For this case study, we head to what is, at the time of writing, the UK’s largest MAN v FAT Club!
MAN v FAT Swansea is a force of nature and we spoke to coach Hywel Pugh and assistant coach Kyle Lewis to find out more about their social committee.
Why is the social scene so important at your club?
It helps to galvanise relationships outside of your team and outside of football. Gives you a chance to be yourself and have a break from other environments if needed. It develops new friendships helps with team building but most of all helps people that don’t have a friendship group get back into social environments and gain the confidence to do so outside of MAN v FAT.
What are the key steps when putting a social committee together?
We believe selecting people from all walks of life is key as everyone’s believes have to be considered. Ensure you pick people who are a good mix across the club as in trusted/ liked and also people who you feel may grow from the experience.
It’s important to try and give every team a voice so ideally a remember from each team in the mix. That makes it easier to communicate and push also check that all teams are happy and have the opportunity to attend.
Try to have a mix of characters that are engaging and open to different activities.
How did you get the community at your club to buy into coming along to events?
We have a huge club, so getting everyone to buy in, is extremely difficult. Organising regular events will eventually attract more people, but perseverance and consistency are key – some weeks numbers might be low but keep doing it, keep talking about it and posting about it, once you get a strong core more will come.
Use social media and be up front open and honest about the event.
In what ways does having a social committee benefit players?
Self-confidence, change and body image go hand in hand so reintroducing players to the social scene with likeminded people is important. Being part of something gives players more confidence to turn up every week and mentally gives them an opportunity to do something with likeminded people that players may not have outside of MAN v FAT.
What advice would you give to anyone who wants to put a social committee together?
Do it, be brave, start small, try the first one and find you’ll eventually find a sweet spot of enough events but not too much so you get the numbers. Don’t be disappointed or discouraged if the first few have low numbers perseverance is key and keep on offering social events.
Take all thoughts and opinions on board and don’t over complicate things, keep it simple, aim for a fair representation of your club but not too many, make things accessible for masses and ask for volunteers.
