24 February 2023 , 14:57
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Silent Support weekend is back and whether you are for or against the initiative it's worth stopping to contemplate why the Football Association considers it necessary.
The FA directive asks parents and other spectators at junior matches to refrain from shouting out during grassroots games this weekend, showing their support from the sidelines through applause only.
The thinking behind it is to allow youth players to find their voice and take control of the game rather than being drowned out by messages, instructions and orders from the grown-ups.
And, let's be perfectly blunt here, to attempt to quell the rising abuse we are witnessing on our grassroots playing fields.
After listening to feedback from 3,000 people who took part in the first Silent Support weekend in November, the FA have decided that this time coaches will be allowed to communicate vocally with their players, but parents must keep quiet - other than clapping.
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According to the FA, the benefits on player development of this initiative are clear.
"It helps them to talk between players and support their teammates," said a spokesperson.
"Less outside influence gives them more independence and the chance to practice key skills without instruction.
"It allows the players to identify areas for development and explore new tactics on the pitch, which all supports their own development of critical thinking and their playing journey."
Silent Support weekend polarises the grassroots community like no other topic in recent memory.
Nobody wants to turn football into a sterile, clinical sport with library-like conditions. After all we're talking about enjoying a sport we love, not invigilating a GCSE geography exam.
However, it's all about extremes.
The footballing powers-that-be would not go to the extreme of completely silencing supporters for occasional weekends, if the opposite extreme wasn't becoming increasingly prevalent.
By 'opposite extreme' we mean the alarming and continued rise of sideline incidents, amidst the growing abuse and aggression we are currently witnessing around our pitches.
What do you think of Silent Support weekend? Have your say in the comments
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A recent survey we conducted at Team Grassroots on behaviour and respect at grassroots football returned some worrying results. Of those we surveyed, 73.2 percent indicated they believed behaviour was deteriorating.
You don't need to see those distressing survey results to know something needs to be done.
Most people who have been to junior matches over the past year or so will have their own examples of the unnecessary aggression creeping into our kids' sporting settings.
If we take where we are now as a starting point and the Silent Support initiative at the other end of the barometer, the question is where do we want the needle to settle?
Are we happy where it is now or could it improve?
The sweet spot would surely be a happy medium a lot nearer to the 'silent' than the 'violent' end of the spectrum.
Interestingly, the matches we were at during the previous Silent Support weekend proved to be a surreal but worthwhile reminder of our responsibilities as adults.
We can only speak from our own experiences - and some of our grassroots football WhatsApp groups made interesting reading! - but there were plenty of positives to take from it.
With us mums and dads keeping schtum on the sidelines it was interesting to hear the players themselves being more vocal, communicating, guiding and encouraging each other throughout the game.
Previously they might not have bothered talking much at all for fear their voices would be lost amidst the excitable shouting from the adults. But on the first Silent Support weekend their personalities came to the fore.
It was strange, it was eerie and we're being perfectly honest we wouldn't want cheering, exclamations of joy and expressions of encouragement to be prohibited every week.
However, if nothing else, Silent Support weekend is a useful chance to pause for thought.
Anything that stops abuse of referees, hostility between parents and undue pressure being placed on kids is obviously a good thing.
The Silent Support initiative won't become a mandatory, weekly event. Maybe though, we can all use this one weekend to quietly contemplate how we can show more respect and restraint at every kids' football match.
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