Tidswell Talk: Schools are helping South Holland sport

By Andrew Tidswell

It’s so good to see the amount of opportunities available for young children in sport these days.

Thinking back to when I was at school – and it wasn’t that long ago – the chances for playing sports and getting into sports were very limited.

If you weren’t into football, rugby or athletics I can’t remember many more sports being visited and undertaken at school.

Was this because of a lack of qualified personnel? Or lack of funding? Or simply sports being well down on the pecking order on subjects to learn?

In reality, sport is the reason some children go to school – and even though there wasn’t as wide a variety of sports on offer when I was at school, I’d be a prime example of this.

I would go to school extra excited if I knew I had a football match at the end of the school day.

Maths, English and science are very, very important for young children to learn and I will always encourage children to do well in school with their work.

However, I also think sports and physical education are massive for development too.

Am I biased because my industry is as a sportsman? Possibly, but for a lot of children sport is their release, it’s where they are confident and can come out of themselves.

It helps the social aspects, such as working in a team and working to targets with other people.

All of these attributes I have mentioned are life skills, which are relied on in everyday life, so sometimes the actual techniques and skills become a bonus.

As I visit many schools in the local area, it’s plain to see how children love their sports – and it’s not just the conventional ones that always spring to mind.

A wide range of activities such as mini tennis, tri golf and volleyball are all very well attended clubs – even though they are not what some people consider a first choice sport.

It’s also fantastic to see that these are supported and I know from the schools I work with that the sporting side is very well supported from those in charge.

Not just in schools, but the grassroots from all sports has also improved within our local community.

I have already commented and spoken of the great work I have seen with the football and rugby youth teams at Spalding United and Spalding RFC, as well as the success the first teams of both respected clubs have had.

But to add to the list of impressive clubs are Spalding Town Cricket Club. Rob Ambrose has put together a great team which is very competitive and they have had some fantastic results this summer.

On the other side, the club’s youth teams have also been impressing with some excellent displays from the under-9 squad upwards.

I should also mention Spalding Hockey Club, who have also had a fantastic year with increasing numbers of youths attending and showing interest.

They also hold many events for schools to attend again, encouraging kids to get involved.

I have mentioned both clubs from the Spalding area – but I could also name others who are also showing and doing fantastic things for children across our county. The cricket clubs at Moulton Harrox and Market Deeping also spring to mind, as does Long Sutton Hockey Club.

So again, let’s encourage our kids to practice and encourage them to try new things.