Jason was a professional baseball player for the Anaheim Angels organization, a Cape Cod league standout, California Baseball player of the year for 2 years in a row, highly recruited by a number of Div. I Colleges and eventually a UC Berkeley graduate. But, before that he was my little brother. Jason was a wonderful baseball player, soccer player, swimmer, you name it – if it was athletics, he was good at it. He wasn’t exceptionally fast, tall, or muscular – although his legs are like miniature redwoods. Jason’s “specialness” came from his ability to perform – he didn’t feel pressure, or more importantly, he didn’t let pressure affect his game.

After an extremely successful 4 year Varsity High School career, being drafted out of High School and recruited by a number of Division I schools, Jason chose UC Berkeley. In just his second season he had to have Tommy John’s surgery (reconstruction of a tendon in his elbow). Jason had been rarely injured, so a devastating injury like Tommy John’s could have been career ending – not just physically, but psychologically. Jason’s mental toughness and determination ensured he was able to get back on the mound, and get drafted by the Angels in the 14th round. It wasn’t an easy journey back to the mound. His velocity wasn’t the same as it was before the surgery, so Jason had to accept it and adjust his approach to batters – the questions from fans, fellow players, coaches and from within himself increased the difficulty of returning to form. Jason realizes now that a Walk the Fire experience would have done wonders for him as he worked through those times of high expectations, uncertainty, disappointment and success.

Jason has experienced an amazing journey and has reflected on what would have helped him and many of his fellow athletes excel, embrace the challenges and setbacks they constantly faced, and enjoy the journey that was before them. Your athletes may arrive in Hawaii with questions, doubts and trepidation. But with Jason’s help, they will, should they choose, complete Walk the Fire and gain a new perspective on their athletics, and journey called life.

Here is a note from JD…

Our first camp is called “Return of the Jedi Within” and what I mean by that is learning how to use “The Force” to become a better athlete, teammate, man, student, family member, etc. We focus on promoting the concept of “Excellence Within All Things” by helping the kids find purpose and a strong sense of self. Walk the Fire uses ancient Hawaiian tradition, physical training, the wisdom of nature, and metaphysics to redefine sports and athletics as gateways into Self Mastery. The Epic Journeys we create provide a common ground where boys and men can do the inner work that’s necessary to achieve excellence in all things. As we discover our real power and truth (and shed the crap that holds us back) we give ourselves to opportunity to follow our hearts clearly and confidently, unencumbered by physical, mental or emotional obstructions. As men, it is our duty to stand firm in our truth…with this, we will transform the world.

We’re going to teach your boys how to meditate, the value of listening, the value of unplugging from technology and communing with nature, the value giving of themselves in service and using their bodies…

All of the acitivites we do will be restorative in nature for the body, mind and soul. For example, we’ll be stand up paddle boarding, farming, swimming, hiking, surfing, yoga, sweat lodges, cleaning sacred Hawaiian Spaces, doing ceremony and community service…

We know you want to accomplish all of these things, too, as their coach/parent…so we have an opportunity to team up and really make this happen. We’ll take them out of their usual element, away from their peers, parents and team and sport for a bit, to help them really reconnect with themselves and find out who they are. We’ve put together a team of world class leaders in wilderness survival, physical training, health, and ancient Hawaiian wisdom to support all aspects of each individual’s journey. We are looking for athletes who:

• have a lot of potential but do not know how to access it (is a bit lost and is rapped up with the wrong crowd or would really benefit from a break or just a change of scenery)
• things are emotionally or physically challenging (he could use a boost or fresh perspective)
• could really step up and become leaders on your team or become better leaders

Here’s what we believe:

WE BELIEVE THAT ENTHUSIASM ALIGNS US WITH OUR DESTINY.
WE BELIEVE THAT NATURE REFLECTS OUR POWER AND HUMILITY.
WE BELIEVE THAT EXCELLENCE BEGINS WITH EMBRACING FEAR.
WE BELIEVE THAT MEN WHO HONOR THEIR TRUTH BRING STRENGTH AND BEAUTY TO THE WORLD
WE BELIEVE THAT WALKING IN TRUE BROTHERHOOD KEEPS THE FLAME ALIVE.

Our 1st training camp is 21day Epic Journey. It is coming up July 14-Aug.4; for competitive high school male athletes (all sports).

Thank you all for your support.

Come Walk the Fire,

-JD

Jason Dennis (JD)

Founder, Executive Director

Walk the Fire, Hawaii

Pahoa, Hawaii, USA

www.walkthefirehawaii.com

(m) 808.747.9251

(h) 808.965.8311

jd@walkthefirehawaii.com

IGNITE YOUR FLAME. WALK YOUR FIRE.

Dennis Bergkamp, the great Dutch striker said that when he was a young player at Ajax, they had little three foot high walls. He would knock the ball against it for hours. Every time he hit the ball, he would know whether it was a good touch or a bad touch. He would do it over and over, trying to establish a rhythm.

“I would also hit the ball against the side of the house… Hitting the ball with both feet, seeing how long I could return the wall passes without losing control. I found out later that so many pros spend lots of their childhood doing that.” — from More Than Goals, by Claudio Reyna

Ok, so how do we make hitting the ball against the wall more interesting after you’ve spent a few minutes just kicking the ball:

Tennis:

Single player — Volley your ball against the wall with one or two bounces in between each volley. Eventually, keep the ball going with only one bounce in between volleys. Vary your distance from the wall as you play. See how many times you can keep the ball going as you move closer to and farther from the wall. Use different surfaces of your foot and develop a rhythm.

Partner tennis — Set up a rectangular court out from the wall and play soccer tennis against the wall with a friend. Set up your own rules with regards to services and bounces, etc.

Squash:

This game is played with more than one player. You can set up a rectangular court or play in an open area. After a kicking order has been determined, the player #1 kicks the ball off the wall. The player #2 must get to the ball before it stops and immediately kick (1-touch) the ball against the wall. If there are more than 2 players, the game proceeds accordingly until all the players have kicked the ball against the wall, at which time the first player is up again. You get a point if the player that follows you allows the ball to stop before she kicks it or if she misses the wall on her kick. Play begins with the next player in the order striking the ball against the wall. This is a great game for scheming (strategy)…putting the right pace on the ball so that it barely moves after hitting the wall or rebounds off the wall with great speed. Passing angles become a strategic threat in this game as well.

Whether you play a game that has rules or you make your own rules up… only left feet, driven… hit targets on the wall, one touch, juggle against wall… the wall will always be there for you and it doesn’t get tired!!!

Youth injuries need to be handled with the utmost care and with a plan, so the player can come back with the confidence they’ve had prior to the injury. When a youth player is injured, the coach needs to work with the player and the parents to have a plan to get the player back playing soccer. A plan helps people focus on what they need to do each day, week, month to recover. Of course they should only go so far as the doctor prescribes, so a meeting after each doctor visit between the coach, player and parent should take place. Setting out a training regimen for the player until the next appointment.

Some guidelines for handling injured players:

1. They should still come to practice and help out as much as they can, so they stay tuned in with what is being coached and with their fellow players
2. They should be given tasks at games to watch for – number of intercepted passes in the middle third, total shots on goal, successful crosses, etc.
3. They should be included in warmups as soon as possible and should do activities that help the player stay physically strong… if their ankle is injured, pushups and situps should be introduced into the team warmup. One legged squats with the other leg and stretching.
4. The coach should be sure to give the player some leeway on performance when they do come back, losing a couple months of soccer is difficult for a player, especially when everyone else is touching the ball and running. So, discuss the plan to get back to where they were… set expectations around playing time so they know… “we will start slow and you will play 10 minutes per half for the first two game and assess how you feel afterwards” and stick to it.
5. Look for successes on the field when they come back and give them that positive reinforcement.

Having a plan for a player gives them confidence and ensures we don’t lose our youth to injuries and lack of confidence. It also keeps the door open for communication and a way for the coach to address the mental concerns. All of our youth players deserve this type of treatment, if you, as a coach, you aren’t prepared to do this for your 14th best player and your 3rd best player, you should probably consider another line of work.

From Soccer America

By Dev K. Mishra, M.D., President, Sideline Sports Doc

To recap: I don’t think there’s any better playing surface than a well-maintained grass field, but I’d prefer one of the newer varieties of turf fields over a poorly-maintained grass field any day.  Some people have also suggested that the interaction between the athlete’s shoe and the playing surface can have some effect on injury rates.  It turns out that this is an issue that’s been studied pretty extensively in the scientific literature for older artificial surfaces like AstroTurf®, and there’s some good information relating to the newer surfaces that use soft rubber infill like FieldTurf® too.

There are two competing issues at work here, and both come down to friction.  From a performance perspective athletes like a lot of friction between their shoe/cleat and the playing surface- it results in what we’d commonly call “traction”.  A lot of traction allows them to start and stop very quickly and also to turn on a dime.  As you can imagine, if you’re slipping (less friction) it will have a negative effect on your quickness and cutting ability.  But from a medical standpoint friction can lead to injury.  Injuries to the ankle, knee, and hip often are the result of forces created on the joints when the foot stays planted firmly on the playing surface and the body goes another way.  The engineering term for this is a “rotational moment” and the higher the rotational moment the greater is the potential for injury.

The main points they found were that for the field surface, the infill-type artificial turf surfaces all had higher rotational traction values than grass, regardless of shoe type.  For the shoe types they found no differences in rotational torques for the 7-stud, 12-stud, hybrid, or blade types; but the turf shoes had significantly less rotational torque than any of the other cleat types.

So what can I recommend based upon the studies I’ve looked at (there are many more than just the one above)?  Remember that my viewpoint for this post is biased towards player safety, and as discussed above this could affect performance.

• If you’re playing on turf the data would indicate that a turf shoe could very well be the “safest” type of shoe, but you might find that you slip a bit too much in these.  If possible I’d recommend that you test a turf shoe out on your field.  If it allows you to perform the way you’d like I’d recommend that you wear it.  If the turf shoe causes too much slipping your next choice should likely be a firm ground cleat.
• If you’re playing on grass the data doesn’t show a difference in traction amongst cleat types. In spite of that I wouldn’t ever recommend a soft ground cleat on firm grass.
• The study also shows that the type of upper material will affect the rotational traction too, for very complex reasons.  A stiff non-yielding upper (like a hard synthetic material) might produce higher rotational traction.  So if possible I would recommend a soft leather upper material.

You can read the whole article HERE

The below was taken from the CYSA May 2011 newsletter.

Submitted by Philippe Blin, CYSA ODP Technical Director

One of the difficulties that players face is realizing how coaches are assessing their talent and potential as a student-athlete. How you perform under game conditions sets the yardstick on how you will be measured. The game demands infinite variety technically, tactically, physically and psychologically. The game features the excitement and power of two teams trying to score goals on the attacking side and defying that goals will be scored on the defending side.

Coaches will see in this competitive environment which players are totally committed on maintaining or regaining possession of the ball, under the pressurizing challenge of opponents who are restricting the space and time for players to read and to assess a situation and to adapt themselves successfully. Can they collect a ball safely, initiate a pass, a run, a turn, a feint, or carry out some surprising unpredictable moves, in order to help themselves or a teammate score a goal?

Good defenders will be able to read and anticipate attacking methods (pursuing and chasing the ball immediately, closing down the attacking space, smothering the attacker’s reaction time), intercept passes, steal the ball back and quickly initiate the attack. All successful coaches are looking for those players who have the skill and desire to attack and to defend.

Every good defender in possession knows how to switch from defending to attacking play. Their agility and skill allow them to run forward, dribble at opponents, play one-twos by using up front players, shield the ball and to have the courage to shoot at goal and score.

Players are complete only when developed in all areas. Outstanding skill with a weakness in speed, strength and power makes a player less desirable. The same holds true of players who are physical specimens, but have below-average technique. And what of the player with good physical prowess and skill, yet who has no idea of the tactical elements of their team’s play? Even less desirable are those players who fall apart psychologically under pressure, “hiding” or lashing out at opponents, teammates, referees, coaches, or parents during the big game.

These elements are developed by exposure to highly challenging daily training sessions and frequent highly combative matches. This will insure the development of the following vital components of the highly recruitable player.

Technical Ability

Ball Control: You must be able to bring a ball played to you under control instantly and smoothly. This is the ability to collect and move in a different direction without stopping the ball completely, yet still maintaining it securely. Develop the technique of receiving a pass at top speed. This means not slowing down to collect a ball coming on the ground, bouncing or in the air. You must be able to protect the ball by shielding it and developing deception in order to get rid of your opponent.

Passing: You must be able to successfully complete short- and long-range passes. This incorporates all of your ball skills, including heading, bending, chipping, and the ability to drive the ball to a partner. You will find that at a high level, it is easier to control and make quick decisions with a ball that is driven to you, rather than weakly played. Develop the skill of one-touch passing.

Dribbling: This is the ability to feint, burst past opponents, change directions and speed at will, and break through packed defensive lines. Can you exhibit quick feet, combined with a sense of comfort under pressure, to penetrate into space to open opportunities for yourself or a partner?

Heading: The ability to head at goal after crosses, heading high, wide, and deep for defensive clearances, heading balls as a one-touch pass (both into space or to a partner’s feet) in order to create shooting chances. Can you effectively demonstrate the ability to do this under the duress of the game?

Finishing: Nothing makes more of an impression on people than the skill of goal scoring. This aspect takes in the correct technique of striking the ball in various ways; driving low balls, hitting volleys, half-volleys, half-chances, chipping, bending, heading, etc. Good goal scorers can also finish with their chest, heel, toe and thigh.

Coaches are looking for that player who can exhibit composed aggressiveness, and swift and secure decision-making at the opportune times. The successful goal scorer has the mentality of a great used-car salesman, very aggressive and not afraid of failure.

Tactical Awareness

Tactical insight incorporates the anticipation, reading, and execution of certain clues that happen during possession and non-possession of the ball.

In Attack:

1. Player not in possession:
   1. Makes himself available for the ball, perhaps by a diagonal run or a crossover run.
   2. Realizes when it is crucial to offer close support and when to stay away.
   3. Recognizes the proper time to execute “take-overs” and “overlaps”.
2. Player in possession:
   1. Has good peripheral vision, allowing him to recognize the correct time to switch the ball to the other side of the field.
   2. Has good penetrating vision, allowing him to see and utilize players who are far down the field.
   3. Recognizes the correct time to play directly, and when it is important to hold the ball (shielding or dribbling), or when to run at top speed past players opening up passing angles for his team.
   4. Sees opportunities to play “one-twos”.

In Defense:

During the immediate pursuit, and desire to regain possession of the ball, the player should recognize:

1. When to race forward to intercept the pass.
2. When to mark the opponent tight in order to discourage the ball from being passed to him (pressure).
3. When, where, and how (posture) to tackle.
4. When to jockey the ball carrier and force them away from the goal (patience).
5. The quickest avenue of attack upon regaining the ball.

Physical Aspects

Physical fitness for the soccer player must condition that person to play better soccer. Too many times, fitness takes the form of running that has nothing to do with the modern demands of the game. Fitness must be designed to help a player’s self-assertion when controlling the ball against tackling opposing players throughout the duration of the game. All physical elements must be in balance in order to become a complete player. Fitness and ball control must grow together!

Endurance: The ability of a player to commit himself diligently throughout the game in attack and defense with no sign of fatigue and impaired ball control. That player must constantly be running into open spaces, demanding the ball or pulling and committing opposing players to create openings. Even though this is also a tactical commitment, it will only be successful if you have the endurance capabilities to run for 90 minutes. The coach will be examining your physical exertion as you are being exposed to tactical problems you are trying to solve in the game.

Speed: The ability to accelerate quickly and maintain that acceleration of the various lengths the player’s position demands. As an example, the forward needs acceleration with changes of speed over three to 20 yards. Elements include:

1. Pure, straight-ahead running spee.0
2. Lateral speed (changing direction).
3. Change of speed (slow to fast, fast to half speed).
4. Deceleration (“stopping on a dime”).

After these basics are attained, speed must be practiced with the ball!

Agility: The ability to change directions quickly. Twisting, turning while dribbling, readjusting your body to control an awkwardly bouncing ball, and getting up quickly after a tackle are a few examples. This area is enhanced by flexibility exercises such as stretching, ball gymnastics and skill training with the ball. Conditioning training must be combined with skill and tactical training!

Strength: The ability to effectively use your body to win physical confrontations. Strength is exhibited during tackling (1v1), winning the aerial duel (heading) and changing directions effectively (explosion). It is also important to learn how to effectively use that strength to your advantage as is demonstrated in using your arms to hold a player off while running at top speed with the ball or in shooting for power. Much of your strength and power training can be combined with technique training!

Attitude and Personal Traits

Regardless of a player’s performance, skill, tactical and physical display, other factors heavily influence a coach’s decision to recruit a given athlete. Coaches will look at their mental and psychological make-up, their mental ability to quickly and correctly read and assess situations, their motivational drive and will power, their self-confidence and emotional stability. Competition reveals character!

Each coach loves to identify key players with personalities and qualities that cause them to become team leaders. The following personality traits are the most recognizable:

1. Drive: Pure will power, eager to achieve goals, a burning desire to achieve success, strong self-motivation, commitment, dedication and determination.
2. Aggressiveness: “Go getter”, strong self-assertions, takes risks, wants to dominate opponents, works hard and ruthless in attack and defense. Danger – bad losers that are inclined to retaliation and revenge fouls, lose self-control and exhibit a general lack of discipline.
3. Determination: Seeks the direct way towards goal, no compromising, doesn’t hesitate when making decisions, willingness, fully concentrated, success-oriented.
4. Responsibility: Intelligent, can read the game tactically (anticipation), conscientious, reliable, wants security, cooperative, ready for compromise, stable and skillful player.
5. Leadership: Intelligence, dedication, pride, bears responsibility for the team, influences the environment, anticipation, intuition, independent and spontaneous, convincing and dominating player, hard worker, no surrender, composed, self-controlled, endurable, communicative, respected, trustful.
6. Self-Control: Discipline, emotional stability, composure, discretion, defying conflicts.
7. Self-Confidence: Secure ball control and determined application of skills and tactics under pressure (both external and self-imposed). Danger – these players tend to underrate opposing players, show a lack of willingness to be coached, and can become easily complacent.
8. Mental Toughness: Persistency, consistency, commitment throughout the game, no surrender, tough self-assertion.
9. Coachability: Ready to learn and to achieve goals, self-motivated, attentive and receptive, willingness, interested, spontaneous, committing themselves, likes to discuss problems, hard worker, self-disciplined, creative, constructive, progressive.
10. Conscientiousness: Sensitive, nervous, pre-contest anxiety, diligent, always wants to give their best, modest, reserved, fearful, pondering, self-critical, depends on success, reliable player in solid environment.
11. Trustfulness: Reliable, self-confident, will be respected and attracts sympathy of teammates, untiring commitments, composed and self-controlled, determined influential and communicative, open-minded and approachable, good team spirit.

Here’s a revelation: eat the least processed food you can find.

Right, that’s not a revelation. You’ve heard it before but it’s not an easy thing to do when feeding the typical American teenage athlete. But it can be done, especially if you try to stick to the 80/20 rule that I’ll outline below.

There are a lot of different diets and recommendations around but the number of choices is very confusing, and frankly, I’m not sure all of them are safe for young athletes. What we’re trying to do with a young athlete is make them as healthy as possible to improve their sport performance — but more importantly I believe that we can set them up with good habits for a lifetime of healthy eating.

What I’m talking about here is eating as close to natural and minimally processed foods as possible. Some nutritionists call this “eating close to the ground” and other call it “eating clean,” etc., and it means stepping back to the old days of eating the most nutrient-packed and least processed foods you can find.

It means shopping on the edges of the grocery store and not down the middle of the store in the pre-packaged frozen foods section. The nutrients, vitamins, and minerals found in natural foods will almost always lead to an improved health profile, improved performance, decreased body fat if the child is overweight, and increased energy levels.

Examples of good food choices for the young athlete
It’s hard shopping for young athletes because they can be pretty set in their ways and are heavily influenced by their friends — who may be eating poorly. Here are just a few examples of what you should aim for in the food choices:

Fruits and Vegetables

• Apples, bananas, berries, kiwis, oranges
• Dried fruits as snacks
• 100 percent fruit smoothies from places like Jamba Juice Leafy greens such as kale, spinach, collard
• Beans and lentils
• Avocado

Meat, Fish, Nuts, and Dairy

• Lean meats: chicken, turkey, lean beef
• Fish: tuna, salmon
• Nuts: almonds, walnuts, macadamia, pecans, cashews
• Dairy: low fat milk, low fat yogurt, eggs

Bread, Cereal, and Grains

• Bread: 100% whole wheat or whole grain, rye, sourdough
• High fiber cereal such as Kashi or Cheerios.
• Oatmeal
• Couscous

Let’s get real, kids will be kids: the 80/20 rule
The guidelines above represent the ideal situations but the practical matter is that it’s impossible to have a young athlete follow these suggestions all the time. That’s where the 80/20 rule comes into play.

The 80/20 rule means that 80 percent of the time you stick with the healthy eating rules and 20 percent of the time you’re allowed to “cheat” and stray from the ideal. When one of your teammates has a birthday and cupcakes are the post-game “snack”– go for it and enjoy it with your friends! Having a (very) occasional burger, fries, and soda? OK, then do the best you can with your other meals that week.

Be realistic and do the best you can, when you can. You’ll live a healthier life for the effort and it will allow you to perform at your best during games.

(Dev K. Mishra is the founder of SidelineSportsDoc.com, where this article first appeared. He is an orthopedic surgeon in private practice in Burlingame, Calif. He is a member of the team physician pool with the U.S. Soccer Federation and has served as team physician at the University of California, Berkeley.)

1. Deep Learning (10,000 hours)
2. Immediate feedback
3. Repetition
4. Coaching to oversee and direct the learned behavior

Here is a quick video of his presentation for U.S. Soccer. Check out Good Stuff! to buy his book.

Pressure/delay – To prevent attackers from penetrating your defense, the first defender (the player nearest to the ball) should apply immediate pressure to the ball carrier. His objective is not to win the ball, it is to slow the attack, get the attacker’s head down and to try to force the attacker into a place where he cannot shoot. However, if your first defender is outnumbered he should not put too much pressure on the ball carrier. Instead, he should try to delay the attack by dropping back. This should allow time for other defenders to regain their positions. When support arrives, your first defender should increase the pressure on the ball carrier.

Key coaching points for the first defender:

• Move in quickly but slow down when you get to within about one metre of your opponent.
• Approach at a slight angle, ideally so you are forcing the attacker towards the side line and away from the centre of the goal.
• Watch the ball.
• Be patient.

Cover/support – The defender who is second closest to the ball takes up a position between the first defender and the goal and provides cover. His role is to take over the job of first defender if the attacker gets past his team mate. The distance from the first to second defender is not fixed but he should be close enough to be able to put immediate pressure on the attacker if required. But he should not be so close behind the first defender that the attacker can beat both of them by simply pushing the ball past them. Generally, the quicker the attacker is moving, the further away the second defender needs to be. If the attacker is moving very slowly or is stationary, the second defender can close right up and work closely with the first defender.

Coaching points for the second defender:

• While the first defender watches the ball, the second defender watches the attacker.
• Make sure the first defender can feel and hear your support: tell him you are covering him.

Balance – While the first and second defenders are working on the attacker with the ball, the rest of the defence provides balance. Their job is to cut off passing options, watch for other attackers making runs and to take on the role of either the first or second defender if the need arises. The third line of defense has to work hard: they must be continually aware of where they are on the field in relation to the ball carrier and other players. They should always be able to see the ball.

Key coaching point: work together as a unit. Stay connected to each other. If one moves, you all move.

Compact(ness) - To avoid leaving gaps in the defense that can be dribbled or passed through, defenders should concentrate their numbers in the area of the pitch between the ball and the goal.
Counter attack – The defense needs to have depth. One or more players should stay in an advanced position (between the ball and the opponent’s goal) and if your defenders win the ball they need to play the ball forward at speed.

The principles of play are the building blocks upon which all youth soccer teams should be built.

Competitive

Perspective - A competitive coach who thinks long term when they are developing players. A competitive team is often together for many years, so the competitive coach can take a long view of development and work on the foundations that will pay dividends when the players are 15, 16, 17 years old.

Level of play – Competitive soccer is competitive because the players are developed and play with and against players of equal or less skill. Even kids on the playground will even up teams, if they are lopsided, to ensure a good competitive play. You only get better by playing against better competition, raising your standards and working hard to be better. Playing against kids you can dominate easily is very ego driven and doesn’t lead to long-term development or opportunities. Studies have shown that ego driven development (measurement against peers, vs. goal driven development (improvement of individual goals) result in players dropping out when the going gets tough. The goal driven player perseveres and continues working hard to get better.

Playing time – I often hear that in rec soccer we get at least 1/2 the game of playing time. I’ve got to say, in competitive soccer, at the younger ages, your players should be getting the same basic guarantee. Coaches that are getting paid want your player and you to be happy. They also want the players to develop, which only happens on the field. As the players get older, in their teens, this may change, a coach may make the decision not to sub in a tight game or in a championship game. My perspective is that, if you are on my team, you are going to play. Most competitive coaches at the youth level, worth their salt, have the same beliefs.

Tryouts – The dirty word… Tryouts are interesting and vary from league to league. But, at the youngest ages… kids are usually not “cut”. U11 and below, you will often see as many teams put together as there are enough willing players and parents. All leagues at the younger ages should call this “PLACEMENT” instead of tryouts. The reason being is that the kids are so young and at the beginning of their soccer lives. Professional coaches know that with guidance and patience, most of the kids will become substantially better. A whole year of development vs. a kid playing 3 months of recreation soccer is like a Julliard professor teaching your child to play the piano vs. a random person picked off of Facebook.

Cost - It is interesting to me that parents will pay tutors, karate teachers, piano teachers, boxing coaches, sewing instructors, singing instructors, but they balk at paying a coach with many hours of coaching courses and experience.

There are major differences, but those differences aren’t really about winning or losing… they are about commitment to soccer and the passion to learn soccer from, in most cases, professional coaches.

I love competitive soccer or “committed soccer” because of the following reasons:

1. You get to really know your team mates, they become like family
2. You get to train a lot under the watchful eye of a person that is passionate about the sport and who has a wealth of knowledge (you usually don’t get this at the recreation level) and patience
3. The passion is contagious. Who doesn’t want their child to find and embrace something that can give them many life skills. The life skills that can be learned are:
   1. Understanding teamwork – very important for careers when they get older
   2. Passion – how to love something and want to do it as much as possible
   3. Discipline – doing things that are tough to get better
   4. Dedication – The will to work hard to get better at a desired activity
   5. Physical fitness – you run constantly in soccer, you begin to understand your body and what fitness really is about
   6. Friendships – built in almost every activity at practice and on the field
   7. Responsibility – on the field, at practice
   8. Determination – how to impart your will in the game
   9. CONFIDENCE – ability to take on difficult situations, interact with many different people, speak in groups

I’m sure you can think of more, but the above are pretty good reasons. If you are looking for a wonderful learning experience, you should consider competitive soccer. I can’t say its the same everywhere, with every coach or team, so do your diligence. But, my kids play competitive soccer, so I do practice what I preach.