New football league kicks off for kids.
Monday, January 21 2008
A five-a-side football league kicks off this Saturday (26th January) at the Queens Centre in Galashiels.
The Midnight League programme, sponsored by the Bank of Scotland, is part of a national drive by the 32 Scottish local authorities and the Scottish Football Association. It is supported by the local police as a move to reduce anti-social behaviour among local youths.
Indoor sessions will take place at the Queens Centre on Saturdays from 7pm-9pm over the next 10 weeks. All sessions are free of charge and split into two sections, S1/S2 and S3/S4.
The programme has been co-ordinated by Scottish Borders Council’s SFA Development Officers and coaches who will be leading the sessions.
SBC’s Senior Football Development Officer, Dougie Anderson, is urging local boys and girls to sign up for the programme: "The midnight league programme is not only a fun and healthy alternative to hanging around town centres on a Saturday night, it gives youngsters the opportunity to get know local coaches and perhaps get involved in more of our programmes.
“The sessions are designed to be fun and the qualifiers could even go onto compete in the national finals at the Heart of Midlothian Youth Academy.”
The programme was launched in the Borders last year and attracted more than 80 youngsters from across the region. This year’s programme will also include an X-box FIFA 2008 competition on a big screen.
A registration evening will be held on the first night, but application forms can also be handed into the Sports Development Unit in Galashiels.
Application forms are available from SBC’s Sports Development Unit, 3 St John Street, Galashiels, and can be downloaded from www.footballdevscotborders.co.uk.
The initiative will also take place at the Gytes Centre in Peebles - details have still to be confirmed
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