HKFEW Wong Cho Bau Secondary School

07/06/2018

Broadening horizons helps students come out of their shells

Located in Tung Chung, the HKFEW Wong Cho Bau Secondary School is home to a number of football talents, including Ted Wong, a Form 4 student who is also a Hong Kong Futsal player, and Daniel Tong, who trained in Germany and is now head of the school’s football team. In their quest for football excellence, the school nominated Daniel and two coaches, Yau Man-ho and Wong Tsz-yeung for this year’s HKJC School Football Development Scheme. By taking part in the programme, it is hoped that they will be able to bring a fresh perspective and a new football training experience to both teachers and students.

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  Daniel Tong (Left) and two coaches, Yau Man-ho (Right) and Wong Tsz-yeung (Middle) hope to bring a fresh perspective by taking part in HKJC School Football Development Scheme.

Continuation of a football dream      

Now 24, Daniel won a local football talent contest in 2009 and was nominated to undergo training at Bayern Munich, Germany’s foremost football club. It was an eye-opening experience that made him believe that football is the best channel to cultivate all-rounded development in teenagers. After his graduation, Daniel started off down the path toward realising his football dream. He became a football teacher and coach at Wong Cho Bau Secondary School, where he faces challenges such as how to maintain a harmonious relationship between local and ethnic minority students, and how to handle disciplinary issues. Daniel hopes that by taking part in the Scheme, he can use its international training approach to inspire his students to think outside of the box, learn to get along with each other, and grow as a team.

Building friendships breaks down barriers

In addition to local students, Wong Cho Bau Secondary School has quite a large number of non-Chinese-speaking students. Differences in ethnicity, culture and language have widened the gap between the two groups of students, especially as those who do not speak Chinese tend to feel isolated at school. This phenomenon has carried over into school’s football team, where team spirit is of paramount importance. Daniel believes that the Manchester United Soccer School training approach promoted by the Scheme is an effective way to address to the problem , “On top of technical skills training, the Scheme emphasises team spirit. Handshakes and greetings at the start of training have taught the students to be more friendly, and gradually they have become more comfortable with each other. The team has never been more harmonious, and everyone is pleasantly surprised with the outcome.” Even other teachers at school have praised the team’s improved discipline and academic ability, and this makes Daniel feel very pleased.

Influencing teammates and creating a strong team

Daniel has particular praise for Pakistani player Iftikhar Sikandar Zayyad , “Previously, he was an introvert with no real goals. Now, he has matured in how he handles himself and in his attitude. He’s gradually come out of his shell and has even become one of the team’s leaders”. Coached by Daniel over the past three years, Sikandar thinks the entire team has been impacted by the outspoken style of Christopher O’Brien (OB) Head Coach of the Manchester United Soccer School Hong Kong. Thanks to OB, the players will now proactively start a conversation with teammates whom they do not know well. In the past, they only blamed and made fun of each other when mistakes were made. Now, they encourage and support each other – the team has never been more harmonious.

Teachers and friends leading by example

Sikandar is not only happy with the changes in him and his teammates, but he is also thrilled by the transformations he sees in his younger brother and in Daniel. His brother, Raatib Ahmed, used to be introverted and shy; but after learning to be more expressive, he is now more willing to converse with other students, and his confidence has grown by leaps and bounds. The change in Daniel has also surprised Sikandar, “Daniel used to be very strict at training, but now his reprimands have become words of encouragement. As a result, the players are more willing to listen to him”.

Manchester United’s training approach has motivated the teachers and students at Wong Cho Bau Secondary School like never before. Daniel and the other coaches believe it to be a first step towards success. In future, they will continue to apply this new training approach as they work to overcome the traditional concept of sports training as monotonous and hard. They also plan to continue to help non-Chinese speaking students break free of their own small circles and become more involved in school and even community life. In doing so, they will naturally and more easily broaden their view of the world.