Goalkeeper Laurie Shala, right-back Kalani Barton, striker Junior Dixon and centre-back James Leonard from Palace’s Under-18s squad all visited Oasis Ryelands primary school in Croydon to help deliver a PE lesson to Year 1 pupils before taking part in a Q&A with Year 5 and 6 students.
Alongside Palace for Life coach Marcus, they helped deliver a lesson which included basic fitness in the form of running on the spot, planks, star jumps, and press-ups, before working on their passing, ball control, and balance in small groups.
The players got stuck in and even their ball control was tested at times when a few passes came faster than they expected!
After the lesson, inquisitive Year 5 and 6 students asked the scholars about everything from what inspires them to play football and who the toughest teams are to play, to who they would choose in the age-old Messi v Ronaldo debate.
Junior Dixon, who’s been at Palace since Under-12s level, said: “We get opportunities from the Academy to come and help out in the community and today we were helping kids in their PE lesson, and it was really fun seeing them. We were once that age and didn’t have people helping us so it’s nice to be able to.”
Laurie Shala added: “When you see them in their lesson and just say 'well done', you see the smile – they’re going to go home to their parents and that’s going to make their day.”
