Winning Isn't the Same as Developing

Our Tom

Of course we want children to enjoy winning. Winning builds belief, rewards hard work and creates great memories.

But winning and developing aren't the same thing.

If a team wins every week at local level, or even nationally, it probably means they're one of the strongest teams around for their age. That's a fantastic achievement. However, if young players never experience adversity, they're not being prepared for the reality of adult football, where they'll face older, stronger and more experienced opponents who have already overcome setbacks.

For some players, losing for the first time can come as a huge shock. If they've never had to deal with disappointment before, rebuilding their confidence can become much harder than it needed to be.

One of the biggest mistakes I see in grassroots football is coaches making every decision for their players.

You'll hear things like:

"Pass!"

"Shoot!"

"Run!"

The coach is trying to help the team win, but the player isn't learning why those decisions are the right ones. They're simply following instructions.

I've also seen teams built around the biggest and fastest children. It can bring success in the short term, but as adolescence levels the playing field, those players can find themselves short of the decision-making and problem-solving skills that the game demands.

One of our own coaches, Tom, is a great example of why development should always come before results. As a young player in our group sessions, he wasn't the strongest technically. Rather than allowing him to rely on what he was already good at (running and tackling), we constantly encouraged him to improve his technical skills. At times, that meant he didn't look as effective as some of the other players. But over the years, those improvements added up. Today, he's a really well rounded package as a player and is now passing those lessons on as one of our coaches.

After a match, I'd much rather hear parents and coaches ask questions like:

• How did you find it?

• Where did you struggle?

• What did you do well?

• What could you do better next time?

Those conversations encourage children to reflect and improve, rather than simply focusing on the final score.

I believe winning and losing both have an important place in a young player's development.

If you never win, it's difficult to build belief in your progress.

But if you never lose, it's easy to believe there's nothing left to improve.

The best environment for young players is one where they're encouraged to compete, challenged to improve and supported regardless of the result. In the long run, that's what develops better footballers—and more resilient young people.