| In England today large numbers of kids, largely poor | | | | be seen every day. |
| and black kids, are excluded from football. | | | | English schools are increasingly enforcing middle-class |
| So November 2007 saw one English football (or | | | | values against any kids that favour sport or play over |
| soccer) team manager, Portsmouth's Harry Redknapp, | | | | classwork. And many other countries are also moving |
| lament the lack of poor kids entering English football. | | | | in the same direction. |
| He saw better-off kids as lacking the aggression | | | | So the poor kids and the black kids of England are |
| needed for good passionately competitive footballers, | | | | playing good aggressive football every day on their |
| and lamented "Where are the estate kids ?" | | | | estates. But never does a scout from any football |
| The answer of course is that they are excluded from | | | | team venture into these no-go areas. Team scouts |
| school. Of 12 to 16 year old kids in England, around | | | | visit school games and visit football trials or football |
| 20,000 are permanently excluded from school, around | | | | academies that need parents that can pay for them. |
| another 20,000 permanently absent themselves from | | | | They see only middle-class kids who can have some |
| school and around another 200,000 get repeat | | | | talent but often lack fire. |
| non-permanent exclusions from school. This is most | | | | The poorest English kids do include the best |
| poor kids and most black kids. These generally do not | | | | aggressive footballers, but they are effectively |
| get into school football teams and so are never seen | | | | excluded from football through no fault of their own - |
| by football team scouts. | | | | by the school system and the football scouting system. |
| Of course English schools that mostly had their own | | | | Many middle-class run English football teams instead |
| football pitch 30 years ago, have now mostly sold their | | | | pay millions to get poor kids from South America or |
| football pitches and ban football from playgrounds. Yet | | | | Africa - because 'we can't find poor English kids'. The |
| English kids, including the poorest and blackest, do still | | | | only thing to say to any rich-country sport scout, and |
| manage to play their own football - especially the poor | | | | certainly any English football club, is 'you really should |
| and black kids. Most of the big estates that they live | | | | try to scout your local poor better! |
| on have some play area where their football play can | | | | |