - October 2017