Tuesday, November 27, 2012

What It Takes…

It is that time of year.  Actually, it is always that time of year.  Not the holiday season, but the search for the next level.  And in club soccer, that usually means college.  I have been meeting with different players and parents throughout the club, both boys and girls ranging from freshmen to seniors in high school.  And 99% of the time it comes down to the same question…what does it take?
‘What does it take,’ is an extremely broad question; however it can be answered in a very simple sentence…  It takes more than others are willing to give.  I said simple, not easy.  Just think about it for a minute, currently you are training 2-3 times a week and playing one or two games.  Every player with a half way decent club is also doing the same thing.  I don’t care if your ‘next level’ is college, varsity for high school, or to move to a higher level team, you must put together a plan on how to improve, start the plan, and most importantly stick to it.
Now you are asking yourself, “Easy said, but how do I put together a plan?” or “What should my plan include?”  This is where your coaches should come in to play.  Sit down with your coach (player must do this, not just the parent) and go over your last evaluation.  Don’t waste your time on what are your strengths, but focus on areas that need attention.  If you are weak at crossing the ball, you must add that to your plan to work on in a repeated fashion. 
It usually takes anywhere from 800-1500 repetitions before your muscles make it a habit.  If you strike 100 crosses a week, you are looking at 2-4 months before your improvements will become natural and show during a game.  Don’t forget, you must continue the repetitions after 2-4 months in order to maintain your sharpness.   This is only one weakness.  Most of us have 5-10 areas where we need to improve.
Now that I have your attention – DON’T FREAK OUT! Everyone playing has weaknesses in their game.  You don’t have to become the perfect player.  You never will get there anyway.  However, if your weaknesses become harder to find, you are well on your way.
What else are you willing to give that others are not?  This can be and usually is answered off the field.  First impressions go a long way.  I have spent nearly 20 years evaluating talent for club, college, and regional and national teams.  How a player looks and acts prior to and during a game or training can make a huge difference.  Here are descriptions of two players.  Tell me who you would want as a teammate.
PLAYER 1: Solid player, good athlete and fast, average technically.  Makes an impact once every 4-5 games (goal, assist, great defense, etc.).   Often 2-3 minutes late to training.  Never seems to have right uniform.  Takes 5-10 repetitions in training to understand what is going on.  Misses pregame warm -up because they are still putting on shoes.   Looks like they just woke up.
PLAYER 2: Technically solid, average athlete.  Doesn’t usually make an impact, but very rarely makes a mistake.  Always on time and ready to go.  Extremely focused during training and warm ups.  You hate going against them in practice because they “try too hard.” 
My guess is most of you would rather have PLAYER 2 as your teammate.  Who do you believe most coaches would rather have on their squad?  And most importantly, ask yourself – which player are you most like?
Over my many years in coaching, PLAYER 1 may get noticed first, but over time they often become a burden.  PLAYER 2 is the one who reaches their goal.  You rarely see them on the bench because coaches know they can trust them to do the right thing.  Coaches know PLAYER 2 gives them the best opportunity to win.  The sooner you can take the DISCIPLINE of PLAYER 2, the more likely your average is better than most others’ good.
I know what you’re saying now, “I do not have the time.  I have school and homework, I have drama class, and not to mention I am on student council.”
Again, I will reiterate, THIS IS NOT EASY.  If you want to be your best, it will take sacrifice.  Can you stay after training for 20-30 minutes?  Instead of getting up at 6:30 am, what about 6:00 am?  Just these two simple changes, give you 4 more hours a week.
Don’t wait for someone to invite you to get better, go out and do it.  If you want to reach the next level, give yourself the best chance. 

Thursday, November 8, 2012

The Development Process

Over the past couple years we have published and revised and republished our curriculum and development process. Last spring US Soccer published its own curriculum and we once again reviewed and revised our plan.

In 2012-13 we have changed all our traditional programming for the Academy teams away from Buckeye Premier and the Midwest Regional League to the Ohio South State League and US Club Soccer National Premier League. These two leagues provide us with new challenges in the planning and preparation stages.

Our development plan will always be a work in progress. We will continually be our best and worst critics in preparing our players for competition, but our staff feels it is critical to have a plan, to look ahead more than just today's practice or react to last weekend's games. Analyzing the games is a critical component to preparing our players for future competition, but understanding our goals for that period in the cycle gives us better context for our successes in training.

We have established training goals for our teams through the end of February. Our staff meets at the beginning of each macrocycle to develop the training sessions for that period leaving some flexibility to address "issues" that appear in games within the cycle. Additionally, we have established a training template for each day of the week to provide a more consistent training environment for the players and increase the time on task.

Our curriculum and sessions are published on the team page for the players to prepare themselves physically and mentally for the session as well as improve the transition between activities. Readers are more than welcome to view our model for themselves.

Btw, its AWESOME to have the boys back from high school. Two days in and the sessions have been fast-paced. The players' attitudes and work rate have been tremendous.

Good Luck to Summit Country Day in the State Championship on Saturday!