Public school teachers get private lessons from Younghusbands

Public school teachers from Taguig and Pateros got an exclusive football training session with Phil and James Younghusband over the weekend at the Navy Village Parade Grounds in Fort Bonifacio. Aptly called Train the Trainers Program, some 250 teachers skipped the books and headed out to the pitch to learn football. The whole camp was sponsored by the government, led by Taguig Mayor Lani Cayetano. “We really want to make football known in the country. And we’re doing it one camp at a time through The Younghusband Football Academy (TYFA). We’re really happy because the teachers were very participative," said Phil. Aside from talks on the basics of football, the participants also hit the pitch to experience actual football action. While it was obvious that a lot of the participants were struggling with the exercises, they didn’t seem to mind as they had Phil and James to coach them. “Kung ganyan ang magco-coach sa’kin, okay lang kahit magbilad sa araw eh," one participant quipped. Armed with their pens and digital cameras, the teachers hounded the brothers during their breaks to take photos and ask for autographs. The camp itself was also met with extreme enthusiasm, especially the friendly games among the participants. One guy, a member of the navy, even had to be brought to the hospital after he hit his head on the goalpost. After a few stitches, he immediately wanted to go back to play. “Babalik na ko. Gusto ko pa maglaro at makuha yung certificate [of completion] ko," he told the organizers. Unfortunately, he was advised to rest as he lost a lot of blood from the wound in his forehead. Train the Trainers is just one of many camps that TYFA is launching for its football campaign. -- OMG, GMA News