Outdoor sports training is permitted again from today for children. It is the first time they will have been able to gather together in clubs since December.
There are restrictions with group sizes limited to pods of 15, including coaches, non-contact being the order of the day and a variety of preparation and behaviour protocols being applied.
The age range being allowed is up to U18 fo now and all indoor facilities, with the exception of accessible toilets, are to remain closed.
Each of the major sports has issued guidance of their own to clubs and organisations under their control with specific technologies and requirements in place at each.
The FAI published an updated Safer Return to Training Protocol last week. The Protocol includes updates on regulations around COVID-19 compliance
FAI Head of Grassroots Ger McDermott said: “The return to training for our under 18 teams and younger next Monday is another step on a return to football for all our players at all levels of the game.
“We thank the football community for their adherence to Government guidelines on COVID-19 to date and this updated Protocol reinforces our commitment to getting all our players back on the pitch in the safest environment possible.”
The IRFU have produced an additional series of webinar supports looking at non-contact games and a graduated return to the sport.
GAA president Larry McCarthy has written to all clubs and Juvenile coaches saying that “This will be a particularly special day for our young people and their supportive coaches in clubs in the 26 Counties who have missed out on so much fun and the opportunity to play our games, and who will now get to follow the return being enjoyed by members in the Six Counties since earlier this month.”
“The opportunity to play was limited by factors outside of our control. But what we can control over the next number of months as we return to training and playing games is the quality of the experience that we can provide our players.”
“In this regard, I would strongly encourage our clubs, coaches, games development officers and those responsible for planning and organising fixtures to ensure everyone benefits from a multitude of playing opportunities. Let us all work towards providing as many games opportunities as possible; including leagues, blitzes and creative festival-type competitions, over a longer season, consider allowing more substitutions – or even unlimited – and provide alternative formats to provide a playing environment that creates the best possible experience for all our young players.”
“Life since March 2020 has taught us many things. It has made us appreciate what we have, including an appreciation of what our games and our clubs and our friends and communities mean to us.”
“From Monday, more clubs get the chance to take the first step into what will ultimately be a post-Covid world.”
“It is a glorious opportunity to continue to bring health and happiness and fun back to young people through our games. Let us all work to ensure that we seize this opportunity.”
It is only part of the story for sport with Indoor sport, in particular, facing a continued battle to ensure that its safety protocols should also allow for a return sooner rather than later.
With the sun shining though, and the evening light stretching to beyond 9 o’clock, as well as the million mark passed in vaccinations over the weekend, it might be worth a stroll past your local parks and pitches tonight, the hear the squeals of delight and see the smiles that getting back to sport will deliver.
The GAA and the FAI are among more than 250+ members of the Sport for Business network of sporting and business organisations working together across a number of key areas.
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