Marjon hosts Futsal Coach Education

Released: 13.01.23

The Devon County Football Association, in partnership with Plymouth Marjon University, ran an Induction to Futsal workshop for local coaches to learn the fundamental skills of the game. Futsal, similar to five-a-side football, is a football-based game which is mainly played indoors and, on a court, smaller than a football pitch.

The session, led by former England Futsal player Ian Parkes, and the FA’s current futsal lead coach, shared knowledge and experience through both practical and theory, using observation and analysis in game-based activities to showcase technical and tactical aspects in game situations.

The career progression sessions will be useful for the coaches to use what they have learnt to develop their players and train towards the upcoming 2023 FA Futsal Pokémon Youth Cup.

Following this session coaches are invited to attend a workshop on 14 January 2023 at the Marjon Sport and Health Centre to support their teams in putting their new skills to practice. 

Coaches will be supported by Marjon lecturers and FA mentors Chris Smietanka, Jon Dawe, and Lee Ballard. The session will allow the coaches to develop their teams and put their learning to practice in a supportive environment.

Dr Phil Brown, Senior Lecturer in Sport Development at Plymouth Marjon University, said:

“This is a fantastic opportunity for our students to work alongside Devon County FA and put their applied skills into practice supporting the delivery of this activity. Dan Dixon has been fantastic in supporting students through the planning and delivery phases, ensuring knowledge exchange between the academic and applied aspects of the students' Practical Football Development module.  This is another great example of the University’s partnership with Devon County FA”.

Dan Wallace, BA Football Coaching and Development student at Marjon, added

"The module has been brilliant for understanding all the aspects involved in planning practical projects. From establishing the rationale, aims and objectives, to marketing, registration, social media and drafting of press releases. It's been eye-opening and a valuable experience to develop our skills and professional network. The experience is excellent for applied learning and transferring the knowledge and skills we’ve learnt from the classroom into a real-world project”.

Dan Dixon of the Devon County Football Association commented: "as a former Marjon student I'm delighted to be back supporting students and working with the lecturers. It's been great to support the future football workforce by developing students’ applied practice, at the same time as supporting existing coaches to improve their futsal knowledge".

The events are a joint project led by the Devon County Football Association and Marjon second-year students studying the BA Football Coaching and Development programme.

If you are interested in studying a sport programme at Marjon, find out more here.

Read more about the Marjon Sport and Health Centre here.