How to advise a friend?

[siva]

You do have to ask what the bigger clubs (such as the one JKO's friend's son attends) are doing with all those subscriptions and payments of £200for strip, etc, - how many of those kids with 'contracts' from such clubs ever go on to be offered a place with the adult team?

Clubs would love to have home grown players in their teams but the players have to be good enough. In fact there is a trend for clubs to invest more and more in youth as transfer fees get higher and higher.

It's a high risk high reward business for talented young players and unfortunately they don't all develop at the same rate so you can't decide as a club which ones to keep and which ones to let go. Also a lot of youngsters lose interest when they get distracted as they grow up.

Unless you are a gifted academic I think I'd recommend sticking at it if a top club is interested. It's a long shot but if you packed it in and ended up with a mundane job then you'd always regret not giving it a shot.

[jta]

get distracted as they grow up.

I bet you mean that they start to notice girls.

[mind the gap]

I bet you mean that they start to notice girls.

Well, there is that!

Our local rugby club had a very sparse training attendance with the 15 year olds team because - wait for it - too many of them were hung over on Saturday mornings.

@Siva : no, it is not worth hanging on in there with a youth team at the expense of your schooling. You won 't always be good at football and a broken leg could end your career. Education,on the other hand, can never be snatched away from you,

[leaseholdanswers]

Another good reason to favour the American system where grades have to be achieved to participate in sports. The NCAA do a lot to eliminate any fixing and silly degrees that were rife in the 70's, and it produces world class athletes with a qualification.

So if you are RG 111 and your knee bent at 90 degrees to the upper leg, sideways, on Sunday night , you have a future.


http://bleacherreport.com/articles/1...is-knee-injury scroll down

[mind the gap]

Unless the grades which must be achieved are related to the student's baseline intelligence and aptitude, that is patently a very unfair system!

[midlandslandlord]

In this age of equality why does the mother automatically get the house the kids and the cash, while the husband is condemned to penury and an HMO, just because she has thrown a moody.

I'm only going to make 2 comments.

1 - Equality does not exist in family law. It is still down to the decision of the mother whether the father is identified on the Birth Certificate if they are not already married.

I'd blame all sorts of things on that.

2 - I wonder if the criminal activity in mum fraudulently subletting an HA house will come in to it. People go to prison for that. At least it may keep things more amicable.

ML

[mind the gap]

Either way as Brb says the CSA is not going to be interested in how much the non- resident parent is shelling out for football training. They are in the business of making sure the parent who has custody has a fair share of the other parent's income. Once you start allowing that other parent to start submitting expenses claims, that way madness lies.

....Yes m'lud, I am indeed claiming £670 for meals at McDonalds. That's all the buggers will eat. Oh, and that video game I had to buy him so he wasn't bored at my house all weekend cost me £50. Daylight robbery.

[leaseholdanswers]

Unless the grades which must be achieved are related to the student's baseline intelligence and aptitude, that is patently a very unfair system!

If they have talent they are helped along with tuition - the "nerds" get college credit for tutoring them, besides to understand the average playbook in football you can't just be talented. There is still sport and activities for the "knock around"and compulsory activity. Wayne Rooney might however been lost to the game.... He might have succeeded in baseball or MLS

Many teams still have "walk on" and open try outs. A guy played in a play off game this weekend but was selling cars two weeks ago and got called up.

Overall it probably helps many more than it might like any system disadvantage. In JKO's situation it might even have helped him.

[mind the gap]

If they have talent they are helped along with tuition - the "nerds" get college credit for tutoring them, besides to understand the average playbook in football you can't just be talented. There is still sport and activities for the "knock around"and compulsory activity. Wayne Rooney might however been lost to the game.... He might have succeeded in baseball or MLS

Many teams still have "walk on" and open try outs. A guy played in a play off game this weekend but was selling cars two weeks ago and got called up.

Overall it probably helps many more than it might like any system disadvantage. In JKO's situation it might even have helped him.

Riveting, but you have missed my point, I'm afraid.

Do all students have to achieve the SAME academic standard in order to get into sports teams, or are the tests differentiated according to CAT scores or similar indicators of potential/innate ability or prior performance?

[islandgirl]

Our local rugby club had a very sparse training attendance with the 15 year olds team because - wait for it - too many of them were hung over on Saturday mornings.

That is the case in one of the teams but it isn't the lads who are hung over but the coaches: the lads turn up on time and get on with it!