JT's Blog will be a weekly addition to the US Youth Soccer Blog. John Thomas "JT" is the Assistant Director of Coaching Education for US Youth Soccer. This pass weekend I was invited to attend an event call the “Legends, It’s All About The Kids”. Their mission is to play a part in providing the area's youth with the tools and confidence to help them make the right decisions in life. They believe that sports can play a healthy role in the lives of children by teaching self discipline, teamwork, leadership and strategic thinking skills while building self-confidence and providing the youth with the opportunity to experience the positive influence of sports.
The Legends provide an event where youth players can gather for FREE specialized training in multiple sports. The sessions were conducted by professional athletes and the regions’ best college and high school coaches who have been recognized as positive role models on and off the field. Parents and coaches were also able to participate in the clinics designed to help them further understand their role as mentors, while sharpening their coaching skills.
The follow legends were involved with this event:
Chris Houser, a former MLS player for the Tampa Bay Mutiny
Marshall Faulk, who won three NFL Most Valuable Offensive Players awards and has an NFL record of four consecutive 2,000 total yards seasons.
Chad Greenway, who became the first player ever selected by the Minnesota Vikings in the first round from Iowa.
Mike Miller, with the Memphis Grizzlies, who was selected to participate in the NBA All-Star Three-Point Shooting contest during the NBA All-Star weekend.
Fergie Jenkins, a three time All-Star and was inducted into the Major League Baseball Hall of Fame in 1991.
Roy Firestone, has won Seven Emmy® Awards and seven Cable ACE Awards. He is currently the host of Up Close Prime Time. He hosts Mark Cuban’s HDNet Face to Face with Roy Firestone and AOL’s Time Out with Roy Firestone.
Kris Tschetter, who in 1996 scored a 63 in the U.S. Women’s Open.
David Thompson became a 4-time NBA All-Start and won the MVP of the All-Star game in both 1977 and 1979.
Vic Braden, is a longtime sports science researcher, licensed psychologist.
This was a very special event for me and for all who were in attendance. From my perspective, this event was one huge success. The bringing together of role models of different sports, even some that may have taken a side step but were able to get back up and become a major positive contributor to our youth, made it that much more gratifying. It was my pleasure to be a part of such a positive event. Imagine working together for the benefits of the kids.
Sam’s Blog will be a weekly addition to the US Youth Soccer Blog. Sam Snow is the Director of Coaching Education for US Youth Soccer.
Sometime ago a youth coach wrote to contest the use of the block as a useful tackling technique to win the ball off of a dribbler. Here’s what he had to say.
I can't believe that the USSF actually teaches the inside of the foot block tackle. This is the most dangerous way to enter into the tackle. Please watch some pro games to see if there is ever an inside of the foot tackle. Although some think that it is an illegal tackle, we must teach the sole tackle as the first choice to win the ball and to avoid injury. Stop spreading this injury prone info to our young athletes. I have been to many countries watching the youth train and never seen an inside of the foot tackle; always the sole first. …if you ever played a high level men's match, you would remember never going in with the inside of your foot. Your knee would be in ruins or your ankle would be broke. Again, please stop teaching this!
So fair enough, a different point of view on how to make a fundamental tackle to win possession of the ball in a soccer match. Besides my own thoughts on the matter, I asked some former professional players who have played in MLS and other professional leagues in the world for their thoughts on the topic. So here are some of their thoughts and mine.
As to the use of the block tackle in high level soccer, such as the US Youth Soccer Olympic Development Program, professional soccer and international matches, it is a technique used. You are correct that some adult players at high levels of competition use a sole of the foot tackle from time to time, although it is a less prevalently used technique. I hope this will clear up the matter. We will continue to teach the most fundamental of tackling techniques, the block tackle, to our youth players. Here are a few quotes from former professional and national team players who are now in the coaching ranks within MLS and US Youth Soccer:
“At the professional level players will use every tool available to them and different types of tackles will be used through out the course of a game. There are different views and attitudes towards tackling and diverse levels of tolerance in leagues throughout the world, however the skill of tackling like any other soccer skill has to be practiced and the mechanics understood, as a poorly executed tackle can have severe consequences.
While the bottom of the foot tackle studs showing is often used it would fall in the category of a tackle which endangers the safety of an opponent and be guilty of serious foul play, it is certainly used in professional play and left for the referee to deal with.”
“I think we are all in agreement that tackling with the sole of the foot happens, perhaps inadvertently on the youth end but, clearly more deliberate in nature at the professional level as mentioned. I think the key word is "predominately" and that would not apply to tackling with the sole of the foot as the block tackle would still be the most often used method...especially on the youth end.”
“I think it's absurd to profess that pro players never use the block tackle. It is used as much or more than any other method of tackling at the higher levels. Even though I have spent very little time on teaching or reviewing this defensive technique to professional players, since they usually prefer to use the technique that they have grown accustomed to as they developed, I would say that a majority of players resort to the "block" method when given their choice or natural playing instincts.”
“I have never tackled with the sole of my foot; that could be dangerous. Block tackling was something we practiced quite regularly. It was all about learning how to lock the ankle and knee on impact and adding the "lift” action to lift the ball over the opponent’s foot. Leaning forward in the process and leaning into the opponent with the upper body to come away with the ball.”
“I feel that the block tackle is used and should be taught. The sole of the foot tackle is a border line foul depending on the force used, and the showing of the studs. This is used primarily when having to reach at the last possible moment but is less effective. I believe both are used during the game but the sole seems to be used more when a player can’t get there, almost as an act of last resort.”
JT's Blog will be a weekly addition to the US Youth Soccer Blog. John Thomas "JT" is the Assistant Director of Coaching Education for US Youth Soccer. We recently completed another US Youth Soccer National Youth License Course in North Carolina. Thanks to Chris Little and the state office in Greensboro for doing a first class job. It was a well-run course. My hope is that the coaches who attended the course learned how to organize and conduct training session for Under-6 to Under-12 youth players. During the NYL course we discussed what was age appropriate. We focused on how cognitive, psychosocial and psychomotor abilities play a major part in the training of players. We discussed using age appropriate training sessions to provide the most effective training for the individual player.
U.S. Soccer Best Practice document states the most fundamental skills in soccer are individual mastery of the ball and the creativity of it. This should be a priority in training and during games, especially in the early years. As these skill are mastered the rest of the game becomes easier, both to teach and to learn. As the players start to develop their cognitive, psychosocial and psychomotor abilities, practices can be built around facilitating the development of the skills necessary to move and control the ball. As these individual skills and creativity come alive in the game they begin to develop a level of competence, the finer points. The recreational and club coaches who work with our youth players on a daily basis play a fundamental role in the development of the soccer players in this country. Recreational and clubs should strive to place experienced coaches who have a clear understanding of the value of teaching technique at the age appropriate level to our youth teams. A coach’s personality and character are equally important. Working with six- to 14-year-old children requires patience, kindness and respect. This also means the coaches may laugh and have fun within the training session. Fun can be a good thing in training.
Coaching soccer can be confusing at times because the game is changing as the players improve both their skills and physical abilities. When coaching young developing players, as well as the adolescent players, U.S. Soccer feels it is helpful to keep the following ideas at the forefront of your mind:
1) Set up situations where the players can learn by playing the game. The game is the best teacher for young players.
2) Coaches can often be more helpful to young players development by organizing less, saying less and allowing the players to do more. Set up a game and let the kids play. Keep most of your comments for before and after practice and during water breaks. Comments should be kept short and simple. Be comfortable organizing a session that looks like a pickup soccer game.
3) Teaching and learning the game of soccer is a process: make your goals seasonal, as well as daily and weekly. Often, at younger ages, the developmental efforts of one season are not noticeable in children until sometime in the next season.
4) Set age-appropriate goals. For example, know what the child is able to do at that designated age.
5) From a developmental standpoint, the young ages are the best ones for learning skills. Spend this time encouraging this growth. By the age of 17 the capacity to pick up new motor skills begins to decrease. On the other hand, their ability to conceptualize team organization, tactics and strategy increases. As a coach, work with these strengths, not against them.
Sam’s Blog will be a weekly addition to the US Youth Soccer Blog. Sam Snow is the Director of Coaching Education for US Youth Soccer.Quite a body of information is presented in the National Youth License on age characteristics (for more insight into this coaching course click here).Those who attend the course improve their coaching skills and learn a good deal about the makeup of children. When the adults better understand the nature of these young players then they can adapt and interact smoothly with the children. This knowledge of the needs and spirit of kids also influences the decision making of the adults who shape the youngsters’ soccer experience. Most certainly those adults include coaches, but let’s not leave out the administrators, parents and even the referees. These four groups of adults are the pillars of youth soccer. They support, guide and influence the game. So they are obliged to know the distinctiveness and desires of the children whom they impact.
With this knowledge more decisions will be made in the best interest of the players. This outcome should be especially true of the policy-makers, the administrators. Team managers, club board of directors, state and national administrators who have gained a solid knowledge of the characteristics of players will make decisions on by-laws, rules and policies in the best interest of the players.
To be equipped to make such decisions soccer administrators are required to study child development and the basic components of soccer. Indeed as our club, state, regional and national offices become more professional there should be an expectation of professional qualification in order to hold these jobs. The soccer community in America expects the referees to be certified and the coaches to be licensed, so we should also expect administrators to be qualified. After all this is only good business!
The players are our customer base and all businesses have customer service as a core value. But the picture is not quite so clear in youth sports since the parents are the consumer, even though they are not the customer. In this instance the consumer buys the service (sign kids up for soccer), but the child is the customer who receives the service (the chance to play soccer). Both the customer and the consumer have a reasonable expectation here for the providers of the service to have some minimal qualifications. To this end the overwhelming majority of clubs and leagues offer, through the state association, education for coaches and referees. But what about the administrators? Yes, clinics and workshops are offered for the adults in the administrative role, but no formal pass or fail course is currently offered as is the case with the referees and coaches.
As an example at the state association level when a state Technical Director is hired the requirement is a playing and coaching background. Additionally there usually is a requirement of holding the “Y” License and perhaps the “A” License or Premiere Diploma too. In many cases the Technical Director also has a college degree in some field of the sports sciences. So should not the state administrator have a degree in Sports Administration, Sports Business, Sports Management or Sports Marketing? These expectations of professional qualification of fulltime soccer professionals must occur at the club level too. Indeed a growing number of the over 6,000 US Youth Soccer clubs across the nation have already met or exceeded these standards.
We continue to grow and evolve as a soccer nation. The four pillars of youth soccer – administrators, coaches, parents and referees – support and shape the sport. As these pillars of youth soccer come to better understand the players whom they serve then the climate surrounding those players will become healthy and vibrant. This enriching experience is our gift to our children.
JT's Blog will be a weekly addition to the US Youth Soccer Blog. John Thomas "JT" is the Assistant Director of Coaching Education for US Youth Soccer. Looking back at the first weekend of the National Youth License course in Greensboro, N.C., I smile knowing that youth coaching is in the good hands of some great coaches. Although there are still a lot of coaching education opportunities to be taken advantage for the second half of the NYL course.
The thing that stands out about this group of coaches is that they all appear to be open to new ideas. This is the first time the NYL course is being hosted in North Carolina. The class is full with 36 candidates of diverse backgrounds and many years of varied amounts of coaching and playing experience.
Mike Strickler, the DOC for Florida, Jacob Daniel, the DOC for Georgia, Ric Plante the DOC for Montana, Chris Little, the current DOC for North Carolina, and myself are the instructors for this course. The candidates have great questions and the staff has done well answering.
I hope the following article written by Mr. Gary Allen will provide further information relating to the issues of player development.
Youth Soccer Coach Wanted: Only Those with Patience and Perseverance Need Apply By Gary R. Allen, Virginia Youth Soccer Association Director of Coaching Education Click here to read the article.
JT's Blog will be a weekly addition to the US Youth Soccer Blog. John Thomas "JT" is the Assistant Director of Coaching Education for US Youth Soccer. There are times when I wonder if the increase in paid coaches in youth soccer is a good thing for our youth players. I have observed over the years that some paid coaches train two or three and sometimes even four teams. Why? Because it’s their livelihood. Would you agree that in order to get the best out of youth development you really need to get to know the players in order to be able to provide training that fits their ability to play physically and mentally? Perhaps training more than two teams during the same season may not allow the coach to train the teams to their full potential.
John Kessel, USA Volleyball Director of Membership Development and Disabled Programs, states; “I know that kids don't care how much I know about this sport, until they know how much I care about them.” I agree with that statement what about you?
When a coach is paid there is sometimes a misunderstanding by the parents that the check is the only motivation the coach needs to get the players prepared for the match. That assumption may also support an expectation of winning every match, which can bring more pressure on the coach and players. Wining is part of playing the game of soccer, but training and playing matches are also part of learning life skills. Will the coach that focuses on winning at all cost be the coach that has your child’s best interest at heart? Will winning every match make your team a better one? Once players get to their teen years it may be more appropriate to start training towards winning, but training to win at any cost in youth soccer should never be the goal. Training should include tactics and techniques to win matches, but winning isn’t the end all when it comes to learning how to play the game. Let’s not forget about team building, how to deal with winning and losing with dignity, and how players may learn from both.
Coaches are role models paid or not, good or bad. Please understand that you have a great responsibility to know the impact you will have on your players and parents. Coaches should build on the player’s skills and understanding of how to play the game, but you must also work on what’s right and wrong. If you yell and scream at players or the referee, what message do you think you’re role modeling to your players and parents? You are showing them it’s ok to yell and scream. If you can take a look at yourself and don't like what you see when you’re training for a match or when you’re coaching a match, then you may not be projecting what could be considered a good role model. Coaches need to know how to balance fun - smiles and humor in training, with a healthy focused on being competitive.
What are some of the behaviors a coach might want to be aware of and perhaps work on to be a good role model? The coach should stay calm through every storm of competition, so the players can play through challenges with out being overly stressed about the results of the game, and still have a drive to win. Be consistent, and allow the players to rely on who you are as a coach, never have to worry about "which coach" they might be talking to. A coach should never stop learning about the beautiful game.
Sam’s Blog will be a weekly addition to the US Youth Soccer Blog. Sam Snow is the Director of Coaching Education for US Youth Soccer.Recently I received an inquiry from a student in Sweden on the status of soccer for females in the U.S.A. and how we got to the point of having so many girls playing soccer. The questions are ones that bring clarity for us too on our fortunate circumstance of having soccer being so well accepted by both boys and girls. Here are the questions and my replies.
What possibilities are there for a woman to be a good soccer player in the USA? In general I say the possibilities are good here for females to develop into good players. We have over 1.5 million girls playing soccer at the youth level. Their opportunities for a good club soccer environment are almost as good as the boys and in most cases just as good as what the boys have. The girls have every opportunity to play in high school and the chances of the girls playing in college is better than the chances for the boys and they are more likely to receive athletic scholarship money than the boys. On the other hand their chances to play at the semiprofessional or professional levels are not as good as for the men. The girls have the same chances to participate in the US Youth Soccer Olympic Development Program as do the boys.Do men/boys have the same possibilities to be a good soccer player as girls/women, if not, what is the difference? The boys have good chances to become good players too. The opportunities at the club and high school level are as good as the ones for the girls and in some parts of the country the chances are better for the boys. It is at the college level that the girls have a better chance of a scholarship than the boys since colleges give more money for the female soccer teams than for the male ones. This is because the colleges put more money into the boys’ American football teams than anything else. While the boys may not have access to as much athletic scholarship money for soccer as do the girls there are in fact more teams at the college level for the boys, but not many more.Are there youth teams, school teams, clubs where they can play? In US Youth Soccer we have 4500 clubs across the country. There are other youth soccer organizations so there may be as many as 7000 clubs in the country for youth soccer players, boys and girls. There are thousands of high school soccer teams (boys & girls) in the U.S.A. and there are hundreds of college soccer teams for men and women at several levels of competition. Which leagues can women's/girls’ teams play in, in the USA? Most of the leagues are at the youth amateur level. At the semi-professional and professional levels there is the W-League. Here is the link for their web site for more information: http://wleague.uslsoccer.com/index.html. Are WUSA going to start again, in that case, when? There is a business plan that has the WUSA returning in 2008, but that is not yet confirmed.Have you got any idea or knowledge why women soccer in the USA is so big, for example if you compare it to men's soccer or other countries women soccer?Soccer is a big sport for women in the U.S.A. due to several factors. In 1972 the U.S. Congress passed Title IX. This law requires colleges and universities that receive any funds from the federal government to give equal opportunity and funding to female sports as they do to male sports. This occurred at a time that American society was also becoming more accepting of girls participation in sports. This also happened at a time when the ‘soccer boom’ occurred in this country. The ‘soccer boom’ was when interest in playing soccer exploded in the U.S.A. and the game moved into the mainstream of our society. Prior to 1970 the game was played here but predominately in ethic enclaves of German or English or Italian or Argentinean or Jamaican immigrants and so on.So soccer sought out girls to play and that was different than the established sports of football, baseball and basketball who did not accept girls in their sport at first. Soccer was trying to grow so we invited everyone to play, male or female, good athlete or poor one. The girls who play soccer here today owe many thanks to the pioneering efforts of the girls and women of the 1970s and the 1980s.
