ACL Injuries

Over the years I have seen a number of female players rupture their ACL. This issue is common in female players. A number of physicians have developed a program called PEP to help address the issue of ACL injuries in female athletes.

Click here for a video that describes the program and shows how you can implement it with your players.

Good luck!

John

Four Pillars of Soccer

When we talk about the four pillars of soccer we are often referring to technical, tactical, physical, and psychological attributes of players. These components are key for coaches to understand as the focus on developing players. While coaches use these components to evaluate and develop players, there are four pillars that are even more important for youth soccer as a whole.

Players - Obviously we need to have players playing the game. As I have stated in our coaching education clinics about 90 percent of all youth players in the US are under the age of 14. This number is a bit staggering. We as coaches must make sure our players enjoy playing the game. Try to use games and activities that are fun for the kids. This will help keep their interest in the game.

Coaches - If you asked most people they would say that the main role for coaches was to teach how to play the game. This is certainly an important piece of what they do, but I don't feel it is the most important. Coaches have a responsibility to try to instill a love for the game. Teaching the game in a fun environment helps make this happen. Coaches should try to develop age appropriate training sessions that are also fun.

Parents - In youth soccer it is imperative for coaches to involve parents in the development process. At most ages the parents are the ones to pack the soccer bag, get them to practice and games, and act as a sports psychologist in the car on the way home from games. If coaches take the time to communicate their visions with parents it is much more likely that the parents will support the coach and their vision for the team.

Referees/Administrators - Often overlooked and sometimes neglected, the people that work behind the scenes are invaluable. Administrators volunteer their time to help keep children on the field. Most of their work is done behind the scenes and late at night. Referees are certainly more visible. They provide a valuable service to the players. It is very important that we support our referees and avoid be vocal with our criticisms. Most of the referees are kids trying to make extra money. They are often teenagers who have played the game. If we yell at them they will most likely stop refereeing and playing.

As you can see these four pillars are all equally important. Without any one of these components we will lose the game for our kids. Do you best to support the game and provide a positive environment for player development.

See you on the field!

John

Street Soccer

One of the issues that we have in the United States is that players don't spend time playing on their own. Our coaches have done a great job of injecting structure into youth soccer. I think they have done the job too well. I challenge you to allow your players to play as much as possible. Place some cones, pinnies, and balls in a pile and let the players set up their own game. See if they can organize a "street" game. They will decide the field size, the teams, and the rules. Your role as the coach is to sit back and watch your players have fun.

I recommend that you do something similar to this every couple of weeks. This will allow the players to develop some ownership in the session as well as making sure they know how much fun a pick-up game can be. This is most appropriate for players U10 and older.

See you on the field!!

John

US Soccer Coaches Net

One of the best resources for coaches who work with players over the age of 12 is the US Soccer Coaches Net. The web based resource provides coaches with insight into all aspects of players development. You can find articles on topics from injury prevention to doing fitness with goalkeepers.

For more information click here to go to the Coaches Net homepage.

Thanks!

John

Coaching Goalkeepers

One of the most common questions I get during my clinics is about coaching goalkeepers. Having played as a goalkeeper, I can tell you that they need as much focused attention as any other player on the field. With keepers you need to work on reflexes, distribution, diving techniques, catching, 1 vs 1 and jumping just to name a few.

While goalkeepers have a unique set of techniques they are also soccer players. In the modern game of soccer is imperative for keepers to be proficient at the many of the same skills as field players.

Below are a few links to a few video clips of goalkeeper training and some training sessions you can use to help your goalkeepers.

Catching

Basic Diving Technique

Dealing With Flighted Balls

Goalkeeper Footwork

Hope this helps!!

John

Benefits of Watching Soccer

One of the main ways that players can improve on their own time is by watching the game. We are fortunate to have games at all levels televised on various channels. Players can watch college, MLS, and top European leagues.

We are also fortunate to have top level soccer here in Portland. The Portland Timbers, The University of Portland, and other local colleges are great resources for our players.

Watching players play at a higher level allow our youth to see for themselves what the next level is like.

Go to the following websites for schedule information:

www.portlandtimbers.com

www.portlandpilots.com

www.goviks.edu

See you on the field!

John

U.S. SOCCER AND EA SPORTS LAUNCH FREE ONLINE SOCCER RESOURCE

This resource was just announced by US Soccer today. I enourage you all to visit the page and download the Best Practices document. It is a valuable resource for coaches.

U.S. Soccer and EA SPORTS have teamed up to introduce EA SPORTS Interactive Training, a free, online tutorial that uses EA SPORTS technology to help train the soccer stars of the future. This interactive resource, available at EASPORTSinteractivetraining.com employs the EA SPORTS soccer game engine to illustrate U.S. Soccer’s coaching book “Best Practices for Coaching Soccer in the United States” which serves as the sport’s definitive player development guidelines. John Hackworth, U.S. Soccer Development Academy Technical Director and U.S. Men’s National Team Assistant Coach introduces each video segment with expert coaching advice for players ages 8-12 and their coaches to help them improve real-world technique.

The U.S. Soccer “Best Practices for Coaching Soccer in the United States” manual (download the manual as a .pdf) is an invaluable training guide created by U.S. Soccer’s Coaching Education Department to give youth and junior level soccer coaches in the United States a set of fundamental tools to help open up the game of soccer to young players in ways that celebrate the sport’s spontaneous qualities. The Best Practices Manual is available for free download at ussoccer.com. EA SPORTS uses sophisticated physics and its animation engine to bring the resource to life by helping players and coaches visualize the professional benefits of drills and convert that to precision on the field.

Specific features of EA SPORTS Interactive Training include:

• Six videos focused on drills – Passing, Dribbling, Heading, Shooting, Receiving and Defending
• Three levels of complexity for each video module
• Expert instruction from John Hackworth, U.S. Soccer Development Academy Technical Director and U.S. Men’s National Team Assistant Coach

Given the insatiable appetite EA SPORTS is seeing for digital content among youth demographics globally, this online resource is likely to resonate with young players and help U.S. Soccer in its mission to help continue the development of soccer at all recreational and competitive levels. Since last June, more than 500 million online game sessions of EA SPORTS games have been played, and more than 2 million game highlight videos have been uploaded to EA SPORTS websites.

To experience EA SPORTS Interactive Training, log on to EASPORTSinteractivetraining.com.

EA SPORTS is an official and exclusive interactive entertainment licensee of U.S. Soccer. EA SPORTS Interactive Training is just one of many partnership initiatives between EA SPORTS and U.S. Soccer which deliver cutting edge media to soccer fans across the U.S.

High School Rec

At PYSA we do our best to provide programs for any players that would like to participate in youth soccer. Our High School Rec club is a perfect example of these programs.

Our High School Rec Club provides an option for players that either choose to not play in high school or players that are not placed on a team by their highs schools. The HS Rec league offers two separate seasons for players. The league takes place in both the Fall and the Spring.

If you have and questions about the HS Rec Club please feel free to contact the PYSA office by email at pysa@teleport.com or by phone at 503.646.6683.

John

Useful Articles

One of the great things about the Internet is the access it gives us to other people opinions. Soccer is a sport that allows each individual coach to inject their personality and background into their team. This is why we see so many different style of play throughout the world. The Brazilian players are know for playing with flare and individual creativity. German players are methodical and very well organized. The United States Men's National Team plays a very blue collar style.

I encourage all fans of the game to watch a few of the English Premier League matches that started last weekend and take a look at the players playing in them. While they are all talented and very skillful, they will also play the game differently. Watch Fernando Torres and Steven Gerrard as they compete for Liverpool. Both superb soccer players that have very different styles.

As coaches we should be aware of the way personality effects play. As we develop a philosophy of how to work with players we should take a look at the personality of the team and of the individuals. While we work with teams as a whole we also need to have the ability to aproach each player as an individual.

Good luck on the field!!

John

Coaching Education

We had a great first week for our coaching education program. Over 120 coaches participated in our clinics last week. It was great to work with such eager coaches. I look forward to meeting more of you over the next few weeks.

I would like to provide a few links to coaching education sites that I think are valuable resources:

Success In Soccer - SIS is regarded as the top coaching publication in America. In each issue SIS provides coaches with articles and training sessions for all ages. www.successinsoccer.com.

US Youth Soccer Coaches Connection - The Coaches Connection is a web based service that provides its members with age appropriate training sessions each month. The sessions are designed by some of the top youth coaches in the country. www.usyouthsoccer.org

Soccer Specific - Soccer Specific is an online resource for coaches. The website has sessions for many of the top coaches in world. The site is best used by coaches working with players 12 years old and up. There are some fun games for coaches who work with younger players as well. www.soccerspecific.com

I hope that these resources help you in your day to day coaching.

Thanks!!

John

New Blog!!!

PYSA is committed to providing our members with up to date information about our organization. This blog will be updated each weekday with coaching tips, PYSA announcements, and general soccer information. We welcome your feedback about the blog as well as about PYSA as a whole. You can provide feedback by emailing pysafeedback@gmail.com.

Have a great weekend!!!

PYSA