Futsal Institute shaping Australia ’ s young football talent
WITH PATRICK STAVELEY
Australian football is something that ’ s become scarily neglected in our own country when it comes to nurturing young talent so that they can eventually have what it takes to potentially succeed overseas or for the national team .
Since the FFA Centre of Excellence within the Australian Institute of Sport ( AIS ) was dissolved , we ’ ve seen football sadly decline in the country . An organisation that ’ s looking to improve our outgoing talent is Prospect ’ s very own Futsal Institute .
Led by a dedicated team of director of coaching Steve Luburic and institute manager Bec Luburic , the institute aims to improve young footballers so that they ’ ll be ready to make the next step in their footballing career .
“ We combine both futsal with football ,” Bec Luburic says .
“ Our point of difference with football in
WHAT IS FUTSAL ?
Futsal is a type of soccer that is played indoors on a much smaller court than soccer which is normally played as an outdoor game on large fields . The smaller field size ensures a game of futsal is fast-paced and more intense , with more opportunity for goal scoring . The number of players is reduced to five-a-side and matches are played out over 20 minutes each half . A futsal ball is a size below a normal soccer ball , while it also has 30 per cent less bounce .
Australia is combining the technical and skill side with futsal in with traditional football coaching which doesn ’ t happen a lot in this country but it ’ s massive in Europe for success of players .”
“ Steve has a very European style of coaching . We believe that it ’ s the missing element in Australian footballers .”
Steve Luburic is one of the most experienced Futsal minds in Australia , having played and coached at Club , State and National levels . He established the Parramatta Blues Futsal club 24 years ago where he now coaches the men ’ s side , that currently hold titles at Club and State level .
Steven holds several coaching licenses including National and International Coaching Accreditation .
Bec states that a skill as simple as the ability to use both feet is something that ’ s dwindled in Australian footballers .
“ Three of our youth players have moved to Croatia a few months ago . The coaching staff said they weren ’ t used to seeing players come out of Australia so confident with both feet . The players are in a process of getting contracts with clubs and they ’ re training at high level clubs at the moment .”
The institute offers training from Monday to Thursday nights for all levels and ages . For players that are serious about taking their game to the next level – there is a Sunday youth elite program for youth players aged 12-20 which follows a higher intensity system
Coach Steve Luburic pictured with up and coming futsal talent at the Prospect Institute .
and has previously seen rep and NPL players come out of after developing that skill aspect to their game .
The institute also offers a ninja obstacle course called Ninja 101 which helps follow the establishment ’ s mantra of ‘ play , train and conquer ’.
“ We see this as an imperative tool for kids and the youth with all the mental health aspects , it really develops selfconfidence . It ’ s fantastic for building resilience goal-setting and working to overcome challenges .”
“ Come in , give it a go . We are open seven days a week and we are here for the community . We ’ re all about people living active healthy lifestyles and having good wellbeing ,” Luburic adds .
Whalan parkrun promoting community spirit and good health
It ’ s important to stay active these days as often as possible and an organisation that ’ s aimed to look out for local communities in doing so is Parkrun .
Simon Maxwell , one of the volunteers on the team at Whalan Reserve parkrun says it is a fantastic health initiative .
“ We are the youngest and smallest of the parkruns in the Blacktown City Council area ( the Ponds , Rooty Hill and Rouse Hill are the others ),” he says .
“ We only average 20-30 participants a week ( but ) most of our participants are visitors ( which is great ) but it ’ s the locals that we want ( more of ). They are the people who need an activity like parkrun , for physical and mental health .”
Parkrun is only continuing to grow around the world as well as Australia .
“ More than four million people have done a parkrun . There are more than 2000 parkruns around the world and more than 400 in Australia , and it ’ s completely free !” Maxwell said .
The Whalan Reserve parkrun is a free , fun and friendly weekly 5k community event . You can take part whether you decide to walk , run or jog or just volunteer and encourage people .
It ’ s held every Saturday at 8:00am and takes place at Whalan Reserve , Catlin Close , Whalan . The only thing you need to do before going to the parkrun is to register online once and bring a copy of
Fitness first - join the free Whalan Reserve parkrun , the youngest and smallest group in Blacktown City .
the barcode which gets scanned on the day - so you can get a time for how long it takes to complete the parkrun .
The community is a social bunch and enjoy having a coffee at the Leaf Café Emerton Village after the parkrun . If
Whalan is just a little too far , other nearby parkruns are held at Werrington Lakes Reserve , Rooty Hill , Nepean River , Penrith Lakes and The Ponds .
28 ISSUE 15 // JUNE 2022 theindependentmagazine . com . au BLACKTOWN CITY INDEPENDENT