Situation
During the internship, the student tried to attend as many activities of the Foundation as possible. The Foundation has a wide range of programs and activities.

Since the student was not directly involved in a program and therefore did not have any fixed activities in her schedule, she wanted to challenge herself to get to know every program offered by the Foundation, in order to establish a connection with the programs and the employees.

Task

Tasks

OnTour

·       Social media o   OnTour FC Zuidlaren o   OnTour VV Gomos o   OnTour ACV Assen ·       Coördination ·       Impact monitoring ·       Helping where needed ·       Preparation of the materials

Trainen als een Prof (TAEP)

·       Coördination ·       Social media ·       Assistent ·       Responsible for time management

Trainen in de Wijk / Meer & Beter Bewegen Tour

·       Coördination ·       Development session ·       Leading training ·       Handing out ‘Word Groter ballen’

G-Voetbaldag

·       Information en coördination Alfa-studenten ·       Welcoming teams ·       Coördination referees ·       Coördination coaches and player first team ·       Contact person volunteers on the day itself

Talentendag FC Groningen Meiden

·       Coördination ·       Time management

FC Groningen Fitbus

·       Design ·       Development materials Fitbus ·       Contact and proposition future Fitbus partners ·       Coördination o   Creation of the planning o   Contact with Nynke Hoekstra o   Guidance for students o   Active on matchdays

Scholentour

·       Monitoring data ·       Questions for during the session ·       Development of the program

Extra activities

·       Session with youth at the Hanze ·       Opening with new interns

 

Action

Before the internship started, the student participated in the organisation of one of the football camps from the program Trainen als een Prof (TAEP). During this week, the student got the opportunity to already connect with a lot of trainers and employees of the Foundation and gain experience with the way of working of FC Groningen. This helped when the student was part of the organisation of the FC Groningen G-Football tournament at the end of September because she already had experience with the way of working. These events are great experiences to connect with the trainers and the different programs of the Foundation. During the TAEP camp in the summer, the student was mainly responsible for the coordination. Because it was her first time of being active during such camps, she learned a lot of new skills and new terms in the way of football terms. The student is already a hockey trainer for more than 10 years, so at day 2 the head of the coordination saw that the student was feeling comfortable and give her some more meaningful tasks. The student was helping other certified trainers, which gave her the opportunity to learn a lot.

In addition to coordinating activities within TAEP, the student was also responsible for managing the social media accounts multiple times. The student was first asked to do this around October, and since the student had not done this before, a meeting was scheduled first. During this meeting, the student was given an explanation of what was expected on the social media channels and points that the student had to follow. This gave the student structure and a certain basis to start with. The first day the student was responsible for social media was during the autumn holiday at FC Zuidlaren. The student knew this club from her childhood, which made it a fun experience to come back. The student tried to take as many shots as possible and asked the trainers what else she could pay attention to. This made the footage much better, and good actions could also be captured on camera. Some things were partially staged in collaboration with the trainers, which created very nice situations. After the day, the student received positive reactions to the images that were posted online, as well as feedback that she could film from an even lower perspective at certain times. The student took this with her towards the times when she was responsible for social media at other locations, such as VV Gomos and ACV Assen. The student was responsible for two locations on the same days, so she had to drive back and forth in between. In consultation with the coordination of both locations, it was decided at which moment she had to be where, because the locations had different schedules. This way, the student could also make her own suggestions and make it a nice whole. In addition, it was fun for the student to see how different it can be at two locations, with a completely different atmosphere and number of children. The student also received very positive feedback from these days, and a few colleagues even asked for some images. The student thinks that this is because she focused on sports photography for her Honours project, and she could take this experience with her on these days. The student has been asked to do the social media for TAEP again in the coming period.

The student has also helped several times with the Trainen in de Wijk program and the Meer & Beter Bewegen Tour. Because the student has less experience in football, she mainly took on a coordinating role. In addition, the student noticed that many girls tend to gravitate towards a female trainer, so she tried to play a role in this and give the girls a fun day. One of the most fun things during these activities is handing out the Word Groter Ballen. The student really enjoyed the reactions of the children receiving a ball.

At the beginning of the internship, the student was asked if she wanted to help with the organization of the G-Soccer day, which the student found very exciting. During the G-Soccer day, the student was responsible for providing information and coordinating Alfa-College students who were helping with the supervision that day. Additionally, the student was responsible for welcoming teams, coordinating referees and players. This was the student's first experience working with and guiding first-team players. It was interesting to see how some players interacted more easily with disabled people than others. The student was a multitasker during the day and was asked to do multiple things. When the student had nothing to do, she asked what she could do because she felt useless otherwise. The student noticed that the experiences gained during summer camps helped her a lot during this day. She was familiar with banners, flags and how everything should be positioned, which also resulted in positive feedback from the day's coordinators.

During the internship intake, the student had indicated that she would like to help with activities for girls since this was the area she had applied for. This led to the student being present at the FC Groningen Girls' Talent day. The student took on the role of coordination and prepared lunch with the other student. The student quickly realized that there was a completely different atmosphere at these activities than at the activities of the Foundation. This was partly due to the coaches but also due to the pressure on the participants during these days. The student helped with field placement, rotating groups, and welcoming participants. Everything was less well prepared than at the activities of the Foundation, which caused some chaos at the reception that the student had not noticed or experienced before. The student thinks this could have been avoided easily by just preparing some general activities a bit more to create a structure.

In addition to these activities, the student had a major role in the organisation and coordination of the Fitbus. The Fitbus is a bus that is used as an activation during match days, where supporters are challenged to participate in certain win actions through games. The student worked closely with Nynke Hoekstra from partnerships for this. The student doesn't remember exactly how it happened, but soon the student took the initiative to take this on as an additional assignment. The student's responsibilities were making the schedule, running the Fitbus for the first time, coordinating with other students. In addition, the student was given the freedom to come up with a new plan for the Fitbus to make the materials more suitable for the situation and target audience. This proposal was approved, and the materials are currently being developed by the partners of FC Groningen. The fact that the student was given the freedom to come up with ideas is something the student is very happy about. This way, the student could use her creativity and knowledge to set up something fun. The student is very curious about the further development of the Fitbus in the coming period.

Result

The above is only a list of the larger activities and tasks that the student has been involved in. All these activities have resulted in the student staying in close contact with the more practice-oriented people, and thus gaining a feeling for the programs. The student wanted to avoid losing the connection with the programs and having to form an opinion and plan about programs that she had never seen before. Additionally, this way the student has been able to form a picture and help with the programs.

Reflection

Looking back at all the activities, the student gained a lot of new experiences over the past year and got to witness how football activities are organized. Many of the tasks the student has done have been mainly on the coordinating side. This wasn't intentional, but it does fit with the student's personal development within their coaching career, where she also developed in the coordinating field. At first, the student was still quite unsure about their own football knowledge and whether they would be of added value. This is something the student recognizes in herself at times, that she is sometimes too insecure in moments where it's not necessary. By gaining a lot of experience and hours within this field this year, a large part of the insecurity has been taken away. Additionally, the student is now quite certain that they find the organizing and coordinating side of sports even more enjoyable than being active on the field with a group. When coordinating, you get the chance to build a bond with every child and every person, especially with longer camps. This is something the student has remembered well and experienced as extremely positive.

One of the program leaders gave the student feedback that she has not been active in the SA and OldStars programs, and the student definitely agrees. The student is also very disappointed about this. She wanted to participate and come take a look, but when it was scheduled, it didn't happen, and due to busyness, the student forgot to reschedule. Right after receiving feedback from Nick Berends, the student scheduled new moments with the program leader to participate in those programs. Besides that, the student has been quite successful in positioning herself within the FC Groningen's activities, and attending the two missing programs will be a great addition in the coming period.