In case you hadn't noticed the scorching weather outside recently... summer's well and truly here! So with all the honours settled for another season, the boots can be packed away for a couple of months while we sit and twiddle our thumbs waiting for the fixture list to come out!

Cricket and tennis may be taking over from football for the next few weeks, but the doors are always open here at The Club House, the monthly e-newsletter from Club Website that brings you all the latest in grassroots football.

This month we've got an article by English FA Skills Coach Peter Glynn on the opportunities presented to youth football coaches to teach kids the right way to play the game, plus we bring you a final preview of Grass Roots Football LIVE, the biggest event in the amateur football calendar taking place next week in Birmingham.

We also bring you details of how to register for the 2009/10 Lucozade Sport Performance League, a preview of our new look website and a fantastic competition offering you chance to take your football team to the Alton Towers Resort!

Happy reading!

'Blank canvas of opportunity' for kids' coaches

In a recent Club Website poll, 82% of you agreed that, when it comes to kids' football, playing good football is more important than winning.

Peter Glynn, Skills Coach at the English FA, supports this viewpoint and, in this article, looks at alternatives to the win-at-all-costs mentality that can stifle development of the beautiful game.

Read more

Grass Roots Football LIVE - it's showtime!

Some of the biggest names in football are about to come together at the NEC, Birmingham for this year’s Grass Roots Football LIVE.

Peter Taylor, Franco Baresi, Ian Holloway, Chris Kamara, Graham Taylor, Sir Trevor Brooking, Aidy Boothroyd, Peter Shilton and many more will share their knowledge and experience with tens of thousands of managers, coaches, players, referees and club officials from the grass roots of the game.

Read more

Do you want to be more Premier League next season?

The first year of the Lucozade Sport Performance League has been a huge success and the champions will soon be jetting off on a pre-season tour to a European Training Camp as part of their prize. Over the summer, Lucozade Sport will be on the search for another 80 teams to take part in the 2009/10 campaign.

Read on and make sure your team is involved in the official draw. Each lucky team that gets a place will win a Barclays Premier League club-style sponsorship package for the season.

Read more

Escape to The Alton Towers Resort this summer!

Club Website has teamed up with the Alton Towers Resort to offer one lucky club a fantastic trip to the UK's number one theme park and family fun resort!

We've got 20 tickets to give away - enough to cover entry for the whole squad plus the gaffer and maybe even a few coaches, parents or supporters.

So, whether you fancy a end-of-season celebration or just a fun day out in the summer holidays, be sure to get your name in the hat for this fantastic prize brought to you by Club Website!

Enter here

Get Umbro Teamwear 2009

You might not have his touch, control or speed but you can wear his socks!

The new Umbro 2009 Teamwear brochure is now available. It's packed with everything your team could need for the new season, from bibs to balls and socks to shirts. It's reassuring to know that Umbro supply more Premier League kits than any other brand. You don't have to be a superstar to play in our kit, with adult kit packages from only £295 and junior packages from only £245. You really can play in Michael Owen's socks.

Get Umbro Teamwear. Get next season sorted.

Visit www.umbrofootballkits.co.uk or call 0845 603 7047.

Send your refereeing questions to Graham Poll

For the last six months, you've been sending in your grassroots refereeing queries to Club Website's resident refereeing expert and the UK's top official of the last decade, Graham Poll.

Graham's taking a well earned break from The Club House this month but don't worry, he'll be back in our next edition!  So if a refereeing decision has left you scratching your head or arguing the toss with your team mates then email it to grahampoll@clubwebsite.co.uk.

The best questions are answered by Graham right here in The Club House each month, while the person asking the 'Question of the Month' wins a signed copy of Graham's bestselling book, 'Seeing Red'... so keep those questions coming!

Who's been a busy boy then?

Most of you won’t know this but the Club Website team have been extremely busy behind the scenes revamping our website. We thought it was about time we gave ourselves a bit of a make-over - some new mascara and lip-stick if you like - and will be unveiling our new look website at the Grass Roots Football Live show on Friday 12 June... come and join us, we will be on stand 505.

Ssshhh! Keep this under your hat, but our new look website will soon be followed by a revamp of our league and club services... fantastic!

We are extremely excited about our re-launch and promise to keep improving our service in line with the comments received from each and every one of our members - because together we will excite, innovate and change football forever... so thanks a billion!

Competition winners

Club Website has made a lot of people happy over the last month. Not only have we given away 5 copies of Steve Claridge's new book 'Beyond the Boot Camps', but we've also given five lucky Club Website users the chance to join the Club Website Galacticos in a 5-a-side match against Claridge and his 'Allstar' team mates at Grass Roots Football LIVE in Birmingham on 13 June.

Thanks for all of your entries this month and big congratulations to our winners:

Club Website Galacticos: Alec Longhurst (Brandhall Colts FC), Ian Harding (Bedworth Liberals FC), Matt Benfield (Mount Pleasant FC), Phil Cotterill (Nomads FC) and Paul Stafford (Sleaford Town FC).

'Beyond the Boot Camps': Alan Vaughan (Victoria Barnt Green FC), Barry Carter (Haverhill Rovers FC), Nigel Needham (Alfreton Town FC), Gary Stevens (Brandhall Colts FC), Simon Adams (Linford Wanderers FC)

Club Website monthly round-up

The football season may be over, but things are still as busy as ever at Club Website. Since the May edition of The Club House we've brought you updates on the latest grassroots football news, including the following (click links to view):

- Practical planning guide for sports clubs from Sport England

- Sports groups benefit from Sportsmatch improvements

- Grass Roots Football LIVE previewed on Club Website
- Football disability workshop coming to Gwent on 14 July
- Welsh Football Trust's National Disability Football Festival proves a great success

Thanks for your thousands of votes on our grassroots opinion polls. The majority of you (55%) voted Player's Player of the Year as the most prestigious end-of-season award, while 19% of you chose Manager's Player of the Year, 16% Most Improved Player and the strikers amongst you (10%) chose the Golden Boot!

In our other polls, only a quarter of you (24%) were looking forward to the summer break, while 76% said you couldn't wait for next season.You also told us that Nike (44%) and Adidas (41%) lead the way as your favourite make of football boots.

With "Your Shouts" flying in as ever and our usual pick of top competitions - see our recent winners above - there's always something for everyone at Club Website!

Visit www.clubwebsite.co.uk to find out more.

Let us know your thoughts!

We're always keen to receive your feedback so if you have any comments - good or bad - on what we feature here in The Club House - or anywhere on Club Website - we'd love to hear them.

Also, we're interested in grassroots football stories from across the UK, so if you have any interesting tales from your football club let us know and we may include them on our website or in next month's edition of the The Club House!

Please email all your comments, news and stories to clubnews@clubwebsite.co.uk.  So, until next month...

Yours in football,

The Club Website Team

June 2009