Message
Anonymous wrote:NOVASoccerCoach wrote:Anonymous wrote:NOVASoccerCoach wrote:Anonymous wrote:Anonymous wrote:Biggest hacks are the parent fan boys who drink the kool aid their club is handing out. Realize that your club, it’s directors, it’s coaches don’t care that much about you, other than as a customer...and one of many. Much like your dry cleaner. If parents could grasp that, it would allow parents to gain more control and we could put an end to the whole “I have to walk on egg shells around these coaches so they don’t screw over my kid”.
Amen.
I can tell you right now that as a coach for a club, I don't really see parents as customers at all. I don't make any commission off of how many kids join the club etc. I'd say most coaches hold this opinion.
Then the lesson for you as a coach is this is how parents believe they are viewed by the club.
Well that's unreasonable because if I think your kid should come to additional training/pay for camps etc, its because I think they really need it, not because I want the club to make money. You're saying parents will think I just want their money when in reality there's no commission at all.
How is it unreasonable under that situation to be viewed as nothing more than a open wallet? So you promote your clubs extra training, saying it is for the best of the player and then in another thread you ask what is special about HP? If a kid needed something in particular and you were truly interested in what is best for the kid then you would be able and willing to recommend outside training options, personal training as well as club opportunities. You may not get commission but steering kids towards club training at all costs is not always in the players best interest.
This is when parents are made to feel like nothing more than a checkbook for the club.
I think you need to readjust your viewpoint here. Personally, I think paying for camps and such is all a cash grab. However, for example, if your kid lets say could be a very talented goalkeeper, I'm going to recommend them to GK training and GK camps. Whenever parents ask me what their kid additional camps/training they can do, I always tell them that if they worked at home it would be just as good and it would save them money. But of course, if I'm going to recommend a camp and I think the ones that our club has are good, I'll recommend it. Maybe I'll recommend others but most club coaches don't really have any sort of knowledge on which outside camps are any good.
As a coach, I'm not here to save you money. I'm here to tell you what's best for your kid and what kind of training your kid needs to help them reach their goals. I'm not a "Travel Soccer Agent" looking to give you the best bang for your buck. I'm just here to recommend you what I think is best purely from a soccer-basis.
Anonymous wrote:Anonymous wrote:They are very different in NCSL
U9 - U10 Field Dimensions:
- Width: 35-50 yards
- Length: 55-75 yards
U11 – U12 Field Dimensions:
- Width: 45-60 yards
- Length: 70-85 yards
- Penalty area: 14 yards
My kids club used the same field size for 7v7 and 9v9 - half a full size field, less about 5-7 yards in the middle where coaches and players sat. I'm not sure of the exact measurements. Makes sense at a busy facility with full size fields as they can have 2 games on each full size field, rather than giving up a full size field and shortening it for small sided games. I know some clubs (DC for example, when they had small sided teams) used the shortened full size field for 9v9, but that was a rarity when my kid played 9v9. Some complexes like Soccerplex have dedicated 7v7 and 9v9, but the complexes without those used, at least in my experience, half a full sized field for 9v9.
For the amount of money and resources in this area, it is quite shocking how poor field size management is for certain level games. The fact that 7v7 kids have to play games on fields that are way too big and then 9v9 kids have to play on fields that are way too small I would say is a huge detriment to their development. Especially the 7v7 kids playing on 9v9 fields.
Anonymous wrote:NOVASoccerCoach wrote:Anonymous wrote:Anonymous wrote:Biggest hacks are the parent fan boys who drink the kool aid their club is handing out. Realize that your club, it’s directors, it’s coaches don’t care that much about you, other than as a customer...and one of many. Much like your dry cleaner. If parents could grasp that, it would allow parents to gain more control and we could put an end to the whole “I have to walk on egg shells around these coaches so they don’t screw over my kid”.
Amen.
I can tell you right now that as a coach for a club, I don't really see parents as customers at all. I don't make any commission off of how many kids join the club etc. I'd say most coaches hold this opinion.
Then the lesson for you as a coach is this is how parents believe they are viewed by the club.
Well that's unreasonable because if I think your kid should come to additional training/pay for camps etc, its because I think they really need it, not because I want the club to make money. You're saying parents will think I just want their money when in reality there's no commission at all.
Anonymous wrote:Anonymous wrote:Biggest hacks are the parent fan boys who drink the kool aid their club is handing out. Realize that your club, it’s directors, it’s coaches don’t care that much about you, other than as a customer...and one of many. Much like your dry cleaner. If parents could grasp that, it would allow parents to gain more control and we could put an end to the whole “I have to walk on egg shells around these coaches so they don’t screw over my kid”.
Amen.
I can tell you right now that as a coach for a club, I don't really see parents as customers at all. I don't make any commission off of how many kids join the club etc. I'd say most coaches hold this opinion.
Anonymous wrote:there are very few options in nothern virginia for large group skills training and classes in the area during the wintertime when you don't want to be outdoors. even fewer options that cater to higher level travel players.
This shocks me.
Can someone explain to me the big deal about HP Elite? Why are they so popular?
Anonymous wrote:Another question re U12 girls. DD is a holding midfielder on a U12 team of an ECNL club. Her strength is quick and accurate passing with both feet. In her last year before transitioning to ECNL, is there anything that she should focus on in particular to do well at the next level?
If she has the technical parts down, she should start figuring out when she can make passes forward to break lines of the opposition. Best holding mids are spatially aware of where they are on the field, know if they can receive and turn on the ball and make a pass forward.
Anonymous wrote:Striker is the most difficult position to train, it requires much different movement than almost every other position on the field and quite frankly it is usually not trained as much in a team environment until the older ages. So I would suggest watching film and/or camps. There's a reason why Striker camps exist.
Thought I was logged in.
Anonymous wrote:Anonymous wrote:Coach, Thanks for taking questions! if it were your U12 DD, who wants to play DA next year, would you make the necessary sacrifices to let her play or stay with her small club?
What necessary sacrifices would you make?
Little confused by what you mean. If she wants to make DA, she has to first get looked at, see where she is at, figure out a plan, then start training every day, constantly get feedback from whoever is the private coach after every game weekend then she has to tryout. No guarantees but that's how you get anything in life. Evaluate yourself where you are at right now, make a long-term plan and set benchmarks, train every day and then check where you are at every couple of weeks.
Anonymous wrote:NOVASoccerCoach wrote:Anonymous wrote:Coach, Thanks for taking questions! if it were your U12 DD, who wants to play DA next year, would you make the necessary sacrifices to let her play or stay with her small club?
If she wants to play DA, I would first get someone qualified to look at her and see where she is at right now. Then I would start training every day and have a long term plan. It's up to her on what she wants to do.
Thanks, by get someone qualified to look at her, what do you mean? Anything besides attending a tryout or ID session?
Sure thing, get a private coach to come to her games and watch. Someone who can be unbiased and give a fair eval
Anonymous wrote:Coach, Thanks for taking questions! if it were your U12 DD, who wants to play DA next year, would you make the necessary sacrifices to let her play or stay with her small club?
If she wants to play DA, I would first get someone qualified to look at her and see where she is at right now. Then I would start training every day and have a long term plan. It's up to her on what she wants to do.
Anonymous wrote:Anonymous wrote:NOVASoccerCoach wrote:Anonymous wrote:Coach - What do you do?
We have a player on the team that is probably 1-2 levels below the rest of the team, the coach seems very frustrated and because he's on the squad he feels the need to play the the individual. Our club has 3 teams for this age group and they preach the benefits of the club's ability to move players up and down appropriately but it seems like they are afraid of the politics that may come with moving players down. i've seen it down during tryouts, but never during season, we seem to only move players up because that's a good news story.
Sounds like a team problem which is out of your control. You're going to have to deal with it or just move clubs. One player is definitely not ruining your team, I can guarantee you that. He may not belong there but if it's just one player then the coach can easily find ways to "hide" him or play him in positions to succeed.
So you would just let it play out for the year and not ruffle feathers? Seems like a soft approach and not fair to other kids on the team.
How exactly is this one player impacting your kid's development? What age group are we talking about here? I'm assuming u-little because you seem to be very focused on results.
Agree with this. I don't really understand why one kid being not so great is causing so many issues. I guarantee you on every team there's always one kid who's behind. If the coach is drawing this much attention to it where the players know and all the parents know, then I would say your coach isn't that great, also is kind of an asshole and that kid also needs to find a new home. Why is it not fair to other kids on the team? One kid isn't losing your team games I guarantee you that.
Anonymous wrote:
My son is a U12, and the coach generally plays him as a left back, which he's pretty good at. He's not a big or tall kid, but somehow, seems to be a good fit for the position. He doesn't mind being a defender, but wants to get some experience in the midfield (not interested in striker or wing, and not right of those positions either, but wants to try any of the midfield positions). The problem is, our team has kids who are good as forwards, but only one other kid who is good at defense (a right back), and so generally, DS and this kid are always defenders. The great thing is that they both pretty much get 100 percent playing time, but the downside is that they never get to try other positions. DS has asked to try midfielder, and has been allowed to in scrimmages, but never in a game.
Any advice?
Always good to get experience at other positions but the coach must see that he is a natural left back. As he moves on to U13 and U14, mastering the play at a particular position will be important. Especially at Left Back. Outside of goalie, that is the hardest position to fill with competent players.
Is your son left-footed? If he's not then he's probably going to slot in as a centerback. Leftbacks have to be left footed when they get older. Obviously I haven't watched your DS but I wanted to jump in on this thread for some guidance. Fullback is an important position but it's not a difficult position to fill. Often you'll find fullbacks be 2nd choice wingers or shoter centerbacks. I'd say your DS continues to work and try to be tidy in midfield in scrimmages. Not saying playing where he is at is bad but he needs to make sure he is extremely technical and a great defender if he wants to keep progressing as he gets older. This is only of course is if he has ambitious aspirations for the future.
Thank you. He is left footed. He's only ambitious in the sense that he wants to keep playing on a decent level team. I don't think he has aspirations beyond that. But the information you provided is very helpful and I appreciate it.
No problem!
Anonymous wrote:Coach - What do you do?
We have a player on the team that is probably 1-2 levels below the rest of the team, the coach seems very frustrated and because he's on the squad he feels the need to play the the individual. Our club has 3 teams for this age group and they preach the benefits of the club's ability to move players up and down appropriately but it seems like they are afraid of the politics that may come with moving players down. i've seen it down during tryouts, but never during season, we seem to only move players up because that's a good news story.
Sounds like a team problem which is out of your control. You're going to have to deal with it or just move clubs. One player is definitely not ruining your team, I can guarantee you that. He may not belong there but if it's just one player then the coach can easily find ways to "hide" him or play him in positions to succeed.
Anonymous wrote:What do you think of executive director salaries?
I can't blame the salary, you have to blame the system. Youth Soccer is Pay to play in this country. The board is not professionally run and full of people who have no idea of the soccer landscape.