7/7/19
In just a matter of three years at Emmaus, Harold Fairclough has been able to accomplish a lot during his time as head football coach.
He’s won 75 percent of his games (27-9 overall).
He led the program to a school-record 11 wins a year ago.
And he also guided the team to its first-ever appearance in a District XI Class 6A championship last year.
None of that happens without good coaching and talent, and he’s had a lot of during his three years
Much of the success of both current and former players started at a young age, with most coming through the Emmaus football camp.
The most recent talent and the future of Hornets football was on hand last week as 100+ youngsters entering Grades 3-9 took part in coach Fairclough’s fourth annual camp held at Memorial Field.
“Each year it gets bigger and bigger,” said the Hornets coach on the last day of camp on Friday. “I think our staff does a great job tweaking things and keeping it fun and fresh for the kids.
“It’s awesome for us as coaches to get out here and get a sneak peak working with these kids and seeing what’s coming up. We’re excited for what we have do coming up. These younger guys are looking really good, they’re coachable, easy to work with and fun to be around.”
The week-long camp ran from Monday, June 24 through Friday, June 28 and is for student-athletes who are interested in improving their basic football skills while also learning the game and having fun.
The camp was run several varsity assistant coaches along with coaches at the freshmen and middle schools. Players on the current high school team as well as former players also helped out.
“This camp is fun camp,” said Fairclough. “We do work on some of the fundamentals of the game and we progress throughout the week.
“We also do some character building and the kids get homework assignments. We also talk about leadership and nutrition. It’s a great camp because it has a little bit of everything and these kids leave this camp every year with multiple things to take away and I think that’s why we get such a high return rate. This thing keeps getting better and better every year.”
And as far as the talent on hand?
“There’s a lot of talent here and one of the groups that stood out is our rising ninth graders,” said Fairclough. “I think that’s going to be a very special group. We just have to keep them together and working hard. It’s a very talented, talented class. “
With the youth camp done, Fairclough and his staff will now shift its focus to the upcoming 2019 season.
Heat acclimatization week begins on August 5 and the season-opener is August 23 as the Hornets travel to J. Birney Crum Stadium to take on Allen with kickoff scheduled for 7 p.m.
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