MiniRoos (U6 – U11 ) Football at Lane Cove FC
Football for Under 6 to Under 11 age-groups is played in the non-competition “MiniRoos” format as endorsed by Football Australia. Boys and girls are welcome, and generally play in mixed teams in the younger age-groups.
Games
Games are played in a competitive spirit, however the emphasis is on enjoyment, involvement and skills development. Whilst of course the scores are recorded, there is no formal competition run by our association (NSFA). Games in the youngest Under 6 age-group are a ‘4 versus 4’ format with heavily modified rules and played on mini-sized pitches, so the children have plenty of time on the ball with fewer distractions and stopages. As the age-groups increase, the team sizes increase and additional rules are introduced. Full sized pitches and full football rules are introduced from the Under 12 age-groups onwards.
Full regulations can be found in the NSFA MiniRoos regulations
Age requirements
Children are eligible to play in the Under 6 age-group if they are turning 6 in the year of competition. Younger players (i.e. those turning 5 early in the year) are welcome so long as they exhibit sufficient maturity and are safely able to play with older children.
Refer to important Grading and Selections information below for pre-season activities.
Training
Training begins once the children are selected into teams, and coaches are appointed and provided with their kit. This is generally by the middle of March. Official games usually begin in early April and run through till the end of August.
Coaching and Team Management
Parent participation with coaching and managing the teams is essential in the younger age-groups. Lane Cove FC provides detailed coaches and managers manuals. Coaches are strongly encouraged to attend a “Grass-roots” coaching course where you will be taught the essential coaching skills. If you commit to coaching a team, the club will pay for this course which is generally run early in the season.
During the season, additional coaching assistance can be made available if required. More experienced coaches are encouraged to attend Junior Licence courses to provide our players with higher quality coaching as their own skills develop.
Equipment
The Club provides playing shirts (which must be returned), and all training equipment for the teams. Players need to purchase shorts, socks, shinpads and boots. The socks and shorts can be purchased online during registration (shorts $22.00 & socks $11.00). You can then collect them at Blackman Park. Other football equipment is available from any sports store, but we would recommend visiting Rebel Sports. Make sure you tell them at the checkout that you are part of Lane Cove FC!
If you have any questions regarding MiniRoos, please don’t hesitate to contact our admin team at miniroos@lcfc.com.au.
Grading and Selections for MiniRoos
Trials for all MiniRoos age groups generally occur in mid-late February.
Trials for U6 and U7 age groups are simply about turning up and having fun. To assist team selections, we welcome friendship requests so that the children are with others who they are familiar with.
For the U8-U11 age groups, we use the trial sessions to align players of similar ability. Experience has shown that grading of players provides the best opportunity to feel comfortable in their team and improve their play. Although the grading process isn’t perfect and we don’t take it too seriously, we have found that it has proven more successful than not.
It is very important that all U8-U11 players attend ALL trials so that we can make sure they are in the right teams.