Ohio Elite Soccer Academy

2012 OESA International Training Program

2012-02-13T14:06:00.002-05:00

In just three days Ohio Elite Soccer Academy players, parents and staff will return to Argentina for eight days as part of the OESA ITP. The players will be staying at the Club de Gimnasia y Esgrima La Plata (Gimnasia). The players will train with and play a game against the Gimnasia youth team. Gimnasia is home to former Columbus Crew star Guillermo Barros Schelotto. The group will attend two professional games; Rosario Central at Gimnasia and San Lorenzo at Independiente. In addition to training, competing and attending professional games there is a day trip planed to Uruguay, tour of the Bombonera, Buenos Aires tour along with over sights. Like the participants of last years trip, we are ready to take full advantage of this opportunity to learn, to better ourselves and push our comfort levels. For more information you can follow our trip on he on this blog, Facebook and Twitter. There is also a copy of the itinerary on the International Program page of our website.

Solving Problems

2011-10-06T14:04:00.000-04:00

Attached is a recent story from Jeff Carlisle on Juergen Klinsman and how he is attempting to change the US Men's National Team. The story in itself is worth a read, but if you are a scanner then take note of the quotes from some of the coaches. They all say the same thing...we need problem solvers!

In a culture where our high profile coaches get paid alot of money to win, we look to them for every answer. Most of our sports allow for this as well. We have about 25 timeouts a half or the play stops every time someone trips or goes out of bounds. The ironic thing is the players we (as a culture) admire the most are the ones that rely on the coaches the least - Larry Bird, Michael Jordan, Brett Favre and so on.

We admire these players because they have the ability to improvise and turn something out of nothing. Yet as parents and coaches, we never allow our children and players to develop this critical part of the game. We "joystick" their every move.

"Pass it here," or "cross it," or "Shoot!" is heard from many coaches every weekend. It is difficult to watch our young ones make mistakes (and that includes losing), but we need to keep in mind that mistakes are what enables these kids to learn what doesn't work.

With the passing of Steve Jobs (Apple) yesterday, it made me think of the many great inventors. How many times they must have failed in order to get it right. How many failures turned out to be great inventions. So keep this in mind the next time, and every time, you are coaching your children or watching them at the game. That boy (or girl) who seems to be doing things the wrong way will eventually figure out it doesn't work. Or they might just change the way the game is played.

Player Development - Sit or Stand?

2011-09-04T09:38:00.001-04:00

     What is good coaching? Excellent? This conversation happens all the time between players, parents, and other coaches. We look at the one time we have the most access to coaches...GAMES.
     Below is an article about Claudia Reyna, US Soccer Youth Technical Director, on how he developed his philosophy and curriculum. And how he feels coaches should behave during the developmental stages (youth) of soccer players.

Claudio Reyna: 'Coaches should sit down'
By Mike Woitalla

For many reasons, Claudio Reyna was the perfect choice to be named U.S. Soccer’s Youth Technical Director one year ago.

The New Jersey product, who captained the USA at two of his four World Cups, played American youth club, high school and college ball before embarking on a career in Europe that saw him captain teams in Germany, Scotland and the English Premier League. After finishing his playing career with MLS’s New York Red Bulls, which he also captained, Reyna traveled the world to observe the most successful youth programs – including FC Barcelona.

Reyna’s research, and his own experiences, culminated in the Federation’s new curriculum for youth coaches (available for download at USSoccer.com).

Upon the unveiling of "U.S. Soccer Curriculum," Reyna spoke to us about what had impressed him about the youth programs that he found worth emulating.

“The coaches were guiding the training,” he said. “They were not controlling. They weren’t on top of the kids. They were not stopping the play for every mistake.

“None of them yelled. The only time they barked was when kids were screwing around. That’s when they said, ‘Hey, cut it out!’ And boom, the intensity went back up.”

It’s important, Reyna says, to avoid the temptation to focus on mistakes:

“When you first start coaching young players, you see so many things, because, yes, they make mistakes, and if you see a lot of mistakes you want to correct a lot of mistakes. But these coaches were really letting the kids learn the game.”

In the United States, youth soccer struggles to stifle the influence of traditional American sports.

“In our country, we feel we have to do things because of our other sports, which are very much dominated by calling a timeout, writing up a play, 'do this, do that,'” he says. “There is more of an influence from the coach in those sports to solve a situation for the players.”

Another trait of the youth coaches at clubs that succeed at producing top-level players was that they “were very organized, professional, very prepared.

“You could see that they knew what they were doing from one exercise to the next.”

Reyna was struck by the humility of the youth coaches at the pro clubs:

“Very humble. Devoted to their jobs. I got to speak to so many coaches and it was almost when I asked them things they were embarrassed to talk about it. They’d say things like, ‘We’re a part of something else. The kids are students. We’re their teachers. We have to do this job, then we pass them on to the next coach and he does his job, and I get the next group in.’

“And it was very, very powerful to see these guys who were working behind the scenes. They don’t get any credit, no one knows who they are, and for me they were fantastic coaches.”

During games, Reyna observed that “at the best places the youth coaches are sitting down. And if they get up to give instructions, they sit right back down again.

“When the game is going on, all the coaches should just sit down. I think if you ask any player at the youth level, if the coach is on the sidelines standing, it brings tension. You can sense it.”

Coaches at the foreign pro clubs Reyna observed are judged by how many players end up reaching the highest level. And that’s what Reyna says should be the measure for American youth coaches.

“For me, it’s irrelevant if coaches win state cups, regional cups, national cups,” he says. “We get a lot of resumes -- I don’t mean people shouldn’t put that in their resumes – but how many trophies they have in their cabinet isn’t important to me. It’s about the kids, it’s not about you.

“We care about how many players you develop rather than how many trophies you win.

“What is the plan you have? What is your style of play? What’s your philosophy? What do you teach them? What do you do with your staff? If you don’t address that, then what are you doing? Going from week-to-week trying to win games?”

(Mike Woitalla, the executive editor of Soccer America, coaches youth soccer for East Bay United in Oakland, Calif. His youth soccer articles are archived at YouthSoccerFun.com.)

     I feel it is very important to understand what US Soccer is trying to accomplish. And in many ways, this is what Ohio Elite Soccer Academy is trying to do as well. US Soccer is focused on developing players to be their best. Their charge is to produce players that become professionals, understand and can adapt to different variables (coaches, fields, players, fans, etc.) without having a coach tell them, and will populate our Men's and Women's National Teams, and ultimately compete in the World Cup (and hopefully some day soon WIN a title).
     Now, WINNING, as Mr. Sheen so eloquently stated, is part of our culture. We should continue to embrace it, but should technical and tactical development be sacrificed for the sake of winning in youth soccer?  Wins and losses will always be a part of the criteria for judging a coaches ability, but if we truly want to know their success we must look at the players they have helped develop. Ask yourself, are the kids he/she coached still playing 1-3-5-10 years later? What level did the kids reach (varsity, collegiate, professional)? And finally, ask the players, did you get better as a player, as a person?

Dave Schureck
USSF A License
Ohio Elite Soccer Academy

Dave Schureck named Director of Goalkeeping and Marketing

2011-08-17T13:47:00.005-04:00

I am very pleased to announced that Dave Schureck has accepted the position of Director of Goalkeeping & Marketing. The 2011-12 year will be the third for Dave at Ohio Elite, spending all of last year as our goalkeeper trainer.

The position addresses two major goals we set in the last cycle: (1) expanding our goalkeeper position to include the integration in team training and more importantly completing the cycle of learning for each of our goalkeepers by attending games and tournaments; (2) improve our ability to market the club and its players through social and local media as well as via our website.

Dave is a former NCAA Division I coach at Xavier and Dayton, where he earned A-10 Coach of Year honors. While a student-athlete at Xavier University, Dave earned a B.S. in Sports Marketing and was twice named an All-Ohio goalkeeper.

Trip Report 2 - 2-21-11

2011-02-21T09:58:00.001-05:00

Yesterday after training and the reserve match we were able to go to the First Team away at Quilmes. Estudiantes won 1-0. We all enjoyed sitting with the EDLP fans in the “Popular” section next to the “Bara Brava”. It was an education for the players and chaperones. It was enjoyable to see their reaction!

This morning the guys had a light training with the EDLP players and then relaxed by the pool for an hour. Then they have lunch and will rest before their match with EDLP. After the match the group will do a city tour of La Plata and go for pizza in the city.

As I am writing this, the chaperones and the youth players are on their way to a local resteraunt where I will meet them for lunch. Then we will got to Estudiantes to watch the match. At 6:00 - 8:00 p.m. the youth players will train. After they train I will take them to meet up the with the group in La Plata.

Everyone is having a great time here. Tomorrow we are going to take the boat to Uruguay for a city tour. It should be a wonderful trip. The weather here is very nice 86 with a cool breeze. Nice!

Trip Report.

2011-02-21T09:53:00.000-05:00

Today is Sunday, February 20, 2011 - Day 3 in Argentina. It’s 11:24 a.m. and boys are playing frisbee in the yard, killing a little time before lunch. This morning the guys had an early training session and then we watched the reserves play Quilmes. EDLP won 4-2. It was a great experience for the guys to see a game of this quality up close. Especially with Michael Hoyes in the team. Tonight we will see the first team play.

I am proud of how well the guys are adjusting. The guys are getting their legs now after a few hard training sessions. They will be tested tomorrow when they have their first match with the EDLP players.

The Futbol Infantil players (youth ages 8-13) players are of on the weekend. They trained really hard on Friday, arrival day. They did well as the session got going. They have some new friends and nicknames.

The chaperones are having a great time touring the cities and eating great food! We all did a quick tour of Buenos Aires with a little shopping. It’s a great joy to share my experiences and these experiences with the group and there is a lot more to follow. I like seeing everyone testing themselves and enjoying the experience.

...and Were Off!!!

2011-02-21T09:52:00.000-05:00

The Ohio Elite Soccer Academy International Training Program has taken off. Literally and figuratively. We are on our way to Argentina for 10 days to train and play with Estudiantes de La Plata, tour Buenos Aires, La Plata and Uruguay. We left our teammates, friends and loved ones behind. The players, chaperones and I are embarking on this unbelievable journey, to learn, to experience a different culture, try new things and to stretch our comfort zones. We are ready to challenge ourselves and we are ready to take full advantage of this awesome opportunity.

Thanks to everyone who believed in me, the program, who supported us and helped us accomplish our goals.

If you would like to follow our trip we created an Ohio Elite YouTube page. You can also check us out on Facebook and Twitter. Links:

Take care

Thank You

2011-01-28T17:06:00.002-05:00

2011 OESA International Training Program - Argentina Fundraiser, was a huge success. It was a special night out in O’Bryonville to help raise money for the players headed to Argentina to train with Estudiantes de La Plata. I want to thank all the members and staff of Ohio Elite Soccer Academy who came out to support this program. It was nice to be out, enjoy great food, and be with people invested in our club who are determined to make this program a success.

I would also like to thank everyone who donated their time, services, funds and gifts to help raise money to assist these players go to Argentina.

In no particular order:

Gulf Shores Rentals, John Boller www.gulfshoresrentals.com and Robert Connor, condo owner. (contact John for all your Lower Alabama vacation needs)
Mike Lane of Diamond Rock
Uncorked at the Art of Entertaining
Explosion Fitness
Tonics at the Cincinnati Sports Club
Village Spa
Amy Holt of Designs on Madison
Sally Fennell
Jon Mendelsohn, M.D., F.A.C.S. of Advanced Cosmetics Surgery and Laser Center
Steve Flesch
Joseph Caligaris M.D.
Steve Lohre M.D.

Rob Schuermann to blame for the noise!

2010-06-18T14:15:00.004-04:00

We have found the origin of the aweful noise you hear during the World Cup. His name is Rob Schuermann! Here is a picture of him before the USA game against Slovenia.

Team Ohio NIKE Cup

2010-05-03T09:21:00.002-04:00

Ohio Elite boy's team continued a very successful spring 2010 season by placing 4 of 7 teams in the Finals, winning 2 Championships in the NIKE Cup, April 24-25.

The U-12 Academy and U-14 Academy teams won their respective divisions and the U-9 and U-15 teams also came home with hardware. The U-11 and U-13 teams each went 1-1-1 losing to the eventual champion in pool play.

Spring 2010 has been one of the most successful seasons for the boys' program in the eight-year history of the club. This success is a testament to our players and coaching staff, as well as the curriculum which was established during the Fall 2009 season and includes true Academy-style and position-specific training.

2010 Spring Classic

2010-04-19T09:26:00.003-04:00

The 2010 Spring Classic was held this past weekend at Miami Whitewater Forest and was incredibly successful. We have been able to grow the event from 77 teams in 2009 to 116 teams in 2010 and yet it was even smoother and more efficient.

As an organization we owe a debt of gratitude to our membership and volunteerism. We required nearly 80 volunteer positions on the weekend and the membership did not disappoint.

Special thanks to:

Scott Smallwood, Tournament Co-Director
Eileen O'Shaughnessy, Co-Registration
Shari Bundshuh, Co-Registration
Angie Kandil, Awards
Melissa Berner, Team Solicitation
George Franskenstien, Golf carts
Dan Seig, Registration tent
Rick Bowling, Hotels
Stephanie Besl, Volunteers
Julie Dove, Volunteers
Jeannie, Niebuhr, Volunteers

USSDA Winter Showcase 2009

2009-12-03T09:53:00.008-05:00

The Third Annual U.S. Soccer Development Academy Winter Showcase gets underway tomorrow, December 4, in Phoenix, AZ. The Development Academy has evolved over the past three years and this event will be no different.

The 2007 Spring Showcase in Rockford, IL is the standard by which I will continue to compare, but as I built our itinerary this event seems to have it all... meaningful meetings, coaching education, exposure to the U-17 National Teams, every game scouted by the U.S. Soccer scout and the most college coaches of any soccer event in the country.

The event isn't perfect though. In fact, the players will miss too much school over the next few days at a time that couldn't be worse. The Federation has agreed to work better to create a schedule in the future that at least saves us one day at the 2010 Winter Showcase. We have built 3 different mandatory study hall periods into the schedule this weekend.

The player's focus will obviously be their three matches across four days. The day off will be spent with recovery, study hall, and the NIKE Soccer + Master Control program.

"See how you rate against other USSDA players by taking the Cesc Fabregas challenge. Trial the Nike CTR 360 Maestri boot and receive a unique code (typically only available with CTR360 Maestri boot purchase) to download exclusive Nike Elite Training Control Camp on Nikesoccer.com."

As a group we'll be able to watch the U-17 MNT Portgual v Netherlands and U-17 MNT USA v Netherlands. Its a tremendous opportunity for our players and coaches. The player lounge is available with FREE Gatorade for all and X-Box FIFA 2010.

For the first time at a Showcase, the coaching schedule is rather extensive. Our coaches will attend the following sessions at different times over the weekend:

Developing an Elite Training Session (classroom)
NIKE Soccer + Master Control (field)
SPARQ Speed, Power and Agility for Soccer (field)
Translating an Elite Training Session from Paper to Practice (field)

My schedule is completely filled. Obviously, my focus will be our games. This is my first event going to sit in the second chair for both games, something I am looking forward to. I am responsible for the SPARQ warm-up for the teams in each game and providing input and feedback to the coaches. I will scout our third opponent while Marc is scouting our second.

Additionally, I will attend a classroom session on Developing an Annual Training Plan (Note: the Ohio Elite SA Annual Training Plan is published on the U-15/16 OESA-NWC and U-17/18 OESA team pages.) and SPARQ Soccer Forum.

I have organized a meeting with the Midwest Pre-Academy League teams this weekend to finalize our spring schedules. More on the Pre-Academy League after the meeting, but these are the teams involved - most of whom have not put their top U-14 & U-15 teams in the MRL - Ohio Elite SA, Crew Soccer Academy, Indiana United (fka: Carmel), Vardar, Derby Country Wolves, Internationals, Chicago Magic, Sockers FC, Chicago Fire and FC Milwaukee. This league will again provide our younger teams with the most competitive opportunities of any club in Cincinnati.

I'll be tweeting regularly this weekend. For a behind the scenes look and updates follow me at www.twitter.com/mikecullina

Want to learn more about the Development Academy and its future at Ohio Elite SA? Which rumors are true and which are not? Put February 21 on your calendar for a 'U.S. Soccer Development Academy Town Hall' with U.S. Soccer Full-time Technical Director for the Central Conference Louis Mateus.

CNY United FC Joins Empire United Soccer Academy

2009-11-20T09:07:00.004-05:00

CNY United FC Joins Empire United Soccer Academy

In the past year Ohio Elite SA has reached out to area clubs to work together to field one USSDA team representative of the city of Cincinnati per the growing trend around the country instead of the typical youth soccer politics that benefit no one. We are very pleased to be working with Northern Warren County and look forward to future relationship for the benefit of the game, its players and its coaches.

Well Done Rochester/Syracuse!

www.twitter.com/mikecullina

2009 Fall Season

2009-09-09T09:12:00.012-04:00

With Labor Day now behind us we look forward to the rhythm of the Fall season. While I enjoy coaching the older players, the fall season is the best time of the year for a full-time coach charged with player development. The fall brings fewer distractions, a longer season, better weather (except daylight issues), and a much better training:games ratio.

U.S. Soccer Staff Coach Roberto Lopez has already visited twice and is set for a third in October when we host the USSF "C" License re-test. His first visit on August 25 was aimed at evaluating our academy training program and providing feedback to our players and staff. It was invaluable! On his return yesterday, he was able to work with our top training pool and then review the changes we made to improve the product. Just getting another set of respected eyes to provide feedback to me and our staff is huge, but when you consider it comes from a full-time U.S. Soccer Staff Coach, who worked with the U-14 BNT and will be in Florida later this month to work with the U-17 BNT we couldn't be luckier.

Beginning this fall we have implimented true academy training with 2 program enhancements - the Tuesday Academy Night and Open Training.

Tuesday Academy Night
We bring in invited U-10's and all the U-11 through U-14 players and coaches for a 2-hour session. Players are put in training pools that change every two weeks based on several criteria. We have players training up/down age groups and later in the season will look at adding positional play (U-13 & U-14 primarily) to the criteria. The academy training is based on developing the individual player. We use the other 2-3 days of training to develop the player within a team concept.

(Note: I made a comment in an earlier blog that I believe high school freshmen shouldn't play Varsity soccer and that has some how been spun to say I don't believe in kids playing up when in fact the opposite is true. A 14 or 15 year old boy playing and more importantly socializing with 17 and 18 year men is a far different argument than a kid playing up a year or even two.)

Open Training
When I first arrived at OE I told the parents that our training sessions, except the Development Academy, are open to all players provided both coaches are notified. I re-iterated that policy this season and we are seeing many more players take advantage of it. Personally, I'd like to train 4 days/week, but the reality is a majority of families have lives outside of soccer that would make it improbable. With the rule of 10,000 (it takes 10,000 hours to become an expert at something) in mind we don't want to hold the those kids who want the additional training back. We now have a couple dozen players who have trained or regularly train an additional day with another team. An additional 90-minute session each week over the course of a 12-week season is an additional 18 hours of training.

Welcome Back!!

2009-08-24T12:10:00.004-04:00

The kids going back to school tomorrow officially signals the beginning of the fall in the Cullina household. We took to summer off from blogging and tweeting, but with us now completely immersed in the fall season both are back to keep both our membership and those of you interested in the goings on at Ohio Elite informed.

The Ohio Elite Facebook page now boasts 181 fans and will soon feature more posts and discussions in our discussion forum. We will monitor the discussion board to ensure posters are identified with legitimate FB accounts/names as well as to be actively involved in the discussion and answer questions posted on the discussion board.

Both myself and Tim have created personal twitter accounts (we welcome any pressure placed on Doug to do the same). After deleting all the spam followers, OE Twitter currently has 94 followers. (If we have mistakenly blocked you, please send me an email.) Expect regular tweets again starting this week. We are transitioning the @ohioelite account to post club-wide information. Follow me directly @mikecullina.

A Look Inside from Nationals - Part 1 Preparation

2009-07-26T18:34:00.018-04:00

I wanted to provide a view of nationals from a coaches perspective. What were we thinking about? What were the challenges? How did we approach each game. This is a technical look at my experience from nationals and the preparation leading up to nationals. I apologize ahead of time for the length, but I want to give some detail.

When we were U14 and made it to nationals I don't think we understood what we were there for. When I say that I don't mean just the players. I include myself in that statement. Oh yes, not only have the players learned along the way, the coach has too. What we learned is that you have to be willing to change and adapt. Most of all we learned that every game will provide a significant challenge. Arriving again at U18 was awesome. The players knew exactly what we were there to do.

Background Factors Leading Into Nationals

Systems of Play - In 90% of our games a 3 forward system is best for us. Most teams have struggled to deal with our pressure in that system. At the highest level we know that there are teams that can deal with our pressure so we have opted for a more defensive approach in those games. Anyone that has ever seen us play knows that we are an attacking team, but I have learned that at the top level you just can't concede goals and win. Games and opponents dictate the system. We try to play the system that can make us successful against a given opponent. For example, against Minnesota Thunder in the regional semi-final we knew from experience that they struggled with our 3 forwards and did not have overly dangerous attacking individuals so we played 3-4-3. The result ended 5-0 in our favor. In the regional final against Michigan Hawks we knew it would be a more defensive game and they were talented in attack so we played 4-2-3-1. The result ended 1-0 in our favor. We certainly have systems that we are more comfortable in than others, but we set it up based on the circumstances. I have asked the team to play many systems over the past few years so we are comfortable in most. More importantly we have the talented players to fit most any system.

Substitutions - One of the biggest strengths of our team is that we have 20 very capable players. In the past I have tightened our rotation in big games. I think that has hurt us at times. I have put a lot of faith in our bench this year and it has paid off. In every game at regionals all field players that dressed played a part in every game. Many big games this year have been decided by players off of our bench. The season is very long and demanding. I credit our bench for a great deal of our success this year. We weren't about to change our thinking leading up to nationals.

20 Players Means 2 Sit - The hardest part of regionals and nationals was the knowledge that if we stayed healthy 2 players would not be able to dress for each game. Having 20 players has been great for training and cover throughout the season, but with every player fit to play it was very hard. These decisions were based on current form, opponent, chosen system of play and other factors. Examples of other factors were the possibility of going to penalties, getting players rest, etc... Emotion is not involved in these decisions. As a coach they are the toughest decisions, but also your responsibility. When you have 20 very capable players it's even harder. If I had it to do over again I would take 20 players on the team. The reality is all of these players will face fierce competition at the college level. We have and will continue to create the most competitive environment possible.

Distractions - With these players going off to college we never had everyone at training in the 3 weeks leading up to nationals. Many players had to go to summer school, college camps and college orientation. There is much planning that also goes into going to nationals. Hotels, transportation, meetings, media obligations and meals. I just try to shield the players as much as possible from any outside distractions. It is tough. You try to keep things as normal as possible. All the parents, siblings and grandparents are there as well they should be. Fortunately we qualified for the final after our second game which allowed some free time for the players and their families. It is a delicate balance between preparing properly and enjoying the experience. It's an art, not a science.

Coming soon...Part 2 - The Games at Nationals

Misinformation Rules the Day...

2009-06-03T09:16:00.017-04:00

We live in a world where facts sometimes mean little and people are left to sift through what is real and what is not. Youth soccer mirrors the world I am speaking of and sometimes is worse. Misinformation, propaganda and spin continue to attempt to mislead people in the world of youth soccer. This is most definitely the case in our community.

It's gone even farther these days. There is an obvious and very calculated effort to cause confusion by spreading misinformation. It is one thing to have an opinion about something. It is very different to present misinformation as fact. Making statements like Ohio Elite is getting kicked out of the U.S. Development Academy is irresponsible and without basis. Claiming Ohio Elite does not support high school soccer and threatens our players into playing for our fall team is another example of what I am talking about. Worse yet is speculating on the future employment of people who have chosen soccer as their profession. Finally, the lowest of the low are those who talk directly about individual kids. Those who make these type of statements should be embarrassed by this behavior.

Many of the people making these statements hide in anonymity on message boards and public forums. These forums can be a great avenue for discussion. They can also be destructive. Their presence will continue to allow gutless anonymous posters to recklessly spread information about organizations and individuals that is far from true. It empowers those who have no real voice in the soccer community. Unfortunately it also overshadows the posters that understand the real intention of these forums which I believe is healthy opinion and discussion.

I have always had the utmost respect for the people and organizations who work hard making their product the best it can be. I try to have a policy of not talking about other organizations and focus on what I think is great about what we do. I also know that Ohio Elite is not for everyone. That's perfectly okay. Bottom line is that if you do a great job your players will stay and new players will come, period. I think that we are very successful in that regard and I also think there are other organizations out there doing a great job.

When selecting a team and club for your child I encourage you to do your homework. Beware of those who bash others. They are often afraid you will find out the truth. Like the opinions in this blog or not at least you know who they are coming from.

Understanding the Club's role in Player Development

2009-05-27T10:38:00.019-04:00

I am often asked about the Development Academy and Elite Clubs National League. Certainly the top players should be in these leagues, but as important as playing in the league is the question of why Ohio Elite is the only member of either and the only NIKE Premier Club in Cincinnati .

Is it our Infrastructure? Coaching? Connections? Politics? Knowledge of the various processes? The simple answer is yes and it is equally important to consider when determining the club your child should play for. Tim is on the US Club BOD, Doug is the V.P. of the ECNL and I was an original member of the MRL Commission (all volunteer positions btw). These are not coincidence.

While training and coaching are the most important and the best parts of our job we spend an equal amount of time away from the field ensuring these opportunities for our players. When proper programming doesn't exist, Tim, Doug and myself have a proven record of helping to create them. The EPL was the first league in Cincinnati to have small-sided games while myself and other area directors worked with other league administrators to adopt it a year later.

Ohio Elite was the only club in Cincinnati to apply for the Development Academy when U.S. Soccer announced it was accepting applications during the spring of 2007. While other clubs made the decision not to apply (I personally made such a decision) or took a wait and see approach, Ohio Elite was once again the leader with its acceptance into a League. U.S. Soccer continues to show a commitment to the inaugural clubs and accepted only 5 clubs out of a pool of 250 applicants for year number three.

There are many qualified trainers in Cincinnati, each with his/her own strengths, but clubs have a responsibility to its membership off the field to help create the right environment for its players on the field. The game is evolving with technical people having a greater influence in policies and programming. In a two-week period in the middle of May, Tim, Doug and I were involved in nearly 30 conference calls and meetings - local, regional and national - directly related to League play and programming.

Membership in these Leagues and the opening of the new 30-acre facility confirm Ohio Elite's commitment toward meeting ALL the demands of players development.

Too Much Emphasis on State Cup

2009-05-07T08:38:00.023-04:00

As I sat through, and ran between State Cup games this weekend I started thinking about the State Cup tournament. Specifically as it relates to what we do at Ohio Elite or more importantly what we are trying to do. My main thought was how much emphasis is put on State Cup. Of course we all want to win and be successful, but is a one and out tournament like State Cup really a good gauge of success?

I say this after we advanced six teams to the final weekend on the girls side second only to OP who has seven. Next closest Cincinnati club was CUP with four. Having said that, isn't a greater indicator of success a team competition that lasts over an extended period of time like the Midwest Regional League or the new Elite Clubs National League. This is where you play the top competition in the region and nation everytime out. Our U18 girls won MRL for the fifth time and the U15 and U16 girls still have a legitimate chance at the wild-card to regionals.

Individually, I look at the kids we have going to the next level (college/pro) as an indicator. I am happy to say every one of our U18 players (Academy and Gold) is going to play in college. Now that's something to be proud of. How are our players doing when they leave us for college, high school and US National Team duty? We have seen great success from Ohio Elite girls players in all of these arenas.

Unfortunately, we do and probably will continue to live in a world of youth soccer that rewards short term success and often fails to see the big picture. Good luck to all of our teams this weekend in the State Cup semi-finals and finals. We will be working as hard as we can to win as many as we can, but it won't be the end of the world if we don't.

U.S. Soccer Delays U-14 Development Academy League

2009-05-04T10:00:00.000-04:00

In a conference call on April 23, U.S. Soccer announced that it will not launch a Development Academy League for the U-14 age group in 2009-10. While disappointed, we certainly appreciate that it should not launch the league if there are still important logistical issues that could not be addressed in the appropriate amount of time to allow clubs to enter the tryout cycle. (Several clubs have already had tryouts for the 2009-10 year.)

The Northeast and Southeast have decided to move forward with a U.S. Club Soccer Pre-Academy League this fall and several clubs in our Region are interested in discussing the concept. The Columbus Crew has taken the lead on the project for our Region and we have expressed our interest in the discussion. Depending on who joins the League travel will be very similar to the Midwest Regional League - Chicago, St. Louis, Detroit, Cleveland, Indianapolis, Columbus - with travel outside the Region for tournaments only, not League games.

At this time, we have decided to reserve a decision regarding the program pending further discussion. While I believe that programming for high school freshmen capable of playing at the level of the Academy should exist, I have reservation about taking that stand for the 2009-10 year without legitimate support from enough capable players and other clubs to make the programming worth their while.

The majority of high school freshmen should play high school soccer. This would be for serious soccer players ONLY and those with a long-term goal of playing in the full U.S. Soccer Development Academy.

More to come...

Swine Flu Affects Development Academy

2009-04-30T19:36:00.004-04:00

After careful consideration and after several conversations with U.S. Soccer and the Columbus Crew it was with little hesitation that we have decided to cancel our trip to San Antonio and Austin to play Lonestar and Classic Elite in U.S. Soccer Development Academy matches this weekend.

U.S. Soccer fully supported the collective decision made by Ohio Elite and the Columbus Crew who is our travel partner in the Development Academy.

The uncertainty regarding the threat of the Swine Flu outbreak in Texas as well as the actions of local officials to close several schools and cancel all school athletics until May 11 weighed heavily in our decision. The risks of going far outweighed the cancellation fees assessed by the airlines and any logistical inconvenience.

Become a FAN of Ohio Elite on Facebook

2009-04-23T13:58:00.002-04:00

In recognition of the growing trend of social networking, Ohio Elite Soccer Academy has created a profile on Facebook. Facebook is recognized as the largest social networking website in the world. To become a fan of Ohio Elite go to www.facebook.com or link from our website at www.ohioelite.com.

Dealing with Players Returning from Injury Responsibly

2009-04-20T17:18:00.009-04:00

It is a fact of life that players will suffer injuries during the course of a season. With limited roster sizes and a crowded schedule of games coaches can feel pressure to rush players back to playing. It can be difficult to watch your teams struggle when the addition of a couple of key players out injured could make the world of difference.

I come at this strictly from a coaches perspective. I have played and coached at the college and youth level and have gained some experience on this subject. I have had short-term and long-term injuries myself. I have also talked to doctors, trainers and players about injuries and how to deal with players returning from them. I try to have an in or out policy. If you can participate in training you can do so at 100% with no restrictions. If you can not participate at 100% with no restrictions you should be limited to running or work on the side if permitted. For me there is no "I can play for 10 minutes" or at 50%, etc...

I look at injuries in two catagories.

1. Short-term Injuries - strains, sprains, mild concussions, etc...

2. Long-term Injuries - broken bones, ligament tears and other serious physical injuries

In the case of short-term injuries I have found that when a player feels 100% they should wait another week or two before they enter training. When first coming back players from muscle strains, sprains and mild concussions players will feel good, but need that additional week or two to help combat a re-aggravation of the injury. It is important that the player gets meaningful full speed training in before returning to game action.

In the case of long-term injuries it is important that you require the player to train for 4-6 weeks at 100% with no restrictions before introducing them into a game situation. This is for physical and mental reasons. Cleared does not mean ready to play. Cleared means ready to return to training. Players should look comfortable and confident before playing in a game. When dealing with female players, ACL and serious knee injuries are a major issue. Re-injury happens, but can be minimized by a proper plan in integrating the player back into your team.

It is the responsibility of coaches in the case of both types of injuries to look out for the long-term well being of the player and not the short-term gain of the team. Finally, I encourage players to be responsible and mature enough to be honest about their injuries and their ability to play at 100%. Unfortunately, sometimes as coaches all we have is the word of the player and the parents to make our decision.

Spring Training

2009-04-16T13:04:00.000-04:00

Although the month of Spring Break is for the most part over, the season of rain continues. The past few weeks have been about combining sessions and coordinating with other training groups to make training meaningful for those in attendance.

We are cautious when deciding when to have training and when to cancel. The facility is less than a year into use and is still a work in progress. We also haven't gone through a spring season before so we are learning just how quickly the fields drain. (Btw, it appears as though they drain very quickly, almost too quickly actually.)

That said, our ultimate goal and responsibility is training. Because training is the priority, we will only cancel early in the day when we know the fields will be closed due to an accumulation of rain or a relatively certain forecast that includes dangerous weather. We will often make decisions at the field when weather is predicted, but hasn't yet impacted the fields. On these days we ask that parents remain available in case we end training early due to lightning.

Please continue to check the weather line each and every day during the Spring. DO NOT rely on the Club-wide calling system as your only source for knowing when practice is canceled.

Creating a Culture...

2009-04-07T18:52:00.031-04:00

I frequently evaluate and evolve the way we approach things with our teams and our players. When we approach a process of development we prioritize the entities that exist within our club in order of importance.

Player
Club
Team

With this in mind I have come to the conclusion that we are required to challenge our players based on their individual ability. Those challenges may be technical, tactical, physical, mental, social or as leaders. We must create a culture in which our top players set the standard. We must first identify top players that need more than what their team can provide. Then we must provide those top players unique training and competition options. We will continue to achieve this in a number of ways moving forward.

Offer top players the opportunity to train with older high level teams within the club.
Offer top players the opportunity to guest play with older high level teams within the club.
Roster top younger players on older teams.
Introduce Elite Player Training Program in which top 18-20 player in U11-U14 age groups and U15-U18 age groups come to together to train one time per week. We will also look to have these players play together at a tournament/showcase during the season.

These concepts can only help these players. In addition, they help all of our players by setting a clear standard. It is my hope that this will also motivate other players to strive for these opportunities.

I sat this weekend watching Manchester United v. Aston Villa. Frederico Macheda a Manchester United 17 year old came on to score the game winner in this crucial EPL match. Every first team opportunity can only help this youngster understand what is required to be successful. In the future this young man may star for Manchester United or another club. After the game the Manchester United Manager, Alec Ferguson noted that over 60 players from their youth program have gone on to play for various clubs in English professional leagues. Not a bad track record in teaching young player to be professionals.

Although we are not dealing with young professional players we must continue to challenge our players with unique opportunities.

Blogging from Ohio Elite

2009-04-06T09:00:00.001-04:00

This blog was originated about a year ago as a means to communicate our philsophy and highlight Ohio Elite Soccer Academy to our membership and the soccer community. Its important to self-evaluate and toward that end Doug and I have agreed on the following adaptation of this blog.

We aspire to post a new blog each week, alternating every other. (Doug's up next week!)
As a general rule we will shorten our blogs to make for an easier read for our readers
We will allow reader comments, but only after reviewing them and without apology eliminating those that lack a certain decorum and signature (no anonimous posts here)
While the Development Academy and Elite Clubs National League are unique to Ohio Elite, we aim to provide a broad range of topics from the entire club

Time to Run Again...

2009-03-19T10:00:00.000-04:00

In 2007, we established the Donna Vinson Memorial Scholarship. The idea came to me first and foremost to make sure her daughter Sarah had her fees taken care of until she left Ohio Elite. The idea grew into a scholarship fund that could help families in need play for Ohio Elite. I added my love for running and found that others had the same love and/or the desire to honor Donna Vinson. The 2007 Cleveland Marathon was a great success. My worst time ever, but one of my most satisfying races. Then I decided I would run a race every year for this cause. Last year it was the 112th Boston Marathon on April 21, 2008. Running last year in Boston in her honor most certainly pushed me a little more around mile 20 when I started to hurt and complain, something Donna or Sarah would never do. Like Sarah I simply put my head down and pushed to the end.

This year I approached Sarah about running a race with me. We chose the 32nd Heart Mini-Marathon in Cincinnati on March 29, 2009. Although I am not certain Sarah is thrilled to be running a 15k (no soccer player really likes to run unless they are chasing a ball), she wants to play a part in advancing this cause. That's just the kind of kid she is. All class.

It feels strange to bring this cause to light every year because Donna and the Vinson Family would never want to be in the spot light. They are the picture of hard working, dedicated and humble people. I get the feeling that they may even be embarrassed by the small attention this brings their way. In fact, I never really asked them if it was okay to establish this scholarship in Donna's name. I think maybe they would have said no. That fact gave me and others every reason to do it.

For those who knew Donna they knew a very positive woman who loved to watch the 90/91 Ohio Elite Girls' (then U11 and U12) play. She made it out when she could after she became ill when Sarah was 12. She was a great support as is her husband Todd. They were the perfect soccer parent's as far as I am concerned. They supported Sarah, the team and the club to the utmost. They always seem to put Sarah ahead of anything else. She was at every practice, game and tournament we ever had. Donna and Todd made sure of that.

Then there is Sarah. The kid just finds a way to make an impact on our team. She says little, but she doesn't need to say anything. Her actions speak for her. I truly believe that Sarah would do anything to help her team be successful and she has. She always put the team ahead of herself. Like a lot of players she has had her ups and downs through the developmental process. In the tough times she always put her head down and worked harder to sort it out. She has been the definition of a team player. In the good times she was simply our most valuable asset. The best story I can tell is Sarah asking me recently if it was okay to go to a Christian Camp this past summer prior to our playing in regionals. She promised she would run every day and be well prepared, but she thought the camp would be a great experience. Imagine my surprise given Sarah has never asked for any special consideration. She didn't need to ask this time either.

Most of you who read this don't know Donna or Sarah. But for every reason the Vinson Family would prefer not to have the attention there is every reason to hold them up as an example.
I hope that many will find in their hearts to support this cause. Most of all I know Donna and Sarah would be happy to have their family name attached to something that helps kids play soccer. For more information about the Donna Vinson Memorial Scholarship go to http://www.ohioelite.com/.

Sarah an I are off for a run!

-Doug

Ohio Elite College Showcase - A Behind the Scenes Look

2009-03-10T16:32:00.000-04:00

After two very long and quite stressful weekends on the OE College Showcase Tournament I thought it may be interesting reading to get a behind the the scenes look at everything that went into the event.

First and foremost, our volunteer base at Ohio Elite is incredible. We implemented a policy that each family must volunteer 10 hours across the year, but it still impresses me how the membership stepped up to make the event a huge success. On the two weekends we had nearly 300 volunteer slots that were filled. It was cold and yet our volunteers, including my wife who took two shifts at Turpin, braved the temperatures admirably.

On behalf of the Directors, THANK YOU!!

My first official event as a member of Ohio Elite was the 2008 Men's weekend. I knew at that time that I wanted a larger role in the men's weekend itself, but had no idea I would assume the role of Tournament Director for the club as a whole.

Nick Flohre was our Tournament Director, but when he assumed a larger role in the facility the time he was able to commit to the various events was limited. Doug, Tim and I discussed it and I assumed the role. There wasn't a series of meetings or discussion at the board level. We just decided what needed to be done and we did it. In fact, I'm not even sure if all our board members know I am the Tournament Director.

I tell that story because it relates directly to the event itself and how we handle various decisions within the event.

The most difficult part of the team selection and scheduling process is avoiding coaching conflicts. We had planned on identifying facilities for each age group/level to make it easier for college coaches to find the appropriate groups for them. Unfortunately, in order to help coaches of multiple teams, we had to move teams to other sites. Town & Country was the only facility where with the exception of 1 game on Friday night of the girls event we held true to our plans.

Our tournament committee does a great job of handling volunteers, hospitality and registration making it much easier to handle the other areas of need. I greatly appreciate everyone's role within the committee.

We have two challenges in the event, both of which are largely out of our control: (1) college coach attendance, (2) weather.

The women's event was very well attended by college coaches with overflow seating in the T&C observation area for most of the event as well as college coaches traveling to other sites. The men's coaching list increased from a year ago, but with fewer schools combined with a later and more defined recruiting calendar attendance was less than the women. That said, it is the player's responsibility to communicate with coaches regarding their schedule. Simply attending a Showcase does not necessarily lead to getting recruited. Too few clubs educate their families on their role in the recruiting process. If you are good and you do the work, coaches will see you play.

As a side note, one of the concerns with the Development Academy is the opportunity to attend Showcases and get exposure for our players. Most forward-thinking Showcase events (e.g. CASL, Disney, Dallas Cup) have reached out to the Development Academy and received approval for DA teams to attend. Others have simply allowed league matches to be played in conjunction with the event as a win-win for the teams and the event itself. (OE hosted 4 matches at the OE Showcase, Carmel will host 4 at the Crossroads, Strikers will host 4 at the Jeff Cup, Sockers will host 4 at the NIKE Showcase, Surf hosted several at the Surf Cup, etc...).

By having the event the last two weekends in February, weather is certainly a challenge. (It shocks me that teams would register for an event and then complain of the cold. ITS FEBRUARY, of course its going to be cold.) Cincinnati is blessed with many turf fields. It also appears to often be on the lower edge on inclement weather patterns.

The last few days leading up to the event are the most stressful. Once the event kicks off you hope its boring for the Directors of the event. The 2008 event was battered with snow and ice. On the Monday leading into the 2009 women's event the forecast wasn't much better. It improved as the week went along, but as late as Friday morning there was still some doubt about getting the games played. I received multiple phone calls from teams expecting the event to be canceled, but we weren't going to cancel because it might snow.

As the event got underway, the forecast seemed to improve every hour. From a 100% chance of 2-3 inches by 8am on Saturday to scattered snow on Saturday evening. Here is a timeline of weather v. decisions.

Girls Weekend

Friday, 10pm - weather for Saturday morning looks promising, no reason for change
Saturday, 5am - radar looks clear, temperatures cooperate, game on
Saturday, 10am - radar remains remarkably clear
Saturday, 1pm - light rain begins, temperature begin to fall
Saturday, 4pm - cold and wet (this was probably the worst of the weekend)
Saturday, 5pm - changes to snow (reports from UC, Madeira of field concerns), send Marc Sabin to Madeira, Fred Lee is at UC, Tim Lesiak is at Anderson HS
Saturday, 6:30pm - close Maderia, last two games canceled, Anderson continues play in snow (coaches and players had a blast), UC shortens games as water begins to ice over, Sumitt's last game completed (don't have access to lights on weekends), all other fields remain playable
Saturday, 9pm - reschedule two games from Saturday, affecting 10 games in total to get 2 played
Saturday, 10pm - field inspections, Tim and I went to every site to assess the damage for Sunday morning. It is hard to explain what we saw. For example, Town & Country was completely clear, while Anderson only 7 miles away was unplayable for Sunday. Sumitt had 2-3 inches of snow on it while Walnut Hills, just a couple miles away was clear. Xavier - clear, UC - unplayable due to ice
Sunday, 12am - field inspections complete: unplayable - UC, Anderson, Madeira, Summit; questionable - Turpin, Princeton, Walnut Hills; playable - Town & Country, Xavier, Withrow

Here is the difficult part. Anderson and Turpin had plans in place to clear the fields to make them playable so they were essentially in the playable column, but we didn't know how long it would take (i.e. if the 8am games were a go). Btw, the people of Anderson and Turpin HS were the absolute best to work with. They had people on site, concessions were open and they cleared the fields to allow the event to continue.

We knew we had 3 fields that were unplayable, but I decided not to make a backup plan at that time and contact the teams because the forecast made it impossible to predict any other changes. Staying up another couple hours to make a plan that was likely to change was pointless when we expected there would be much work to do in the morning. We simply didn't know what to expect over the next few hours.

Sunday, 4:45am - conference call with Tim and Doug. The radar looked OK, but we had serious concern over the temperatures. A decision simply couldn't be made until we revisited the fields and checked the temperature first hand
Sunday, 5:15am - Doug, Tim, Nick and I dispatched to various fields to check the condition and decide on the temps. UC and Madeira were already eliminated. Sumitt was checked again, but also eliminated. Tim drew short straw and went to Princeton
Sunday, 5:45am - heavy snow begins to fall, confirmation that crews were dispatched to clear Anderson. Turpin needs a quick brush to remove loose ice. The field was playable, but we were concerned for the safety of the player is she fell and hit some of the ice. Princeton closed due to snow accumulations
Sunday, 6:30am - estimates on Anderson for 10am, Turpin for 12pm. First update to the weather hot line of a delay
Sunday, 7:15am - the four of us stood at Xavier and watched it snow. Accumulations were well over an inch and the entire event was threatened
Sunday, 7:45am - Hot line updated later than expected due to rapid change in field conditions at Xavier. Snow ended (we were probably 20 minutes at most away from cancelling the entire day) Xavier closed, remarkably this was the one field we were confident would be playable the night before. Even more remarkable, Walnut Hills and Withrow (each less than a few miles away) confirmed as open and playable. Town & Country confirmed playable. Estimates on Anderson moved to 8:30am, Turpin, 9:30am. Games at Town & Country, Walnut, Withrow to start at 8am. All games moved to 50 minutes.

This moment was the reason we decided not to communicate with the teams the night before, especially since we really didn't have good answers. By doing so, I believe we would have created more confusion and not been able to get teams to the appropriate fields to begin play. While it wasn't the most convenient for the teams, it was much easier to communicate through the field marshal to get them to another facility when they were already out of the hotel and ready to play than to get them together from the hotel to the site. That decision helped us get the day started on time and get all the games in.

Sunday, 8:00am - Teams from Xavier and UC sent to T&C to play at 9am. Summit sent to Walnut. Princeton sent to Withrow. Madeira to Anderson. Teams at Anderson to start as soon as field playable. Teams at Turpin on delay until 10am.
Sunday, 8:10am - Arrived at T&C to complete schedule. Internet access through Verizon inexplicably unavailable. Timing couldn't have been worse as we were unable to use the email and text functions within Soccer Scheduler to communicate directly with the teams. The 9:40am teams were most affected because the communication timeline was off by about a 1/2 hour. We relied on the Internet and should have had a few extra people available to contact teams directly via phone. (This was something that was addressed for the boys weekend and now part of our "emergency plan" for future events.)
Sunday, 9:20am - Schedules finally posted, final hot line update made
Sunday, various - four teams forfeited their game - 2 from Dynamo, 1 from FC Pride and 1 from Indianapolis Premier. One of our teams, a team from Columbus, one from Cleveland and one from Wisconsin affected.

Tim had an 8am game at Withrow and decided to stay between that site and Walnut Hills for the day. It allowed him the opportunity to talk with coaches from other teams a be the face of the club while Doug, Marc and I sorted out the schedules and communications. Nick was dispatched to get referee monies to the appropriate fields with the changes.

The rest of the day went without a hitch and quickly became boring for me, which was much appreciated. We didn't expect many college coaches, but they quickly came in droves and attended Sunday very well.

The 50-minute games were appropriate given the temperatures and the loss of fields. 94 of the 102 teams (4 teams that forfeited at the 4 opponents that were affected) played 210 of the 240 minutes originally scheduled. No team played less than 2 full games.

The men's weekend was much more relaxed. All games were played in full with very few delays. The weather, while still cold, cooperated. The greater challenge on the men's weekend is referees. We used many of the same referees that received high praise on the women's weekend. Unfortunately, managing the testosterone on the men's weekend is a greater challenge and one a few could not meet. That said, on the whole we received very good feedback on the officiating.

To summarize, the Ohio Elite College Showcase hosted 202 teams, used 11 turf fields, scheduled 303 games and approximately 100 referees, contracted 14 hotels and had almost 300 volunteers positions filled.

Thank you to everyone that helped make the 2009 Ohio Elite Showcase a success!

Development Academy Likely to Offer Fall Program

2009-01-28T23:13:00.008-05:00

The concept of a U-14 age group for the U.S. Soccer Development Academy has been discussed over the past year, but for the first time now appears to be inevitable.

While the specifics have much to be determined, the concept received unanimous support in a conference call on Wednesday, January 28 with the Federation and representatives from the Development Academy clubs in our Conference (OESA, Crew Jr., Carmel, Gallagher, Sockers, Chicago Magic, Metro, Empire, Vardar, Wolves, Chicago Fire, etc...). The Northeast has already started their own U-14 League through US Club Soccer this spring.

Again, the specifics (schedule, travel, etc...) will be determined over the next couple months, but the general principles I expect the League to utilize are: a limited travel schedule as compared to the U-16 and U-18 and therefore lower expenses; no "National Championship"; National and Regional Showcases in conjunction with National Team programming; and, withdraw from all US Youth competition, including ODP, MRL and State Cup as the older age groups do.

Two things are of particular interest to me.

First, as a former State Director of Coaching it is now clear to me that on the boy's side ODP as we know it is for the most part done. Until now the end was gradual, but the introduction of the U-14 age group will change the program from one of identification perhaps back to its origin of development. There are still many, many quality players around the country that either have chosen not to participate in the DA or otherwise don't have the opportunity, but the number of kids brought into National teams program through USYS ODP will drop significantly.

The second thing that jumps out is the conflict between club and high school. The Development Academy utilizes calendar year in determining the roster versus the August 1-July 31 year. Thus, the U-14's in 2009-2010 will be players born in 1995 and younger, the majority of whom will be high school freshmen in the fall. This would only affect U-14 players that are freshmen in high school as the U-16 and U-18 teams will continue to schedule after the high school season concludes. There is no expectation that this will move forward to include older players in future years.

The debate about players forgoing high school is one that has been discussed ad nausea. However, until now the debate has been limited to the girl's side of the game. The Chairman of one prominent area club indicated that offering such a program is irresponsible. I can only assume then that his club will not be applying to the Federation for Development Academy status, since it will offer a program that forces players to choose and one in which Academy members will field a team largely comprised of high school freshmen during the high school season.

I welcome the opportunity. It's one thing for a high school senior or junior to participate in high school athletics, but I can think of no value for a high school freshman. If he is good enough to play on the varsity then his physical, emotional and social health is placed at risk. If not, he plays on a JV or Freshman team. And while there are many fine high school coaches, there are very few JV or Freshmen coaches who can provide kids the proper environment. Even the best coaches would struggle to coach the best kids when the range of talent is so large.

But what about playing for your school and in front of all those fans? First of all, he'll have 3 more years to play for his school. Secondly, when is the last time you went to watch a JV or Freshman soccer game that your relative or BFF wasn't playing in. While some high schools will attempt to punish kids "for not supporting the program", even the most selfish coach should recognize that in the long run his/her program will be better off for a freshman participating in club soccer during his freshman year.

The Development Academy itself is a very good program that continues to improve in year number two. Most Technical people have openly questioned why if it's about development do we wait until 16 years old to provide such a program. Quite frankly, logistics and costs are the primary reason and now that the League is on firm footing it appears that they are now comfortable and capable of expanding into the age group that in my opinion will most benefit from principles of the League.

Call me irresponsible, but I say it's about time.

Young Players Choose Off-Season Activities Wisely...

2008-12-09T09:00:00.001-05:00

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.

Update from Los Angeles - Saturday, December 6

2008-12-06T11:24:00.003-05:00

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!!

Crew Bring MLS Cup to Ohio

2008-11-24T10:53:00.009-05:00

Congratulations to the Columbus Crew for their first ever MLS Cup Championship. The Title is a testament to patience and perseverance by the staff and front office. The Crew, who was the best team during the 2008 regular season, reversed a three-year run of finishing out of the play-offs (finishing last in the Eastern Conference in 2005 and 2006 and only ahead of expansion Toronto in 2007).

Marc Sabin and I had a chance to work with Sigi Schmid and Brian Bliss last spring as they trained our Ohio-South ODP team. They were gracious hosts who interacted with us and the boys throughout. I appreciated the time they spent talking with the boys and especially the time Coach Bliss spent talking with Marc and I.

While we compete on the field, I truly want the MLS franchises and especially the Columbus Crew to be successful. The future of our USMNT and the game as a whole depends on it.

The MLS franchises within the USSDA has been a source of great discussion. Many, including the Crew, are fully funded programs that provide a great benefit to their players and advantage to them on the field. Some in the league find it unfair. I say more power to them. Besides, we are only talking about 40-50 players. Its the dozen or so top level players in Columbus, Cincinnati and Dayton that are not part of the U.S. Soccer Development Academy that are missing the opportunity. If those players wanted to travel to Columbus three days/week for the training and are good enough to make the full roster, they should. The direct impact on our program is relatively minimal. Indirectly, the competition will only make us better. Those that don't or can't join the Crew should be part of our program here at Ohio Elite Soccer Academy.

While we work to eliminate the pay for play model in this country its about time the professional franchises take the lead on player development and many have. While the impact of the USSDA has yet to really impact the MLS, its good for the game that one which has committed to youth development is successful with their full team.

CONGRATULATIONS CREW!!

Congratulations Omid & Erin

2008-11-24T10:52:00.001-05:00

November 22, 2008

Cincinnati Enquirer Has it Mostly Right...

2008-11-10T14:57:00.037-05:00

A few weeks ago I spent some time talking to Dustin Dow of the Cincinnati Enquirer for an article he was doing about recruiting. Later he and a photographer came out to a training session to talk to some players and take some photos. Sunday the stories were published and Ohio Elite played a prominent role as several of our players and I were quoted. I have to say I was a little disappointed that they chose the day after St. Ursula and Fenwick won their respective OHSAA State Championships. For St Ursula it was their second consecutive title. It seemed like the subject of recruiting stole the headlines from what should have been the story. I am proud to say that Ohio Elite players played a major role on both high school teams. Congrats to both teams.

Several issues came up in the stories that I think need to be addressed and clarified.

1. Fees
This was the biggest inaccuracy in the article. Our fees vary according to age and level of each team. What I told the author was that our academy older age teams pay fees in the neighborhood of $1,500.00 per year. Those fees go to Ohio Elite to pay expenses incurred by that players participation in our club. These include coaching, registration/administration, tournament entry fees, etc. I told him all in I thought a player would pay $5,000.00 including fees, uniforms and travel to events in a given year. If you look around the region this number will be consistent with the other top clubs like Carmel, St. Louis Scott Gallagher, Michigan Hawks, Ohio Premier and Eclipse Select. Our fee structure is also competitive with local soccer clubs.

2. Income vs. Expenses
First it is important to note that the Ohio Elite Soccer Academy Board of Directors is made up volunteers who are in no way shape or form compensated for their work. Although they work behind the scenes, they have and always will act as the fiduciaries of the financial side of the organization and have full authority over financial matters. Funds must be collected and spent on behalf of Ohio Elite. The Board of Directors and Tim Lesiak go through a detailed budget development and approval process. This often requires that an initial budget is established that would then be adjusted to reflect current market conditions.

The financial numbers are a matter of public record as Ohio Elite is a 501 (c) 3 (non-profit) organization. I did not discuss these figures nor the salary figures with the author. Tax returns for most non-profits, which include soccer clubs, are available on the Internet. One of the articles was quoted as saying that in 2006 Ohio Elite had an income of $801,978.00 and expenses of $675,889.00. That disclosure suggested that Ohio Elite generated significant profitability in 2006. I will deal with the income side first. The article stated that this income was generated by player fees. This is not completely true. In fact, the income stated includes player fees, fundraising income, tournament income, camp income, spirit wear income and sponsorship income. Fundraising was significant in 2006 Ohio Elite to generate funding for the OE Training Center. The OE Training Center has been developed at a cost of over $600,000.00. The funding for the facility has come from a combination of contributions, fundraising, sponsorships, surplus in operating dollars and some bank debt. Obviously, Ohio Elite is very proud of this facility. It will be used by Ohio Elite and it's members for many years to come.

As for expenses and salary information, Ohio Elite is a business. Ohio Elite is not in the business of making money and building significant cash reserves. However, it does operate in a manner to build financial flexibility to ensure the long term success and viability.

The Mission Statement of the organization clearly outlines the goal.

Ohio Elite Soccer Academy Mission Statement
"To create an elite training and competition environment for boys and girls that strives to reach the highest level of success through first achieving excellence: providing a life enriching experience in an academy atmosphere that seeks to develop the complete player on and off the field of competition."

To achieve this goal, Ohio Elite must invest in and develop first class facilities and a professional staff that can provide the necessary direction and leadership to the club and it's players. Our number one draw is our professional set up. Tim, Mike and myself are all involved in every aspect of the day-to-day operation of Ohio Elite. That includes budgeting, registration/administration, facility development, program development, fundraising, team administration, advertising/marketing, website development, etc. I compare it to being the Executive Director of a non-profit organization with the type of budget described above. It is a multi-faceted full-time job that often requires us to be accessible 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, 365 days a year.

3. High School vs. Club
Although I have addressed this in a past blog I feel I must again touch on our position on playing club soccer vs. playing high school soccer in the fall season. In my mind there are a lot of reasons for a player to play for their club in the fall season. There are also a lot of reasons to play for your school. We have four players playing in our fall team this fall that will go on to play NCAA DI soccer on significant scholarship money that have been cut by their high school team. Although I find it hard to believe that they were not good enough to play for their school that is the coach's decision. We have players playing in the fall that have had very bad high school soccer experiences for whatever reason. We have players playing in the fall who are returning from serious injuries. We have players that made the individual decision that playing club was what was best for them. If we did not have a fall program those players would not be playing soccer for that period of time. We have the program because the players asked for it. I challenge anyone to find one of our players that was coerced or threatened in order to get them to play for the club in the fall. They don't exist. If they do exist, I encourage you to contact our Board of Directors directly to discuss this. As confirmation, feel free to ask our players that chose the fall team alternative about their experience. Reality is that less than 5% of our players chose to play on the Fall Team.

There have been those who have come out in support of one or the other. All I have to say is I don't support club soccer over high school or vice versa. I support our players and their needs. Most of all I support our players right to make a choice that they think is in their best interest.

In closing, I thought and we thought as an organization it was important to clarify a few things that were either misquoted or left room for misconception. When we started Ohio Elite seven years ago we set out for the financial/business side to run parallel with the soccer side. The Board of Directors was charged with guiding the financial/business side while the Directors of Coaching were charged with leading the soccer side. Along the way we have found that the two often curve and intersect; however, we have experienced success in both areas. A balanced budget and watching our player develop and move on to the next level is our measuring stick. There are many challenges ahead, but rest assured Ohio Elite will continue to "always be on the offensive" when it comes to tackling those challenges. As always we remain grateful to the outstanding families that make up Ohio Elite and have stood shoulder-to-shoulder with us throughout the years. Your investment in your sons and daughters will always be held with great regard by every member of the Ohio Elite staff and Board of Directors.

U.S. Soccer Development Academy Conference Call

2008-10-23T12:05:00.006-04:00

As we enter year number two of the U.S. Soccer Development Academy the Federation continues to adapt to "our world" as youth soccer professionals. One of the positive additions to the League is the monthly conference calls with clubs and the DA leadership. All areas are covered: administrative, technical, and referees.

Here are some highlights from the October 22, 2009 call:

A U14 schedule has been developed in the Northeast by the clubs. U.S. Soccer supports this practice, but does not have an official position yet. Clubs are encouraged to put together a U14 spring season as part of their current Development Academy schedule. U.S. Soccer will help support player registration in the near future and is strongly considering bringing the U14's into either the Spring or Summer Showcase. This serves two purposes: (1) a precursor to formalizing a regional league (limited travel) for the U14 age group in 2009-2010. (2) provide a forum for scouting of the U14 age group for the National team program

Demosphere is hosting all the league schedules and player profiles. Each player will be able to login and update their profile in real time for college coaches

Teams should have received their shipment of Gatorade and Nike balls

The Development Academy has become the number one focus for finding National pool players. The other ODP programs will continue to operate and be scouted by USMNT staff, but most players are expected to be identified through the DA

U.S. Soccer strongly supports positive sideline behavior by players and coaches and expects clubs to respond accordingly

Referee evaluations is an important step in the League for this year and has gone well through the first few weeks of the season

High School vs. Fall Club Soccer Debate

2008-09-23T13:57:00.015-04:00

Much has been discussed as it relates to our decision to once again sponsor fall high school age teams. I have heard and read a lot on the topic and thought it was time to respond.

Our decision to sponsor fall teams in the last two years (our first was actually in 2003) was based solely on the demand. Ohio Elite players and players from outside of our club were asking for us to do it. I think there are several reasons for the demand for such a program.

High level players that want a year round program to help them continue to develop as players.

Players who find their individual high school situation does not meet their needs as a player for whatever reason.

Good players who for whatever reason did not make their high school teams.

Players that are or have recently come back from injury and have specific rehabilitation needs.

The program is put together to help each participating player improve individually. We are not trying to build a great fall team and win tournaments. We are simply trying to help the players involved in the program achieve their individual goals. We show no favoritism to Ohio Elite players. In fact in this years U16 team a player from the OP Green U16 team is our captain. Many would be surprised to see where the players come from. The majority of players on each roster are made up of Ohio Elite players from varying teams within the club. We also have players from Ohio Premier, Ohio Galaxies, Classics Hammer, CUP, CFA and Eagles SC. I think this shows that there is a demand for this program. In addition, the teams train together which allows for our older players to mentor younger players who will later be asked to do the same. It also provides the atmosphere of younger players playing with and against older players which will help their individual development.

What is offered:

3 Training Sessions per Week

3 Showcase Tournaments + 4 Friendly Games - 12-15 Games Total

1 to 3 Game to Training Ratio

College Guidance/Exposure

Multi-Age Teams and Training Environment

Individual Development Based Training Environment

There have been those that have said that we are pressuring players to play by threatening their status in their spring teams, etc... Such suggestions are flat wrong. If this were the case we would be losing the battle. We have 143 girls players in our Ohio Elite U15-U18 age groups. Of those 143, 26 players have chosen the fall team route. At the end of the fall team season all players return to their normal teams on equal footing with those returning from high school.

I simply tell players what we are going to offer in the fall team program and let them make a choice for themselves. It is an individual choice for each player. I see the benefit for players to participate in our program. I also see the benefit of a player playing for their high school team. The soccer coach in me wants to oversee every aspect of a players development. Another side of me realizes the value in playing for your school and community. Most of all, I realize that each player has a choice and if the players are asking for something positive that we can provide, we will make every effort to provide it for them. Of course I think what we are doing is of a very high quality, but no more than the high school coach thinks of the quality of their program.

Make judgements based on fact, not heresay or misconception. There is no High School vs. Fall Club Soccer debate here, just a players right to chose. Join me in respecting each player/persons choice to do what they think is in their best interest.

Early Season Thoughts

2008-09-10T13:16:00.005-04:00

The U11-U14 Academy teams went to the Gallagher Friendlies over Labor Day weekend. It's was an important weekend for us as we want our players to know and understand what we identify as our competition. Certainly there are some very good teams in the local area, many that are better than some of our teams at the moment, but I've always looked at our competition on a Regional and National level. We now realize the work that needs to be done to reach our goals.

U.S. Men's National Staff Coach Roberto Lopez visited us recently. It was great for our kids and coaches to have the opportunity to work with and learn from him. Mike Dickey, who is Roberto's counterpart on the girl's side is visiting us today so to have both National Staff Coaches from U.S. Soccer in the Midwest already visit us is tremendous. A couple of things I wanted to pass along to the coaches in the area that read this blog regarding player development that Coach Lopez passed on to us.

The kids need to play. Small-sided games and competition must be part of every session.
Technical work in isolation creates a system of players that only see the ball and never play with their head's up. Good training habits are established when players enjoy training and hold their teammates accountable for behavior and execution.

U.S. Soccer National Staff Coach to Visit Ohio Elite

2008-08-25T15:51:00.005-04:00

I am excited to announce that Roberto Lopez, National Staff Coach for U.S. Soccer will be visiting Ohio Elite Soccer Academy on Wednesday & Thursday, August 27 & 28.

Coach Lopez will spending two days with our players and staff to provide training for our players and coaching education for our coaches.

I am extending an offer to any coach in the city that wants to come and watch one of Roberto's sessions to contact me directly at mcullina@ohioelite.com for the specific schedule and topics.

Thank You CSA

2008-08-23T19:48:00.002-04:00

With all of the angry people and bitterness in the game, every now and again we get a reminder about all that is good in the game. Today was such a day. Working with Alex Rawlings and the coaches at CSA was great.

The day started at the OESA Olberding complex with friendlies between our U11-U14 Academy teams and the CSA Elite teams. First of all, it was our first opportunity to show off the new complex. There is still a lot to be done, but as one coach said to me today for them it was like coming from the desert. It doesn't really matter how much money you put into fields if you can't water them. We can and it showed. More on the fields in another blog.

The CSA coaches and parents were great to work with. The spirit of the games were great and having quality competition here in Cincinnati was tremendous as our boys prepare for the Gallagher Friendlies next weekend.

In developing the U9 Academy League we had several clubs that committed to the project that didn't follow through. While it has created more work for us, we are not deterred. The project is exactly what our players need. We have the opportunity to develop the entire age group while still pushing our top players through training and games. (Some of our U9 players will be asked to train up starting this week.) The Academy format is great because it allows Scott to move players around between the two teams at his discretion. We can ability group the boys or create more balanced teams.

The second part of the day were the U9 friendlies out at the Cincinnati Nature Center. Once we found the fields - can you say "deliverance"? - the games went off without a hitch. It was great to work with CSA, Fairfield and Warren County on our first Academy play date.

Thanks Alex! Thank you CSA.

Pre-Season 2008

2008-08-22T15:13:00.007-04:00

The season is finally upon us! There are several very exciting things going on here at Ohio Elite that Doug and I will share over the next week or so. On the field, many of the boys' teams played in the Dog Days Tournament to open the season. The results went about as expected considering the changes and training schedule. For me and my staff the tournament was about preparing our curriculum for the season, learning the good, the bad and the ugly about where our players are relative to where we believe they should be.

As I explained in the parent meetings earlier this week, it is important to understand that we are a club of players, not a collection of teams. This is important in the pre-season evaluation process because it creates focus for the individual player within the context of the entire age group. The top players will be asked to train up to continue to push them to the next level. Especially at the U12 and younger age groups where we are playing 8v8 or 6v6 it is critical that we develop the entire age group as many/most of the players that would be on our Gold team will in fact be on an Academy team when the rosters are expanded. That said, the aim is not to simply bring the less-skilled players up. We are about the very best players and therefore must continue to develop those players by training them with older teams and guest playing them when appropriate.

Some general feedback on our training goals...

(1) Change the culture. Players that feel entitled probably won't last long at Ohio Elite. It is our responsibility to teach them how to work hard both physically and mentally. We will ask more from them then perhaps they are used to. Having parental support in this basic goal is critical to our success. So far the feedback from our parents has been extremely positive.
(2) We embrace the word "development". It is what we are all about. However, "development" is not an excuse for losing. To say the results don't matter is unacceptable. We will not win at the expense of development, but my staff and I will not use our decisions on game day to develop players as an excuse for why we lost a game. Most importantly, our aim is to prepare players for their high school programs, college opportunities and the Development Academy or National team exposure. That is a fundamental value of our program. That said, so long as they keep score, we want to win!
(3) Technique! Technique! Technique! A player's decision doesn't matter is he doesn't have the skill to execute.

Lastly, I can't tell you how excited I am about the season. I had a great week of training with the U12 Academy team and by the end of the day I will have worked with both U14 teams. Its amazing how much I enjoy training when I have the time during the day to prepare for it. It is the best part of what I do. Watching the light bulb go on for kids is incredibly rewarding.

"They don't boo nobodies!"

Summer Wrap-up

2008-07-29T23:05:00.007-04:00

With the Fall 2008 Season around the corner, a quick update on the summer...

Fall 2008
We are still working on some of the technical glitches on our website. Our hosts seems to be making progress on them. For the time being almost all communications will be disseminated via email. OESA parents and players should have received their fall schedule and teams going to the Gallagher Friendlies should have received the hotel information to begin making reservations. If you have not, please contact me immediately.

U.S. Soccer Development Academy
The Development Academy finals were a pleasure. Four contrasting teams from four different parts of the country. I felt Carmel U15/16 was the best team we saw all year and they proved it in the final. On the heels of the U17/18 final, it was a bit of a boring match dominated by Carmel, who won 1-0. The U17/18 final had everything - 6 goals, overtime, a penalty in the final minute of regulation, 3 red cards, a coach sent-off (the referee was in over his head), and a team from the Northeast versus a Hispanic style from SoCal. Baltimore Bays were outplayed by LAFC (Los Angeles) for the first half hour, but their experience and substituting the best player in the league into the game turned the match in their favor for the 4-2 win.

When I was with Blue Chip, the Baltimore Bays came to Cincinnati the Spring after they won the National Championship so getting to see them in the Academy Finals was pretty cool. The other top teams in the country that year that came to Cincinnati were FC Milwaukee, Andromeda, Concorde Fire, Vardar, Chicago Magic, and Dallas Texans. Since they are all in the Development Academy we probably won't see a field like that again in a USYS event.

Some new rules and program enhancements were announced at the DA meetings in Los Angeles. Each has an impact on our program and others...

Affiliations are no longer valid for the purpose of a Developmental Player. A player must be registered within the DA club by January 1 to be eligible to play with that DA. They may not be dually rostered. (Essentially, the club they represent in state cup is the club a player plays for. If that is not us or Crew Jr. or Carmel for instance a player may not be added to the respective Development roster.) The purpose of the rule is to ensure players are training with the DA club/staff on a regular basis.

It was reiterated that each Academy must train together 3 sessions/week throughout the season. So, we cannot have part of our team train in Columbus and the rest here in Cincinnati.

25% start rule. A player must start 25% of the games - down from 30% last year. It's a good rule that protects the player as well as gives the club some flexibility if a kid isn't coming to practice or other disciplinary issues

The minimum roster size was changed back to 18 players. Originally, it was to be 20 this year. For the purpose of roster sizes the U15/16 and U17/18 are considered one Academy. So, we can have 16 on one and 20 on the other. We still believe we need 42+ players for the season to spread the travel, make a quality training environment, and to cover for injury.

Playoff system. The top three teams in each division will advance to a playoff during the Summer Showcase (Greensboro, NC). The points are tallied on divisional games only. With 9 divisions, 5 wild cards will round out the 32 teams on points for all games played. Teams will be placed into 8 groups of the 4 with the group winner advancing to the National Finals in July. (Note: Our U17/18 team would have been in the playoffs this year.)

The Summer Showcase is now optional for teams not in the playoffs.

Over 1,000 games and training sessions were scouted last year. They expect to increase the number this year, especially in training.

The Federation announced 2 ID Camps that are invitation only for Development Academy players to go into a National Camp.

ODP
The U16 age group of ODP was completely wiped out at the Regional level because of the Academy. I expect it will be pretty much eliminated at the Regional level next year. This would be the 1993 age group. The staff believes the U15 age group was significantly hindered as well (missing the top 15-20 players) and will have to make some changes for the 1994 age group next year. USYS ODP needs to embrace the Academy system, not fight it. If the Academy adds the U14 age group is some capacity for 2009-2010, USYS ODP will have no choice.

Super Y League
This summer was my first experience with Super Y League. From my time as a State Director of Coaching, I never fully understood the benefit. I did enjoy coaching the players over the summer, but considering the increasingly-full year-round schedule the players are experiencing and quality camp opportunities, I expect our time in Super Y League ends with the final game this summer. In talking with several of our opponents, it appears we are not alone.

Enjoy the final few days of summer!

The Impact of the USSDA on MRL

2008-05-29T11:20:00.004-04:00

In the spirit of full disclosure I was in Des Moines when the MRL was formed several years ago. The State Presidents challenged the State DOC's to find a league to compete with Super Y and US Club Soccer and we delivered. I also served on the League's Commission so my fondness for the MRL is personal. I am proud of the league and believe it to be the best run in the country. Our USYS teams will continue to participate in the league.

For those players that want to play at the highest level, it is important to understand the impact of the U.S. Soccer Development Academy on the Midwest Regional League. The following Region II clubs will be placing their top 40+ players in the USSDA and out of the MRL:

Chicago Magic
Sockers FC
Vardar
Michigan Wolves
Carmel United
Scott Gallagher
Internationals
CASA (Cleveland)
Crew Jr.
Metro United
FC Milwaukee
Ohio Elite

With many clubs carrying 20-25 players, a total 480-600 of the best players in the Region will not be playing in the MRL next year. The impact that will have on the competition for the top players not in the MRL cannot be overlooked.

Our final night of tryouts for the U.S. Soccer Development Academy are set for Friday night (U17/18- 5:30-7:00 & U15/16- 7:30-9:00). I am very excited about the number of players and talent level that has attended the first two nights. That said, the goal of the USSDA is to have the best 40+ players from Cincinnati in the Academy. If you are one of those players, I hope to see you on Friday! If you want to play against the top competition in the Region and in the Country, I hope to see you Friday!

USSDA Spring Showcase Wrap-up

2008-05-27T10:51:00.004-04:00

What a weekend! The competition and environment that U.S. Soccer has created is the incredible.

First, the results... we really deserved better on the weekend. The U17/18 team won on Friday, but should have walked away with at least 7 points and possibly all 9. Against Schultz on Monday we played great and dominated the game. The Schultz staff and National scouts each wondered out loud how we lost that game. We gave up a goal in the 4th minute and equalize early in the second half, but a late goal completely against the run of play sealed our fate. It was heart-breaking, because we had played so well. The Sunday game was another that we simply gave away. The wind played a pretty big factor in the game, but we gave away two first half goals we couldn't get back. The equalizer was cleared off the line on the last kick of the game.

The only game we were really outmatched was the U15/16 game versus Schultz Academy on Monday, who had previously beaten the U15/16 National Team. But, even in that game we played some pretty good soccer and had chances. It's not often we've been able to say we were the better side, but in both the Friday and Saturday game we were. It was encouraging to say the least to know that even with our record on the year, our boys have improved so much.

Both teams had SPARQ testing on their off day. Those results will become part of the recruiting profiles across the nation, because college coaches know there is a standard and integrity in the results.

On Saturday we went downtown Chicago. Traffic was an issue so I decided to get off I-90 and hop the train, which of course raised our anxiety level, especially on the transfer. "Treat them like adults and they'll behave like it" and they did. The top destination was NikeTown. I love Chicago - hate the traffic, love the town!

The college coaches arrived in droves on Saturday. More than 160 actually signed in, but the Federation estimated more than 200 were in attendance. And they were the big boys. Two things that we weren't sure about...

(1) Will the U15/16 age group be scouted? The answer is a resounding yes! Because the DA is on birth year, many players that would be on traditional U17 USYS teams, including high school juniors play U15/16 USSDA. The affect will be that the recruiting cycle will begin earlier. It won't be to the insane level of the girl's side, but the male player will be scouted and identified earlier. Players will be identified in the U15/16 teams and tracked through the U17/18 teams. Players will be committed earlier and college coaches are starting to encourage their commitments to get in an Academy as the best preparation for college soccer.

(2) How will the traditional Showcases be affected by the USSDA? After talking with coaches, I think they'll take a significant hit. All the coaches I spoke with shared the opinion that the three DA Showcases will be the most attended events of the year and that most of the traditional events will take a significant hit in both attendance by coaches and players.

An overlooked part and in my opinion a very important part of the USSDA was a large topic of discussion amongst the clubs this weekend - OFFICIATING. The referees in this league are the best in the business. Sure, you get a few that are in over their heads, but game in and game out we have had very little complaints about the officiating, quite the opposite. The Federation assigns them and tracks performance. Much like we have National Scouts to watch the players and coaches, we've had several games assessed by the top assessors. Paul Tamberino, Director of Referee Development for U.S. Soccer was extremely visible this weekend. And, Brian Hall, who refereed in the World Cup was on hand and provided a clinic and feedback for the referees. We hear about referee development- the USSDA delivers. Out six games on the weekend, we had six quality referees. It is a pleasure to be sure.

Tryouts begin tonight! U17/18 (players born in 1990 or later) is from 5:30-7:00 and the U15/16 (players born in 1992 or later) is from 7:30-9:00. We officially open our new complex this evening and are really excited!

USSDA Spring Showcase - Day 1

2008-05-23T18:26:00.010-04:00

Day One - After getting turned around on I-90 last night we finally arrived at our hotel shortly after midnight locally, about 2 hours later than expected.

The environment at the Showcases is really impressive. The player's lounge has about a dozen flat screen TVs with EA Sports Soccer on each and a massive big screen with soccer highlights and interviews. Gatorade is everywhere and its FREE, which of course makes for long lines at the Johnny on the Spot. I have never seen a greater collection of U.S. Soccer National Staff coaches in one location and the college coach count is well past the 100 mark on the first day. Both teams had more than 20 college coaches at their game and 3-4 National Staff coaches.

U15/16 game v. Oakwood
We probably played our best game of the year, but couldn't score. Oakwood scored a goal in the 79th minute as we where chasing the game to win 2-0, but we spent more time in the attacking half of the field and in their penalty area than in any other game all year. The lack of opportunities in previous matches unfortunately had a quite a bit to do with our inability to get a result today.

I was very pleased with our organization with the back four and defensive midfielders. Our ability to get the ball to our lone striker and hold it allowed us some very good attack and possession. We played from touch line to touch line extremely well, but couldn't find that elusive goal. Our combination play was decent in the middle third of the field, but the final pass was never connected.

U17/18 game v. Oakwood
The 1-0 result was very important to us for one simple reason. This is the first time all year we made an early goal hold up. This team has a tendency to steal a tie from the grips of a win and on more than one occasion turn 3 points into 0. Today, however, we took another step in our kids' development in understanding how to play relative to the situation. While the second goal could have come by chasing it, so too could the equalizer on our end. While Oakwood showed great spirit and determination late, our resolve was equal to the task. We were much smarter in how and when to get forward and yet still maintain our defensive integrity to keep a clean sheet.

In the first 15 minutes of the game we were extremely good. Unfortunately, we scored and with that goal we played a dreadful 1/2 hour to finish the first period. We regrouped at half-time and were quite good in the second half. They tried and nearly succeeded a couple of times to use our own possession against us by pressing late to win the ball on our first touch. We adjusted, but still lack vision to get behind their line. When we combined the possession with a quality final ball, it was a pleasure to watch!

Tomorrow the U15/16 group plays Potomac SC while the U17/18 team will complete the SPARQ testing and enjoy a day off. (The roles will be reversed on Sunday.) In the afternoon we plan on taking over NikeTown in downtown Chicago!

Club affiliation and the US Soccer Development Academy

2008-05-13T08:42:00.001-04:00

As we approach tryouts, I've received many inquiries regarding the U.S. Soccer Development Academy. There have been some claims made regarding a player's involvement and it appears as though there is some misconception about what the USSDA is and how one participates.

There are two teams in each USSDA club - a U17/18 team and a U15/16 team. This means that a team necessarily changes each season and doesn't move up like a typical USYS team where there are only a few changes.

Because this is the first year of the USSDA, some clubs/teams consist of primarily younger players meaning many of those players are eligible to return. Our entire U18 team for instance is eligible for next year, although some players are off to college and we will increase the number of players on the roster to 20 per the rules so we do expect to add quite a few players. It is also an open tryout so each player must tryout for next year. The Crew U15/16 team is very similar in that most of those players are eligible to return next year.

Birth year v. USYS year. The USSDA is based upon birth year, meaning that many of the current U16 players in USYS are eligible to play U16 in the USSDA next year. In almost every case (except National pool/team players), the Federation expects players to play in their respective age group. This year for instance we have 6 players in the U17/18 team that are eligible for the U15/16 year. In the future, those players will be rostered accordingly. Such players may play up during the season, but will be rostered in their age group.

There are two types of players in the USSDA:

USSDA Roster Player - a player who is on the USSDA roster. Each Academy must have a minimum of 20 players on the official roster for 2008-2009, each of which must start at least 30% of the games. A player on the roster may not participate with any team outside of the USSDA for which he is rostered. For instance, he may not guest play in a tournament with another team regardless of whether that team is in the same club or another. These players are not eligible for ODP, State Cup, MRL, BPL, etc...

USSDA Developmental Player - a player who is on a USYS roster, but may participate in the USSDA in up to 6 games with the USSDA team. Each USSDA squad is limited to only 10 Developmental Players. These players are not subject to a minimum start requirement and may come from an affiliate club.

Q: May a player play in one club and participate in the USSDA as a Developmental player within another.

A: Yes. However! It is important to note that because of the minimum roster numbers and starting requirements, the practicality of a Developmental player participating in more than a few game is unlikely. In addition, traveling to the Showcase events would mean leaving a rostered player at home, which would be unlikely except for more than a couple injuries/conflicts.

Q: Can a Louisville-based player play in a USSDA in Cincinnati?

A: Yes. There are no geographical limitations for a player to participate in an Academy and a player is not limited to play in the Academy in their home town. A player from Louisville or Columbus may come to Cincinnati. However! Each Academy is required to train 3 days per week as a group. To participate in our USSDA for instance, the player must be willing to travel to Cincinnati three days/week and train with our staff in Cincinnati. A player on the Crew or Carmel USSDA team is similarly expected to train in Columbus or Indianapolis.(This was clarified in a conference call this spring with the USSDA leadership.)

If a Louisville-based player wants to play with us or a Cincinnati-based player wants to play in Columbus or Indianapolis, the Federation expects those players to travel to the city where the Academy is based all 3 days, every week and train with the USSDA staff for those clubs. It is possible, although discourage by the Federation, for us to train outside of Cincinnati, but the entire Academy must train together regardless of the location.

Q: How expensive is the USSDA?

A: The first year of the USSDA was more expensive than we anticipated. However, we have learned a great deal about travel and expenses and are making plans to significantly reduce those expenses to the families. In addition, the re-alignment plan expected to be released by the Federation in the next couple weeks is aimed at reducing travel. These will be direct savings.

The biggest news is that the OESA board has made the commitment to make the team and uniform fees for the USSDA FREE! Players in the OESA USSDA will only need to cover their travel expenses, which will be no more than a typical USYS team.

Q: Can I play high school or participate in ODP?

A: High School - Yes. The USSDA season for us starts in November. ODP - Per USSDA rules, a player on a USSDA roster may not participate in ODP. Besides the financial and time savings, it is simply not necessary. ODP is a very good player identification tool. I am currently on both the OSYSA and Region II staff and support ODP; however, for the USSDA, players are already seen more than a dozen times by National Staff coaches in training and games. Several players around the country are being called directly into the National teams program through the USSDA making ODP for these kids unnecessary.

Q: How can I make sure I play in the U.S. Soccer Development Academy?

A: The ONLY way to ensure you play in the USSDA is to try out for one of the 75 clubs in the U.S. and make the roster. The math simply doesn't add up any other way. If you do happen to be one of the lucky ones to be one of 10 players on a development roster, the number of exposures to the USSDA will be very limited.

Welcome to OESA Sergio

2008-05-07T14:21:00.003-04:00

Today's official announcement that Sergio Gonzalez is joining Ohio Elite as the Director of Goalkeeping is a tremendous step forward for us as a club. Anyone that worked with me at CHFC knows how important I believe the position is. Currently, we are not providing goalkeeper training to many of the boy's at OESA and it is one of the areas both Doug and I set out to address.

Not only have we addressed the need, we have added a quality person and tremendous coach! Coach Gonzalez is widely regarded as one of the best in the business. He is currently the assistant coach at the University of Dayton and the head goalkeeper coach for Ohio South ODP and has served as a director for Tony DiCicco's Soccer Plus Goalkeeper Camp.

Welcome to Ohio Elite, Sergio!

Cincinnati is failing the male soccer player

2008-05-05T15:45:00.000-04:00

Trivia Question: How many boy's soccer teams in Cincinnati are currently playing a Premier Division of the Midwest Regional League (U14-U18)? Answer below.

I'm in the process of putting together our literature for the 2008-2009 US Soccer Development Academy teams and ran across some information that startled me and for which all of us are responsible. As a city we are failing in our responsibility to develop boys who want to play soccer at the highest level!

Why? I don't have the answer, but I'll throw out a couple theories. These are theories, not opinions (ok, some of them are).

Instability. If you look at the "big three" (yes, I'm a Boston fan - go ahead and hate) in Cincinnati each has made a major change in leadership on the boy's side (at least one multiple times) while none have done so at the high school ages on the girl's side in the past three years.
Social. Girls tend to be more social in their decision to participate in sports. They are much more likely to stay with a team or transfer in numbers because they want to play with their friends. Boys on the otherhand move with greater frequency and therefore receive a lack of consistent coaching.
Too many clubs. We just don't have the level of commitment or skill necessary to have a need for three plus some independent teams. Not sure the girls do either.
"A" team ego. Players would rather play on a bad "A" team than play on a "B" team, thus sustaining more teams that can compete locally, but very few that can compete Regionally or Nationally.
Coaching. List the top coaches in Ohio South and undoubtedly the list will be heavily weighted with girl's coaches. In addition, let's face it, coaching girl's soccer is easier than coaching boy's. The game is faster and the players are tougher to manage. Because the money is the same, the top coaches tend to go to the girls side.
Emphasis. Clubs in Cincinnati, or at least their board of directors, tend to have a greater focus on the girl's side due to more of them having daughters that play in their club.
High School Soccer. Because 12 of the 14 boys teams play high school in the fall, the best play the best. Ohio South plays against Illinois, Michigan, and Missouri in boy's soccer, but generally don't on the girl's side (except a few Eclipse teams). To prove the point, how many teams in Ohio South advance out of their group at Regionals last year? And, how many truly have a chance to do so this year? Plus, their are 20 teams in MRL Premier on the girl's side and only 16 on the boy's. So, while the boys are playing Chicago Magic, Vardar, and Scott Gallagher, on the girl's side there are 4 additional spots and they don't have to play Eclipse, Wolves, or St. Louis Soccer Club once they get to U15.
College Soccer. Twice as many schools with more than twice as much money on the girl's side, leads to greater opportunity.

I am unapologetic in my bias; however, for the good of the game, the Cincinnati-based US Soccer Development Academy must be successful with Cincinnati-based players. I'm happy to work with anyone in the city, regardless of club affiliation, that wants to make it happen.

Btw, the answer is 1! As a city, we have 1 boy's soccer team - a U18 team that will be in college next year - playing in a Premier Division of MRL. (Our U17 boy's team would also be a Premier team if they were not in the USSDA and 3 teams in the city are in a reasonably good position to be promoted for next year.)

On the girl's side there are 12 teams playing in a Premier Division of MRL including 2 age groups with 3 teams. (OESA has a team in every age group except U14, which is positioned for promotion. We could also have 2 teams at U18 next year. In total, citywide there are 3 teams in a reasonably good position to be promoted for next year and 2 that look to be relegated.)

Tryouts - Know the Rules

2008-04-30T15:59:00.001-04:00

Did you know that the Buckeye Premier League has specific rules about how/when a club can have tryouts and still be eligible for the league?

At the bottom of this blog entry, I've posted the section of the Buckeye/MOSSL Consititution posted on the front page of their website regarding tryouts. You can view the whole document by clicking on the title of this blog entry.

According to the rules, any team having tryouts before Memorial Day (U11/U12) or June 1 (U13 and older) or making an offer to a player prior to the first Saturday after Memorial Day (U11/U12) may have their application to play in the league rejected. Furthermore, if the club knows about it, the whole club may be suspended for participation.

Personally, I think its an appropriate rule. Clubs that have tryouts before Memorial Day, which most of us view as the final major weekend of the year should consider their motives. Parents have an obligation to look at the options for their child each year, but to ask kids to start trying out for clubs in the middle of the season and miss their teams practices and games to attend has to be questioned.

The tryout calendar is tight and their is no question that getting commitments first benefits those clubs that do so. But, this is a practice that OSYSA refuses to address, hiding behind the idea that because OESA has the Super Y League they can't prevent USYS tryouts from taking place. So, let me make the statement that as the Boy's DOC at OESA I am committed to not having any tryout - for US Youth Soccer, US Soccer Development Academy, or Super Y League before Memorial Day because it's the right thing to do for the players!

Buckeye/MOSSL
Consitution
Effective 1-13-2008

IX. Recruiting Players and Holding Tryouts
U-11 thru U-14 teams (includes coaches, players, parents and team supporters) that will be applying to participate in the Buckeye/MOSSL League and current Buckeye/MOSSL teams may NOT contact any player registered to another team participating in Buckeye/MOSSL.

U-15 or older team (includes coaches, players, parents and team supporters) that will be applying to participate in the Buckeye/MOSSL league and current Buckeye/MOSSL teams may NOT contact players from another team or teams, (for the purpose of inviting players to a team’s tryout) until after May 31st.

No team that will be applying to participate in the Buckeye/MOSSL League in the U-11 and U-12 age groups for the coming seasonal year may hold tryouts until after Memorial Day. No team,(including coaches, players, parents and team supporters) may make an offer to be a member of that team until after 8:00 AM on the first Saturday after Memorial Day.

No team that will be applying to participate in the Buckeye/MOSSL League in the U-13 and older age groups for the coming seasonal year may hold tryouts until after May 31st. No team, (including coaches, players, parents and team supporters) may make an offer to be a member of that team until after 8:00 AM on the first Saturday after June 1st.

Failure to comply with this section, IX., before, during or after the formation of a team will result in penalties up to and including suspension of the person or the team involved from BPYSL/MOSSL. In addition, whether or not the team or club involved is a current member of Buckeye/MOSSL, failure to comply with any portion of this Section IX, may result in the rejection of the team or club involved from participation in the Buckeye/MOSSL league during the subsequent seasonal year.

Welcome Home Matt

2008-04-25T16:26:00.001-04:00

SYL Applications being accepted

2008-04-25T08:30:00.006-04:00

I am now accepting applications for the Super Y League in U12/13 and U14/15 age groups.

I have posted the SYL information on the respective team page at http://www.ohioelite.com/. We are accepting applications until May 19 and then will invite players to tryout on May 29. Players from outside the club may also request a private tryout by contacting me directly.

We expect to train once/week during the summer (twice the first week) and have a match schedule that is heavier in July. We will use a staff of coaches during the season, although I expect to be at most of the training sessions. The schedule is also posted.

The SYL is intended to provide players the opportunity to continue to play during the summer months against quality competition and with quality training. We will maintain a larger player pool to make training more productive and to account for expected conflicts with summer vacations and camps.

Players who participate in SYL are not required to play for OESA during the regular soccer season.

12 clubs added to USSDA

2008-04-18T10:52:00.009-04:00

The US Soccer Federation announced that it has added 12 new clubs to the Development Academy for 2008-2009 and a 13th the following year.

You can read the entire press release by clicking on the title above, but the following points stick out to me.

Cincinnati has not produced enough players on the boys' side at the National level in the past 10 years to warrant a 2nd club. This is a position I've held for a while and one I told my previous board as well as friends in the community BEFORE I came to Ohio Elite. It isn't about offering the program to offer the program. Having a second club in Cincinnati defeats the purpose. It's about finding the best 40-44 players in the U15/U16 and U17/U18 age groups to come together to train with one another and play against the top competition in the country. There are clubs/leagues in Cincinnati founded on this principle and the Federation agrees. If the top 2/3 players from each team around Ohio South went to the two USSDA clubs, the impact to those teams would be minimal and the impact on the game significant. It will be interesting to see how those clubs that applied to join and were not accepted change their tactics from promoting the program to one where they are against it.
The possibility of re-alignment is a good one. While the competition has made the travel worth it, any opportunity to play closer to home in the league games would be positive.
The USSDA clearly isn't going anywhere. In an interview I had last night with Roberto Lopez, who has been with US Soccer for almost 10 years he indicated that he has never seen US Soccer commit the resources to any project that they have to this one. (The full interview will be posted shortly.)

There continues to be a commitment to the MLS franchises. While we do compete against Crew Jrs I do believe that for the good of the game in this country our MLS franchises must take the lead on player development. No one in Ohio is more deserving of a US Soccer Development Academy program than our friends at Team Ohio, but the commitment to ensuring the MLS franchises are successful is clear. Of course, the MLS franchises should be required to hire proven leaders in youth soccer with a history of developing young players. Unfortunately, there are still some that have not.

There is a misconception that this is a Nike Premier league. Of the 12 clubs that were added 6 wear adidas, 4 are Nike Premier, 1 in Diadora and 1 in Xara taking the total number of club to: adidas - 38; Nike Premier - 28; Nike - 3; Diadora - 2; Puma/Kelma/Xara - 1 each. This speaks to two issues: (1) the USSDA truly does want those clubs that they believe fit the ideals of the Academy system; (2) being of a select few clubs in the country with the distinction to be a Nike Premier club is an honor!

Super Y League

2008-04-16T10:43:00.002-04:00

This is for the boy's side only!

I have recieved several requests for information regarding the Super Y League from players at OESA and around the city. We are awaiting the final schedules from the League and then will make an announcement on our website regarding tryout information.

We will distribute the information to current OESA players first and then announce open tryouts for players not currently within OESA. Because of the nature of the Super Y League, I expect to maintain larger player pools than a traditional USYS team to ensure we have enough players for quality training and game coverage with the anticipated conflicts during the summer months. These will be dual age groups meaning U12 & U14 players who are good enough may participate.

We are fielding teams in the U13 and U15 age groups.

US Soccer National Staff Coach to Visit OESA

2008-04-14T23:08:00.004-04:00

One of the benefits of being involved in the US Soccer Development Academy is the contact we receive with the US Soccer National Staff. By the end of the season each team will play between 15-20 games in front of scouts from the Federation. In Frisco our U18 USSDA team played a full match in front of the entire MNT staff, including Bob Bradely and John Hackworth. At the Nike Friendlies they played the U18 National Team and actually led 1-0 at half-time.

I am very excited that Roberto Lopez, Men's National Staff coach for Region II, will be in Cincinnati this weekend. He will be training our USSDA teams on Thursday and then scouting both games on the weekend.

This is a wonderful opportunity for our staff to learn from Roberto and get direct feedback about our teams and players that will undoubtedly help us develop the players. For the players to have this level of access with the National Staff is an awesome opportunity that no other players in the Cincinnati area will get.

Training Initiatives for the OESA Boys

2008-04-09T10:34:00.010-04:00

It was great to finally get consecutive weekends of games in. Almost all of our teams enjoyed some level of success during the MASC and/or PRF, but also faced challenges that exposed areas that we now can address as a staff. I believe we should spend time developing our weaknesses and even more time further developing our strengths.

Understanding the situation (e.g. goal up/goal down, playing for a draw to advance, chasing the game, killing the game) is part of player development, one we can not avoid. To that end, tournament play, USSDA and Midwest Regional League games can be an important tool. The other leagues (BPL, TCYSA, etc...) should have the sole focus of player development.

Three of the four teams that controlled their destiny on Sunday morning toward the final failed to come through. (A fifth was automatically in after their two wins on Saturday and a sixth went 2-1 and won 4-0 on Sunday, but was eliminated by their lone loss on Saturday.) As I said in an earlier blog it isn't that we did or didn't make the final or that the two teams that did make the finals won or didn't win, but if we did the things we needed to do- the process of the result that is still my focus. Why were we successful? Or, why weren't we?

With the exception of our U8's, I've been able to see every team play- almost all multiple games. As I continue to work with our staff, we will begin to define our goals for player development. It is important to define these goals as well as what success in each area looks like for each team.

The following five initiatives address both strengths and weaknesses of our teams. It is a cliff notes version of a technical report I'll be providing our staff.

OESA Boy's Training Initiatives

Redefine the club as a collection of players not teams. Place players in appropriate training environments, including training up or down with regularity
Do all factory work (skill repetition often done without pressure of an opponent) at speed with a focus on dribbling moves, tricks and turns
Players must be placed in competitive environments in training to play at full speed where the activity (size and shape of the grid, types of goals, etc...) aids development; coaches must be able to coach in the flow of the game - cuing players, using natural stoppages to introduce coaching points, coaching the individual player without stopping the game, and utilizing the freeze method
Basic 1v1, 2v1, 1v2, and 2v2 principles of play
Possession principles

PRF Report

2008-03-31T17:22:00.009-04:00

First I want to thank Robert at the PRF for all his help.

For me this was a great weekend. After a month of training I was real anxious to see our teams play and see first hand where we are as a club. One thing I've learned in youth soccer is that when things are going well they are never as great as they seem and when they aren't going well it usually isn't as bad as it seems. I approached the weekend with that in mind and with the understanding that ODP and Spring Break had a negative effect on our rosters.

We had to scramble a bit with a couple roster to make sure we could have enough players due to so many being out of town. I am proud of the club's ability to support itself and make sure each team that applied would be able to play versus forfeit.

Report Card - For the players

(1) effort/competitiveness - I look at this on three different levels - (1) working hard/smart; (2) willing to work hard, but not understanding how; and (3) lazy. I was generally pleased with the player's effort. Our kids did work hard. Because of our roster sizes for the weekend, fatigue definately was a factor, but it was only because they had worked so hard early in the tournament. That said it is our responsibility to continue to push our players in training and teach/show them what maximum effort is and what it feels like.

(2) technical competence - like any club or team, the results here were mixed. The goups I've been able to work with in training the least are the U9 & U10's. I was very pleased with the skill they exhibited. Now they must learn to perform those skills under pressure of time/space/opponent. Player need both quality training and the opportunity to apply what they have learned in a quality game.

The reason the Buckeye Premier League and then the Midwest Regional League and now the US Soccer Development Academy Leagues were formed is to provide that higher level of soccer. I am really excited about the soon-to-be-launch U9-U10 Academy League because it will allow us to more frequently place our players in competitively appropriate matches. As coaches we will be able to manipulate the environment to ensure kids are challenged more consistently. That combined with the skills they have and are learning in training are critical to player development. The current U9 and U10's won't have the benefit of the league so we will continue to be creative in finding competition to challenge them. I really like the decision made at U10 to forgo playing in a league this spring and simply seek out quality competition for friendlies and play in an extra tournament.

The U11-U14 age groups were a bit more mixed. As a club it is important for us to place an even greater emphasis on technigue for these teams. I was pleased with their effort and desire, now it is our responsibility at OESA to give them the tools.

(3) small group principles - There is a direct correlation with what I saw relative to principles of play and what I saw regarding technique by the players. It's easier to be aggressive with the dribble if you have the skills to be successful more often than not. If a player's first touch is quality, it gives him the opportunity to find support and for his teammates to actually get to in a supporting position. The challenge for any coach is to continue to develop all players on the team relative to their abilities. Most teams have a wide range of skill and understanding within their players. We are no different. What is unique about OESA is that I do not view our program as a collection of teams, rather we are a club of players. Therefore, we must create a training and playing environment that works toward the individual player within the framework of the team.

Now if Mother Nature will finally cooperate with us!

Is It Really Possible...

2008-03-28T16:08:00.003-04:00

I've been on the job now for nearly a month and mother nature has not been kind to the Cincinnati soccer community. Is it really possible that we'll play some games this weekend? The month has been filled with reschedules and make up training sessions and finally it looks like I'll have a chance to see some of our teams play.

The PRF Cup is the perfect event to watch our Gold and a couple Academy teams play. It's still March so the results are honestly not that important. Sure, I'd love to see our teams win and we'll coach them to do just that, but a critical component of developing the boy's side of OESA to the level and beyond that of our girl's teams and to the level expected in the US Soccer Development Academy is understanding the strengths and weaknesses of our players as well as our coaching staff and then creating the road map that meets the necessary demands.

This weekend is about evaluation pure and simple. The result of each game only tells part of the story. While the US MNT was beating Poland 3-0 the other night it was about preparing for qualifying not the result of a friendly. The result was a bonus, but the biggest thing we learned is that the Poles are dreadful in defending set pieces. Too many coaches and parents use the results of a given game as their report card for success. Of course, there is a time and place where results are the most important, even in youth soccer. (I don't think UCLA much cares that they have benefited at least three times in the last month from curious decisions by the officials. The PAC 10 and NCAA tournaments are about winning regardless of how.)

So, what will I watch for... For the players, (1) effort/competitiveness - do our players give maximum effort when we have the ball, when we don't and in transition regardless of the scoreline for the entire match; (2) technical competence - primarily 1st touch and dribbling; (3) small group principles - 1v1, 2v2 attacking and defending. For the coaches, (1) the ability to impact the game through information given to the players; (2) a quality 1/2 time; (3) the ability to evaluate the players/team, determine appropriate topics for future sessions and create sessions toward that end.

See you on the pitch!

- Mike

Ohio Elite Girls Furthering Education

2008-03-26T09:04:00.006-04:00

The 2008 graduating class was a banner year for Ohio Elite Soccer Academy girls players moving on to play at the college level. In all, 19 players in the 2008 graduating class have committed to play college soccer. Of those, 14 will be attending NCAA Division I schools. Even more impressive, according to the final 2007 NSCAA National Ranking, Ohio Elite players have either committed to or are currently playing at 13 of the top 30 NCAA Division I schools in the country. Included on that list of schools are: Florida State, Notre Dame, North Carolina-Chapel Hill, Virginia, Tennessee, Duke, Florida, Purdue, Wake Forest, Santa Clara, Washington State, Memphis and Georgia.

From a coaching perspective my ultimate goal is to help players get to the level they desire that is realistically within their ability. To start in the process you have to develop each players technical base and begin to evaluate their physical gifts and mind for the game. Only then can we see where each player will fit at the next level. It takes time. It may be the state team or the national team. It may be at a Division I or Division III. No one achievement is greater than the other. I applaud our players going to Ohio Dominican University as loudly as those going to UNC. Good for you. You have aspired to reach a higher level and made an important step in reaching that level. I will always judge the player and our program with one question: Did we get that player to reach their potential provided they have the desire to do so? My greatest joy will always come in the many successes of our players.

Our track record in this area gives me a great sense of pride in the development of our girls program over the last six years. Most importantly it says a great deal about the talent of the players involved at Ohio Elite. Without that talent the many milestones would not be possible.

For those who have and will move on Tim and I are very proud of you. Here's to future Ohio Elite players reaching their goals.

USSDA Winter Showcase Video

2008-03-25T16:19:00.003-04:00

The US Soccer Federation website has become one of my favorite sites. In addition to getting the latest information on the MNT and WNT as well as USSDA results and report, the all-access/Total 90 video is outstanding.

To get a sense of the environment, they put together a series of videos from the most recent Showcase in Frisco, TX in February.

Watch Studio 90 - Winter Showcase Video

Welcome to the New OESA blog!

2008-03-22T02:12:00.007-04:00

The aim of this blog is to the families and friends of the Ohio Elite Soccer Academy as well as those interested from around the soccer community informed.