Kick off times Sunday 6 August

Our games are one after the other this Sunday so please note the kick off times - and google maps says to allow 2 1/2 hours from Shepparton

Squad	Kick off
U12	10 am
U13	10 am
U14	11:15 am
U15	12:30 pm
U16	1:55 pm
U18	3:30 pm

Four of our finest

This season its been great to see our junior girls - Fiorina Iaria and Marlie Noonan in our U12s, Meagan Webster in our U13s and Olivia Saron in our U14s - taking on the challenge of NPL - and they have been more than matching their male team mates and opposition.

According to the FFV's Rules, girls under 14 years of age can play in their equivalent age group of male competitions - and once they turn 14 they can continue to play in their equivalent age groups provided they seek FFV approval. So we can look forward to seeing much more of our talented young players over coming seasons.

In the news

Japan call up for Gerald Corbo

With his injury on the mend, Gerald Corbo has been offered a late call up to join the FFV Regional Country Boys squad to tour Japan later this month. Gerald is one of the youngest members of the U13 and U14 squads. Congratulations Gerald.

The Car Journey Home - Dreaded feedback?

With a few away games left this season we thought this might be a timely reminder....
written by Working With Parents in Sport

Highly successful college athletes in the USA were questioned as to what was their worst memory of sport growing up. The No. 1 response was ‘The Car Journey Home.’

Every week up and down the country the car journey home has extended to the walk back to the car, the car journey home and the return to the house.

I hear it every Sunday after a match, where more often than not the dad delivers advice on the way back to the car, they can’t even wait until they get into the car.

Why did you do that there?

Do you remember when you got the ball off the goalie, why didn’t you pass it down the wing?

Why didn’t you mark properly at the corner?

What the child is doing more often than not is looking down or drinking their water; pretending to really listen when actually they probably wish the ground would swallow them up.

The car ride home is when the child just wants to quietly let the game sink in - whether a win or a loss.

Kids know, you know. They know if they've played well or badly. You don't need to tell them. It is their game and it is their invitation for you to be part of it.

It is not easy for a parent but we must remember that the sole reason that our children play sport and will stay involved in sports is fun.

Children want you to be a parent when they finish playing not a second coach. It is very little wonder that many children like their grandparents watching them play because, more often than not, the grandparents are very proud of them, smile at them and then at the end of the game tell them something along the lines of: ‘Well done - I loved watching you play! Did you enjoy it?'

So what can you do?

Perhaps if you still feel the need to talk to your child after a game, you could maybe ask them some questions that allow the child to reflect on the game/session that they have just been involved in.

What were the best bits of the game for you today? What did you think you did well? Was there anything that you were not happy with? What do you think you may need to work on to improve?

This, at least, allows you both to have a conversation, allows the conversation to be led by the child and guided by you. No more than that. Just because your child has let you in with a chat it doesn't mean that you then have to impart all of your knowledge on to them. Or, perhaps, we all should take a step back, be proud of what our children do and simply say to them ‘I loved watching you play’.

To see this original article and for loads of other great content on how to encourage your child in sport, visit: Working with Parents in Sport

AFS Tournament 27-29 Oct

The Australian Football Skool tournament will return to Shepparton this year starting with twilight games on Friday 27 October and concluding Sunday 29 October.

Last year more than 1500 players competed over two action packed days involving over 110 teams across all age groups from all over Victoria, interstate and overseas- and our teams delivered some fantastic results.

The competition includes all junior ages from 4v4 Under 6 age groups through to 11v11 U17s with boys and girls competitions.

Its a great way to end the season. More details will follow in coming weeks so please mark the date in your diary.

Match Reports

Under 12s
Tim Nelson

Much different outcome from last time we played Bulleen when we traveled earlier in the year.

First game I thought was complete 50/50 even though the score line did not show it. We responded well to the individual opponents rather just find a player to mark. We worked on a fair amount of shooting during the week. But it helped or passing more I believe. Some out our switches of play was great to watch.

Second game again very well contested. Marlie did a excellent job in goals! We spent more time in our attacking half which is positive for the kids. First touch was not our strong point so will be something the kids will be working on during training this week

Under 12s
Scott & Zac Hutchison

Brilliant first game from the kids to get a 1-1 all drew, which is probably our best result all year. Liam kept us in the game with brilliant save after brilliant save.

The kids put in a very good defensive performance with managing to keep them to one goal. Even though with the ball we didn't play our best we still managed to tuck away a goal from there mistake in the defensive third.

In the second game, we looked tired from the first game. We lacked intensity, which i could understand because every one put in a 110% effort into the first game. The goal in this game was to try and play out from the back and while doing that get 6 passes together to try and move the ball into our attacking half. We did this numerous times which i was pleased about

Under 13s
Stuart Bethall

The team got a change of pace at training on Wednesday night. While I was involved in a coaches workshop session with David Smith and the other GV Suns coaches, the team got to train under the supervision of a couple of first team players. Friday we worked on a different formation with the hope of increasing both our attacking and defensive options.

After a 5-1 defeat in our last outing against Bulleen, we knew we were up for a tough game. For the first time this season we played with 2 centre forwards and no wingers giving us 2 v 2 right in front of goal. We also packed the midfield with 4 players in a diamond shape, knowing that with hard work up and down the pitch we would have the numerical advantage in both areas.

The first half saw us create by far the best chances and we probably should have taken the lead. Our build up play was decisive and with support in numbers. No goals at half time was a huge improvement on the last meeting. After the break we continued to create while keeping Bulleen to long range shots as they could not break our defensive structure. Our hard work both on and off the ball eventually paid off when we again got in front of goal again, but this time managed to finish. After a tense last 5 minutes, we held out for a superb win.

Under 14s

Sorry no report this week.

Under 15s
Paul Nieuwenhuizen

During the week at training we worked on transitioning quicker from attack(BP) to defence(BPO) and vice versa, which was the game task for the team going into this weekend’s game against Bulleen.

The team entered the game on a high after their performance against the same opponents a fortnight ago.
The first half started but unfortunately the we conceded 3 goals in the first 30 minutes due to a combination of, poor transition, players waiting for the ball to come to them and under hit passes. Some positional changes resulted in team being better organised defencely, but sacrificed our ability to effectively move the ball into our attacking 3^rd.

The second half saw a much-improved performance from the team, with our transition from attack to defence a lot better. Though we managed to restrict Bulleen’s ball movement for most of the second half, which led to us scoring a goal, our concentration still lapsed at critical times allowing them to put pressure on our goal, and score a 4^th.

After the final whistle, the boys were reminded that the difference between the sides was not skill, but the commitment, concentration and confidence shown out on the pitch.

Thanks to Marcus and James for stepping up from the under 14s. Their performances over the last few weeks have been fantastic and highlights the great development they have shown over the last few years.

Under 16s
Tommy Giuliani

Sunday saw our lads lock horns with Bulleen Lions,a top 4 team. With a couple of players dropping back from the 20s this was an exciting test. It was a very feisty encounter, a little bit of chirp from the opposition adding fuel to the fire and I can't complain about our effort but we must concentrate on the quality of our football in these moments and not become distracted

As for the quality of our football I've yet to put my stamp on this group. In the first half there were too many long balls played from the back and we'll be eradicating this during the build-up phase. We need to keep the ball on the ground, be patient and play "minimum risk" into the feet of our midfielders. We were too sloppy in possession in the first half and after scoring first we let them back in through poor decisions and then a couple of unchallenged headers from crossed balls into our box.

The second half was far better. We all agreed as a group that we were the better team, we created many scoring opportunities through better build ups and fast counter-attacking football. Our attackers looked very sharp and Bulleen were saved by the woodwork and some good fortune.

The football was better because the players heeded my message at 1/2 time. To play possesion football "move the ball quickly to move our opponents". We played the ball "early" and had fewer players doing "too much"

Our focus now must be quick 2 touch pass and move football, more wall, passes, less turning in tight spaces with back to goals...essentially good football habits that real footballers and not showboaters have. I look forward to seeing which players are up to the challenge

Under 18s

Sorry no report this week.

Codes of Conduct for everyone

We want GV Suns to be a friendly and welcoming club - and we want everyone to feel comfortable being a part of our family. Our FFV approved codes of conduct for spectators, players, parents, coaches and administrators are available from our website.

Please read the codes to understand your responsibilities and there is further information in the 2017 NPL Rules of Competition .