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Kiveton Park’s First Team Manager and Secretary Gordon Johnson spoke to SYWF about the importance of mental health in women’s football, and how neurodiversity training has changed his style of coaching.

Johnson says the best method for helping players with their mental health is by getting to know them, so that the coaching team can spot if something is wrong.

“It’s really just a matter of knowing your players I think, I can normally tell, I’m quite to acute to my player’s behaviours.”

Johnson says the coaching team has adopted a way to track the players mood and mental health across both training and the pitch.

“We run what’s called a traffic light system. It’s something that our head coach, John Bilton, introduced. So even when players are on the pitch, it’s a red-amber-green system to try and help us manage cards.

“We will remind the girls to leave their baggage at home if they can. In the dressing room before a game, try and focus on the game. Obviously, that’s difficult if you’re suffering from mental health.”

Johnson says that on one occasion, a player told him that she felt she had strayed ‘into the amber’ and asked to be substituted.

“I was quite impressed with that, because it obviously meant that the girls had listened and were aware of their own actions and the way they were feeling. I think it’s massive in women’s football. I find that some players, you have to remind them of how good they are to get the best out of them.”

Johnson said that particularly this season, after a very tough year in the North East Regional League Division 1 South, keeping a positive mindset was a success and something they will be trying to replicate next season when they will hope to be more comfortable in their league.

“Trying to keep a group of players that are getting beat every week to stay positive is very tough to take into the next game. 

“When you think about the positives of this season, just keeping that group together was an achievement in itself.

“Obviously if they are struggling, they know where to go – our welfare officer is fantastic.”

A recent study shows that poor mental health in semi-professional levels is significant, with 49% of footballers in the study reporting symptoms of negative mental health such as distress, depression and/or anxiety.

Johnson said that it was difficult, and that balancing the commitments of home life, work life and football at this level can be challenging.

“It’s what I call proper football. It’s been a very steep learning curve, and I think mental health is a massive part of that.

“A lot of us at the club have done neurodiversity training, the FA are doing a lot of that at the minute.”

Johnson told us that the positive relationship between the players and coaching that has been fostered at Kiveton Park around mental health goes both ways, and that sometimes players can ask him when he’s tired.

“When a player comes to you and asks you if you’re all right, maybe they’ve spotted something. You might just be tired.

“I think that’s quite nice when nothing’s happened a few times in the past. When it’s actually been replicated, the players ask you how you are.”

Rachel Habergham delivers the club’s neurodiversity training, which Johnson said affected the way that he delivered his coaching.

As Kiveton Park looks ahead to a more settled season in the North East Regional League Division 1 South, their focus remains not just on results, but on resilience on and off the pitch.