Specializing in goal (soccer)
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Anonymous
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My 2nd grade DS plays rec soccer and this is the first year they play with goalies. Surprisingly to me - my kids loves playing in goal and is actually really good (maybe because he also plays basketball?)
I didn't think he had the drive or skill to play travel soccer but now I'm rethinking. How does the trajectory work for goalies? Do travel teams take kids to play goalie only? How can he get more training? He's 7 by the way (a bit young for his grade). We're in Takoma Park/Silver Spring area so lower Mont Co recommendations are very welcome. |
Anonymous
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Yes, most travel teams would LOVE a player that wants to be a keeper, and there are plenty of summer camps that are keeper specific.
If I were you, I'd email the training director at Bethesda Soccer Club, tell him exactly what you said here, and see what he has to say. jcolton@bethesdasoccer.org |
Anonymous
| Our travel team through DC Stoddert starts training kids specifically to be goalies during the u11 season. This is once a week training in lieu of regular practice (so they practice twice a week as a team and once with the goalie coach). They never play goalies more than one half of the game so these kids are still play on the field for the other half of the game. I don't think teams start using kids exclusively as goalies until much later (high school age?) |
Anonymous
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In our travel club (VA), the girls' teams don't have dedicated goalies until U11. At that point, the kids who are interested receive goalie training from the club once or twice a week in place of field training, and most who are serious also engage some sort of outside trainer. They also do goalie camps in the summer for additional training.
Can't hurt to contact the technical director of the clubs you're looking at to ask how they handle goalie training and when they allow kids to specialize in a position. |
Anonymous
| Even at U11 some clubs will play a goalie the whole game if they want to do it. Often they only play in goal half so to give them a break or a chance to play on the field. Travel teams love goalies - there are usually not enough but sometimes you have to negotiate try-outs a bit to find a good team. |
Anonymous
| Dedicated/designated goalie starts at U-12 at the two clubs we've been with. |
Anonymous
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Specializing in goalie too early stunts the required technical skills with the feet that modern gk's need at higher levels.
goalies that don't have ability to play with their feet, limit their potential drastically at higher levels. and you don't get enough touches under pressure with you feet at the crucial development periods of 8-14 if you are playing in gk all the time. |
Anonymous
Specializing at that age is a terrible idea, even if the kid has a true passion for the position. You can always play keeper later but you can't go from keeper to field player. Let him play in goal but make sure he continues to get footwork training and field play. |
Anonymous
i'll be interested in seeing what he has to say. I think US system of goalie development shunts kids too early into gk - which is why us keepers are atrocious with their feet compared to spanish counterparts. |
Anonymous
Yes, agree with this. Even for kids who want to play goal, and thus do so a lot at younger travel ages, have something of a disadvantage. Similar experience with Girls travel (stoddert) - U9 basically everybody played a half during the season, some did a couple or three times. U10 a smaller set of girls took turns playing, again only a half. U11 they started giving more regular turns to a couple of players. U12 one girl played GK almost all the games. I think this basically reflected the philosophy of the club. They didn't even have specific GK tryouts until U11, when they did to try to make sure teams all had someone. |
Anonymous
| Soccer coach here. Way too early to specialize as a keeper. Your kid will miss out of critical foot skills development. And, the separation from other teammembers can stunt teamwork skills and sportsmanship (see Hope Solo). |
Anonymous
I wouldn't rethink the decision to play travel soccer based on his desire to play keeper. At that age, if he doesn't have the basic skills to play all positions, then he will soon be overmatched. You can't just hide a kid in the goal and expect them to get better. Keepers still need strong foot skills...that's why they don't recommend specializing until much later. BTW, I coach a U7 team and everyone wants to be the goal keeper when they get tired of running. |
Anonymous
Just wanted to chime in to say that keepers are awesome. 
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Anonymous
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Keepers are awesome. My DC started playing goalie occasionally in U8 - U10, doing it 1/2 games generally in U10. By U11, DC started playing most games in goal (travel team) (only played in field if we were winning by huge margin - maybe a couple games during season). By U12, DC solely played goalkeeper and is very good at it. DC still loves playing in the field though and does that with friends and at school.
It takes a certain kind of kid to be good at goalie -- it takes both physical ability/agility as well as courage and mental strength but also the ability to encourage and give direction to fullbacks and other players. |
Anonymous
That's an idiotic statement, as US keepers have been celebrated as excellent all over the world. The phenomenon of the sweeper keeper, or the keeper that's expected to play a lot of touches from the back, is a brand new one, and there are only a few keepers in the world right now that are actually good at it...and only a few teams in the world that actually care. A keeper with great ball skills is like a pitcher that can hit...it's a nice bonus, but it's no ones priority. |