First Kicks Info (4-7 yrs)
All Saturday game days are played at the A & P Showgrounds, 9.00am – 10.00am.
Address: 58 Station Road, Pukekohe Entry via Gate 7 (park in paddock; once full park on road)
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Please join the “New World Pukekohe Small Whites” Facebook page which is updated regularly throughout the season: https://www.facebook.com/share/g/1GibibUpej/
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CANCELLATIONS
If game day has to be cancelled due to poor weather, that decision will be made by 7:45am on Saturday mornings. There will also be notices placed on this website, our Facebook page & Team Reach groups.
You can also phone the CLUB WET WEATHER LINE: 027 521 4765. A message will be left on the phone by 7.45am on any given raining Saturday.
Please do not leave a message on this phone as it is not checked regularly.
You can also join the Southern Small Whites Facebook page for updates: https://www.facebook.com/groups/514044011987454/about/
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Venue
A&P Showgrounds, Station Road Pukekohe
Kick off time: 9:00am every Saturday. Please have your child at their pod ready to play by 8.55am. Allow 10 mins to park & walk in.
Parking and arrival
- Please park through onto the grass area as per the attached parking map (gate 7). This is the only parking area allotted to us,
- Alternatively you can park out on the road. Please be sure not to impede any gateways as they are all in use and cars will be towed if they are in the way.
- Walk through to the football fields. Please do not walk through the private motorhome area - This is fenced off.
- On the first day we will be handing out t-shirts from under a gazebo. Please come over and pick up your child’s t-shirt. T-shirts will only be given to children who have paid fees or who have a payment plan in place.
- Make your way to your child’s Pod. These are marked with flags on the First Kicks area as seen on the map below.
Set up & Pack Down
Out volunteer coaches set up and pack down the fields every Saturday morning. However, it would be great to see parents helping out with pack down at the end of the session. Many of our volunteers are also players and often need to race off to make their game.
Games and Skills
- Once your child has arrived at their Pod, they will be placed on a field ready to play a 3v3 or 4v4 game
- Half the children on the field will wear bibs and the other half will have no bib
- While the coaches are welcoming children and placing them on fields, parents will be asked to oversee one field of children (6 or 8 players) to make sure the game is going along OK, fetching the ball and making sure the children are running in the right direction.
- Once all players have assembled onto fields and are playing 3v3/4v4 games, Coaches will begin taking small groups to learn some skills and drills
- A hooter will sound every 10 minutes. When the hooter sounds, players can grab a quick drink then the teams wearing bibs will move to a different field. They will then begin another 3v3/4v4 game against another opposition.
- Coaches will continue to move around taking small groups away from the football games to join fun skills and drills until the end of the session.
Parent Helpers
- We have a handful of wonderful volunteers who give up their time every Saturday to come along and coach your children.
- Every week we will need parents overseeing our 3v3/4v4 games. You do not need any football knowledge to do this. It is simply ensuring children are playing safely, the ball is always in play and restarting the game after a goal is scored.
- You will also need to supervise the change from one field to another when the hooter sounds. Please come prepared to have your turn at this.
Main Points
- Small sided games – 3v3 is recommended, however we will sometimes play 4v4 depending on field space
- Kick-off is from half-way – attacking team faces their goal and kicks off to one of their players. Once the ball is passed, the opposing team can run forward to defend
- If the ball goes out over the sideline, the ball is kicked in from the sideline (no throw-ins at this age)
- If the ball goes out over the goal line, the goalie will take a goal kick (it doesn’t matter which team kicks it out, there are no corners at this age)
- When the goalie is taking a goal kick, the defending team must retreat behind the halfway line until the pass from the goalie has been touched by a member of the attacking team.
- Players must be on the goal-side of the half-way line to score a goal
- No goal keepers, please encourage the children to stay in the field of play and not stand in the goal.
- The key is to keep the kids playing with few interruptions
More Information
Please refer to the NZ Football Junior Handbook. This can be found here: https://www.nrf.org.nz/juniorfootball
