Why 8 A-Side?

In February Infinity used their online poll to ask the question, "At what age do you think teams should play 11 vs 11 like the pro.'s?"

The correct answer is found in an article titled: WHY 8 A-SIDE

By, Sam Snow
U. S. Soccer National Staff Instructor
US Youth Soccer Director of Coaching Education

Children in the U11 and U12 age groups should play eight versus eight (8 v 8) in
their matches. This includes the goalkeeper, hence seven field players and one
goalkeeper. The playing field should be 70 to 80 yards long and 45 to 55 yards wide.
The goal should be 6 feet high by 18 feet wide. The penalty area should be 14 yards
out from each post and 14 yards forward. The goal area, penalty spot, penalty arc,
corner arc, corner flags and center circle should be per FIFA rules. They should play
two halves of 30 minutes each. Overtime should be two periods of 10 minutes each.
The ball is a size 4, which gives a good indication that these are still children playing the game.

Players in this age group should play 8 v 8 to enhance their soccer abilities. This
is true for all levels of play, recreational or premier. At this point in their physical and psychological development, most ten and eleven year old children can play rather than play at the game of soccer. Coaches must be careful at this juncture and not fall victim to the false assumption that these preadolescent children are now able to play mature soccer.

Yet there is more competence in their individual technical performance. They
now intentionally combine in groups of two to four around the ball. In fact, the word
“team” now becomes more than an abstract concept.Click here to read entire article.

'97 Girls Win Icebreaker Tournament

The Infinity 97 Premier U12 Girls team attended the Ice Breaker Tournament President’s Day Weekend in St. George and brought home first place medals. They played hard and enjoyed the opportunity to be playing outside again. While it was not as warm as we had hoped, at least we didn’t have the snowy storms that hit home.
It took a little getting used to an outdoor field again. The girls had some challenges along the way and had to fight 2 tough battles against Avalanche to finally earn the title of champions.
Infinity had the first game Saturday morning and had to endure the fresh “red mud” from the night’s rain storm. They played Avalanche 98 and got off to a little bit of a slow start. Guest player Demi Lopez finally put in the first goal. Madie Siddoway followed with two of her own. At half Infinity was up 3. There were several attempts the second half, but only Anna Davidson put one in. The tough defense hardly let Avalanche take a shot, and any they did take, goalie Becca “Boo” Jensen stopped, leaving the score 4 to 0.
The second game was not as competitive of a match. Infinity poured on the teamwork and skills to rack up 10 goals. Rebecca Godfrey (3) , Hailey Oldham, Kanyan Ward, Madie Siddoway (3), Viridianna Gomez, and Demi Lopez all had goals. The other teammates helped with great assissts and superb defending. The final score was 10 to 0.
Infinity lucked out with the first game of the day Monday morning too. They played at 7:00 am and the sun was barely out. Competitor Avalanche 97 came ready to fight and wanted a win. There were a few unsuccessful attempts to score and defense really had to work hard. Avalanche scored just before halftime. The girls tried to kick things up a notch second half, but Avalanche put in two quick back to back goals. Madie Sidoway then got a PK and put it right in. This fired the girls up and prompted them to work harder. Madie later put in a second goal. Things were starting to look up for Infinity. There were other shots taken, but luck wouldn’t have them go in. Infinity faced a tough loss 2 to 3.
Game 4 was against Celtic Storm and actually felt a little warmer. With over a dozen shots on the goal, Infinity only managed to make 4 count, winning 4 to 0. Becca Godfrey, Madie Sidoway, Carly Richins and Kanyan Ward all scored.
Infinity’s record brought them to the championship game to have a rematch against Avalanche 97. Avalanche put in the first goal. Infinity didn’t let it get them down, because they were determined to go home champions. The defenders were tight and didn’t let too much through. Infinity dominated the field and took shot after shot, but couldn‘t manage to make them go in. Two successful shots didn’t count due to off sides and kicking it in the goalie’s hands calls by the refs. Finally, Hailey Oldham put one in just before half. There were lots of shots the second half as well. And when it looked like the game might go into overtime, Becca Godfrey put a goal in to clench the win, 2 to 0.
The girls were excited to win and concluded the tournament with their famous Ole’ Ole’ victory dance on the field before going to the awards presentation.

Check out the tournament website for more information, www.icebrekersoccer.com

CHRISTIAN TAYLOR SEAMONS

In the fall of 1999 I was battling with Christian Seamons for a goal keeper position on the club soccer team at Utah Valley State College. Little did I know that he and I would become best friends and brothers as time passed.

As I was returning from a tournament in Las Vegas with my Infinity girls this past weekend I received a text to call another close friend, Ryan K. Harris (Skip). I called and he (and Ryan van Dorn (The Godfather)) informed me that Chris had passed away. We first believed it was an overdoes and later found that it was not.

I have since grieved with friends, met with the Seamons family where we laughed in remembrance of Chris. I will act as a paul bearer as I assist Chris's mortal body to it's final resting place. I know Chris is in good hands and that he is already hard at work making people laugh as he vigorously does the Lords work.

I write this on my coaching blog because I want everyone to know that soccer is secondary to relationships. Your friends are truly what makes you happy. Chris, simply made me laugh and made it ok to laugh at anything, anyone, in any situation.

I am so grateful for soccer because without it I would have never met my best friend and brother.

Christian Taylor Seamons, I love you brother and will always remember your sweet spirit and your passion for life. Thank you for always being my brother no matter the circumstance.

The Herald Journal (1st Infinity article)

SOCCER CAMP

BY JOEY HISLOP
Published:
Sunday, February 15, 2009 3:22 AM CST

If youth soccer in Cache Valley was a stock, now would be the time to invest. Not only does Cache Valley boast some of the best youth soccer numbers in the country — top 3 in the nation in per-capita kids playing soccer — but pretty soon there won’t be many places in the intermountain area where your kids can get better coaching and training in the fine art of schooling a defender with a ball at your feet.

That’s thanks in large part to the folks at Infinity Soccer Club, the premiere youth soccer club in the valley and one of the best in Utah.

Infinity began in 2008 when The Soccer Academy and Valencia Soccer joined forces to create a soccer club whose vision is to ultimately give kids greater opportunities in the game by raising the level of coaching and training they can receive in the valley.

“We’ve been here for seven months, but soccer’s been here for relatively 20-30 years. ... We’re trying to create a culture in our community that is comparable to the metro areas,” Infinity Soccer Club Technical Director Jeff Ginn said. “Salt Lake has many clubs that focus on the development of the individual player and teams. We want to have that option for our kids here in Cache Valley as well.”

However, even with top-notch coaching and a firm commitment to excellence, it can still be difficult for a person to develop their game quickly when weather is a factor.

As with several outdoor sports, relatively good weather is a necessity for soccer, and for three-to-four months out of the year, Cache Valley is not the most hospitable region on Earth for the planet’s most popular sport.

That’s where indoor soccer facilities come in, and with the help of Utah State University allowing Infinity the use of the Stan Laub Indoor Training Facility, Infinity has procured the ability to help kids sharpen their dribbling skills even when there’s snow falling outside.

“The ability to have Utah State donate or open up their doors for us to get in and utilize their facilities is exceptional,” Ginn said, adding that it draws in not only his own club players, but also the top teams in the state. “It opens up an opportunity for people to come to us instead of us always traveling to them, which is generally the case. ... We (usually) have to travel a lot.

“The facility being open is good for the community, it’s good for the kids and it just provides opportunity, which is nice.”

Ginn, one of three coaches at Infinity, came to Cache Valley from Iowa Western Community College to be a part of the club and help develop the quality of soccer in an area he heavily recruited as a coach. He is joined by Hobson Chavez and Sherri Dever.

For Barbara Klein of Brigham City, volunteer secretary to the Infinity Board of Directors and mother of U10 team member Madelyn Klein, the coaching and game development her daughter is receiving are well worth the time, the drive and the money.

“It’s amazing. ... It’s just neat to see all the techniques and all the skills that they’re teaching ‘em, and all the drills and footwork,” Klein said. “My daughter played AYSO forever and loved it, and she wanted a little bit more.

“There’s a lot of strategy they’re teaching ‘em, a lot of skills that they don’t normally get. ... We’re just very lucky to have these coaches. ... With any sport, when you start to get in depth ... it’s incredible the money that goes into it. But these kids, if they have big dreams and they want to work hard for it ... you want to do whatever you can to help ‘em.”

And it’s already paying dividends. In January, Infinity’s U10 team took the silver medal at the Las Vegas MLK Cup, giving up only one goal all tournament before losing in the championship match in penalty kicks.

You Are Who You Watch

by Ian Sawyers

When I was growing up a soccer-mad youngster in England, the way we truly learned to play was by copying the game we watched. Whether it was on television, or for those lucky enough to soak it up at a live match, our "lessons" came by going out to the streets, and in informal kick-rounds, attempting to copy the professionals we had seen play the game.

My wife, Hall of Fame soccer star Julie Foudy, tells a different story of her childhood. It includes her early memories of the only available athlete role models she could find -- professional American football and basketball players.

It's true that in the past in this country, it's been difficult to find the top players to imitate, especially for girls. But the new Women's Professional Soccer league, and teams like Sky Blue FC, are a positive step in the right direction. Now, you can complete the pieces of your soccer education with the third, and vital part, of the equation: train, play, watch.

Why watch the game? There are a lot of reasons, but as an educational tool it's simple: you can't do what you can't see. Soccer is a visual game and a lot of young players are visual learners.



Establishing mental images by watching my heroes play provided me with a road map equal to watching a TV re-run. I knew what was coming next in a given situation as I felt I had already seen it and lived it, and all I had to do was copy the movement.

A sports psychologist and old friend of mine once told me "the brain cannot differentiate between what is real and what is imagined." This has helped me a lot in my coaching career to try and encourage a constant use of mental imagery and "creating good pictures" in the soccer brain. It is said that the best players have good vision -- the seeming ability to see the entire field and anticipate potential movement. Sure, this comes from playing experience, but this experience also includes the careful attention to the skill of experts and role models and thus the formation of "positive pictures."



There are many ways to watch the game, each of them valuable and interesting. Watch with an eye toward different aspects of play. Isolate your watching experience. Start with the warm-up, one of the most essential parts of the game, and often overlooked by youth players. The warm-up of a professional entails many parts. It has a progression; it is physical (what they do); emotional and mental (How they act and feel. For example, do they chat with teammates? Are they silent and focused on their effort?). Imagine what would work best for you in a warm-up, or for your team.

During the game, try focusing on a player in your position, and then, switch focus to another aspect, such as movement off the ball. Most people watch the obvious -- the action with the ball -- but it is the activity that goes on all around that sets up that pass or shot.

Consider this: on average, a player runs between 5 and 6.5 miles per game, yet the distance that player covers with possession of the ball is only 2 percent of that, about 200 yards. So obviously, there's a lot to learn by watching what goes on all over the field.

Finally, watch the game because you enjoy it. What happens on the field is just a part of what WPS will offer you. Game days are also opportunities to celebrate your sport, and to share an exciting and fun experience with family, friends and teammates. It is also one of the rare opportunities to be with them in a relatively relaxed atmosphere, without the stress of usual of competition with your club or school teams. And, too, you will share that sense of pride when you look out at the greatest women players in the world and think: I play that game too. And I can dream to become one of those players.

(Ian Sawyers is the general manager and head coach of Sky Blue FC , the NY/NJ franchise of Women's Professional Soccer. As former head coach of the women's professional San Jose CyberRays, he led that team to the inaugural championship of the WUSA.)