• This section outlines the proposed plan of activity for the Coaching Committee for 2006. The plan of activity is based on the aims of the Committee described earlier. Going forward it would be the intention of the Committee to provide the Executive Committee with a quarterly update on progress. At the end of each year an overall review would be completed. The results of the review along with a plan for next year will be submitted to the Executive Committee for consideration and approval.

A coaching manual will be prepared for each age group (5 – 8, 9 – 12, 13 – 16, 17 – 18). The manual will contain:

• Introduction (message from Coaching Committee)
• Program of Sessions
• Cross references to drill materials provided by Soccer Clinics
• Disk containing Soccer Clinics material
• Weekly Session Planner and Guideline
• Sources of further help and support

The manual will be provided to one nominated coach on each team in July to facilitate early planning for the coming season. It is proposed that we will adopt a phased approach to the development of the manual. In year 1 we will cover the 5-8 and 9-12 age groups. The higher age groups will be covered after year 1.

When a new manager/coach joins the club, he will be assigned a “Buddy”. The role of the Buddy will be to do some hand holding particularly in the early weeks. The Buddy can advise the newcomer on:

• Administration tasks including player registration
• Key contact points within the club
• Existence of Code of Conduct
• Existence of club website
• Organisation of coaching sessions
• Organisation of friendlies

The Buddy could run a couple of training sessions for the newcomer just to show how it is done. The Buddy would then be a contact point for the newcomer going forward. It would be expected that the need for Buddy support would fall away completely after the first couple of months.
The Committee feel that it would be unfair to request existing coaches/managers to perform the Buddy role while also looking after their own team. It is recommended that coaches/managers with good experience and reputation who intend taking a break or who have already left the club be approached to take on the Buddy role. Such individuals would be identified by the Club Secretary and notified to the Coaching Committee who would arrange a session with these individuals to explain the role and match up with newcomers.

The club’s Code of Conduct recommends that all managers should attain at least the status of Kick Start 1 Coaching Qualification. The Executive Committee fully understand that it is not practical or advisable to try to “force” managers to attain this qualification. The approach will be to arrange such course and encourage managers to attend with the primary focus being on new managers and mangers of younger teams. The Coaching Committee see the implementation of this policy as being one of its key responsibilities. The Coaching Committee has already been in contact with the FAI and it is planned to run a Kick Start 1 coaching course solely for Castleknock Celtic provided we can get 16 club members to attend. It is proposed that this course will run in September. The cost is €45 per head with Fingal County Council covering half the cost.

The Committee have arranged a soccer camp to be run by Manchester United coaches for 80 kids from the 10-12 April. The kids will be drawn from the under 8 – 11 teams. The camp will be held in Castleknock College.  The fees are €93.95 per child. MU and Castleknock College costs will be covered by the fees paid by the kids. Arrangements are at an advanced stage. Organising such an event will promote the club at a local level. The soccer camp may become an annual event depending on our experience of MU and feedback from parents and children.

The Committee propose that the club run a soccer camp from 21-25 August. The camp would take place over a week and be run by experienced/qualified coaches from within the club. The club should aim for 50 kids to attend at a cost of €100 per child (the FAI are currently advertising their camps at a fee of €96 with a €10 discount if a child registers before 1/6).
 Each child would receive a “Goodie Bag” including a ball and a tee shirt. A ratio of I coach per 10 kids is recommended. Achieving this ratio would require 25 coaches on a rota basis with 5 attending per day. Each coach would only need to take one day off work. The soccer camp will be held in Castleknock College subject to agreement with college and payment of fee (as an indication €1000 was paid to college for MU soccer camp). A well run camp would help promote the club in the community. A potential sponsor has already indicated that they would be interested in sponsoring the event. Having experienced/qualified coaches gives the club an advantage over other soccer camps where the standard of coaching can vary widely. It is also a World Cup Year when the level of interest should be high.

The survey indicated that club coaches had a preference for delivery of talks and practical sessions by visiting qualified coaches. In response the Coaching Committee will organise 4 – 5 evening sessions per year where an expert guest speaker will be asked along to do a talk and practical demonstration on our all weather pitch? We have already run one such event with Phil Wymer attending in February which was well received. The next talk has been arranged with the MU coaches for the 11th April. A talk by representatives from Ipswich Town (winners of the FA Youths Cup in 2005) is being planned for October 2006. We are also looking at getting in a speaker on Speed Agility and Quickness (SAQ) training techniques.

A proposal was recently received through Paul Slevin. The Dutch Touch Coaching Academy will organise a clinic based on the fundamentals used within their academy. The coaching clinic is aimed at coaches who are coaching U8 to U12. The clinic will cover the Coerver method for developing moves and footwork and other techniques. The instructors are two Dutch coaches. It is proposed to run the clinic from Friday 9th June (7-9), through Saturday 10th June (9-4) and finish on Sunday (9-1). The clinic will be held on our pitches in Porterstown and the costs will be fully covered by Paul Slevin. The Committee’s involvement will be to simply notify and promote the clinic to coaches within the club.

A member of the Coaching Committee have attended a coaching session for teachers run by the FAI through their BUNTAS Scheme. Castleknock Celtic have assured the school that further support will be provided. This support is dependent on the club have a sufficiently large pool of qualified coaches. Arising out of the FAI KicK Start Course the club should be in a healthy position to provide the school with the level of support needed in November. In provided this level of support the coaches can promote the club to young kids and build stronger links and relationships with the schools.

It is planned to re-launch the Castleknock Celtic website and work is already underway on this. As part of the re-launch it is planned to include a special section on coaching. This section will include:

• Coaching Event Schedule
• Details of Events
• Details on FAI coaching courses
• Links to interesting coaching websites
• Contacts for further information