Here at Ditton Minors FC, we're proud to offer our Pathways Scheme which aims to develop our players into the next generation of football professionals. We appreciate that our players grow up and want to learn new skills, improve their ability and develop vital life skills whilst also contributing to their CVs. Skills include leadership, courage and additional qualities t hat will help them later on in life.
We offer our players (subject to eligibility criteria) the chance to join one of our Pathways Scheme on a funded basis, or on a self-funded basis. These schemes are designed to benefit the individual whilst also providing value to the Club.
Currently we offer the following pathways;
You can read more pathway specific information by choosing a pathway on the left-hand side menu.
We are extremely proud of our Pathways Scheme and our Refereeing pathway was the first to launch many years ago.
The Referee Pathway is designed to allow our players (and external volunteers on a self-funded basis) that reach our Under 14s to become an FA Qualified Referee and officiate on behalf of the Club at our teams fixtures and tournaments.
Each year, the Club funds up to 3 applicants to join the Refereeing pathway.
Referees earn a match fee for each game they officiate.
Minimum Age Group: Under 14s
Cost: £135 (Funded)
Minimum Commitment: 2 Years
Personal Development: Leadership, Teamworking
Applications open in October of each year and once your application is successful and has been confirmed by the Club you will be contacted via email. An application form will be available at the bottom of this page when open.
The pathway takes 2 years to fully complete. You will book on to the course with Kent FA and once qualified - you will be assigned at least 1 Ditton Minors FC team to officiate for the upcoming season. At the end of your first season officiating with us, the Club will reimburse the first 50% of the course fee. At the end of the second season officiating with us, we will reimburse the outstanding 50% to you. All the while, you are earning a match fee for each game and tournament.
The Course
The course currently consists of:
You are then expected to complete 5 games, of which 2 should be mentored. The Club will support you in completing these fixtures.
For more information, please see Kent FA's website: https://www.kentfa.com/referees/get-into-refereeing
Applications are currently closed.
We are always looking for the next Jurgen Klopp, Jose Mourinho or Alex Ferguson. We recognise that many of our players want to actively participate in coaching and we have many opportunities available throughout the Club. Coaching can be a daunting task when on your own, however, by participating in our Coaching Pathway and volunteering with Ditton Minors FC - we can make that a lot more manageable and stress-free!
Our Coaching Pathway is designed to help our players (and volunteers) to gain FA coaching accreditations whilst volunteering with the Club, honing their skills to really benefit the players! Starting with the EE Playmaker qualification and subsequently the Level 1 (Introduction to Coaching Football) qualification, you can be a fully qualified coach by the age of 16!
Minimum Age: 14 (EE Playmaker), 16 (Level 1 (Introduction to Coaching Football) & Level 2)
Cost: Free (EE Playmaker), £160 (Level 1), TBC (Level 2) - Funded
Minimum Commitment: 2 Years (Level 1 upwards)
Personal Development: Leadership, Team-working, Planning, Time-management
Thanks to our partnership with our coaching providers, we are pleased to be able to offer a number of opportunities to applicants for our Coaching Pathway. For our younger applicants, they will have the opportunity to start their coaching careers by completing the EE Playmaker course and when they reach the age of 16 the Level 1 Coaching course, combined with the practical coaching of our Tiny & Mini Minors sessions on a Saturday morning where they will receive hands-on guidance from our experienced professional coaching provider (UEFA B licensed and Kent FA Gold Service Provider). Once they've mastered the art of taking the sessions, they can then move on to take an U7 team forward from those sessions into the league!
Older applicants to the Coaching Pathway will have the opportunity to work with another of our coaches within the Club (or they can choose to support the Tiny & Mini Minors sessions).
Applications for the Coaching Pathway are open all year round.
We are delighted to support the younger generation who are completing their Duke of Edinburgh award. Those that are looking to take on a more active role in football can join the Coaching Pathway and the Club is able to sign off your practical coaching as volunteering and help you to complete the requirements.
If you aren't interested in becoming a coach, you can still be a helper at one of our team's training sessions and carry out various activities in a non-coaching manner in order to complete the required volunteering requirements.
Speak to our Vice-Chairman for more information on our Duke of Edinburgh options.
Our Partners
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