You know Conor when I started senior school after 11 plus in 1958 on the first day the form master gave us all a pep talk about growing up, becoming adults, good behaviour, acting responsibly, and he said exactly the same thing about kids now getting booked for larking about, pinching apples off trees.
Whereas when he were a lad...
I live in a house at the top of a cul - de - sac looking down a steep hill. The local kids, up to 17 years old find it convenient to kick the ball up the hill towards the house and the cars parked on my drive because the ball conveniently rolls back down the hill for them to take the next shot. When the ball hits a car leaving the clbuttic ball mark of scratches the kids inevitably take the view that it's nothing to do with them, they didn't kick the ball at the car. Oh no, perish the thought, they took a bad shot or, (acting as goalie) missed the ball and since they are so good at football it must be an act of God !
I have also seen every last petal over a 10 foot run drop off a hedge of roses when a football was kicked through it.
You appear to reckon this is a mere bagatelle in the wider scheme of things, that we should be more than happy to accept for the whole of the long summer holidays in the furtherance of the great god of "football" ? Remember, like the street corner gatherings, *we* are subjected to the nuisance continually, different sets of kids keep on coming back to our place to kick their footballs at our houses and our cars, and through our gardens.
And yes, there is a perfectly safe unused school sports field, which they are explicitly permitted to use in the next street.
DG
