Why your kid listens to other coaches (but not you)
Ben and Mike tackle one of grassroots football’s biggest false divides: the idea that fun and development can’t coexist. From debates around training more than once a week and mixed-ability teams, to ...
2 Feb 1h 14min
The retreat rule: Is it helping or hurting player development?
In this episode, Ben and Mike welcome back Michael Fox, former Peterborough United academy coach and now head coach at Focusing on Excellence Football Academy, to tackle one of grassroots football’s m...
26 Jan 1h 8min
Why parents need to stop blaming the coach
Ben and Mike reflect on a weekend that sharpened one of the biggest truths in grassroots football: coaches can guide, but parents carry the real responsibility for a child’s development.As training re...
19 Jan 52min
World-renowned skills coach on developing technical players
This week, Ben and Mike are joined by Saul Isaksson Hurst, one of the world’s leading technical coaches and the man behind elite players including Noni Madueke and Antoine Semenyo.Saul breaks down wha...
12 Jan 56min
Cristiano Ronaldo’s former coach on how you can build a top-class athlete
This week, Ben and Mike welcome Mick Clegg, the former Manchester United power development coach who helped transform a young Cristiano Ronaldo into a global icon.Mick pulls back the curtain on the el...
5 Jan 1h
The game our boys learned to play for each other
Ben and Mike reflect on a defining mid-season episode that spans an academy test against Arsenal’s development squad and a local derby to close the year. Against Arsenal, the boys learn what real team...
29 Des 202555min
A smarter way to coach your team
Ben and Mike kick things off by reliving their dramatic derby against the Blues — from a chaotic training session to touchline wobblers, goal-line drama and the boys’ grit in a scrappy 4–3 win.They’re...
22 Des 20251h 17min
Am I doing enough? The question every parent-coach can’t escape
This episode dives into the nagging anxiety every parent-coach secretly carries: Am I actually doing a good job? Should I be doing more? Ben and Mike relive a chaotic comeback win featuring a spectacu...
15 Des 20251h
