We Had Fun Playing Badminton & Goalball Last Weekend

Badminton is one of the favourite sports of our members and we had not played it since early March so it was great to get the rackets and shuttlecocks out again. After the usual warm up - a game of tag - we started the badminton with some skills practice. In this case it was a game of "keepy uppy" - trying to keep the shuttlecock in the air as long as possible,  This practice helped with controlling the shuttlecock and hitting it cleanly with the racket. The children then paired off and began passing to each other across the hall 

After a quick drinks break it was in to some match play - either singles or doubles matches across the nets. Some good running, great shots and a few long rallies were seen. Most of all the kids all have fun playing,
Our last sport was some games of Goalball - using a bench at each end of the hall as a goal the kids sat on mats and had to pass the ball to team mates to progress up the pitch. It is a game of accurate passing and throwing if you are to succeed. We made the game more realistic for a few of our members by making them wear blindfolds - Goalball is normally played by players who are blind or visually impaired. The ball has a small bell inside it so that you can locate it by the sound so playing in a quiet environment is important but at the same time communication between those still able to see with those who can not has to be focused and clear. It was certainly a challenging game, not so much from a physical aspect but more in terms of thinking about your team and communicating with each other effectively. For those blindfolded it also brought home how much we rely on our senses.

Star of the Week Callum pictured with our head coach Alan

At the end of the session the coaches awarded to Star of the Week award to young Callum - our star goal keeper. A very well done Callum!

Join us again next Saturday for our last session before half term. If the weather stays good we will hopefully get outside and possibly even on to the field. Don't forget the sun cream, hats and drinks (or water bottle) if it is a hot day.

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