Why two Illawarra dads are getting Grasshopper Soccer started in the region

Illawarra football dads and self confessed football fanatics De Santis and Young decided to kick-off the existing grassroots soccer program in the Illawarra, after noticing a growing need for it in the area.

Kids as young as two and up to 12 can sign up to Grasshopper Soccer, which teaches young aspiring football stars the basics of playing soccer in a fun, social and non-competitive environment.

De Santis said that the whole reason for the program was a simple one.

"The whole intent of the program is really just to get kids out there and active," he said.

"It's about getting the kids outside in the fresh air and running around. I suppose trying to instill that in the kids as far as being active and using soccer as a mechanism to do that.

"They'll learn a few skills and it's certainly focused on soccer. But it's also getting them in a group environment, playing with other kids and building up a little bit of confidence."

Meanwhile Young said that the kids had already had an effect on both him and his long-time friend De Santis. He added that the recent FIFA Women's World Cup was one of the reasons for the growing appetite to play football within the junior ranks.

"I think working with the kids, it's almost like their energy is contagious," he said.

"Obviously it's a franchise and a business for us but I think Damien feels the same, we take a tremendous amount of joy just engaging with the kids.

"We got over to Perth and met the franchise owner and ran a number of sessions and whilst we were over there just came away feeling really confident about the Grasshopper Soccer product.

"Both of us have daughters and I have never seen my eight year old more excited about football and we are very much a football household."

Young added that Grasshopper Soccer was a program unlike any other.

"There's a lot of football academies out there. They're all founded on players that are already quite skilled and taking their game to the next level," he explained.

"We're the opposite of that. We're all about inclusion. We're about fun and we're not competitive. You don't need to have any baseline skill to come and have a kick with us.

"We're there to teach the game, but mainly we're there to build confidence and skills and the ability to engage with your peers."

The outdoor program will run across two locations at Figtree High School on Saturday mornings and Morley Park at Warilla every Sunday morning from Feburary.

Terms will run for eight weeks, four times a year. To sign-up head to www.grasshoppersoccer.com.au/southcoast.