NOVASoccerCoach wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Ummmm, all I had to read was your first post in the other thread to know not to read anything you advise. I'd also recommend that for anyone here.

Any coach who says a kids potential is fully realized before age 12 is not intelligent when it comes to sports. My goodness. This is especially true for girls who develop in a a completely different manner than boys both physically and mentally.

I did not read past the first post in the other thread. I could see that reasoning at U15 for girls and U16 for boys.

Don't you have Instagram account to attend to?

As I said in my intro if you don't care for my opinions just go somewhere else. My point in the first thread was to say that if your kid isn't technically sound by U12 it's going to be a difficult road if you as a parent have D1 aspirations for them. This isn't me pulling info out of my ass. I've worked with D1 coaches, scouted alongside them and that's just the harsh truth. Will some kids at U12 play D1 if they are technically behind? Yes there's a chance if they work their tails off every single day but for the most part if your kid at U12 isn't technically sound and shows no signs of growing athleticism, it's going to be difficult

NOVASoccerCoach wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

NOVASoccerCoach wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Coach,

How important is being proficient with both feet (dribbling, passing and kicking) for U12 Girls? Are most or all ECNL U12/13 girls proficient with both feet?

Extremely important. You've got to have two good feet, especially for passing. Imagine being a midfielder and only being able to use your right foot. That means you can only open your body up to the right say. So essentially, you are one-dimensional. You've got to be able to receive the ball on both feet to be able to have the option to play either side. Now you definitely don't have to have shooting prowess with both feet but you've got to be able to dribble and pass with two feet. Also, the weak foot doesn't get better over time. It has to be worked on and practiced every single day. That's why using both feet is supposed to be highly emphasize when players are really young because its much easier to get both feet improving at that age compared to as they get older.

So are all or most ECNL girls proficient with both feet then, Coach?

I'd say the best players are. Varies by the club and the pool they are selecting from.

NOVASoccerCoach wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Ummmm, all I had to read was your first post in the other thread to know not to read anything you advise. I'd also recommend that for anyone here.

Any coach who says a kids potential is fully realized before age 12 is not intelligent when it comes to sports. My goodness. This is especially true for girls who develop in a a completely different manner than boys both physically and mentally.

I did not read past the first post in the other thread. I could see that reasoning at U15 for girls and U16 for boys.

Don't you have Instagram account to attend to?

Are you thinking of the same Insta account I am?

I don't have an instagram account.

NOVASoccerCoach wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Is there a big difference between the kids who start rec before 5, and those who wait until 6 or 7? I mean, obviously that first year will be a learning curve, but does it even out by middle school? I have always thought toddler sports were ridiculous, but since we have your attention, I would love to confirm that. ( Or be proven wrong.)

I wouldn't say rec matters too much. What does matter is familiarity with the ball and how early that starts. Your kid could go play rec, learn absolutely nothing and maybe practice and learn some technical soccer skills. There's actually a lot of studies done on this, specifically by Tom Byer, an American who is responsible for much of the technical soccer development in Japan. Basically the TLDR is if your player starts learning and getting used to dribbling/basic ball mastery techniques at an early age, they will be further ahead. Take two kids, one of them starts getting used to dribbling the ball at age 4 while the other never touches a soccer ball then starts playing Rec at age 7. That kid who started at age 4 already has 3 years of practice and familiarity than the age 7 kid. Skill Acquiesce actually has been studied to slowly decrease as a kid gets older, so the earlier start, the better. Hopefully that answers the question.

NOVASoccerCoach wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Coach, my U13 kid has been playing for a small club’s top team for a few years now and had several coaches. He has a slender build, is fast with the ball, has better than average footwork and better than average vision in passing. He is good in cutting in and intercept but is usually not aggressive or persistent in defense. He enjoys nutmegging more than shooting, and he provides lots of assists. All coaches put him in the wings, and he seems happy about it. The coaches told me his biggest weakness is shooting, but he doesn’t get the chances to shoot playing winger. Is always playing winger the best thing for his development? What would be your advice? Thanks.

Around U13 is when positional specialization starts to be nailed down. Obviously I've never seen your kid play before but if he is quick and technical, then he should be able to cut inside and shoot on his preferred foot. I don't think him playing as a winger is hampering his development if he's good at it. If he wants to get more shooting chances, he should watch Youtube videos of wingers like Hazard, Robben, Ronaldo and watch how they cut inside from the wing and create shooting opportunities for themselves

Anonymous wrote:

NOVASoccerCoach wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Coach, my U13 kid has been playing for a small club’s top team for a few years now and had several coaches. He has a slender build, is fast with the ball, has better than average footwork and better than average vision in passing. He is good in cutting in and intercept but is usually not aggressive or persistent in defense. He enjoys nutmegging more than shooting, and he provides lots of assists. All coaches put him in the wings, and he seems happy about it. The coaches told me his biggest weakness is shooting, but he doesn’t get the chances to shoot playing winger. Is always playing winger the best thing for his development? What would be your advice? Thanks.

Around U13 is when positional specialization starts to be nailed down. Obviously I've never seen your kid play before but if he is quick and technical, then he should be able to cut inside and shoot on his preferred foot. I don't think him playing as a winger is hampering his development if he's good at it. If he wants to get more shooting chances, he should watch Youtube videos of wingers like Hazard, Robben, Ronaldo and watch how they cut inside from the wing and create shooting opportunities for themselves

Thank you for your insight and advice, coach. He watches Jordi Alba every week. I’ll tell him to watch more Hazard. He hates Ronaldo so I wouldn’t push him on that.

Anonymous wrote:As a parent of a versatile player, who excels at multiple positions, I wonder what positions coaches of high level teams (DA and ECNL) consider to be the hardest to fill?

Anonymous wrote:Coach - what's the most successful drills you've used to help U9/10 keep their head up when receiving/dribbling/passing the ball? Thanks!