AFL legends Adelaide Crows Captain Rory Sloane and James Podsiadly (Crows, Geelong) have embarked on an exciting joint venture to release a new Sherrin footy for kids called Face Footys which do what many of us cannot… teach our kids how to kick a football – specifically a drop punt.
Sloaney and Pods know just a little bit about how to kick a footy themselves, but saw firsthand that Auskick and coaches around Australia were struggling to teach young players how to kick a drop punt. After putting a bit of time and research in they discovered there was a lack of standardised practise tips that made the skill easy to learn, as well as fun!
We chat with Rory Sloane about the development of the Face Footy, how they came up with the idea, and just how the Face Footy works!
Tell us about the Face Footy and how it’s different from other footys?
Face Footys are fun and simple footys that will teach kids the basic steps of kicking a drop punt. Over the years we have seen kids struggle with the basic skill of kicking a drop punt. Face Footys are designed to make sure kids have fun while kicking the ball but also learn how to actually kick a drop punt.
Why do you think traditional footys fall short when it comes to teaching little kids how to kick?
The regular footys are great, but what we have tried to do with Face Footys is simplify the technique in which kids learn how to kick a drop punt. With the Face Footys we hope we can create a visual for the kids and for those learning the game to help them through learning one of the main skills of the game.
What was the creative process like, was there lots of kicking prototypes around on the oval to see how they worked?
James Podsiadly, who won a Premiership with Geelong back in 2011 drew a face on a Footy once and used that with a bunch of kids. It worked well. It became our first prototype. It’s a technique we have been using for years now and have seen the success it has had without the faces on the ball.
Now with these fun characters on it we hope that kicking a drop punt is easier for coaches, parents and even grandparents to teach the little ones! But also, for kids to help coach each other.
We wanted to create something that anyone can pick up and use, regardless of whether you have ever played or even held a footy for that matter! We then came up with a couple of cartoon characters and then when we teamed up with Sherrin, we settled on the four characters you see today.
Kicking the balls around it only seemed natural to give the characters a power each.
• Rocket: you can launch him to the moon.
• Dukes: The crazy one of the bunch, makes everyone smile.
• Radar: Is always on target, never missed.
• Skipper: is the leader of the group. The one they all look up to.
Take us through the steps on how exactly the Face Footy works?
It’s super simple and done through three steps!
1. You COVER THE EARS.
2. POINT THE NOSE at your target.
3. KICK THE CHIN to make it spin.
Who are these footys perfect for and how do we get our hands on them?
Face Footys are designed to be every kids first footy! It’s perfect for those kids aged from 3-6. My Son is 2.5 years old and loves his Face Footy (rocket) already.
What has surprised me most about this footy is the amount of people that never knew how to kick a drop punt. We have had the grandparents in the backyard kicking drop punts! They have even surprised themselves. So, it’s not just a footy for kids, it’s a footy for everyone to learn a new skill or to be able to keep practicing a skill of being able to kick a footy.
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