Impact Stories

Inclusive football has given Reuben, 12, the chance to show off his qualities.

Reuben’s journey to find his place on the football pitch wasn’t easy. The 12-year-old, who has autism and ADHD, took a while to find his feet when he first joined the BHAFC Foundation’s disability football programme.

“Reuben was the youngest player when he first started, but everyone was great and very welcoming,” his mum Heather told us. “He did find things difficult at first though.

“Obviously there were a lot of new people in a new environment so he found it quite difficult, but his coaches would often take him away to do a little 1-to-1 session and helped ease him into the group.”

Reuben began by playing with the inclusive football group, but mum Heather says the real change in him began when he joined the autism football session.

“We didn’t have a diagnosis at that point, but the autism session was the big gamechanger for Reuben,” she said.

“For him, being very much like everyone else there was really important and helped him to fit in.

“It didn’t matter if he couldn’t cope with the whole sessions or maybe kicked off a little bit; there were other players around him who felt the same way.”

After a bit of patience and slowly integrating Reuben into the group, he began to want to play more and more.

“After starting the autism session he then wanted to play as much as possible; holiday camps, the development squad, the Sunday league team.

“With every new step we have the space to try things out, build up Reuben’s confidence over time, and eventually get him fully involved.

“The change in him has been massive.”

The family did try out mainstream football for Reuben, but Heather says she’d recommend any family in her situation to try out inclusive football.

“He had gone into mainstream football for about a year, and even though his coaches were amazing, the environment wasn’t right for him,” she said.

“In mainstream football there are fewer coaches around, more children and parents who maybe don’t understand that Reuben needs a bit of extra help or a bit more space.

“Moving to somewhere where he actually fits in, makes friends, and is just another kid, is really important.”

Having been with the Foundation for about six years now, Heather says that one of the best bits is Reuben’s relationship with his coaches.

“The coaches are absolutely brilliant with him, which also means that I can relax,” she said.

“He has a lot of banter with them and muck around, it’s almost like a big brotherly relationship with some of them, and I can see they’re really proud of Reuben.”

One of his coaches, Luke “Macca”, couldn’t speak highly enough of Reuben.

“Reuben has been coming for years and he’s grown and grown throughout his time here,” he said.

“He always brings a smile on his face, he’s so happy to see every coach and every player. It makes your day better when you know that Reuben’s coming to a session.

“He’s become a real leader and a role model in the group.”

Now playing with confidence and enjoying his time on the pitch, football is giving Reuben the chance to show off his best traits to his coaches and fellow players.

“He can be really confident out on the pitch and communicates so well, which is something he can struggle with off the pitch,” Heather said.

“He really likes helping the little ones too. If someone’s new or nervous, he’ll always makes sure to pass them the ball. It shows off a really kind side to him.

“I’m very proud of him. Being on the pitch helps him show off all these amazing qualities which we know are there, but playing football helps him really demonstrate them.”