[Football] Heading Ban For Youngsters

[Sarisbury Seagull]

I don't agree. I watch all of my lads games and there are plenty of headers there.

My personal view is that they should have different balls at that age. Non bouncing futsal type balls possibly. There are also hybrid type balls you can get with a very thin layer of leather glued onto the bladder . They don't last long and when hoofed don't go in a true line, but I use those at home with my youngsters and I think that's the best compromise

How old's your lad out of interest? I watch and coach a lot of kids football and would say it's very rare up to that age. It's mainly elite/academy kids I see so I don't know if that's why? Is it from corners or goal kicks etc they're heading it?

Sorry for the questions, just interested! My youngest lad always wants to practise heading as he just loves doing it, I'm constantly having to discourage it! He's always gutted he never gets the opportunity to do it in matches as it's so rare. My eldest will shy away from heading the ball at any opportunity so I don't need to worry as much there!

 

[Berty23]

A time will come when people look back on heading and discuss how ridiculous it was. Things change in sport and this can be another.

The ball will stay lower and much more skill needed rather just being a brute force centre back. I have a good mate who is an outstanding centre back in national league north and that is basically all he can do well (plus tackle). Comfortably the best in the year season after season. I will be amazed if he doesn’t get brain problems.

How many people walk off a five aside pitch and think “I wish I had done more headers” - it will take time but overtime football will be fine. I love a bullet or diving header and will miss them but then I also loved hitting people on the head with a bouncer growing up and getting helmets was a brilliant change in cricket too.

 

[AmexRuislip]

Pffffft
Wasn't like that in my day, where we used to head medicine balls, hasn't done me any harm

 

[Garry Nelson's Left Foot]

Don't know much about the dementia part, making this a little bit OT, but it is pretty established that footballers have an 8-12x increased risk of developing ALS (or MND I think you might call it over there) so obviously there's some kind of connection between football/football lifestyle and what is happening in the brain.

Headers are perhaps the "obvious" thing to blame but I know there's a lot of other theories as well why football appears to **** with the brain more than with other people. Fertilizers, diet and general consequences of doing high-intensity exercise almost daily are some of the things that has been brought up (when it comes to MND that is, I've not read enough about football + dementia). For example most footballers eat a lot more fish than the average bloke and while that is traditionally seen as healthy, it might not be clever to overdo it with our polluted oceans in mind.

I don't really have any theory I'd put my money on... it seems reasonable that heading hard crosses and sometimes shots might not be 100% optimal for the brain but there could also be other things to it.

I didn't know that about footballers and MND/ALS. Is it only footballers or all sports people?

Do you know if it's only the professionals that the link is true for?

 

[dazzer6666]

So many issues with this.......the debate will run and run because the evidence is still being collated (and will continue to be). It's obvious, though, that heading the ball - even now, with the lighter balls, can cause the conditions so although the true risk isn't clear, there is definitely some risk. This will in turn cause people (parents in particular) to think carefully about whether they play or let their kids even play the game at a point where headers are part of the game. It's only a matter of time before the legal cases start pouring in (as with rugby, NFL etc). I think [MENTION=24865]Berty23[/MENTION] is right - it'll be outlawed in the relatively near future.

 

[Springal]

I didn't know that about footballers and MND/ALS. Is it only footballers or all sports people?

Do you know if it's only the professionals that the link is true for?

Yes the tests were carried out on former professionals only apparently. Specifically the report that the FA have used to make this decision, collab with IFAB

 

[Swansman]

I didn't know that about footballers and MND/ALS. Is it only footballers or all sports people?

Do you know if it's only the professionals that the link is true for?

The largest study about this included 24 000 players from professional and semi-professional teams in Italy between 1960-2000 (or something like that). Was a large difference depending on which region they played in, which is interesting - in some areas there was a 12x increased risk of getting ALS (at a young age, older subjects were not much difference from avg population) and in some just double or so.

Does not seem to be isolated to Italy however. I can think of several footballers around the world who developed it at an early age (Stephen Darby is perhaps the most recent example in England).

 

[Swansman]

A time will come when people look back on heading and discuss how ridiculous it was. Things change in sport and this can be another.

The ball will stay lower and much more skill needed rather just being a brute force centre back. I have a good mate who is an outstanding centre back in national league north and that is basically all he can do well (plus tackle). Comfortably the best in the year season after season. I will be amazed if he doesn’t get brain problems.

How many people walk off a five aside pitch and think “I wish I had done more headers” - it will take time but overtime football will be fine. I love a bullet or diving header and will miss them but then I also loved hitting people on the head with a bouncer growing up and getting helmets was a brilliant change in cricket too.

I struggle to see how the sport can be played without the element of headers... it would be a massive change and make it a completely different sport at pro level. Think it is far more likely that they in due time develop some silly helmet of some kind.

 

[Curious Orange]

Corners will effectively become pointless if there is no real means to either defend or score from them...

 

[dsr-burnley]

Corners will effectively become pointless if there is no real means to either defend or score from them...

I'd have thought with corners, the same sort of cross as now might have a use. As long as you can keep the goalkeeper away, the defenders can't head it clear, so they have to let it drop and have a kick-scramble-ruck to try and hack it clear. Unless they outlaw over head height like in 5-a-side.

 

[gmabel830]

I have a son (about to turn 7) who plays on a competitive club soccer team in the USA and I appreciate the header rules. They are still learning a lot of the basics, and proper use and technique for headers can come later once they are a little more mature. Maybe when he gets to like 10 or 11 it will seem a lot different, but definitely not a need for it this young.

 

[Cheeky Monkey]

Corners will effectively become pointless if there is no real means to either defend or score from them...

Wasn't it Muzza who scored with his cock? Maybe that’s the way forward, although obviously some players will have an unfair advantage.

 

[mejonaNO12 aka riskit]

Doesn't rugby do uncontested scrums up to a certain age?

To me, I see no reason why an 8 year old needs to be heading a football. Get focused on the technical ability of the game and worry about a very easy and simple skill much later on when, 1 people can actually cross the ball better and 2, you have developed some strength.

And this is coming from a current 6ft 5 beanpole striker whose sole contribution to my school teams (when I was easily the tallest) was headers from corners. I WISH at a young age we'd done more training where the ball couldnt go above head height to develop skills more.

That age turned into kick and run basically.

 

[chaileyjem]

Do ya'll think this is a good idea for U12's or children in general? I certainly think so, but also do not want to ever come into effect in the men's game.Has been implemented in the USA for awhile now.

Thoughts?

https://www.bbc.com/sport/football/62208661

I do - but to clarify it’s a limited trial in 22/23 with possible introduction from 23/24 onwards.

 

[Herr Tubthumper]

Wasn't it Muzza who scored with his cock? Maybe that’s the way forward, although obviously some players will have an unfair advantage.

Advantage? I’m more concerned I’ll be a yard offside most of the time.

 

[wellquickwoody]

Give them lighter balls to use. Simple.

Play non contact sport, or no sport, maybe just board games, video games even better, never leave the house again.

 

[Green Cross Code Man]

Advantage? I’m more concerned I’ll be a yard offside most of the time.

Is the penis stipulated as a part of the body which can be held offside?

 

[Tom Hark Preston Park]

I struggle to see how the sport can be played without the element of headers... it would be a massive change and make it a completely different sport at pro level. Think it is far more likely that they in due time develop some silly helmet of some kind.

Maybe a way forward might be an experimental close season tournament with heading outlawed just to assess the impact of the change under semi-competitive conditions? They did a similar sort of experiment in Scotland in the 70s with the offside rule. Competition was called the Dryborough Cup and they drew a line across the whole width of the pitch I think 20 yards out from the goal line and you could only be offside within that area. Doesn't seem to have caught on, mind

 

[Curious Orange]

It is clear from the FA's statement that the trial may not be in every competition, and I haven't heard from the league Junior Orange's team is in as to whether or not they are participating yet.

I don't have a problem with not coaching headers at the level I coach at, and I don't actively encourage it during games, however I do think that the children should be allowed to use their head at their discretion as there is frankly hardly any of it going on at that level anyway - as others have pointed out ducking out of the way of the high balls is the preference of the majority at that age!

 

[Springal]

Dawn Astle says there are already guidelines in place at Premier League clubs limiting ‘high force headers’ in training to 10 a week. She heard of one club where players have raised concerns because this guideline was regularly being broken - players raising to the PFA