Giants To Host Football Classes

21 September 2018, 07:46 | Updated: 21 September 2018, 07:50

Liverpool FC, Everton Football Club and Tranmere Rovers are joining forces to stage a series of free, football coaching sessions for local school children - with a giant twist.

Hundreds of school children from across the region are being invited to take part in the event, which will mark the return of the Giants to Liverpool for a spectacular farewell performance.

And forget jumpers for goalposts, they will be scoring goals into one of the Giant's sandals.

Royal de Luxe, the world’s leading street theatre company from Nantes, is returning to its second home for an unmissable show from Thursday 4 to Sunday 7 October 2018.

As part of these unique celebrations, a football themed Giant event will take place on Thursday October 4 at Princes Park where the three local football clubs, Liverpool, Everton and Tranmere Rovers, will be providing free coaching sessions all day.

Deputy Mayor and Cabinet Member for culture, tourism and events, Councillor Wendy Simon, said: “We are delighted that our very own giants of football – Liverpool FC, Everton Football Club and Tranmere Rovers – are joining forces with the Royal de Luxe Giants.

“As with all things Giants, expect the unexpected. We can guarantee this will be no ordinary football coaching session.”

Everton in the Community Director of Health and Sport, Michael Salla, said: “This is a fantastic opportunity for local school children to come and take part in some free taster sessions with our fully qualified coaches.

“I would encourage as many schools as possible to register their interest and join us for a coaching session with a difference!”

Katie Ellis from the LFC Foundation, said: “We’re extremely excited to be part of this amazing event in the city. Our team of qualified coaches will be providing tailored sessions for the kids, which we know they’ll enjoy.”

Tranmere Rover chairman, Mark Palios, said: “We are thrilled as a football club to be involved in such a unique and popular event that has always proven to capture the imagination of the audience.

“We have a very strong relationship with Liverpool City Region and they have done an excellent job ensuring the event is taking place. We are excited that the Giants scheduled are not only to be showcased in Liverpool, but also the Wirral for the first time!

“Our involvement mainly comes on the first day with the Giants football event in which our qualified coaches will be providing free training sessions to more than 500 children - grassroots football is vital and a major part of what Tranmere represents in the way we offer accessible football for all.

“The Giants football event ties in nicely with our ongoing commitment through our popular #SWA2 programme that provides children with first hand access to Tranmere Rovers.

“Our Club is proudly rooted in the local community and we are delighted to be playing our part in the football themed Giants event.”

The chosen schools will be allocated a free one hour coached session, including mini games and penalty shoot outs, between the hours of 9.30am and 5.15pm. In addition, there will be the opportunity to participate in some other coached sporting activities provided by LFC’s Open goals Project.

We are offering a total of 576 places to 72 schools across the region, the opportunity to put forward a group of eight children from Primary School Years five and six. This can be any combination of boys and girls.

There are a limited amount of times and spaces and we are expecting the event to be oversubscribed so schools will be chosen on a first come, first served basis.

All schools in the region have been sent an application form via email and submissions will close at 5pm on Friday 21st September.

The event is one of the major highlights of the Liverpool 2018 programme – a year-long celebration which marks a decade since the city held the game-changing title of European Capital of Culture. The Liverpool City Region Combined Authority is supporting several highlight Liverpool 2018 events with £5 million from the Single Investment Fund (SIF).

Royal de Luxe first came to the city in 2012 with Sea Odyssey - a story inspired by the centenary of the sinking of the Titanic. The adventures of the Little Girl Giant, her playful canine companion Xolo and the Diver attracted crowds of around 800,000 and brought in £32million to the local economy.

The Little Girl and Xolo returned in July 2014 for Memories of August 1914. This time they were joined by a Grandmother whose stories brought to life the impact of preparations of the First World War had on the city. It is widely regarded as the city’s biggest ever event, attracting one million people and bringing a £46m boost to the local economy.

The event has been made possible thanks to support from the Liverpool City Region Combined Authority and Arts Council England.

Any businesses interested in sponsorship opportunities should email Giant.Spectacular@liverpool.gov.uk.

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