By Will Castle

Glen Johnson was left in awe when he returned to the location of his first ever competitive football match.

Having grown up just down the road in Dartford, the former England defender was a regular to Kidbrooke-based Long Lane JFC as a young player - but it is safe to say things have changed at the club since his early playing days.

A prime example of the incredible development of grassroots football in England, Long Lane now boasts some of the best facilities in the south-east and was even designated to host some of the world’s best players as a training base at the London 2012 Olympics.

And as he walked upon familiar soil at Long Lane, Johnson could not help but stress the importance of the continued growth of the grassroots game in order to give young people every opportunity to play football.

“My actual first competitive game was actually here,” Johnson said. “Obviously it was a long time ago and the facilities were slightly different. 

“I was brought up 20 minutes down the road, so I was always playing against Long Lane and other local teams. 

“To see all this development and great facilities, like I say, these weren't knocking around 28 years ago. 

“The more pitches you roll out that can be used all year round, the more opportunities these kids will have during half term and after school that keeps them off the streets, keeps them safe and keeps them working towards some kind of dream.”

What brought Johnson to Long Lane was the launch of the FA’s new landmark strategy for grassroots football, which strives to address some of the most pressing challenges concerning the English grassroots game.

Following its most comprehensive consultation with grassroots football to date, the FA has set in motion a four-year strategy, titled ‘A Thriving Grassroots Game’, that will support the game’s continued growth and development.

Projections anticipate a further 220,000 new players will be involved in grassroots football across 15,000 new teams by 2028 as the FA looks to deliver equal opportunities for everyone to play.

The FA is also keen to invest in new and existing facilities at clubs, hoping to hit the target of 12,000 quality grass pitches in this four-year period.

Furthermore, a collective effort is going towards stamping out poor behaviours in the game, whether on the pitch or touchline, through the imposing of robust sanctions.

That said, the FA is not simply looking to increase participation of players through this strategy, but is also looking to strengthen its network of coaches, referees and volunteers in general in grassroots football.

Johnson has hailed the impact of volunteers in the English grassroots game and hopes the FA’s new strategy will unearth new coaching and refereeing talent.

“Volunteers do it for a reason, they’re obviously good people and trying to help,” he added. 

“The more people you have chipping away and pulling in the right direction, you're going to get more refs, get more coaches. They're a vital part of the game.

“You can't have a game without these guys and once you've got the numbers, then it's about the standard.

“You can build the foundation in terms of getting the numbers through, and then a few will go on to be better coaches than others.

“They're there to support the game, help the kids, ref the games and like I say, you can't play the game without them.”

The Football Association has launched a new landmark strategy to grow and develop grassroots football in England, titled ‘A Thriving Grassroots Game’. The four-year grassroots strategy is aimed at supporting sustainable growth over the next four years, with projections anticipating a further 220,000 new players across 15,000 new teams by 2028. For more information go to www.TheFA.com