A NEW partnership has emerged on the south coast of England, as former Premier League footballer Steve Guppy has partnered with former Reading F.C scout Matt Beckingham to give aspiring young footballers a chance at being scouted.
Winchester-born Guppy, currently an assistant coach at MLS side Nashville SC, is returning to the south coast of England and is hoping to inspire and educate tournaments on May 28th in Bitterne, and May 29th in Basingstoke alongside Matt Beckingham.
Their partnership in launching their project (known as Playground Football) allows young players to express themselves as footballers in a one-versus-one and a three-versus-three tournament environment with Reading F.C scouts present.
Following the League One club’s recent ownership situation, the club are looking towards the future and are eager to partner with Playground Football by scouting the next generation of players from Guppy and Beckingham’s project.
Beckingham, who strongly advocates against strict training of young footballers, believes it is important for kids to learn through enjoying the sport rather than endless drills and exercises.
It’s important to take the adult interference, the structure and the organisation back. When I think of playground football, I think of my school days where I had fun playing football with my mates. That, to me, is what football is about.
The tournaments — backed by The Football Association with the compulsory introduction of three-versus-three games for under-seven players — offer players the chance to learn from former England and Leicester City winger Steve Guppy, which Beckingham hails as massively important for the young aspiring players.
In terms of kudos, having an ex-Premier League footballer who has been there and done it is absolutely massive. Being a winger with bags of tricks, he has a lot to offer when these tournaments go ahead and I’m excited to get started.
