Coaching Soccer For Dummies

by Greg Bach

  Don’t get too caught up in coaching, because that takes away from the purpose of the tryout, which is to evaluate the kids’ skills. But sprinkling your tryout with some coaching pointers isn’t a bad idea. It gives you a chance to observe how the kids react to instruction, feedback, and even constructive criticism. You’re going to coach some of these kids for several months, so gaining some insight into how receptive they are to your feedback is helpful. For example, if you have one roster spot left and a couple of players who are comparable in ability, how open each player is to receiving feedback is another factor that you can use in assessing who’s the better fit for the team.

  At the conclusion of the tryout, thank the players for following instructions and giving their best effort. Also, thank the parents for their willingness to get the kids to the tryout on time and adjusting their busy schedules to accommodate it. It’s a nice touch that demonstrates how much you care.

  Evaluating and selecting players

  A well-structured tryout is the first step toward putting together your travel team (see the previous section). Now, as the kids are running, kicking, and competing, keep close tabs on them to determine who deserves the chance to play for you this season.

  Get some assistance when monitoring the players. If you have a large turnout, having a few more sets of eyes watching the kids is helpful. If you’re taking the place of a coach who handled the team last season, ask for his advice, or see whether he can come out to give you his input, because he has valuable experience on what types of kids it takes to play and compete at this level. If you have several adults helping you out, make sure that they get a chance to see all the kids; otherwise, their evaluations aren’t as accurate and comprehensive as they could be. You can also ask your assistants to take care of the small details like setting up the cones for a drill, ensuring that each station has enough soccer balls, and so on. Doing so gives you more time in front of the kids for explaining drills, evaluating players, and building bonds.

  Make a list of the skills you want your evaluators to monitor, such as speed, shooting, passing, receiving, trapping, shielding, aggressiveness, and 1-on-1 abilities, both offensively and defensively. If you have a large group and assistants helping you evaluate, give everyone a roster with the kids’ names and numbers. Having scores and comments on each youngster from several sources can help identify the players most deserving of roster spots.

  Evaluating skills is important, but be sure that you and your assistants take a look at these sometimes easily overlooked areas during the selection process:

  Teamwork: Assessing how players work with their teammates is crucial. A great ball handler is an asset to the team if he looks for open teammates, but he’s a liability to the attack if he’s reluctant to give up possession of the ball. A highly skilled player must be a team player in order to fit into the framework of your squad.

  Demeanor: Does the player get noticeably upset when a teammate fails to deliver an accurate pass to her that may have resulted in a good scoring opportunity? Does she get visibly frustrated when her pass isn’t handled efficiently and results in the opposing team gaining possession of the ball? You want players on your team who are supportive rather than negative toward their teammates.

  Mental muscle: Don’t neglect the mental aspect of the kids. Keep a close watch to see what type of competitors they are. For example, when they lose the ball to a defender, are they focused on regaining possession, or are they frustrated and lacking the competitive fire to go after it? Are they good sports who play within the rules, or do they resort to unfavorable tactics at times?

  Keep in mind that these factors aren’t automatic disqualifiers, because you have to evaluate each child on a case-by-case basis. If you choose a child who exhibits the occasional tendency to behave inappropriately, you have the responsibility to work with him and teach him the importance of behaving in a respectful manner. Otherwise, he’s at risk of being dismissed from the team.

  Breaking the good and bad news

  You, and the players who gave you their best trying out, experience a wide range of emotions come selection time for the travel team. Seeing the smile on a child’s face when you let her know that she made the team is one of the great things about coaching a travel soccer team. Unfortunately, at the other end of the spectrum is the unpleasant task of breaking the news to a youngster that she didn’t make it. Take a look at some dos and don’ts when informing kids whether they will or won’t wear a travel-team jersey for you this season.

  Notify everyone in a timely manner

  Sure, this ordeal would be easier on you if you had to deliver only the good news to the kids who made the team, but in fairness to everyone who sweated and performed to the best of their ability, you need to let all the children know whether they made it or not.

  And make your decisions in a timely manner. Think about going on a job interview for a position you really want and how nerve-wracking the wait is. The same goes for kids trying out for your team. They’re naturally eager to hear whether they made the team or not, so be as prompt as possible in your decision-making process.

  Deliver the news in person

  A letter telling a child he didn’t make the team is the easy way out for you — but not the right way. The youngster gave the tryout his best, and he deserves to hear in person your evaluation of his play. If a large number of players tried out, and having 1-on-1 conversations in person simply isn’t feasible, at the very least deliver the news over the phone.

  If you’re dealing with a small group of players, you may find it more comfortable paying a quick visit to all the players’ homes to let them know whether they made it or not. With larger groups, set aside an evening to break the news. Check with your recreation department whose field you used for the tryout about using a room so you have privacy to speak to each child. Prior to the tryout, let everyone know the date and time for the announcements, and assign each player a time to meet with you. Conduct the meetings in five- or ten-minute intervals.

  Be encouraging when giving the bad news

  You don’t want the child to regret that she tried out. Yes, she’ll be disappointed when she doesn’t make the team, but what you say (and how you say it) determines whether that disappointment lingers for a couple days or months and whether she uses your words as motivation to work on her skills.

  The bad news can be crushing to a child’s confidence and self-esteem, and you want to do everything you can to soften the blow of this setback. You don’t want this news to quash a child’s enthusiasm for the sport or derail his interest in playing. Be clear that not making the team isn’t a judgment on the child as a person. Let the youngster and his parents know what areas of his game you were impressed with, and let him know those areas that he can devote a little more focus to. Offer recommendations on how he can go about improving those areas of his game, and encourage him to try out again next season. He may simply need one more season of recreation play to hone his skills before he makes the jump to a more competitive level of play.

  The Season

  Youngsters may need a little time to adjust to the travel-team schedule. After all, they have more practices and games to play in during the week than they’re accustomed to; they have suitcases to pack and new locales to play in for out-of-town tournaments; and they have increased competition for playing time to adjust to because their teammates are quicker, faster, and stronger than a lot of the kids they’re used to playing with from their recreation league teams. The following sections explain how you can help your players avoid being overwhelmed by the experience.

  Try to recruit a parent or two to fulfill the role of team business manager. Your season will run more smoothly, and you’ll be able to focus on coaching. These folks can be a huge help filling out tournament registration forms, making motel reservations, and locating restaurants for team meals, as well as taking care of a host of other responsibilities.

  Avoiding burnout

  Some travel-t
eam seasons stretch on for several months, which increases the chance of players suffering burnout. Burnout occurs when players grow tired of playing, and it typically involves a combination of physical and emotional exhaustion. Even though kids love playing soccer, when you subject them to a heavy practice schedule that they normally aren’t accustomed to, as well as an increased number of games, they’re susceptible to suffering burnout. Here are some tips to consider to keep your team energized:

  Keep it fresh. With the extra practice load, providing kids with a wide range of drills throughout the week is more important than ever. The more variety you spice your practices up with, the less likely the kids are to become drained from participating. (See Chapter 6 for additional practice tips.)

  Downplay winning. The pressure to win can be a heavy burden on a team, and it can sap your kids’ energy and cripple their enthusiasm, which are some of the first signs of burnout.

  Know when to ease back. If you have a heavy tournament schedule on the horizon, or if you know you’re going to play a lot of games in a short time span, ease back on the practice schedule leading up to those games. This effort helps keep the kids’ energy and enthusiasm at optimum levels. Taking this type of measure can help prevent potential problems, because after burnout settles in, the only real solution is plenty of rest and time away from the sport.

  Keeping everyone in the game

  Even though you give the bulk of the playing time to the most talented players at the travel-soccer level, don’t forget that every child — whether she’s the leading scorer or the least talented of the group — has an important role. Make sure the players are fully aware of that, too. When players are on the bench, they should be actively involved in cheering their teammates on and supporting them. Also encourage them to monitor the action closely; it keeps the kids’ attention, and they may spot a defensive tendency displayed by the opposing team that you can exploit. Encouraging players to take an active role in all areas of the game, whether on the field or off, enhances their experience and further instills that they’re valuable members of the team.

  Making adjustments for weekend tournaments

  Coaching in weekend tournaments is dramatically different from working the sidelines during a midweek game. One of the biggest differences you have to deal with is that tournaments typically involve several games played in a short period of time. Consequently, you do plenty of juggling and employ different strategies to ensure that you don’t wear your players out. Try the following to keep your players fresh:

  Rely on nonstarters more. In games in which you’re comfortably ahead, insert nonstarters to spell the regulars and give them valuable rest for the upcoming games.

  Make adjustments to your playing strategy. You may need to alter your playing strategy at times. For example, if you typically employ an aggressive attack that requires a large amount of running by all your players, and you’re several goals ahead in a game, scale back and take a more defensive posture to ensure that your players have enough fuel in their tanks to compete in the next game, an hour away.

  Adjust pre- and post-game routines. You may have to adjust your pre-game warm-ups accordingly as you get deeper into the tournament to avoid exhausting your players.

  Make sure your team is getting plenty of fluids. In light of the heavy playing schedule, which often doesn’t leave much recovery time between games, make sure kids are consuming adequate amounts of fluids.

  Being on the Road

  Coaching a travel team involves more than figuring out what type of offensive system best fits your team or who should start in goal in the upcoming weekend tournament. You must deal with a number of away-from-the-field issues that directly impact your and your players’ experience.

  Although what happens on the field is certainly your major responsibility, what takes place away from the field should also have your full attention. Safety is a huge consideration. Being in charge of a large group of kids for an out-of-town tournament that requires an overnight stay is an enormous responsibility. You have to ensure the safety of every child — not just on the soccer field, but also on the road to and from events and at the location where the team stays overnight. You’re accountable for all the kids at all times. Besides being the coach, you’re the chaperone who needs to closely monitor and know the whereabouts of every player at all times.

  When you take a team of kids — and their parents — to a weekend tournament, a number of issues may pop up at some point, including the following:

  Curfews: Children naturally enjoy staying in motels and swimming in the pool, but to perform at their best, you must enforce curfews. The ages of the kids and the starting time of the game the following day should dictate the curfew. Let the kids and their parents know in advance what time the curfew is.

  Extracurricular activities: Competing in tournaments in different locations provides opportunities for sightseeing and participating in activities away from the field. Several factors must be taken into account when determining what activities, if any, you’re going to do. You don’t want your players to be so exhausted from sightseeing that they can’t give you their best effort. Before departing for the event, go over the tournament schedule with the players and parents, and let them know whether they have any time for extracurricular activities. If you happen to be playing four games over a two-day period, the parents don’t have enough time to arrange any activities for their kids.

  If you have a break in the tournament schedule, decide whether you want to organize a team activity or allow the parents and their kids to do their own thing. Obviously, your group has varied interests, so organizing a team activity can be somewhat tricky. Also, keep in mind the added expense of these activities, because you don’t want to put a financial strain on some parents or force them to participate in an activity that they can’t afford. Always discuss these plans with the entire team before arriving at the tournament site.

  Problems with partying parents: For many busy families, weekend tournaments are the only vacations they have time for, so parents who want to enjoy themselves aren’t uncommon. Of course, that’s perfectly fine as long as the good times don’t escalate into problems, such as excessive drinking or loud noise in the motel. Before departing for any overnight tournaments, let the parents know that you want them to have a good time and enjoy themselves but to keep in mind that they’re at a youth soccer event and they need set a good example at all times.

  Part VI

  The Part of Tens

  In this part …

  T he Part of Tens introduces you to some unique ways you can go about making sure that all children on your team look back on their season with you and smile. If you use some of the ideas we present here, or if you use them to generate creative options of your own, your kids will carry fond memories of their season with you for the rest of their lives.

  Chapter 21

  Ten Ways to Make the Season Memorable

  In This Chapter

  Getting parents involved

  Coming up with themes for the day

  Making memorable moments

  Achild’s experience in organized soccer can be a defining moment in her young life. Years from now, she isn’t going to remember her team’s record or how many goals she scored during the season, but she’ll easily recall whether the time the team spent with you was a positive or negative experience. This chapter provides some methods you can use to ensure that your players have a memorable season that brings a smile to their faces for years to come and has them begging to play for you again next season.

  Challenge the Coach Day

  What do youngsters like most about playing soccer? Well, besides scoring goals and wearing the cool shin guards, they love opportunities to play — and beat — you, the coach, in any type of skill challenge. Reflect for a moment on your own sports experiences growing up and the first time you beat your mom, dad, or coach in a game. The feeling becomes entrenched in your memory forever. Kids genuinely love this ty
pe of challenge, so set aside one practice day at some point during the season in which each player on the team gets the chance to challenge you in some aspect of soccer.

  With younger kids, give them plenty of options to choose among, because they probably haven’t had this chance before with other coaches. Here are some fun options:

  Let them race against you the length of the field, dribbling a soccer ball.

  Dribble through a series of cones to see who can do it the fastest.

  See who can control the ball longest in a designated area, with the other person serving as the defender.

  Play a game of 1-on-1 in a scaled-down area with a cone serving as the goal that you must hit with the ball.

  If you have players who are struggling to learn skills, letting them beat you may be the confidence boost they need. With some of the other kids, beating them by a goal or a couple of seconds can provide that extra motivation for them to work even harder in practice so they can win next time.

  Bring Your Parent to Practice Day

  In many schools around the country, kids have the chance to bring their parents with them for a day, and this idea works great in organized soccer, too. By having this day early in the season, you send the message that you really want the parents to be actively involved in their child’s soccer experience. You don’t want parents just showing up and reading a book or paying bills on the sidelines. Have them shadow their children during the entire practice and participate alongside them. They should go through the warm-ups with their youngsters and take part in all the drills. During this practice, run plenty of drills that involve 2-on-2 or 4-on-4 so that the youngsters team up to compete against their parents. Conducting this type of practice serves as a great bonding experience for both the parents and child, and it gives parents a better appreciation of what their child goes through during the course of a regular practice, particularly if they’ve never played soccer.