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AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

to not throw kids balls back?

11 replies

mummypig14 · 21/05/2016 19:30

Neighbours DC are constantly kicking footballs into my garden which land in my vegetable patch and keeping damaging my plants . Not just flying over, but being booted right over a 6ft fence.

I've asked them to be careful and use softer balls, but it keeps happening

I've stopped throwing the balls back as I'm getting so frustrated. There's about 4 a week.

DH thinks I'm a horrible neighbour but I'm so fed up!!

OP posts:
Trumpette · 21/05/2016 19:38

Wait until they come and ask for the balls & then take them in the garden & show them the damage. May help them take responsibility perhaps? X

contrary13 · 21/05/2016 19:54

I'd be careful, if I were you... this last week, I've had an incidence of boys playing football behind my house and claiming that their ball was in our garden (it's not...). They then tried climbing over our fence (which my dog - and I - took exception to), and I explained to them that (a) their ball is not in my garden, at all, I've looked, and (b) if they kick a ball and think it's on my property, to knock and I will always throw it back if it is... to which they decided to boot half my fence down a full hour later.

They're all younger than my 11 year old DS.

And their parents - because yes: I marched up the road to the parents - were even less impressed than I was about their behaviour, and they're paying for two new fence panels, without question, when I explained that holes in my fence, may equal my not-child-friendly dog chomping on "ooh, a hole...!!!" friendly toddlers fingers.

But I know that my case is unusual. And if I'd not watched them boot down the fence myself (and possibly if I didn't have a reputation in our street for not taking advantage, and having previously said to the same parents that I had told their boys off for climbing on my rickety fence, because I didn't want them to hurt themselves when/if it collapsed underneath them!). And I don't. At all.

I would, however, like to know where their football has vanished off to, if it's not in my garden... because the thought of a magic portal isn't exactly one that's filling me with joy.

Although, I do know that any damage to plants is considered criminal damage - as is damage to fences - so maybe you could use that as a bargaining chip with the parents (I didn't have to: luckily!).

NickiFury · 21/05/2016 19:55

I agree with your DH.

NeedACleverNN · 21/05/2016 19:59

Yanbu OP. It takes a good kick to kick a ball over a 6 foot fence

AppleMagic · 21/05/2016 19:59

Tel them you'll only give the ball back if their parents come round to ask for it. It'll give the parents an incentive to get them to play more considerately.

MumOnTheRunCatchingUp · 21/05/2016 20:02

what have their parents said?

SecretNutellaFix · 21/05/2016 20:02

I've stopped throwing balls back as well, after last summer when the neighbours kids were kicking the balls in on purpose. After three door knocks in one hour I said no, they will be getting the balls back when I was good and ready. Which wasn't for a week.

Guess what? The number of instances dropped immediately. So far I've only had one instcance this year and given I said that if it happened again they wouldn't be getting the ball back, the children were much more careful.

NotYoda · 21/05/2016 20:04

I would wait for them to come and get it and then tell them about the damage

If it continues after that, I'd go with AppleMagic

ItsAllGoingToBeFine · 21/05/2016 20:04

Puncture them then throw them back

I think asking them to send their parents round to collect is probably a better idea though Sad

DaisyAdair · 21/05/2016 20:11

I had SIX leather footballs in my garden the other day.

I didn't know who they belong to because we live next door to 4 families with football-playing boys (corner plot)

I threw them all over one fence and they can sort them out between them.

It's not the footballs coming into the garden I object to so much, but the constant kicking of them against my fence (which I have told them about repeatedly).

When my kids were small, heavy leather footballs were for the park and they were only allowed to play with sponge balls in the garden.

I've mentioned this on here before but once an actual GYM BALL came flying over my fence!! Shock

ABCAlwaysBeCunting · 21/05/2016 20:14

The people in the house behind us have three boys under 12. We get a LOT of footballs over. It's not that I especially mind, but I think because I previously threw them back very quickly, they got a bit complacent about it and last summer we were getting several over a day.

They'd also found a way into our garden to get them back if we were away and they did actually damage some pots while climbing about, which was annoying. I've now blocked this up and decided that this year I'm only going to chuck them back once a week.

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