A FOOTBALL charity that helped develop two of Millwall’s young stars have given a glimpse into how they have built their success from nothing.
Kinetic Foundation have been guiding and inspiring the next generation of talent in London over the last sixteen years – including Millwall Under-21 stars Niino Adom-Malaki and Kamarl Grant.
The programme works closely with the Harris Federation of schools to give youngsters a chance to break into professional football – and give them an academic platform to fall back on if they don’t achieve their dreams.
Co-founder Harry Hudson said he was inspired to launch the idea after seeing how football and community work went hand in hand during his younger years.
He told NewsAtDen: “My background was in football. I wanted to be a professional footballer but wasn’t quite good enough.
“Before going to university, I had a gap year and had as much exposure to different coaching opportunities as I could and I ended up working for Fulham Football Club alongside the Kicks programme. And it was the first interaction I had in the space of community work or social inclusion work and it was eye-opening for me. It was an amazing experience and framed my trajectory quite dramatically. I was able to see first-hand [the effect] the sport can have for young people’s lives.”
Those who join the Kinetic project are placed at a school, have a normal education but are also coached and mentored football and life skills.
Hudson adds: “One of the key mechanisms where Kinetic is slightly different is most charities will either look at government data or recognise a social issue and will then go in and deliver a programme to directly impact an issue. Knife crime is a good example.
“And I’m not saying [those programmes] are not impactful, but what we try to do is embed ourselves in the community first. We build a relationship with young people based on something they want, ie a football opportunity to try and make it pro, and then our interaction with the young people is based on something quite positive from the start.
“Any Kinetic student on our full-time programme is enrolled in their education establishment, the same as any student would be. Typically, they’re in school from about 8.30, mixed with other students in the sixth-form or schools they’re out.
“They’ll normally have their timetable between typically 8.50am and 3.10pm. During that period if they have free time during the school day then we will do individual stuff with them such as a gym sessions or individual one-on-one session. And then after school, typically between 3.30-5pm, the boys and the girls will train.”
On the pitch, students are provided with high-intensity training sessions on a dedicated schedule, focusing on things like position-specific work and gym sessions.
Off the pitch, the teenagers are mentored on topics like mental wellbeing and entrepreneurship.
Hudson believes Kinetic is now home to some of the “best unsigned talent” in London and was particularly proud when, last year, eleven boys moved to professional clubs.
“I still remember the first one [who was signed up by a professional club]. It was amazing. We’re now up to 71 [students who have been signed up by clubs]. It’s still cool every time.
“What’s fantastic is for the young people to – and it sounds cliche – realise their dream. To move from grassroots to professional football is difficult. To do it at sixteen years [and over] is exceptionally difficult. But we’ve managed to find a little niche in the market.
“Last year we had eleven boys sign in one year, which was our best year ever. The year before it was eight. So we’re starting to gain more and more traction. I think now we have a pretty good reputation and I think clubs are fully aware that we have some of the best unsigned talent in London. And clubs all over the UK are starting to pay attention to that.”
Hudson, who founded Kinetic alongside James Fotheringham, still keeps tabs on Grant and Adom-Malaki’s progress at Millwall having worked closely with both of them.
He said: “I’ve known Kamarl for a long, long time. He first went to Sheffield United and then had opportunities at Tottenham and AFC Wimbledon but eventually decided on Millwall and we thought it would be a good fit for him.
“As an under-15 we had to twist Kamarl’s arm, leg and pretty much all of him to convince him to play at centre-half because of his profile and his size. But once he got his head around it, he committed to it and was brilliant. He kept growing.
“If he can stay injury free, Kamarl as a defender can pretty much do everything. He heads the ball really well, he’s two-footed, good physical attributes, he’s a good leader and a good communicator. I’m a big fan of Kamarl. He hasn’t quite kicked on as much – injuries have held him back – but once he gets passed that he’s got a real good chance in the game.
“And Niino, similarly, was part of our first cohort in Tottenham. He came as a centre-midfielder and it was like, again, change your position. [We told him] you’re left-footed, you could be a really strong left-back, good physical attributes, good competitor. We developed him and he had to learn a lot about defending direct play and defending balls over his head because he was always playing centre-midfield.
“But again, a bit of time, a bit work and he really kicked on. He was quite a quiet boy at the start but he started to come out of his shell at Millwall and I know he was on the bench a couple of weeks ago [against Norwich City] so he’s absolutely flying now. Really pleased for him.”