Welcome to the First Kicks program for 5th and 6th grade players at Hillcrest United Football Club.
All 4, 5 and 6 year olds, boys and girls are placed in a programme called First Kicks. First Kicks runs throughout Term 2 and half of Term 3. Training happens at Jansen Park, where they participated in fun skill sessions, and mini games. The idea is to have more touches on the ball.
On Saturday mornings they participate in the WaiBOP run First Kicks programme, where they play against teams from other clubs. Most sessions are at Galloway Park, from 9-10am. Each team is put into a “pod” of four teams. The session starts off with a warm up and practice of the week’s skill activities. Then the team splits into two and they rotate around playing 8 minute 4-a-side games against the other teams in the pod. Most Saturdays they will be at Galloway Park, but during the season there will be 2 or 3 festival days, where the teams might go to different parks and play against different teams. The philosophy behind the programme is to increase the number of touches a child has on the ball and to develop skills for later on.
The season begins the first weekend of Term 2, with registration open from the start of Term 1. (See the Season Calendar.)
To sign up you need to create a MyComet registration profile for your child and Register for Hillcrest United (registrations open late January with details posted on homepage of website and Facebook page).
Fees are $55 per child, to be paid via internet banking to the club account: Hillcrest United, Westpac, Hillcrest – 03-1559-0044455-000. Please use your child’s full name, and “FK” as the payment reference.
We can accept all children who register during Term 1. Once the season has started, however, we can only take new enrolments if there is space in the teams.
Once you have registered, we will be in touch towards the middle or end of Term 1 to sort out teams and coaches.
If you are on Facebook, please join our club group: Hillcrest United Football Club. (Note there is also a Hillcrest United Football Club page which is not us – it belongs to a club in South Africa!)
This is a parent run programme, and we need assistance from parents to run training sessions and game days. Please let us know via the registration survey if you are able to help.
First Kicks players will need to provide their own:
- Boots
- Shinpads
- Black socks
- Black shorts
The club will provide the team shirt.
Some places to look for football gear for children are Soccer United, Rebel Sports, Stirling Sports and Number One Shoes.
4th – 6th Grade Playing Rules 2023
First Kicks – Cluster Infomation Booklet 2022
2022 McDonalds Junior Football Game Cards
For more information, please see our Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ) page.
If you have any questions, please email First Kicks Commissioner adamduker [at] gmail or secretary@hillcrestunited.co.nz.