KOCHI: What do you do if you take a penalty kick wherein the ball hits the post and comes back only for it to get deflated before you could react again? Can you score by directly throwing the ball into the goal from a throw-in? While everyone associated with football — right from players to coaches to fans — might be aware of the basic football laws like off-side or penalty kick, they may not be familiar with the more intricate and complex ones in the rule book.
In a bid to familiarise youngsters with the laws of the game, city-based academy Scoreline Sports has been giving online lessons to its students on the various rules and regulations of football. There has been a complete stop to all sporting activities, including academy training, due to the coronavirus outbreak and it has prompted Scoreline to think of other ways to keep their students connected to the game. “Besides on-field training, footballers should also be well versed with the rules of the game.
That will make them better professionals. The more aware you are of the game, the more it benefits you. While conducting this course, it also came to our attention that some youngsters are showing interest in becoming referees and match officials which is an encouraging sign. Not everyone ends up becoming a professional footballer, but you can still be involved in the game in other ways. For many youngsters, it has been an eye-opener,” said K Ravindran who is conducting the course.
Ravindran is an All India Football Federation match commissioner, AFC C-License coach and the development manager of Scoreline Sports. “After every class, we post a question for our students on Facebook and the winner is given a prize. We also use videos, images and other creative ways to teach them because it can be a dry topic otherwise. The idea is to help them understand and absorb as much as possible,” said Ravindran.
The week-long course is attended by students between the age of 13 and 18 from across the state. “After attending the class, I am interested in becoming a match official. It has opened up a new avenue for me. There is so much more than just the basic rules. Because of the lockdown, we haven’t been able to train but such classes are a good way to stay connected to the game,” said Sachin T who is one of the students attending the course.