Volunteer with us
Most of our coaches started on the sideline, just being there for the children. That's all it takes to start.
You don't need to have played, to have coached, or to have a child in the team. Come along one night and see.
Could you help?
There are children waiting for a place in every age group. More grown-ups helping means more teams, and more children playing.
Our 2020 and 2021 teams are ready to start playing matches as soon as they have coaches. In the older age groups, even teams with coaches have children waiting.
Your first night
Come along to a training night. That's it.
- Stand with the coaches, cheer the children on, and help where you can: bibs, balls, a hand in a game.
- Bring a friend or another parent if you like. It's easier with someone you know.
- There's no plan to learn and no promise to come back. If you enjoyed it, come again.
All you need is to be willing to give a hand, and to be a good person. Mums, dads, grandparents, neighbours, and people whose own children have long since grown up: everyone is welcome.
Already at training with your child? You don't need the form: just tell the coach you'd like to help. Otherwise, see when and where we train and use the form below.
Ways to help
Pick whatever suits you, and swap or stop whenever you like. Most take an hour or two, now and then.
On the sideline
Be there at training: cheer the children on, help with the bibs and balls, and join in the games. A coach is always in charge.
An hour, any training night
Match day helper
Keep the time and the score on match day, so the coaches can watch the children. The Match day app on your phone does most of it.
About an hour, any match you can make
Fundraising and sponsors
Join a team's fundraising, help with a club event like a quiz night, or know a local business that might sponsor kit or a trip. What sponsors make possible.
One event at a time
Trips and events
Help organise away trips and days out, so the coaches can concentrate on the children. A weekend like Blackpool takes a lot of planning.
One trip at a time
Community projects
Help the club give back with the projects we'd like to run: tidying the grounds at a local hospice, or filling shoeboxes for children in need at Christmas.
A morning, now and then
Young volunteers
Aged 16 to 18? Help with a younger team and learn to lead. More below.
An hour a week
Want to try one? Say so on the form below, or just tell your child's coach.
The best bit. The look on a child's face when something they've practised all week comes off in a match, and they look straight over to you.
Coaching, when you're ready
Some of our helpers go on to coach, and some never do. Both are just as welcome.
Think back to a coach you had when you were eight. There's a good chance you still remember them, because they were there, week after week, and they cared. For a lot of children, their coach is the first adult outside the family who gives up their own time just to help them.
It's good for you too. A crisp Saturday morning, the noise of the children arriving, and the whole team celebrating when someone scores. If your own children have grown up and stopped playing, and you miss it, this is your way back in.
- Help run a game with the coach beside you, then a small group of your own.
- Take on a team when it's right for you, with our coaches beside you until you're ready.
- Support whenever you need it. The other coaches, the new coach guide, sessions planned for you in the coaches' toolkit, and one place to ask anything.
What we offer our coaches
- We make sure everyone is vetted and trained, starting with your AccessNI check, arranged by the club.
- Irish FA safeguarding training, arranged and paid for by the club.
- An Irish FA coaching certificate, paid for by the club.
- Up to six weeks alongside our coaches before you run anything on your own.
- Every session planned for you if you want it, from the coaches' toolkit.
- An official club zip-up jacket and raincoat.
- One place to go with any question: the contact form.
The time it takes
About an hour of training a week, and about an hour on match day, including 15 minutes before and 10 minutes after.
Young volunteers, 16 to 18
Still playing, or maybe you've fallen out of love with playing but still love the game? Come and help one of our younger teams.
To an eight-year-old, a teenager who can really strike a ball is a hero. You'll always help alongside an adult coach, learn how to lead a group, and give something back.
Doing your Duke of Edinburgh's Award? Sports leadership can count towards the volunteering section, so check with your DofE leader. It's also good experience to talk about in a college, university or job application.
I'd like to help
It takes about a minute, and it means we can match you to the right team straight away.
Sent
Thanks. Someone from the academy will be in touch soon.