Futsal fun in the festive season

Bracing the icy cold weather early on a Sunday morning, players from the Warrior Wolves, together with new players attended a Futsal Fun day in Dundalk,

A session of Futsal, a five-a-side game played indoors, was delivered by coaches from local club Rock Celtic FC as part of an initiative of Down Syndrome Ireland Louth/Meath branch.

The group included Fergus Cosgrove from Walterstown who is a talented footballer and represented Ireland at the Athletics Down Syndrome World Championships in Numburk, Czech Republic last summer.

“In our search for indoor facilities, I contacted Johnny Johnson at Rock Celtic FC. In the conversation Johnny mentioned that this event could be something their club would be interested in. We were blown away by the commitment of the coaches who delivered the session. They were fun, ready to learn and ready to coach,” said Tessa van Heerden, coordinator of the Warrior Wolves.

The lads were delighted to meet the new coaches and thoroughly enjoyed the activities and drills they presented. The unique nature of the event, being offered to players with Down Syndrome made for a level playing field in relation to the additional physical challenges experienced by players with Down syndrome. So much so, that parents drove from Dublin and the North in order for their sons to avail of this opportunity.

Paul Smyth, from the FAI’s Football for All program, lent the professional hand in explaining what Futsal entails and which skills are used during play.

This initiative is part of a goal to create awareness around Futsal for players with Down syndrome, with the hope to deliver these opportunities across Ireland. The benefit of training through the winter is a bonus.

“For us, the power lies in the local collaboration of organizations who came together to host this event. We had Rock Celtic FC, Louth Local Sports Partnership, the FAI and Down syndrome Ireland Louth/Meath branch all contributing and having this kind of support for our players makes them walk tall,” added Sanet Jordaan, coordinator Warrior Wolves.

"Futsal may just be the solution for keeping fit in the winter, and our players and coaches gave it a go," added Tessa van Heerden.

"Although the weather complicated some of our player’s travel arrangements, the rest had a ball!"

Anyone interested to get involve please contact Tessa: tessa.tsenya@gmail.com