Infinity SC '92 Girls In Southern California Part 1: Unifying The Team

With the high school season coming to an end the U17 girls had four weeks (eight training sessions) to prepare for a very competitive tournament. Their preparation was focused on three things;
1) Unifying the team
2) Team Shape when transitioning to defense. Click Here for the team shape diagrams.
3) Attacking using combination play and unbalancing runs in to the final 3rd of the field.



The girls all arrived at Doheney State Beach in Dana Point, California. Coach Ginn's parents and aunt still live in San Juan Capistrano, CA so they played host and provided a thanksgiving dinner for the girls and their families. There was turkey, yams, stuffing...just enough for everyone to have a little. Also there were Hot Dogs and Hamburgers for the families to eat up if they remained hungry.



Unifying this group has not been a difficult task, as the girls have been open to the new teammates, coaches and parents. The girls had a lot of fun playing volleyball and hanging at the beach on Thanksgiving day.


After having fun at the beach the girls drove up to Irvine and went through a training session and some "walk throughs" to prepare them for the tournament the next morning. The girls shared rooms with assigned teammates. The teammates that attend high school together were all separated to allow the players a opportunity to get out of their comfort zone and get to know one another. A team rule for the girls is that the players are not allowed to wear anything representing their highs school when at Infinity activities. Even though High School soccer is important, being unified as a team and breaking down the boundaries that our valley has developed over its history is an important part of being successful, both as a team and as a club.



I will share their soccer tournament experience for part two and continue to focus on the team unity aspect for now. Friday night the girls were asked to perform skits for their teammates to perform. They groups of four grous were asked to present a skit. The topics: The Dating Game, A Talk Show, Home Shopping Network & A Game Show. When given the assignments the girls reluctantly went to their rooms and created ideas, and developed dialogue for their skits. Walking through the halls, the girls were giggling more than normal. The skits were performed and when Morgan Olsen's father, Gary Olsen, was asked to be the bachelor, the girls got to see a grown man blush when forced to asked pre-fabricated questions about the available girls. He asked the two girls questions like, "describe your belly button," and what their ideal dates would be. It was pure comedy to the girls and the parents. After the skits the girls played a game called, "The Animal Game." The girls had to act out animals with body movements and sounds or move down in the seating. It is a long time tradition for Coach Ginn to play this at every tournament he attends. it was fun, by the end the girls were tired and headed to bed to prepare for the next day of soccer.



When the tournament was over on Saturday the girls went to Laguna Beach, CA where they surrounded a pit fire on the beach, roasted marshmallows and played in the shore break. Taylor Anderson and Stacy Bair ended up drenched when Coach Ginn asked them to go stand on the rocks while the set of waves were small. They stood their, nearly bored because the water was just getting their feet. Getting anxious to play in the water a bit more, the team got closer to the shore break, Taylor hid behind a rock next to the edge.



I do not believe anyone will forget when Taylor got drenched when the shore break covered her so well that nobody could see her. The same wave got everyone else wet, but Stacy and Taylor got the worst of the group.



The girls went back to the fire pit and dried up. The team really had a fun time, it seemed as if these girls had all been playing together for years and years.

The experience was memorable and the unification process off of the field seems to have been successful.

The Ginn family and all of the players families made the trip stress free (except for the trips to Jamboree Rd.). Coaches Caleb Cowley and Jeff Ginn are very grateful for the girls discipline, punctuality and responsibility that they displayed during the entire trip.

-As more photos are gathered, we will post them. Part 2: Developing While Competing, will be up soon.

Youth Soccer in America - How do we measure success?

From the US Youth Soccer Technical Department – For weekly content from the US Youth Soccer Technical Department, check out their blog at www.USYouthSoccer.com/Blog

"There are already a multitude of articles saying that winning and losing are not the correct measures of success in youth soccer, instead we should measure the development of the players. OK, perfect. The next obvious follow-up question then is, 'How do we measure the development of a single player?' If US Youth Soccer can answer this question in a way that is helpful to committed coaches and understandable to parents with limited playing experience (and paying the money to have their kids involved), they may be able to turn this overly organized youth soccer system of ours into a much more effective development program."
- Cary McCormick, Arlington, Va.

Indeed how do we measure player development?

Too often in America, a professional sport model is used in measuring youth sports success. Youth soccer is not immune to this misapplied standard. For soccer the situation is made worse by a desire of many adults to use measuring tools from other sports. In fact, it is maddening to many adults that soccer is not as black and white as with some sports in judging successful play. Many team sports played in our nation are statistically driven and coach centered.

Soccer is neither of those!

Indeed just like the Laws of the Game our sport has many shades of grey within it. As a player centered sport some coaches become disillusioned as they learn that they are the 'guide on the side' and not the 'sage on the stage'. Too many soccer coaches bring a military focused attitude to the youth sport environment. This coach-centered perspective has been handed down to us from other sports and coaching styles of past generations.

In many sports the coach makes crucial decisions during the competition. In soccer players make the primary decisions during the match; the coach's decisions are of secondary importance. Ego-centric personalities will find coaching soccer troublesome. The other significant group of adults at a youth soccer match is parents. They too often have their view of the match colored by the professional model and by a view of "coaching" that is portrayed in the media. Although it is changing, the majority of parents watching their kids play soccer have never played the game. In fact the statistics show that most of today's parents never played any team sport. So their only exposure on how to measure sporting success is gleaned from the sports media. The sports media predominately report on adult teams at the college and professional levels. These adult measurements of team performance should not and cannot be applied to youth sports.

The analogy can be made to a youngster's academic development in preparation for work in the adult business world. While the child is in primary and secondary school, the corporate world measurements of success are not applied. Those business assessments are not yet appropriate because the school-aged student does not yet have the tools to compete in the adult business environment. The knowledge and skills to be a competitor in business are still being taught and learned. This holds true in soccer as well!

Soccer is an adult game designed by adults for adults to play. Adults enjoy the game so much that they have shared it with their children. Yet adults make errors when we bring our adult performance and outcome based thinking into the developing player's world.

Alright fine you say. So how do we measure success? How do parents know if the team coach is doing a good job of teaching soccer to the players? How does the novice coach know if the kids are growing within the game?

As a way to measure success, let's look at the facts provided a by a study by the Youth Sports Institute, on what players want from their sports experience.

TRUTHS about children and sports

* Fun is pivotal - if it's not fun, young people won't play a sport
* Skill development is a crucial aspect of fun - it is more important than winning even among the best athletes
* The most rewarding challenges of sports are those that lead to self-knowledge
* Intrinsic rewards (self-knowledge that grows out of self-competition) are more important in creating lifetime athletes than extrinsic rewards are (victory or attention from others)1

During childhood allow the kids to have a good time playing the game while instilling the passion to love playing soccer on their own. Only a passion for the game can lead to success.

"Success is something players take ownership of and in time it becomes personally meaningful. Success is a process, not a product. The process of doing one's best is the key to success. The determining criterion of success is whether a player gave his or her best that day. Doing one's best is the most important statement a player can make about the importance of an activity and the meaning it has. With years of experience comes self-knowledge and self-awareness. So players learn over time what it means to do your best, to give 100%."2

"Winning isn't everything, but trying to is!" – Rainer Martens, sports psychologist

Motives for Participation in Youth Sport
Reasons for Participating in Non-school Sports (study of 3,900 7 to 12 graders)

Boys Girls
1. To have fun 1. To have fun
2. To do something I'm good at 2. To stay in shape
3. To improve my skills 3. To get exercise
4. For the excitement of competition 4. To improve my skills
5. To stay in shape 5. To do something I am good at
6. For the challenge of competition 6. To learn new skills
7. To get exercise 7. For the excitement of competition
8. To learn new skills 8. To play as part of a team
9. To play as part of a team 9. To make new friends
10. To go to a higher level of competition 10. For the challenge of competition3

Truths & Motives for Participation
1. Have fun and to enjoy participating in sport.
2. Learn new skills and to improve on existing sports skills.
3. Become physically fit and to enjoy good health
4. Enjoy the challenge and excitement of sports participation and competition.
5. Enjoy a team atmosphere and to be with friends.4

Suggestions for Parents

* Remember the truths and talk to your children with them in mind. After a game, ask questions about fun, skill improvement, learning experiences and having a good time with friends.
* See yourself as part of the team and supportive of the coach; avoid setting up a conflict in your child's mind between his or her parents and coaches. If you want to affect the coaching, volunteer to help.
* Develop perspective: remember what you could do at your children's ages; don't judge them by what you can do now. Kids will not become great players overnight.
* Develop an understanding of what your children want from sports—not all children want the same things. Determine if they want to be involved at all.

Basic Urges of Children

* Movement
* Success and Approval
* Peer Acceptance & Social Competence
* Cooperation & Competition
* Physical Fitness & Attractiveness
* Adventure
* Creative Satisfaction
* Rhythmic Expression
* To Know 5

Note: Winning alone is not a motive for participation by boys and girls.

"We are asking our players to compete before they have learned how to play."
-Jay Miller, U.S. U17 Men's National Team coach 2001

In general the benefits of youth sports for children include character building, humility in winning, leadership growth opportunities, cooperative skills, social skills and dealing with obstacles, losing and competition. We employ soccer to develop well adjusted, good citizens.

Measurements of Success in Youth Soccer
Short-Term

* Fun - Do the players smile and laugh? Do the players look forward to playing? The first question from the player's family should be, "Did you have fun today?"
* Fair Play - Does a player demonstrate a sense of sportsmanship through words and actions?
* Laws of the Game - Do the players know and follow the rules of soccer?
* Health and Fitness - Are the players physically fit enough to meet the fitness demands of the game? Are they developing good nutrition and hydration habits befitting an athlete?
* Friendships - Are the players creating new friends within the team and with players from other teams?
* Skills - Are the players demonstrating a growing number of ball skills and are they gradually becoming more proficient in those skills?

Long-Term

* Commitment - How do the players answer when asked at the end of a game, "Did you try your best?"
* Roles in the Team - More important than learning a position, are the players learning about positioning? Knowing where the right back or the center forward spot is on the field is important, yet learning how to move tactically within the game is far more important. Do all of the players get exposed to playing all of the positions?
* Leadership - Are players being given the opportunity to take on leadership roles and responsibilities? Are the coaches and team managers teaching leadership?
* Tactics - Are the players experimenting with new tactics in matches? The coaches must teach new tactics to the players in training sessions and then allow them to try out the tactics in a match, regardless of how that might affect the outcome!
* Retention - Do the players come back year after year?

Retention is recognized as a short term measure of success in youth soccer and developing well adjusted citizens is another long term measure of success in youth sports. In a 2007 US Youth Soccer survey 96 percent of parents responded that one of the benefits they desire for youth soccer to provide to their child is fun. 97 percent of the parents surveyed feel the reason their child participates in youth soccer is fun.

What Parents Can Do

* Talk positively with their children before and after activities
* Supply transportation
* Assist with supervision
* Officiate games
* Help with administration
* Assist with the organization of special events

Statistics, win-loss-tie records, goals for/goals against, saves, number of corner kicks and so on are straight forward ways to measure what happened in a game. Those unfamiliar with soccer find the use of those measurements comforting as they help them define a sport they find confusing. Yet those measurements fail to show the complete picture of a random skill, open-ended, transitional sport with no timeouts. There is an immeasurable organized chaos factor in soccer.

How can one measure or quantify the unexpected 60 yard dribble and goal of Diego Maradona in the 1986 World Cup? What measurement of success can explain how some player, somewhere in the world, decades ago, spontaneously did a bicycle kick in a match making that move a part of soccer from then on?

The bottom line is that statistics in soccer are largely meaningless. From this thought springs the reality that soccer perhaps is the cruelest of team sports. It may be the only team sport where a team could have the majority of ball possession, outshoot the other team and still lose the match. If you have played soccer long enough you have been the team that was much better than the opposition and lost. You have also been the team that was outplayed by the opposition and won. The win-loss record does not accurately show how the game was played, how the players performed or how well the coach prepared the team to play the game.

Scientific research has concluded that it takes eight-to-twelve years of training for a talented player to reach elite levels. This is called the 10-year or 10,000 hour rule, which translates to slightly more than three hours of practice daily for ten years (Ericsson, et al., 1993; Ericsson and Charness, 1994, Bloom, 1985, Salmela et al., 1998). Unfortunately, parents and coaches in many sports still approach training with an attitude best characterized as "peaking by Friday," where a short-term approach is taken to training and performance with an over-emphasis on immediate results. We now know that a long-term commitment to practice and training is required to produce elite players in all sports.

Sports can be classified as early specialization or late specialization sports. Late specialization sports, including athletics, combative sports, cycling, racquet sports, rowing and all team sports require a generalized approach to early training. For these sports, the emphasis during the first two phases of training should be on the development of general motor and technical-tactical skills.

Late Specialization Model
Stage 1 – Fundamental Stage
Age: 6-9 years
Objective: Learn all fundamental movement skills (build overall motor skills)

Stage 2 – Learning to Train Stage
Age: 8-12 years
Objective: Learn all fundamental soccer skills (build overall sports skills)

Stage 3 – Training to Train Stage
Age: 11-16 years
Objectives: Build the aerobic base, build strength towards the end of the phase and further develop sport-specific skills (build the "engine" and consolidate soccer specific skills)

Stage 4 – Training to Compete Stage
Age: 15-18 years
Objectives: Optimize fitness preparation and sport, individual and position-specific skills as well as performance (optimize "engine", skills and performance)

Stage 5 – Training to Win Stage
Age: 17 years and older
Objectives: Maximize fitness preparation and sport, individual and position specific skills as well as performance (maximize "engine", skills and performance)

Stage 6 – Retirement/Retention Stage
Objectives: Retain players for coaching, administration, officials, etc.6
It is certainly the stance of US Youth Soccer to focus more on match performance than outcome; yet this is not to say that players should not strive to win. There's nothing wrong with winning! Trying to win is desirable and praiseworthy. It means trying your best. Indeed trying to play your best (match performance) often leads to winning. But not always! Remember the outcome of the game is not a reason why kids play! Players and coaches should diligently work to improve their performance. This is the drive for excellence as opposed to success.

Success does not breed success; it breeds failure. It is failure, which breeds success. If that advice seems patently absurd, think about the careers of many famous winners:

* Babe Ruth struck out 1,333 times. In between his strikeouts he hit 714 homeruns.
* Martina Navratilova lost 21 of her first 24 matches against archrival Chris Evert. She resolved to hit more freely on the big points and beat Evert thirty-nine out of their next 57 matches. No woman tennis pro has ever won as many matches or as many tournaments, including a record nine Wimbledon singles titles as Navratilova who retired from professional tennis at age 50.
* Abraham Lincoln failed twice in business and was defeated in six state and national elections before being elected president of the United States.
* Michael Jordan was cut from his junior high school basketball team, before becoming a sports icon.
* Theodor S. Geisel wrote a children's book that was rejected by 23 publishers. The 24 publisher sold six million copies of it –the first Dr. Seuss book – and that book and its successors are still staples in every child's library.

Consider the times when you tried to learn a new game or sport. Did you get it perfect the first day? Not likely. A former teammate once told me that he did get one sport right the first time he tried it. We asked what he meant and he said, "It was the first day of snow skiing classes. I skied all day long and I didn't fall down once. I was so elated; I felt so good. So I skied up to the ski instructor, and I told him of my great day. You know what the ski instructor said? He told me, 'Personally I think you had a lousy day.' I was stunned. 'What do you mean lousy day? I thought the objective was to stand up on these boards, not fall down.' The ski instructor looked me straight in the eye and replied, 'Sir, if you're not falling down, you're not learning.'"

The ski instructor understood that if you can stand up on your skis all day long the first time out, you're doing only what you already know how to do, not pushing yourself to try anything new or difficult.

If you always play it safe you aren't going to improve yourself because when you try to do something you don't know how to do, you'll fall down. That's guaranteed! Nothing is ever done perfectly the first time someone tries it – not in business, not in school and most certainly not in soccer. The point isn't to promote failure for failure's sake, of course. We don't advocate for a moment that failure ought to be the objective of any endeavor. Instead, we advocate learning. We want American players to be leaders and not look for someone to blame when mistakes are made while expanding their soccer horizons. Instead ask, "What can be learned from the experience?"

Trying new ball skills or new tactics, a new set play or a new formation will cause errors during matches. Yet if the players do not feel they are allowed to try out these new talents in a match, when will those talents become a part of their game? The sounds coming from the spectators at a youth match should be cheers for when a player tries something new. Parents can measure their child's success in soccer by the improving athletic ability of their child, by the growing confidence and self-reliance of the player, by the emergence of refined ball skills, by the opportunity afforded by the coach to play in different positions on the team, by the taking on of leadership and responsibility, by the demonstration of fair play and by the smiles. The parents will know that there is a chance for success when they see the players and coaches striving for excellence!

"There are many people, particularly in sports who think that success and excellence is the same thing and they are not the same thing. Excellence is something that is lasting and dependable and largely within a person's control. In contrast, success is perishable and is often outside our control… If you strive for excellence, you will probably be successful eventually… people who put excellence in first place have the patience to end up with success… An additional burden for the victim of the success mentality is that he is threatened by the success of others and resents real excellence. In contrast, the person fascinated by quality is excited when he sees it in others."
- Joe Paterno – Penn State football coach – 1990

Striving to improve individual, group and team performance is more important at the youth level than the outcome. Simultaneously players should play to win. Coaches should teach and develop the players as they learn how to win. Parents should support the players and coaches. Intrinsic success is by its nature more difficult to measure than extrinsic success. A trophy is more tangible to an adult than the exhilaration a child feels while playing soccer. The final measure of success for parents of their child's soccer experience will require a good deal of patience from the adults. That measurement is the free choice of the child to stay in the game!

In soccer circles it is agreed that four groups of adults support the youth game. Parents, coaches, administrators and referees have an equal obligation to the players. That obligation is to live by the vision you have just read!

"We must work to create an environment to develop the American player's growth and development! In the past we have tried to train the Dutch way, the Brazilian way, etc. We can and will together create the finest players in the world if we understand the growth, development and specific characteristics of our youth. Distributing the body of information from the "Y" License is the first step."
- Dr. Thomas Fleck

In matters of style, swim with the current. In matters of principle, stand like a rock.

Mission Statement
US Youth Soccer is a non-profit and educational organization whose mission is to foster the physical, mental and emotional growth and development of America's youth through the sport of soccer at all levels of age and competition.

Sources
1 Ewing, M.E., & Seefeldt. V. (1990). American youth sport participation. American Footwear Association, North Palm Beach, FL. Sporting Goods Manufacturers Association (SGMA).

2 Fine, Aubrey H., Ph.D. & Sachs, Michael L., Ph.D. (1997). The Total Sports Experience for Kids. Diamond Communications

3 Ewing, M. & Seefeldt, V., (1989). Participation and attrition patterns in American agency-sponsored and interscholastic sports: An executive summary. Final report Sporting Goods Manufacturer's Association(North Palm Beach, FL: Sporting Goods Manufacturer's Association) as cited from Weinberg & Gould (2007). Foundations of Sport & Exercise Psychology. Champaign, IL: Human Kinetics.

4 Cox, R., (2002). Sport Psychology: Concepts and Applications 5th Ed. (p.108). New York, NY: McGraw-Hill.

5 Pangrazi, R. P. (2004). Dynamic Physical Education for Elementary School Children. (pp. 159-160). (14th ed.). San Francisco: Pearson Benjamin Cummings.

6 Long-Term Athlete Development: Trainability in Childhood and Adolescence, Istvan Balyi, Ph.D. and Ann Hamilton, MPE; Olympic Coach, Volume 16, Number 1

“Seeing the Big Picture”

By: J.J. Ruane, PSA Director of Coaching

I was in a meeting a couple of weeks ago, sitting with several professional youth soccer coaches from the area. The topic of discussion was the top 100 players in the world. The first 25 players were pretty easy to figure out as we went down the list and most everyone listed the same 25 players. As we went down through the top 100, our players were significantly different, but there was one constant through everyone’s list, there was not one American player. I visited the IYSA Expo this past weekend and was able to watch some different sessions. One of the presenters was from the Everton Youth Academy which has a senior team in the English Premier League. The one thing that really impressed me was his comments about youth soccer and soccer as a whole in this country. “The United States is a sleeping giant in the soccer world; the country has all the tools to win the World Cup. The problem though is that you are using a hammer to unscrew a light bulb.”

I think these two examples show a number of things. The first is that our potential as a country is huge. The problem is we want immediate results. As a director of coaching, it is ironic to hear that a group of youth players are the 3v3 National Champions meaning they are the best 3v3 team in the country. The shocking thing about this entire thing was that the kids were U8. We don’t see past tomorrow. As a director of coaching, my primary job is to make sure that the professional staff is doing their jobs to the best of their ability. Another part of that is to make sure that they are able to move on in their coaching if they so choose, staff development. My other primary job is to do the same thing with the players. My job is not to look at a U10 player and pick him for the national team. My job is to take the appropriate steps to take that gifted U10 player and get him to love the game, so he can play the game for a long time and get to the national team, but only if the player so chooses: player development.

The other problem that the opening story suggests is that there are no American players presently that the world respects. I believe this problem exists as an extension to the above problem. We put too much pressure on our youngest players to produce results at a young age. We don’t allow our players any time to make mistakes. Let players be creative, let them make mistakes, let them solve problems on their own, and let the game teach itself. This is in no way to say that as coaches, we do not give the proper tools to our players to be good technical players. An infant must fall down on its bottom several times before it learns how to walk on its own. A player must take players on hundreds of times until they develop the confidence needed to be successful. Legends coaches preach this in training and also in games.

It is the staff coach’s job to develop players and prepare them for the challenges that lie ahead, hopefully making them better people along the way. These challenges may be making them a confident player, getting them to a top team level, preparing them for the high school level, and obviously the ultimate goal and challenge for us as coaches is the college level. All of us coaches love to win and really take it to heart when we lose. I don’t know how many times I have taken that long road trip wondering what I could have done better to help my team be more successful. The thought I always come back to though is did the players do what I asked them to do, did they get better at things we worked on in training the week before, did they work hard, and most times the answer is yes.

In closing, soccer is a funny game. This is not like basketball or football where the best team wins 90% of the time. Most time in soccer, the best team does not win. I watched Arsenal (England) play PSV Eindhoven (Netherlands) last week. Arsenal was far superior in almost every facet of the game except when it came time to finish. They missed 10-12 chances throughout the match. Arsenal scored one goal. PSV had 3-4 chances and they scored two goals. How many times has this happened to Legends teams that has been far better skill wise, but lose because the team they played did not really play soccer correctly and were just bigger and much faster? The Legends staff will always instruct our players to play the game the best way possible and we ask that our parents do the same and not be blinded by who was the better team because of the score.

Questions or comments can be emailed to J.J. Ruane, jjruane@plainfieldsoccer.org.

Advice to a fellow coach (From the blog archives of Sam Snow)

Hi Sam,
I have a question about formations, especially the back players. I coach recreation Under-12 girls and we play 11 vs. 11. All of the other teams have their four back players stand at the 25 yard line and wait for the ball to come to them. I encourage my back players to get involved and get forward as much as the game will allow. We have lost every game so far and our parents are requesting that we do the same because we're not winning. Is this the way youth recreational soccer is supposed to be? Most of the girls on my team played for a different coach last year and she instructed her backs to stay 25 yards in front of the goal.

What do I do? Please advise.

Thank you,
Jack
---------

Hello Jack,

Please do resist the urgings of the parents and instead educate them on why your approach is the correct one. In the National Coaching Schools, one of the tactical concepts we teach is called compactness. Essentially this means a team should move up field as a unit on the attack and move back into their half of the field to defend. We expect everyone on the team to be involved in the attack and everyone on the team to be involved in defending. Even with the US Youth Soccer Olympic Development Program we look for players who have the versatility to be involved on 'both sides of the ball' as the saying goes. So we look for talented well-rounded players who can both defend and attack.

The approach of telling fullbacks to not move forward beyond a 25 yard mark is inhibiting those players from learning how to play the game.

Coaches take this action for a variety of reasons. Among those reasons are a lack of understanding of the tactics of soccer or a fear of failure. Soccer, like basketball, is a game where the team moves together around the playing area. Imagine a basketball team where some players are told to never cross the halfway line for the fear of the opponents scoring; that indeed would be a poorly played game of basketball.

What's most important in your situation is to teach the players about positioning. The idea here is the distance and angles that teammates take between each other during the match. Those distances and angles constantly change as the ball and players move around the field. It requires anticipation and game sense from the players. When children as young as 12-years-old are learning the sport of soccer they will make mistakes in regard to positioning. This is simply the learning process in action. However those mistakes may mean lost scoring opportunities in front of the opponents' goal and giving away scoring opportunities to the other team in front of your goal. This creates fear among the coaches and supporters who often value the score line more than a well played game. This is the fear of failure component I mentioned earlier. Regularly the adults involved in youth sports fear losing more than the players do. Yet winning, losing and tying are part of learning how to play the game.

So your challenge now is to balance short-term and long-term objectives. For the short-term work on the team learning to respond quickly when the ball is lost to the opponents to sprint back into good defensive positions - and here I mean the entire team. For the long-term objective work on the concept of positioning, which in the end is more important than learning positions.

Do not hesitate to let us know if the US Youth Soccer Technical Department can be of further assistance.

Keep Kicking,
Sam

A Decade of Coaching

About 40 miles away from Jacksonville, North Carolina and about an hour away from Wilmington, North Carolina is a town called Beulaville. In August of 1997 I was assigned to serve in this town with only two stop lights. It is likely one of the favorite and most memorable places I served on my two year LDS mission. After a week of being there I became very acquainted with the Batts family. The father was the 2nd counselor in the branch 20 miles away, his wife over young women's a son that had just moved out, a second son that played soccer on the h.s. team and a daughter that was just about a year away from being in h.s. To make a long story a little shorter, the family found out that I played soccer at UVSC. The same day I got a call from Bro. Batt's and he said, "East Duplin High School just announced that they are going to have a high school soccer team, do you want to coach it?" I didn' think there was anyway it was going to happen, "I would love to, but I will have to get my mission presidents approval." My mission president approved after a phone call to the area authorities and got back to me the next day. President Esplin explained to me the cans and can nots of the new service activity and I was allowed to take my companions to the two hour practices and games, both home and away. Now, there was a true head coach, he was the basketball coach. He was a great guy and gave me a lot of responsibilities.

Meanwhile, back in Utah, my oldest brother got the coaching bug as well. Right before I left on my mission my brother Bobby and I were asked by our Aunt Delanie to coach our cousins recreational teams. Bobby enjoyed it so much he found Celtic Storm Soccer Club, a newly established competitive program in Orem and earned his E and D license and coached a team. While he and I were both getting excited about coaching at the same time, I don't think either of us knew what we were getting in to. Bobby was learning how to deal with teenage girls and I was learning how to deal with teenage boys.


I had written my parents to inform them of the new service activity we were participating in. My loving and oh so wise mom replied to me in a letter, "...you let the head coach do all of the yelling at the refereee's, no yellow cards for my Elder...." Sure enough the first yellow card I ever received as a coach was me defending our goal keeper at East Duplin High School. Just think about this; your on a mission representing the Lord and you get called on to a soccer field and are asked your name so the official can book you. I replied my name is "Elder...Elder Ginn." Later that night I broke the mission rules and called my mom and apologized to her. That was the only time I called home when I wasn't supposed to. East Duplin was very memorable and a great introduction to the coaching side of Soccer



OK, So I returned home from my mission in July of 1998. It had been about 9 months since my time in Beulaville. I was home in California with the family for a few weeks and then headed back to UVSC in Orem, Utah. Bobby had arranged for me to take my E license (Got my D 3 months later) and made sure I had a team to coach when I returned. The team was a U17 girls team. I coached them for a year, a year later I was asked by Robyn Bretzing, the club president and founder to coach a u13 girls team and invited me to take over her position at the new high school in Orem, Utah...Timpanogos H.S.

I coached 4 years at Timpanogos and took that u13 girls team until they were U17. I coached with bobby one fall at William Penn University and then 4years with coach Ammon bennett at Iowa Western C.C. where we started the program and took the women's team to nationals two years in a row and were national runners up both years. While in Council Bluffs, Iowa with the IWCC teams I also founded a soccer club: Council Bluffs Futbol Club. My time in Iowa was amazing, I learned a ton and was prepared for my next step in Logan Utah with Infinity Soccer Club.

Anyway in a decade of coaching, I may not be rich in money or making a name for myself at any prestigious level, but I am happy because I have been paid in so many better ways:

Celtic Storm Girls:
Tamika Wilson: Married, Graduating from University of Wyoming. As a Jr. was named Mountain West Conference co-offensive player of the year
Julie and Kellie Hegerhost, married and have families of their own.
Candice Clark Graduating from Utah State, played starting striker for the Aggies, married, coaches for infinity soccer club
Kira Lazenby: Iowa Western CC graduate and Captain of first team to ever play in a national title game for the Reivers. Continued her career at University of Texas El Paso and Northwestern.
Tara Devenish: Married and played for a national title at Iowa Western CC.
Becky Pulham: Played for a national title at IWCC, continued playing for BYU-Hawaii, on an lds mission
Karly Nelson: Played for two national titles at IWCC, continued to play at grand Canyon University in Arizona.
Sutton Cherrington: married, played Goal Keeper for Southern Utah University
Deborah Benson: married, Plays for Mesa State in Colorado and captained for final two seasons
Kirtley Sorenson: attends BYU, does not play soccer
Jana Davis: married and plays for Idaho State
Megan Richardson: plays for BYU
Lil' Bree Robinson: married, plays for Dixie State
Jessica Nelson: married, plays for Dixie State
Shantae Adams: married, plays for Dixie State.
Hannah Silvey: Played for the national title twice at IWCC, captained IWCC and plays for University of Texas El Paso.
Katie Long: First Ever Captain for IWCC, returned from LDS mission, married.
Kiddist Kennard: Played on the inaugural team for IWCC, went on to play for Hastings college in Nebraska
Shayla Adams: Married, Played for UVSC

Being a good sports parent Let the kids enjoy the game, experts say

Being a good sports parent
Let the kids enjoy the game, experts say
By Jane Weaver
In March a brawl among parents of 9- and 10-year-old hockey players in upstate
New York resulted in eight people facing misdemeanor charges and a father suffering
a dislocated shoulder after being pushed off the bleachers.
At a Pittsburgh high school basketball game in February, a referee was treated for a
concussion after a parent body-slammed him for ordering the man's wife out of the
gym for allegedly yelling obscenities.
An over-eager New Jersey father created his own soccer league last fall because his
7-year-old son was too young to play in a competitive league.
What's wrong with grown-ups these days?
Are some of them just aging failed athletes trying to live vicariously through their
athletic children? Anxious moms and dads hoping that their kids can snare college
sports scholarships? Or fanatic parents pushing their offspring to become elite
athletes with specialized training, summer camps and personal coaches, whether the
child wants it or not?
All of the above, say youth sports experts.
Barely out of diapers
Almost 30 million boys and girls under 18 play some kind of organized sport like
Little League or soccer, according to the National Council on Youth Sports. For many
of them, it's a way to make new friends and play a game they enjoy.
But over the last decade, more otherwise well-meaning parents have been pushing
their budding stars to excel at almost any cost.
Children as young as 3 can sign up for swimming and gymnastics programs. Soccer
often starts at 4 and baseball at 5. From there it's become increasingly common for
parents to rush the kids into highly competitive situations when they're barely out of
diapers.
"Youth sports has clearly become more professionalized in recent years," says Gregg
Heinzmann, associate director of New Jersey's Rutgers Youth Sports Research
Council. "Many more parents want to see their kids achieve some level of success, be
it athletic scholarship or in certain cases a pro sports contract."
That hyper-competitive atmosphere can translate into overly involved parents ready
to explode at any coach, referee or other parent who interferes with their own
children's performances.
"You'll see lawyers and doctors at little girls' or boys' games and some of these
people, it's like they've taken a pill that turns them into demons," says Steve
Dawson, associate professor of sports sociology at Wittenberg University in
Springfield, Ohio.
Dawson, who is a long-time coach of a high school club soccer team, tells the story
of the mother of a 5th grade girls' basketball team who loudly and publicly cheered
her daughter for making an opponent cry.
"That's just a minor incident, but it's typical of how carried away some parents get,"
says Dawson.
'The Tiger Woods syndrome'
Youth sports activist Bob Bigelow calls it "the Tiger Woods syndrome" where parents
think they have to push their little kids earlier.
It's parents like that who are ruining youth sports by treating their kids like
"miniature adults," says Bigelow, a former first-round NBA draft pick and author of
"Just Let The Kids Play."
Dr. Bruce Svare, professor of psychology at the State University of New York at
Albany and founder of the National Institute for Sports Reform, says there's a danger
to a child's self-esteem when parents send the message to their kids that what
they're doing isn't valuable unless they can turn it into something material like a
scholarship.
"More parents view their kids as an economic investment that has to be translated
into something later on," says Svare.
Dawson agrees. "We've become so competitive, it's out of control."
Parents should take note: A 2001 study by the National Alliance for Youth Sports
found that 70 percent of American kids who sign up for sports quit by the time they
were 13. The reason? They said it wasn't fun anymore.
"It's a downside of 10- to 12-year-olds who sit on benches because adults think it's
more important to win," says Bigelow. "Too may parents are buying into it."
"At one level a lot of parents realize it but they're caught on a treadmill," says Svare.
"No one's pointing out that it's easier to get an academic scholarship than an athletic
one."
To give some perspective, it's widely cited that there is 70 times as much money
available for academic scholarships than for athletic ones. Picking up a paycheck in
the National Basketball Association is a 1 in 10,000 chance. The odds of winning an
Olympic gold medal are 1 in a million.
Then again, few academic scholarship candidates are treated like rock stars in their
home towns or are offered million dollar salaries.
Family time matters
But parents who go to great lengths to help their kids get a sports scholarship or pro
contract may be sacrificing valuable family time, experts say.
"They're living in minivans [driving to and from practice and games] and they don’t
spend time together as a family, and that is every bit as important as kids having
long practices," says Dr. Charles Yesalis, a Penn State professor of health and human
development. "Kids doing sports activities three to five hours a day for five days a
week is almost child abuse." But the kids may not speak up for themselves,
according to Yesalis. "When you talk to kids away from their parents, they feign
injuries because they're burned out," he says. "They don’t want parents to know
because of their financial and time commitment."
Although brawling, abusive parents aren't the norm, at least 15 states have adopted
statutes making it a crime to assault sports officials. Community leagues require
parents to sign codes of conduct, in addition to developing education programs and
forums for parents to address the issues of "sideline rage" and pushing kids too hard.
"Codes and programs are fine, but they’re not going to get the job done," says Frank
Smoll, a University of Washington psychology professor and co-author of "Sports and
Your Child: A 50 Minute Guide for Parents."
"The parents who show up to education programs aren’t the ones who need the
training," he says.
Was it fun?
So how does a mom or dad avoid becoming a crazed, overbearing sports parent with
a stressed-out, unhappy child? Here's some advice:
• Reward your child whether the team wins or loses.
• If you have a complaint or concern, don't raise it in the middle of a game.
• Applaud when either team makes a good play.
• Praise effort.
• Respect the referee’s calls.
• Talk to your neighbor during games (don't get too caught up in scores or
statistics).
• Ask your child, ‘Was it fun?’ before ‘Did you win?’
Heinzmann acknowledges that it's stressful to see your own child play, especially
when you see what you might think is an unfair call. But parents should remember
how children see sports.
"Its just a blip in the lives of these kids," says Heinzmann. "What's more important is
playing on the field under the lights and getting the chance to run the base and meet
new friends."
And whatever you do, he emphasizes, in the ride home after the game "don't say
how [the child] could have done better."

ODP Tryouts: Thoughts & Hints

Over the years and just recently I have been asked about ODP. The major question has been, "is this going to be something that makes my child just realize that she is not good enough again?" It is a common concern, as tryouts can be overwhelming on the mental side of a child. I find myself answering it in two ways: as a passionate soccer coach or as a concerned friend.

As a coach, I am a strong believer that the more time you spend on the ball, the more time you train/compete with strong players the better a player s chances are to improve their abilities as a soccer player. I believe the tryout experience provides a competitive atmosphere that is incomparable because of the level of competition and the pressure to perform at the highest level at all times. Again, as a coach, I think every player should be put in these type of situations where they have to perform to be rewarded.

As a concerned friend, I strongly suggest that the parents take on a huge role of explaining that making the ODP team is not the end all be all of their soccer career. I suggest to the parents to explain to their kids that they are there to do their best and see if they are recognized or not. They are also there to get a glimpse of what they are up against. Hopefully we as adults can steer our children in a direction that they will benefit from the experience because they were prepared properly. It is our job as adults to expect these children to go give it their best but explain that this is not the end of their soccer career if they do not make the ODP pool.

There is great pride in being invited to be part of ODP as a player. This is because there are only a select few that make it in to their age groups player pool. Players that are accepted in to the ODP pool should be proud of what they have worked hard for. Those that do not make the ODP pool should take the tryouts as an opportunity to self evaluate themselves. Hopefully this self evaluation is a positive one, as it should be an opportunity to have their eyes open to what they are capable of. Many players might attend, see the competition and want to quit after they see what they are lacking.

I strongly encourage all players that are psychologically mature enough and mentally prepared to attend all of the ODP tryouts. On the other side, if the child is not mentally mature enough to handle this highly competitive atmosphere I hope that we as adults will advise against the tryouts. If we believe that it is going to be a positive experience that increases their level of passion for the game then please attend, otherwise...there is a Real Salt Lake Match to attend!

Here are some articles to read regarding ODP tryouts:
How can I enhance my chances of being selected for ODP or a club team or a school team?
What it takes to be successful in the US Youth Soccer Olympic Development Program
Keys To A Successful (ODP) Tryout
How Coaches Assess PlayersTalent and Potential

Infinity SC 96 Girls Premier Return From Vegas With Gold

The Infinity SC 96 Girls Premier team traveled to Las Vegas on the weekend of October 24-26 to play in the 2008 Mayor’s Cup International Tournament. Competing in the Silver Adidas bracket, the team went undefeated in four games to claim the championship trophy. Down a goal in the first game against Colorado United White, the girls struck back almost immediately, tying the game before halftime and pulling ahead to win 3-2. The next game, against Nevada FC Heat, was a 1-0 nail-biter; the semi-final against Illinois River Forest Rapids resulted in a more comfortable 3-0 finish. The Infinity team then met Colorado Storm in the championship game. Infinity scored in the first half, but Storm answered in the second: the game went to a penalty shootout with Infinity prevailing. Congratulations to the players and coaches on a job well done!

gotsoccer.com recognizes Infinity SC

gotsoccer.com is recognized as the official ranking program for youth soccer in America. This web site allows players, coaches and parents to follow their teams at a national level. Briefly, gotsoccer.com has created a system that ranks tournaments. Winning, placing or showing in a tournament gives teams points and as the year moves on points are accumulated and teams are ranked. For more detailed information click HERE.

Current Infinity Rankings on gotsoccer.com can be viewed by clicking the team you wish to view:
(28th)U12 Girls Premier
(687th) U13 Girls Premier

I Bothered Sam Snow & He Replied

I recently sent this email to Sam Snow, the USYSA Director of Coaching.

My email to Coach Snow:

Coach Snow,

I hate to bother you, as i am sure you are a very busy person. I have a brief favor to ask.

In our community we are having friendly debates/discussions on the pro's and con's of playing indoor soccer and more specifically using the walls or not. This has been a topic for discussion in many of the areas I have been in my coaching career. I was hoping you could help me out with this topic by locating a previously written article(s) about the topic or have one of the "higher ups" use this topic in one of their blogs. Having US youth make a statement or share their opinions is very beneficial. Any information or thoughts that you can provide would be greatly appreciated.

Thank you,

Jeff Ginn
Infinity Soccer

Coach Snow's Reply:

Hi Jeff,

This seems like a healthy debate for a club to have. There may be articles written specifically on the topic but I do not have anything along this line on hand. However the general consensus of the state Technical Directors is that for development purposes the Futsal version is preferred over the indoor soccer version played inside a hockey rink using the walls. Yet if no other soccer playing option is available in some climates during inclement weather then indoor soccer using the walls is better than not being able to play at all, perhaps for several months in some locales. Below is a the section on indoor soccer from the Player Development Model being written by US Youth Soccer. The full document will be made public at the 2009 US Youth Soccer adidas Workshop & Coaches Convention in San Jose next March. The portion reprinted below is from the first draft, so revisions may or may not be made.

Indoor Soccer – Futsal – Beach Soccer

One of the beauties of soccer is that the game can be played anywhere the ball can roll. Indeed playing in a variety of conditions helps to develop more well-rounded players. So a mix of outdoor and indoor soccer along with some variety in the type of playing surface, size of the field and type of ball used will have a positive impact on ball skills and clever play.

Soccer on the beach is not only great fun but certainly impacts the players’ skills and physical fitness. Players are more likely here to experiment with more acrobatic skills too.

At times the weather conditions dictate that soccer go indoors for some time. Coaches must take this fact into consideration in the curriculum for player development for the club. You could play indoor soccer inside a hockey rink type playing area using the boards or Futsal. Some indoor facilities are large enough that fields are set up and may allow even up to 11-a-side matches. All of these options keep players active in the game. The same basic skills, tactics and knowledge of the game as the 11 vs. 11 outdoor game occur indoors. Yet Futsal may offer the best compliment to player development. One of the benefits of this version of soccer is that it can be played indoors or outside, on a dedicated Futsal court or tennis court or basketball court, so the options of where to play are better. Young players exposed to playing Futsal show a greater comfort on the ball along with more intelligent movement off the ball.

The priority in Futsal is to motivate players in an environment that is conducive to learning. The more pleasure kids derive from their participation, the more they wish to play and practice on their own. While their instinct to play is natural, their affection and appreciation for soccer must be cultivated in a soccer rich environment. Futsal is the foundation to such goals because it: [i]

* Allows players to frequently touch the one "toy" on the field, namely, the ball. In a statistical study comparing Futsal to indoor arena soccer with walls, players touch the ball 210% more often.

* Presents many opportunities to score goals and score goals often. With limited space, an out of bounds and constant opponent pressure, improved ball skills are required.

* Encourages regaining possession of the ball as a productive, fun and rewarding part of the game {defending}.

* Maximizes active participation and minimizes inactivity and boredom. Action is continuous so players are forced to keep on playing instead of stopping and watching.

* Provides a well organized playing environment with improvised fields. Without a wall as a crutch, players must make supporting runs when their teammates have the ball.

* Reflects the appropriate role of the coach as a Facilitator. With all the basic options of the outdoor game in non-stop action mode, players' understanding of the game is enhanced.

* Players enjoy the challenge of playing a fast-paced-fun-skill-oriented game that tests their abilities. Allows the game to be the teacher!The

Sam Snow
Director of Coaching
US Youth Soccer

Futsal Video:

A Good Coach and Manager

Infinity Soccer holds monthly coaches meetings. In these meetings the coaches have an opportunity to share their experiences with their team(s) and give us an update on how they are doing. Another part of the meeting allows one of the three directors to give a workshop on a coaching topic. This month Infinity's Director of Operations, Robson Chaves, did a brief workshop based on the article titled, A GOOD COACH AND MANAGER. As Robson shared the document he provided some thoughts and ideas. having read the article a number of times i was excited to hear what Robson was going to share. I was very pleased with the information and would like to point out that if you ever attend a match that Robson is coaching, you will see how involved the parents are with pregame set up, medical attention, half time nourishment and post game take down. Robson has developed an environment that allows him to focus on coaching and for his players to focus on playing.

I believe that parental involvement is something we as parents and coaches do not promote enough. We as coaches feel like we have to do everything and are afraid to ask people to help.

I have recently become a big fan of delegating. Not only does it allow me to focus on the players needs more, but it also requires the parents to take ownership in the team and feel needed. A huge bonus is that when the parents have to be on time to set up or help out, the player(s) are on time.

I hope that you will all read the article and continue to develop in to a better coach, manager and/or parent.

Remember, game day is about playing and performing the things that were taught in training the week before. Let the kids play and allow the game to teach.

Click here to view the article, A GOOD COACH AND MANAGER.

Welcoming The Winter With A Reminder Of Philosophy

Infinity parents & players,

As we approach tournaments and indoor play and indoor training, I want to remind coaches and parents about the coaching philosophy that we are trying to follow. I encourage parents and coaches to stay active on the USYSA Bolg Site and enjoy the fast paced play found during our winter season.

BLOGS
Coaching education with Sam Snow
Focusing on underserved communities and youth soccer with John Thomas
Focusing on event planning with Michelle Martin
Focusing on the parent's perspective and then some with Susan Boyd

-Ginn

An article found on Sam Snow's Blog

Philosophy of Coaching

"Once they cross that line, it's their game. It's not about us as coaches; it's about them being able to make decisions."
Jay Hoffman

As a coach, you have much to prepare for each season. Of course, you are excited and eager about meeting the players and getting into the matches. You most likely have planned what you are going to do and believe that you are ready. But are you truly ready? Have you thought about the why's and how's of everything you will do as a coach? It is important as you get started in coaching to develop a philosophy. For that matter, even experienced coaches may want to re-evaluate their philosophy.

Some coaches do not believe in the value of developing a coaching philosophy. They do not realize how a philosophy can have an impact on their daily coaching procedures and strategies. However, a coach's philosophy is actually a very practical matter. Most of our basic philosophy comes from our former coaches. This is a natural start because it is the approach with which we are most familiar and comfortable. It is also reasonable to assume that the philosophy of a person's everyday life, thinking and actions would be applied when it comes to coaching. How many coaches would stick to principles of fair play rather than win the game? There may be a gap between what a coach thinks is the right thing to do in daily life and the action he or she takes on the field.

In your effort to form or analyze your own philosophy of coaching, first know what a coach is. A coach can be many things to many different people. A coach is a mentor, a teacher, a role model and sometimes a friend. Most of all, a coach must be positive. A positive coach has the following traits:

Puts players first
Develops character and skills
Sets realistic goals
Creates a partnership with the players
Treasures the game
Your approach should be educationally sound and appropriate for your players
Your philosophy must be ethical
Your coaching philosophy should be compatible with your personality
Fair Play should be a top priority in your philosophy

Coaching is much more than just following a set of principles or having a well-established program. Coaching is interaction in young people's lives. The player who comes onto the field is a student, a family member and a friend to someone. He or she is the same person in all areas of life- he or she has the same personality, ideals, flaws and struggles. It is the responsibility of the coach to help your players make right and mature decisions in all areas of their lives. You must help them develop character, discipline, self-motivation, self-worth and an excitement for life. To achieve these objectives, the coach must raise the standards that the players and others around them have set. Then you must help them reach those standards by developing appropriate relationships with them based on respect, caring and character. When character development is the foundation for your program, players will get the most out of their soccer experience. And when that happens, you will also get the most out of your players, for this makes champions.

The most successful coaches are not necessarily the ones who win the most games. Coaches who have successful experiences focus on team cohesion. The desire to see the players learn and improve their skill is the key to effective coaching. Commit yourself to using all of your knowledge, abilities and resources to make each player on the team successful. Your focus is to promote an atmosphere of teamwork, mutual respect and commitment. By achieving this we will be successful and we will also win.

Infinity SC '99 Boys Premier team completes undefeated season

Infinity SC '99 Boys Premier team finished up its District 7 soccer season. The boys were very successful as evidenced by their undefeated season. The team worked hard and had a good time learning the importance of unselfish soccer. They learned how to play as a team and improved their own individual skills as well. The team was able to score 59 goals with only 10 goals scored against them. They also had 4 shutouts. This shows that their offense was amazing as well as their outstanding defense. Ten out of eleven boys were able to score and all of the boys had multiple assists. Coach Kelly Knowles and assistant coach Kasey Erickson were very pleased with the growth of their team and the positive outcome of the season. The team has learned that not only is it fun to win but it’s also fun to watch the growth of each teammate. Members of the team include: Luke White, Kyler Erickson, Cole Atwood, Colton Lamb, Erik Rickenbach, Larry Hernandez, Kohner Knowles, Raynger Keckler, Brodie Martin, Noah Johnston, and Nathan Merrill. The team is looking forward to their next venture of indoor soccer.

Why They Stop

Last month we asked you, "why do you think kids stop playing soccer?" in our poll of the month. The results can be found below in the article titled, "Why They Stop." The article can also be found on the US Youth Soccer Association Web Site.

Why They Stop
August 28, 2008

By Vince Ganzberg, Director of Education for Indiana Youth Soccer, proud member of US Youth Soccer

"Mom and Dad, I don't want to play anymore!"

After investing the time and money into any sport, this is the last thing a parent wants to hear, but it happens.

Frequently.

Children quitting organized sports occurs more often than one might think. Research has shown that approximately 70-75% of children will quit playing a sport by the age of 14. Why do they want to stop? To answer that question let's look at why they start or why parents put their children into a sport in the first place.

1. Competence (learning and improving)

2. Affiliation (Being a part of something like a team or a club)

3. Fitness (agility, balance, coordination, and physical health)

4. Fun (This is the overwhelming reason why children play sports)

Notice that "winning" is not one of the reasons.

When children leave a game, they want to know two things: 1) When do we play again? 2) Where is the snack? Children are not as concerned about winning as adults may think. Children all want to compete, but they each have their own interpretation of competitiveness. For most, if one team is red and the other is blue then "game on." Children strive to do their best when they step into "competition." They also want competitive matches. Remember when you were a child playing in the backyard and the game was too lopsided? What did you do? I remember stopping those games to start a new one with different teams or balance the game out. I think many of us forget what emotions we went through growing up as a child and how we viewed competition.

Let's get into why they stop. Research says children stop playing sports for a variety of reasons. Six of the seven primary reasons are "ADULT CONTROLLED" behaviors. Can you guess which one isn't?

• Lack of Playing Time

• Overemphasis on Winning

• Other Activities are more interesting

• Lack of Fun

• Coaching/Adult Behaviors

• Dissatisfaction with Performance

• Lack of Social Support

If you guessed "Other activities are more interesting" then you are correct! Give yourself a pat on the back. There are times when a child just finds something new that they really like. The rest of the reasons are adult controlled behaviors. When adult controlled behaviors are forcing children out of a sport, adults are putting themselves before the needs and development of children.

Lack of Playing Time (27% of Infinity Soccer voted for this as the reason)

This is an adult controlled behavior due to the coaches and parents wanting to "win" the game. Do players want to win? Absolutely! They all strive to do their very best to win. Research has also shown that children today would rather play than sit the bench for a winning team. Allow your players to play in the game for their own sake. As a coach you need to see their "soul" on the field and allow them to get into the game so they can get better. Not putting children into a game is like not allowing them to take a test in school. There is nothing wrong with having some players earning more time, but all players should be given a minimum time to play.

Overemphasis on Winning (18% of Infinity Soccer voted for this as the reason)

"Winning isn't everything, it is the only thing". That is the famous Vince Lombardi quote which was also misquoted. He actually stated "The will to win isn't anything, it is the only thing". So many coaches feel as though their whole self-worth is out there on the field, and if they don't win as coaches, then "they" not the children are a failure.

The same goes for adults on the sidelines. A recently statistic showed that 25% of coaches quit due to adult expectations with regard to outcome. The late Bill Walsh stated that "Twenty percent of every game is by chance." In the 1980 winter Olympics, the Russian hockey team would have probably beaten us 9 out of 10 times but that day, it was America's day to win.

As a coach or parent, you can't control the outcome. If it is the other team's day, it's simply their day! Only two teams need to win in our country, and those are our Men's and Women's national teams. Soccer is a team sport that is "player" driven - once the ball starts rolling, there is nothing people outside the lines can do. Give them the game, and let them determine the outcome!

Lack of Fun (9% of Infinity Soccer voted for this as the reason)

Children view sports differently than adults. Most children, if not all, start playing a sport because it looks fun. There is a saying "Get them playing-keep them playing." Get their interest and then maintain it.

There is also a saying that "Drills destroy skills." No lines, laps or lectures. Soccer is a free flowing game where the players make decisions and decide the outcome. Instead, use training sessions that put players in an environment where they can make decisions and maximize touches on the ball.

As Director of Education traveling around the state, I am always surprised at how many coaches use the age-old practice plan starting with "laps." Coaches and adults need to know that endurance training is only effective at 12 to 18 months after PHV (Peak Height Velocity), which is about 13 years, 6 months for boys and 11 years, 6 months for girls. For the younger ages (6-10 years of age), you can work on their fitness (not just endurance) with the ball, rather than running laps.

"Teach don't talk." Our children live in a very busy world today. As a result, the ability for them to listen to coach talk has declined. Teach them in training, but make your points short and sweet. Also, include them in the process of learning by asking them questions on the topic you have for that training session.

Finally, let them play! "Over the past two decades, children have lost twelve hours of free time a week, including eight hours of unstructured play outdoor activities. The amount of time children spend in organized sports has doubled, and the number of minutes children devote to passive spectator leisure, not counting television but including sports viewing has increased fivefold from thirty minutes to over three hours," (Elkind, 1).

It is a different world we live in now. As a coach, you can give them some of that "free time" back by allowing them to play as soon as they arrive. I observed a club who does this, and their players are begging their parents to get them to training early because they know they get to play the game at the beginning. The game is the best teacher; so as a coach, allow them to play and express themselves and to have FUN!

Coaching/Adult Behaviors (27% of Infinity Soccer voted for this as the reason)

For some reason, some adults and coaches transform from Winnie the Pooh to a grizzly bear when a game rolls around. Everything from yelling at officials' bad calls to conversing with parents from the other team is widely seen throughout youth sports. Remember this - without referees, there is no game!

Put yourself in someone else's shoes. Imagine that your child (who is a new referee) is getting verbally abused by adults because a hand ball was not called during a U6 match? As a parent, you have taught your children to be respectful of their elders and to give their very best on the field. Verbal abuse of the officials on the field leads to referee loss. Did you know that nearly 75% of the referees in Indiana are under the age of 16? We must provide a tolerant, respectful, safe environment for these referees to use as a training ground, and it starts with each and every one of us. It takes a village to raise a child, whether they are players or referees.

Be a role model for your child. Try to view a game like a "grandparent." They just want to go and see their grandchild be happy. Let's take a lesson from this. They have been there, done that. Experience is a great teacher. As a parent you want to see a child's "soul" when they are out on the field and not just their face. Kids can only play freely when we, as adults, allow them to control their own destiny.

The numbers don't lie, only a small percentage of players will go on to play in college, and even fewer than that will play at the professional level. Refer back to the reason why you enrolled your child in a sport in the first place. I am sure for the majority of you; it was for one the four reasons at the beginning of this article – competence, affiliation, fitness or fun. Please remember that your child is not you! Your childhood is over - give your kids the game.

Dissatisfaction with Performance (4% of Infinity Soccer voted for this as the reason)

Stay away from "PGA" or Post Game Analysis in the minivan/SUV after the match. Coaches, stay away from the "PGA" closing statements after a tough loss. Children remember this, and feedback isn't always what they want to hear. Children know when they make a mistake in a match. Repeating it again verbally isn't the answer. Try to shift gears and turn a negative into a positive. Let it go, and make sure that they know you still love them no matter how many mistakes they make. There is a reason why the X Games are popular with children. The most prevalent is that they can determine their own outcome, be creative, and make mistakes, without anyone analyzing their performance.

Lack of Social Support (0% of Infinity Soccer voted for this as the reason)

There is "tough" love and there is "TOUGH" love. Most athletes that make it to the next level mention their parents gave them "tough" love but were supportive of them every step of the way.

This actually ties in with dissatisfaction of performance. Be there for your kids through the tough times and the good. It is easy to be supportive of them after a victory, a game winning goal or an important save. Remind your children that tough times don't usually last, but tough people do. When children feel abandoned by their parents/coaches that is when they often go to something else. Sometimes, that something else isn't a positive activity.

We all can help create a better environment to make sure that children begin playing and keep playing, staying active, keeping healthy, and making them lifelong participants in athletics.

Have Fun!

Reference:

Elkind, David, Ph.D. 2007. ""The Power Of Play: how spontaneous, imaginative activities lead to happier, healthier children"". Cambridge, MA: Da Capo Press.