I’m Ehsan Popal the founder of KANO Australia. To be working with children every day and driving a passion for football, technical development, children, society, and culture I’m very grateful.
This is my first write-up, so please bear with me…
I wanted to share a story about my journey growing up and my school environment. Most often we attribute development success to the community clubs for me it was my school.
Now let’s fast forward and get to it.
I’ve played football my whole life. My highest achievement was getting selected for the Sutherland Sharks in the Men’s NSW National Premier League 1 competition. We finished 3rd in first grade and was overall club champions. I was pretty excited to be a part of this team as a 23-year-old. The alumni of the team include the current Sydney FC men’s assistant coach, A-league footballers, and NSL players who played in the competition. My 2nd achievement was trialing for a team in England called Hayes and Yeading. They played in the Conference League (5th division) and it was a surreal feeling. They also used the same field where the movie “Bend it like Beckham” was filmed. Football in Europe is beyond imagination.
Let's rewind now.
My first year of playing for a team on Saturday mornings was at age 10. Arriving in Australia at age 5, my parents were not aware of structured community sports. It was only at age 10 that I was enrolled and become a part of a community club. The club was Granville Waratah’s and we played in division 5. Yep, that’s right Under Division 5. We played on the big field and it was 11 a side. In most games, we played with 9 kids on the pitch as some were sick or away. But I loved it. I dribbled. I scored. And scored. And scored. Being division 5 football, it was very informal and not so serious. So I expressed myself. The following year we moved and I played for North Rocks and was selected for their division 1 team. The competition was substantially better. Faster and more physically. And the coaches, and parents were more vocal. But I continued to dribble and score.
At the end of the year, I was selected for the district team. I was selected amongst the best 14 players in the Hills and Granville district. Pretty awesome feeling, hey?
How did this happen so quickly despite me only playing for a team at age 10 when most kids started at age 6?
Let’s rewind again.
I lived up in a 2 small bed-room apartment up to the age of 12. My parents worked extremely hard to ensure they could set up a life for our family. So most of their time was at work.
My father played professional football (before having to quit and feeling the war to move to Australia) and had always had a ball at our feet. We didn’t need to be in a team to enjoy football. We had a dad.
We had a culture set up at home.
An environment that adored football.
So I played, played, and played. Alongside my brother, I spent countless hours playing in the communal garden of our unit. We played heaps of 1v1 games, dribbling games, and also make our own matches (even though it was 1v1). The 1998 World Cup was my favorite! We also used our tiny unit as a pitch. Most often the hallway was the pitch.
So how did a school play a role in my development?
Here it is.
My school was filled with many kids like me. Families who migrated to Australia. Parents who worked tirelessly to seize the opportunity. Kids who didn’t participate in community sports.
We all had a lot in common. And that’s what community is about. People with common beliefs, experiences, and interests.
However, something that my school provided was extremely powerful.
An environment for football.
The majority of the school loved football. And there were games and games of football all over the school. There weren’t any goalposts. There were football games everywhere.
This is where I truly feel I excelled.
This was my community club.
Parramatta North Public School.
When doing the maths I played about 200 minutes of football each week. 40 minutes per day. 5 days per week. In a year it’s about 8,000 hours of football (maybe a bit less on rainy days).
My point is I played about 90 minutes extra football than the child at a community who trained for an hour a week and played 50 minutes of matches. With the soccer season running for 18 weeks, I was also ahead because I played for 38–40 weeks a year at school.
Of course, there would be kids who played community football and also played at school, and they also developed, but i was never disadvantaged playing only at school.
Let’s forward again.
Since KANO began in 2011 we’ve learned a great deal about football, culture, development parenting, and more.
Our theory and philosophy aren’t rocket science. It’s a simple but powerful message. There’s a saying “simplicity is sophistication in disguise”. And that’s what KANO is.
My experience and treasured memories of playing football in school have been the brainchild of our after-school programs.
My parents were busy. They worked hard. They had little time. But they wanted the best for me. And they provided that.
Our school programs send a powerful message that kids excel at football through their school. And our goal is for the message to spill into lunchtimes and for all kids to get inspired to play football. And play beautiful football!
The majority of the schools we provide programs are the highest performing in their regions for PSSA. It hasn’t overnight. These schools have been with us for 7–10 years.
I’ve seen hundreds and hundreds of kids develop. V-turns and sole drags. Dribbling and 1v1. So much technique developed.
And I truly believe that KANO has played a role.
I hope with much gratitude this story gives you confidence as a parent.