Tuesday, December 9, 2008

Young Players Choose Off-Season Activities Wisely...

As we move into the off-season portion of the year I thought it was time to address what activities players should be participating in to help their individual development. There are a variety of choices both soccer related and otherwise. I was reading a health magazine recently that featured an article, "Eat this, not that". With that inspiration in mind I will share my thoughts on the off-season in a "Do this, not that" format for ages U8-U12.

Do this...

Play a number of different sports and get a number of different experiences. It is true that sports and other athletic activities add to the overall motor development of young players. These functions include running, hand/eye coordination, balance, etc... It is very important at the formative ages that players develop these skills through a broad range of athletic activities. Whether it be basketball, volleyball, dance or whatever, getting away from soccer to get a different motor demand is important to individual development.

Not that...

Specialize in soccer from an early age. For all of the reasons I mentioned above it is important to experience different things. All soccer all the time can lead to deficiency in some motor skills and can also lead to unnecessary burnout. Have fun with whatever you do as it will develop a love for sports and athletics. You can decide which sport is your passion later.

Do this...

If you are going to play soccer in the off-season I highly recommend that it is done without a focus on results. I think your time can be best spent at a individual skills camp or clinic so that the player can further deepen their technical ability. Indoor or 3v3 teams should be relatively unorganized where there is no coaching and where players play in all positions on the field. There should be no strict guidelines or tactics employed. One of our parents had it exactly right. The team played 7v7, so he made colored chips to match positions. For example, yellow were forwards, green were midfielders and red were defenders. Before each game the players drew a chip to find their position for that half of the game. It was repeated at halftime. There was no coaching during the game. The players were left to sort it out for themselves. Brilliant!

Not that...

You guessed it. No organized teams. No specific positions. No focus on winning. Let the players own the game. I have seen the opposite approach destroy team chemistry both among players and parents. I have also seen this create rivalries among teammates. It happens when parent's put together indoor and 3v3 teams using the players from our existing teams. When certain players are excluded or dropped in order to stack teams for results resentment is the by product. Parents will always claim the best intention. This type of thing is born by a parent's ego getting in the way of kids having fun and developing as players. When the players return to their normal team in the fall or spring it has undermined the coaches ability to develop a team. Worse yet, it has created a less the harmonious atmosphere among the players and parents. Bad news. Beware.

Do this...

Rest. Players need time away from soccer. They need to rest their bodies. We have seen an increase in injuries in young players over the years. Some of these injuries are related to growing, but some are related to overuse. This doesn't even consider the long term damage it could be doing. We set our schedule in a very calculated way. Our younger players do less and we slowly raise the demand over years. We try to limit the number of games these players play in a year. My recommendation is as follows:

U8 - 25-30 games per year

U9/U10 - 30-40 games per year

U11/U12 - 35-45 games per year

Not that...

Play year round. As I mentioned above, the players need not only a physical break from the game, but also a mental break. We want the players to come back fresh physically with an excitement to be back with their team. Playing for their team, an indoor team, 3v3 and adding something like ODP leaves the players exhausted. In this state they are unable to develop or play to the level they are capable. Let them be kids.

I bring you this information from experience of watching players along the developmental process. The reality is that kids who are U8-U12 have almost the sole goal of pleasing their parents, teachers and coaches. They are not mature enough to say "no I don't want to do that." For that reason it is critical that you put your trust in a coach that understands the process and has experience dealing with young players. Soon enough these young players will mature and start to resist. The notion that the more you play the better you will be is absolutely untrue. During the formative years it is more important to seek a non-intrusive environment that gives the kids freedom to experiment. Let the player lead the way in developing a passion for a sport. Let them own the game.

Saturday, December 6, 2008

Update from Los Angeles - Saturday, December 6

2-0! A great start to the Showcase with both teams winning their opening game. While most coaches and scouts (and obviously us) expect it of our U-18's, the quality of the U-16's was a pleasant surprise to those outside our organization. It wasn't just that we won, which we did only once in thirty games last year, we are talented and will only continue to improve.

Going into the weekend our first goal was to not have to take anyone to the hospital. Sounds obvious enough, but after the disaster that was the Houston trip it isn't. I never got around to blogging about Houston, but the cliff notes version - 12 kids missed school, 2 ended up in the hospital, 2 spent the entire flight in the lavatory all with a stomach bug. In fact, if we don't get sick, we probably hold our 1-0 lead and get our first win or at least a point while there. We just found out that 8ish Columbus Crew kids (same flight to and from Houston) were sick the next week as well. But I digress...

The trip started well. We treat the boys as adults and they behave like it. They were great on the plane and in the airports. I gave the boys meal money in Dallas and they scattered. We arrived at LAX just after 11PM local time and were to the hotel by about 1:30AM or 4:30 in the east.

It amazes me how we have to convince kids to eat meals. They simply don't understand how much fuel they burn, not just in the games, but with the travel. Of course, when you control playing time, it becomes a little easier to convince kids to do the right thing.

U-16 Game v. Southern Central Premier (CT) - Win 2-1
The win was important on a couple levels.
  • The elephant in the room is our record from last year and the perception of our program. We went a long way in changing that yesterday. You hear all the time about how "it's not about the result", who are we kidding? Results are a bi-product or development and ability.
  • Confidence. The last thing I told our boys before the game is to be confident in their abilities. We know we have some talent. Out of the group we took to Houston not a single player was on the full Development Academy roster last year. The inexperience is both good and bad. Good because they don't have last year's history, bad because they don't have the experience of the speed of the game at this level and how to manage themselves.
  • Game Management. Learning how to play 80 minutes without a sub isn't easy. The fitness level, or lack thereof, of kids coming out of high school is always shocking, but more importantly, kids at all levels are used to running themselves out and then getting a short break with a sub. (In the DA if you come out you are done for the day.) We turned a game that was well in-hand with a half hour left into a bit of a mess in the last 10 minutes trying to kill off the game. The U-18's dealt with this a lot last year, turning wins into ties with regularity. So, for the U-16's to hold on for the win was really good for them moving forward.
  • We made early goals from Tommy Rogers and A.J. Combs hold up for victory number one on the short season.

U-18 Game v. Southern Central Premier (CT) - Win 2-0
With the exception of a few mistakes early, the game was really never in question. This is a talented group, but more importantly one that holds itself accountable. Tim is with the girls in Raleigh for the Red Bull so Marc, Jared Micklos and I have the group. Because of their experience last year and the way Tim has been able to sort them out based upon the opponent they are very flexible in the adjustments we are able to make.

  • I thought the goal from Tyler Huerkamp was the best of the season until Dylan Hoop's ridiculous goal. It has to be a nominated for the Best of the Year. We were unfortunate not to get a few more, but at the end of the day 2-0 was a fair result.
  • The U-18's are now 2-0-1 on the season. We don't shy away from the fact that a birth in the playoffs is the goal for the season. Seven points in 3 games is what we expected and quite frankly, short of a couple shocking decisions by the referee in Houston we should have all 9.
  • Defensively, we are starting find our way. As the USMNT scout and us discussed after the game, these boys are the best on their high school teams so putting it back together where they are surrounded by equally talented players takes some time.
  • We still need to evolve in the attack. The boys are used to doing everything on their own. When we get them back it takes some time to integrate back into team play. Our possession on the day really did leave some to be desired.

We are off to Santa Monica!!