Mexico City
Paul Makinson has successfully delivered his second phase two Premier Skills course in Mexico City. Paul worked alongside Robbie Earl, Danny Edwards and Hayley Turner who all helped deliver the six day course.
Paul stated “Mexico City is one of the nicest places I have ever had the opportunity to visit. The people are very welcoming and the weather was second to none. Throughout the entire course we were blessed with fantastic weather. The level of coaching shown by the participants was very encouraging and I am glad to see that they already have a strong grasp on community work with several of the participants volunteering for community organisations.”
“Working alongside Robbie Earl was a great experience as he has a wealth of knowledge and expertise when it comes to football and coaching. I know that the participants got a lot from the course and to have such a big name join us in Mexico was a fantastic opportunity for them.”
The work that both the Premier League and British Council put into the course should be commended as the facilities were second to none and Paul had high praise for the volunteers and translators making the course run that bit more smoothly.
For more pictures of Pauls trip click here
Malaysia - KL
Our education and awareness officer has returned from Malaysia where he was delivering a phase two premier skills programme to 35 Malaysian coaches. The programme ran for six days where Paul and two other premier league coaches showed the participants how to set up community projects and ran them through the basic principles of the English game.
Paul said “The whole experience was fantastic but if I had to pick one aspect of the trip that stood out from the rest it would have to be the groups enthusiasm to learn, not just how to deliver a fun safe football coaching session but also how to develop community programmes back in their communities. This was great to see as we only have a very limited amount of time with them thus the ownership is now on the participants to go back into their communities and implement what they have learnt.”
“I have never met so many friendly people and people that are so welcoming. The group intermingled with each other extremely well considering many had never seen each other before; this was very pleasing to see. I am sure by just watching the group develop, their will be many new friends made”.
“On a personal note I enjoyed teaching the group both in the classroom and on the field. There were several characters within the group that made teaching them all the more enjoyable. I was not the only premier league coach to mention this. Bob from West Ham also mentioned that this was the best group he has had the pleasure to work with in a premier skills setting”
A huge thank you has to go out Ee-Lyn Tan, Grey Yeoh and Chin Wei that work for the British Council out in KL and looked after our every need. Their efforts didn’t go unnoticed as the participants clubbed together to present them with a small thank you gift. Their hard work throughout the week and what must have been months leading up to the event should be applauded as the programme passed without a single flaw or fault. The attitudes and professionalism shown by the British Council shone through making the experience all the more enjoyable.
Throughout the week we were looked after extremely well and also experienced some of the local delicacies. Some I have to admit were far nicer than others. Ice Kechang and Durian will last long in the memory unfortunately for all the wrong reasons.
I also really enjoyed learning from the other two premier league coaches both in their different delivery methods and coaching techniques. I hope to implement some of these new ideas back in my work within the community.
"My experience in Malaysia is one that will last long in my memory and one that I will cherish for many years to come."
For more pictures of Pauls trip click here