I couldn't have wished for any more this morning. Chelsea top of the league. Arsenal defeated at home. The world was a good place to be. Add to that, the joys of an 'Indian summer', and just a short hop up the motorway for the lad's morning match. Life was good.
Only problem was most of his team mates had been out at a 'house party' the night before.

I read a fascinating article recently on an American website. It asked a very simple question, but one that I had not thought of asking. 
Basically, it split young players into two distinct groups. On the one hand you have the child who validates his performance by how many goals he scores, or how many players he beats.

 This is the kind of image that comes to mind when  I think  of 'youth football' and I can't wait for Sunday to see if the boy can help his team win against one of their local rivals. Don't you just love the sight of some grass and a few white poles!!! Put some nets up, add twenty two goal hungry youngsters, an overweight ref in an undersized uniform, and two linesman who couldn't agree the offside rules if you paid them, plus a few excitable parents and you've got everything you need for a good old game of football.

The dreaded day arrives.
First round of the County Cup.
The day when your lad's third division outfit get to face a first division side from the toughest league in the county. There is only one way this is going to go. This isn't the same as the FA Cup. Your son does not play for Barnsley, and he hasn't drawn a game against a bunch of overpaid dilettantes who must have thought the industrial revolution was a heavy metal band from the sixties.

What does your kid get from playing youth football?
It's common knowledge that sports can help kids develop important skills that they can transfer to other parts of life.
Through sport, young football players can understand the importance of being fit, and learn how to behave in a competitive environment.

What is it with Sky tv. Don't they know there's a whole world out there trying to lead a normal life away from the TV. 
Saturday is meant for football, watching football. At a football ground, a proper one, with stands and everything. 
Sunday is for football too. But a different type. Hackney marshes, council pitches, local club pitches.

When you've got a premiership team (Stoke City) using a throw in as their main offensive weapon it does make you realise why English football has struggled on the international stage, and why we rely so heavily on foreign players in the premiership. Take away the foreign players and what are we really left with.

What a lovely day we had today. The sun was out. The pitch was in good nick. The players looked ready. Three points in the bag. Alright so maybe you're just a deluded Stoke City fan. But for us football dad's, the feeling is just the same.
Hope springs eternal. Well, every Sunday morning. Until kick off, that is.

Admit it, every weekend you walk out onto a football pitch feeling just a little like this could be the day it all comes together. This is the day that all the hard work pays dividends. You've got the players, you've done the drills, your boys or girls look in the mood. So what is the best outcome you can hope for?

A boy or girl gets offered a place at an 'academy setup' linked to a aspiring non-league side. Parents are over the moon. Kids are thinking their professional career is only a whisper away. And as all the local youth sides have their best players taken from them to create this new 'uber' academy team, so resentments simmer and jealousy grows daily.

Has anyone had the misfortune to watch the BBC 2 series, supposedly a comedy, titled The Cup. Stereotypical characters, on the nose dialogue, and cliche after cliche about the world of youth football? Having spent weekend after weekend following my son's team, I am yet to come across one moron, let alone a whole team's worth, determined to do one thing, and one thing only - ruin their son's (or daughters) love of football.