@paulaspros@Pagonis98 As an Auckland FC fan (and Kingz/ Knights in the late 90s/early 2000s), this makes me happy. Adelaide FC is doing it right in a league that is struggling. All clubs should have a stadium similar to yours.
Every coach has seen it, the player who used to love football.
The one who arrived early, smiled through every mistake, and left muddy and proud.
➟ Then, one day, they stop smiling. 👇
They still turn up, but something’s gone.
You see it in the way they pass, safe now, not free.
You see it in how they glance at you after every mistake, checking if they’re still enough.
We say “they’ve lost confidence,” but often it’s the environment that took it.
➟ Too many corrections.
➟ Too much noise.
➟ Too little space to breathe and belong.
Somewhere along the way, we confused helping with controlling.
◍ We built structures that reward compliance, not curiosity.
◍ We told them what to do so often they forgot how to think.
✲ Every child starts with creativity.
⚠️ Coaching either protects it or conditions it out.
So when you spot that player losing love, don’t simply fix their technique.
⇢ Fix their joy.
⇢ Remind them what football felt like before it became performance.
❌ You don’t rebuild confidence by instruction.
👍 You rebuild it through safety.
😎 And once they feel safe again, they’ll play free again.
That’s the job.
I used to be such an international football hater. The Champions League is the pinnacle of the sport, the level is higher in the club game, international breaks suck, blah blah blah — all the classics.
But the more money gets pumped into club football, and the more unfair and lopsided it becomes, the more I’ve grown to love and appreciate the international game. It feels like the last “pure” version of football.
No bullshit billionaire owners, no state owned clubs, no hoarding the best teenagers on the planet, just the players from your country and that’s it.
Maybe it’s just as because I’m older and getting more pessimistic lol, but I really enjoy and admire international football more than I ever have.
@thenichecache@pineynz Olé boys - McCowatt, Staminic, Garbett - are starting to dominate and win major respect from their team and supporters. Bodes well for the World Cup.
@ByPhillipRollo Brilliant move from him leading up to the World Cup. With Paulsen putting the heat on with superb form the last 2 seasons, Crocombe hasn't put a foot wrong and deserves his spot as All Whites #1
@andrewvoerman@AucklandCity_FC @FIFACWC So stoked for young Jeremy Foo (2007 born). I coached him at Manurewa/ SAE Academy. What an incredible experience for the young lad!
@ALeaguesCrowds As an Auckland/Port (and Kingz/Knights/Bloc 5 before that), this was heartbreaking. But full credit to Victory. They came over and got the job done. Impressive.
Amazing season for us in the AK tho. Loved it!