AFC Bournemouth
Katie Scadding and Steph Small are both apprentices at AFC Bournemouth’s Community Sports Trust.
But alongside their duties in the community, which involve running a host of coaching sessions at schools, care homes and disability events throughout the week, they also play in goal for AFC Bournemouth Ladies.
A hectic schedule handled with plenty of enthusiasm, afcbTV decided to follow Katie and Steph for a day to see what it takes to work both on and off the pitch for the Cherries.
The afternoon began with a coaching session at Lilliput Primary School, as both Katie and Steph ran sessions at an after-school club.
Over 70 children participated, with both girls taking charge of individual groups throughout the afternoon and putting on a host of small-sided games.
Following the sessions, it was up to Canford 3G for the girls, as they used their expertise to help coach the AFC Bournemouth under-12 and under-14 goalkeepers ahead of their own session.
A frequent activity for Katie and Steph, both girls helped out in catching and kicking drills for an hour, before the ‘keepers went back to join the rest of their age groups for some match-play.
The final activity of the day saw Katie and Steph partake in their own training session, alongside fellow senior goalkeeper Kate Guthrie and two under-16 shot-stoppers.
The session, which also lasted an hour, entailed a range of drills which worked on reaction time and kicking up field. Both Katie and Steph then mixed in with the remainder of the senior squad for the final half-hour.
With both girls now having spent a distinct period of time working for the Community Sports Trust, alongside playing for AFC Bournemouth Ladies, Steve Cuss has been delighted with their progression.
Speaking to afcbTV, AFC Bournemouth’s Head of Community said: “They've been with us a month now and they're starting to really enjoy different sessions.
"The two of them go into a lot of schools and work alongside some senior coaches, but there's also more educational aspects such as going into care homes.
"When we go into schools, the children are really keen to ask questions about playing for AFC Bournemouth Ladies and it's really good for the football club."
