Coach held back player from playing in offensive position for 4 years

[Anonymous]

Thanks PP. That makes me feel slightly better. I do realize he is one of the most "reliable" players on the field. Plays every minute of every game. Defense falls apart when he isn't out there so he must be doing something right.

I am not looking for him to play in college, but it would be nice if he could make his high school team. Plays on a mid-level club team. I just worry that when you play "one" position, it is hard to move around to other teams.
I remember trying out for a team as a kid, and the coach asked what I wanted to play. I said forward because that is all I knew. He said he had too many forwards so I had to play defense. Best thing that happened to me... I ended up loving the other positions (mid-field and defense). I never would have known that without a coach that pushed me to try something else.

I just wish that coaches focused a little more on having kids play other positions even if outside their comfort zone. I know there are coaches out there that do... seems hard to find them because parents want wins.

[Anonymous]

Bigger issue for all the parents here:
If your kid is playing center back and doesn't know how to attack, your coach is NOT teaching the game. That's a huge red flag.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:OP- my youngest had the same issue. Only, he had been a high scoring forward, very goal hungry. He's extremely technical/great ball skill. Travel coaches put him at Center back and kept him there from 11-13. Three full years and never pulled him out or gave him a chance elsewhere even in scrimmages or hugely lopsided wins. HE ASKED over and over again for time in other positions. We eventually met with TD and coach and at the start of every year to keep us there, it was the song and dance--of course, of course we will make sure he plays elsewhere blah, blah, blah. Our mistake was committing/paying in the Fall thinking with a new TD,new coaches different years it would be different.

He is on a new team also at U14 and this coach plays him at striker and attacking mid (where I believe)he was a natural. BUT-now after so many years as a defender he's lost a lot of his former finishing skills and plays so defensively instead of pressing. We are heavily working on this now,,, to try to get him back to pressing hard.

Kids really need to be rotated through the positions in the younger years. This kid was such a versatile player-- the former Club raved about how versatile he was--and then ruined it.

My older kid played entire seasons at completely different positions and at 16, I see the benefit and the difference.

Are you saying he was a high scoring forward at 9 and 10 years old?

The first travel Club played him with kids 2 years older from the time he started showing up at their academies, and his first year of travel. Yes. He would play Futsal with his brother's team 3 years older. And would have the most goals--even 1/4 of the size. But, new club was heavy on possession and considered center back the golden position.

I don't want to get argumentative here but scoring at U9 and U10 is relatively easy and is not a terribly good predictor of a child's overall skill level or even their natural position.

It is not uncommon for coaches to place talented kids at the CB position at younger ages. Doing so can help them see the game better and force them to move the ball under pressure that they would not otherwise see as a forward. This of course assumes that the team is attempting to play out of the back and he is not told to clear the ball at every touch.

Less talented kids will often be "hidden" up top because they can't really hurt the flow of the game nearly as much, and as I was saying, scoring is pretty easy at these ages.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:OP- my youngest had the same issue. Only, he had been a high scoring forward, very goal hungry. He's extremely technical/great ball skill. Travel coaches put him at Center back and kept him there from 11-13. Three full years and never pulled him out or gave him a chance elsewhere even in scrimmages or hugely lopsided wins. HE ASKED over and over again for time in other positions. We eventually met with TD and coach and at the start of every year to keep us there, it was the song and dance--of course, of course we will make sure he plays elsewhere blah, blah, blah. Our mistake was committing/paying in the Fall thinking with a new TD,new coaches different years it would be different.

He is on a new team also at U14 and this coach plays him at striker and attacking mid (where I believe)he was a natural. BUT-now after so many years as a defender he's lost a lot of his former finishing skills and plays so defensively instead of pressing. We are heavily working on this now,,, to try to get him back to pressing hard.

Kids really need to be rotated through the positions in the younger years. This kid was such a versatile player-- the former Club raved about how versatile he was--and then ruined it.

My older kid played entire seasons at completely different positions and at 16, I see the benefit and the difference.

Are you saying he was a high scoring forward at 9 and 10 years old?

The first travel Club played him with kids 2 years older from the time he started showing up at their academies, and his first year of travel. Yes. He would play Futsal with his brother's team 3 years older. And would have the most goals--even 1/4 of the size. But, new club was heavy on possession and considered center back the golden position.

I don't want to get argumentative here but scoring at U9 and U10 is relatively easy and is not a terribly good predictor of a child's overall skill level or even their natural position.

It is not uncommon for coaches to place talented kids at the CB position at younger ages. Doing so can help them see the game better and force them to move the ball under pressure that they would not otherwise see as a forward. This of course assumes that the team is attempting to play out of the back and he is not told to clear the ball at every touch.

Less talented kids will often be "hidden" up top because they can't really hurt the flow of the game nearly as much, and as I was saying, scoring is pretty easy at these ages.

Of course not being argumentative. If you trust your coach, that's important.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:OP- my youngest had the same issue. Only, he had been a high scoring forward, very goal hungry. He's extremely technical/great ball skill. Travel coaches put him at Center back and kept him there from 11-13. Three full years and never pulled him out or gave him a chance elsewhere even in scrimmages or hugely lopsided wins. HE ASKED over and over again for time in other positions. We eventually met with TD and coach and at the start of every year to keep us there, it was the song and dance--of course, of course we will make sure he plays elsewhere blah, blah, blah. Our mistake was committing/paying in the Fall thinking with a new TD,new coaches different years it would be different.

He is on a new team also at U14 and this coach plays him at striker and attacking mid (where I believe)he was a natural. BUT-now after so many years as a defender he's lost a lot of his former finishing skills and plays so defensively instead of pressing. We are heavily working on this now,,, to try to get him back to pressing hard.

Kids really need to be rotated through the positions in the younger years. This kid was such a versatile player-- the former Club raved about how versatile he was--and then ruined it.

My older kid played entire seasons at completely different positions and at 16, I see the benefit and the difference.

Are you saying he was a high scoring forward at 9 and 10 years old?

The first travel Club played him with kids 2 years older from the time he started showing up at their academies, and his first year of travel. Yes. He would play Futsal with his brother's team 3 years older. And would have the most goals--even 1/4 of the size. But, new club was heavy on possession and considered center back the golden position.

I don't want to get argumentative here but scoring at U9 and U10 is relatively easy and is not a terribly good predictor of a child's overall skill level or even their natural position.

It is not uncommon for coaches to place talented kids at the CB position at younger ages. Doing so can help them see the game better and force them to move the ball under pressure that they would not otherwise see as a forward. This of course assumes that the team is attempting to play out of the back and he is not told to clear the ball at every touch.

Less talented kids will often be "hidden" up top because they can't really hurt the flow of the game nearly as much, and as I was saying, scoring is pretty easy at these ages.

My DD is u10. What age does CB start? 9v9 or 11v11?

[Anonymous]

What is considered the young age groups? up through U13?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:OP- my youngest had the same issue. Only, he had been a high scoring forward, very goal hungry. He's extremely technical/great ball skill. Travel coaches put him at Center back and kept him there from 11-13. Three full years and never pulled him out or gave him a chance elsewhere even in scrimmages or hugely lopsided wins. HE ASKED over and over again for time in other positions. We eventually met with TD and coach and at the start of every year to keep us there, it was the song and dance--of course, of course we will make sure he plays elsewhere blah, blah, blah. Our mistake was committing/paying in the Fall thinking with a new TD,new coaches different years it would be different.

He is on a new team also at U14 and this coach plays him at striker and attacking mid (where I believe)he was a natural. BUT-now after so many years as a defender he's lost a lot of his former finishing skills and plays so defensively instead of pressing. We are heavily working on this now,,, to try to get him back to pressing hard.

Kids really need to be rotated through the positions in the younger years. This kid was such a versatile player-- the former Club raved about how versatile he was--and then ruined it.

My older kid played entire seasons at completely different positions and at 16, I see the benefit and the difference.

Are you saying he was a high scoring forward at 9 and 10 years old?

The first travel Club played him with kids 2 years older from the time he started showing up at their academies, and his first year of travel. Yes. He would play Futsal with his brother's team 3 years older. And would have the most goals--even 1/4 of the size. But, new club was heavy on possession and considered center back the golden position.

I don't want to get argumentative here but scoring at U9 and U10 is relatively easy and is not a terribly good predictor of a child's overall skill level or even their natural position.

It is not uncommon for coaches to place talented kids at the CB position at younger ages. Doing so can help them see the game better and force them to move the ball under pressure that they would not otherwise see as a forward. This of course assumes that the team is attempting to play out of the back and he is not told to clear the ball at every touch.

Less talented kids will often be "hidden" up top because they can't really hurt the flow of the game nearly as much, and as I was saying, scoring is pretty easy at these ages.

Of course not being argumentative. If you trust your coach, that's important.

And this is key. Some positions simply get more glory than they deserve at these ages and all the kids want to score and be hero's. It can be hard to take a "back seat" and feel less valued than they really are.

I obviously don't know your kid and you may be right. I'm just saying that both you and your coach may be right to varying degrees as well. It is best to talk to the caoch and get a feel for what they value in players at this age.

My concern, especially at this age is a player getting pigeon holed into a position at too young a age. Regardless of what is best for the team at these ages players should see significant time over the year, not every game mind you, but over the year in game and in practice at other positions.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:OP- my youngest had the same issue. Only, he had been a high scoring forward, very goal hungry. He's extremely technical/great ball skill. Travel coaches put him at Center back and kept him there from 11-13. Three full years and never pulled him out or gave him a chance elsewhere even in scrimmages or hugely lopsided wins. HE ASKED over and over again for time in other positions. We eventually met with TD and coach and at the start of every year to keep us there, it was the song and dance--of course, of course we will make sure he plays elsewhere blah, blah, blah. Our mistake was committing/paying in the Fall thinking with a new TD,new coaches different years it would be different.

He is on a new team also at U14 and this coach plays him at striker and attacking mid (where I believe)he was a natural. BUT-now after so many years as a defender he's lost a lot of his former finishing skills and plays so defensively instead of pressing. We are heavily working on this now,,, to try to get him back to pressing hard.

Kids really need to be rotated through the positions in the younger years. This kid was such a versatile player-- the former Club raved about how versatile he was--and then ruined it.

My older kid played entire seasons at completely different positions and at 16, I see the benefit and the difference.

Are you saying he was a high scoring forward at 9 and 10 years old?

The first travel Club played him with kids 2 years older from the time he started showing up at their academies, and his first year of travel. Yes. He would play Futsal with his brother's team 3 years older. And would have the most goals--even 1/4 of the size. But, new club was heavy on possession and considered center back the golden position.

I don't want to get argumentative here but scoring at U9 and U10 is relatively easy and is not a terribly good predictor of a child's overall skill level or even their natural position.

It is not uncommon for coaches to place talented kids at the CB position at younger ages. Doing so can help them see the game better and force them to move the ball under pressure that they would not otherwise see as a forward. This of course assumes that the team is attempting to play out of the back and he is not told to clear the ball at every touch.

Less talented kids will often be "hidden" up top because they can't really hurt the flow of the game nearly as much, and as I was saying, scoring is pretty easy at these ages.

DP. Sure, but the kid was playing up several years so obviously had some talent. PPs are very quick to discount everything and get their feathers ruffled but any mention a kid may be good.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Bigger issue for all the parents here:
If your kid is playing center back and doesn't know how to attack, your coach is NOT teaching the game. That's a huge red flag.

Sigh. Yes. One of the reasons we finally left the Club we did was after 4 years the team still could never finish. They kept possession beautifully, to a fault. It's no good if they never score. My own two kids now obsessively play it back and it is tough to make them think 'look forwad' try to go forward first. Back is the LAST option. But, they were taught a style from a young age and the coaches did not stress enough about taking space and the entire team attacking. There was always such a gap between the forward and midfield.

I purposely put my kids on an 'American' style team now (though I like to say Liverpool) to get more aggression and ATTACK.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:OP- my youngest had the same issue. Only, he had been a high scoring forward, very goal hungry. He's extremely technical/great ball skill. Travel coaches put him at Center back and kept him there from 11-13. Three full years and never pulled him out or gave him a chance elsewhere even in scrimmages or hugely lopsided wins. HE ASKED over and over again for time in other positions. We eventually met with TD and coach and at the start of every year to keep us there, it was the song and dance--of course, of course we will make sure he plays elsewhere blah, blah, blah. Our mistake was committing/paying in the Fall thinking with a new TD,new coaches different years it would be different.

He is on a new team also at U14 and this coach plays him at striker and attacking mid (where I believe)he was a natural. BUT-now after so many years as a defender he's lost a lot of his former finishing skills and plays so defensively instead of pressing. We are heavily working on this now,,, to try to get him back to pressing hard.

Kids really need to be rotated through the positions in the younger years. This kid was such a versatile player-- the former Club raved about how versatile he was--and then ruined it.

My older kid played entire seasons at completely different positions and at 16, I see the benefit and the difference.

Are you saying he was a high scoring forward at 9 and 10 years old?

The first travel Club played him with kids 2 years older from the time he started showing up at their academies, and his first year of travel. Yes. He would play Futsal with his brother's team 3 years older. And would have the most goals--even 1/4 of the size. But, new club was heavy on possession and considered center back the golden position.

I don't want to get argumentative here but scoring at U9 and U10 is relatively easy and is not a terribly good predictor of a child's overall skill level or even their natural position.

It is not uncommon for coaches to place talented kids at the CB position at younger ages. Doing so can help them see the game better and force them to move the ball under pressure that they would not otherwise see as a forward. This of course assumes that the team is attempting to play out of the back and he is not told to clear the ball at every touch.

Less talented kids will often be "hidden" up top because they can't really hurt the flow of the game nearly as much, and as I was saying, scoring is pretty easy at these ages.

DP. Sure, but the kid was playing up several years so obviously had some talent. PPs are very quick to discount everything and get their feathers ruffled but any mention a kid may be good.

Why would my feathers be ruffled? The kid may very well be good and that is exactly why the coach played him in the back. It is also true that scoring at these early ages is pretty easy. Both can be true. Perhaps the caoch feels the player would actually get more touches and improve their technical game by being under pressure and forcing him to pass, receive and see the game. Since goals are easy to come by, generally there is no need to force the issue at a forward position.

What is irritating is parents like you devaluing other position and roles to the point that playing such positions becomes a negative judgement when it could very well be the opposite. It is a shame that the parent may have taken the coaches opinion that the boy needs to improve at a technical level. Seeing the field and having to make decisions under pressure will improve the technical deficiencies. I don't know what 9 or 10 year kid that is a complete player already, do you?

[Anonymous]

Seeing the field and having to make decisions under pressure will improve the technical deficiencies.

Er, no.

That will improve game IQ and decision-making.

Technical ability is improved spending quality time with a ball on your own, sometimes with a wall included.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Seeing the field and having to make decisions under pressure will improve the technical deficiencies.

Er, no.

That will improve game IQ and decision-making.

Technical ability is improved spending quality time with a ball on your own, sometimes with a wall included.

Spending time on your own is always important and the best way to improve technical skills. The coach can recommend this but only the kid can follow through. However, IF the kid does this then it will show to the coach when playing under pressure in the back.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Seeing the field and having to make decisions under pressure will improve the technical deficiencies.

Er, no.

That will improve game IQ and decision-making.

Technical ability is improved spending quality time with a ball on your own, sometimes with a wall included.

Spending time on your own is always important and the best way to improve technical skills. The coach can recommend this but only the kid can follow through. However, IF the kid does this then it will show to the coach when playing under pressure in the back.

imagine forcing a kid to play a certain style and in a specific position

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Seeing the field and having to make decisions under pressure will improve the technical deficiencies.

Er, no.

That will improve game IQ and decision-making.

Technical ability is improved spending quality time with a ball on your own, sometimes with a wall included.

Spending time on your own is always important and the best way to improve technical skills. The coach can recommend this but only the kid can follow through. However, IF the kid does this then it will show to the coach when playing under pressure in the back.

imagine forcing a kid to play a certain style and in a specific position

I never said that. Kids at 9 and 10 years old are not being taught any particular style. This is ludicrous on face value alone. Teaching kids to connect passes is not a style, it is how the game is played. Telling a parent that their 9 year old needs technical work is not shocking in the least. Playing a child in a position that is valued by the coach and can possibly demonstrate improvement in areas of deficiency is fine.

Everyone thinks that kids need to play 3 different positions per game. That is a fallacy. Kids should likely have two positions that they see time in over the course of the year. If the kid was stuck there for two years and never moved of course I don't agree with that. But the primary notion of the thread title that the "kid was held back" I don't necessarily agree with. I think both parent and coach are right in this. You can try and paint me into some corner but you are missing my point entirely.

[Anonymous]

I have two kids who played center back in the younger years and were then moved to the midfield around U13. I think it's normal to move kids as the field and they grow. One of the coaches even told us early on that he saw the kid as a future midfielder and that he thought this was the best way to develop him.

I also think that in the early years, many coaches put their fastest and sometimes most skilled players at defense. Later they want the ball handling ability somewhere else.

Anyway, it is true that sometimes a kid needs a new look from a new coach, but the positions might have changed anyway.