With the spring season almost upon us, many of our teams are preparing to participate in the State Cup, the Northeast Region One Premier League, and the Region One Premier League. Having to train indoors, the coaches are working on some of the technical demands that our players will encounter playing at this high level, and after watching many indoor sessions this winter, it’s apparent that the technical proficiency of our players could be better. Now, thats not a knock on our players or coaches, it’s simply an observation that I’ve seen all over the country. The technical demands placed on our players has increased dramatically as the game has grown exponentially over the years. With more players participating, and more teams competing at a higher level, its become clear that we all have to work a little harder to maintain any edge we may have.

 

With this in mind, I want to talk about a new approach that the club will be taking towards player development for all of our Patriots FC players. We call it our F.I.T philosophy and we plan on incorporating it for the upcoming 2010-2011 season for all of our players.

 

F.I.T = Facilitate – Identify – and Teach our players to Reach Higher and Discover their Potential.

 

Facilitate: Our coaches are responsible for leading or coordinating the work of their team, and are also expected to assist the other coaches in the club. We ask that each coach listens to the needs of their players, and places their individual growth and development as their main priority.

 

Identify: We’ll be asking our coaches to identify and solve problems presented by the game, and work with our players to help them identify the same problems and solve them in an environment that’s conducive to learning. Coaches are also expected to identify player weaknesses and tendencies in their Technical and Tactical games, and place players in pressure situations to develop both, as well as their psychological game.

 

Teach: Our coaches know how to educate and instruct players on all aspects of the game of soccer, and we ask that they allow the players to also become teachers both on and off the field. We want our players to learn how to solve their own problems without any fear of failure. It’s our hope that this approach will help every individual both on and off the field with their soccer skills as well as their life skills.

 

It’s great to have a philosophy in place, as it’s now laid a foundation for us to build upon. I’ve been working on a training model for the club that will emphasize player development in all five areas of the game our players face. The technical, tactical, physical, psychological, and social pillars will be broken down into age specific areas and implemented through our training methods. We’ll focus on age appropriate training, and minimum technical standards within each age group.

 

We feel that by exposing players and coaches to such a program, it will enhance our players in every pillar of the game, and they’ll be able to better recognize the relationships between all of the components, and that in turn will help them grow and develop into better players. It’s a unique concept for our club, and to be honest, I don’t know of another club locally that has such a plan in place. We know that with every new idea, there may be a few speed bumps along the way, but I’m positive that we’ll be keeping our eyes on the goal, and that goal is the long term player development of every child that wears a Patriots uniform.

 

On pretty much every coaching course I attend, the subject of American players being stifled by coaches who just want to win at all costs comes up. It’s a regular topic in discussion groups, and to be fair, I think the United States Soccer Federation has recognized that, and is working to change how our youth players develop by introducing the Academy Program for the boys. However, with no Academy in place for the girls, we have to build our own programs that place more emphasis on player development, and less on winning. It’s a tough decision for many coaches, players, and parents, as they all want to win so they can get back into the tournament, and also have a better chance of getting into the next bigger and better tournament on the calendar.

 

I’m often asked by parents and coaches about tournaments, and how their teams can’t get into the bigger and better events if they don’t win. My answer is always the same. If coaches and clubs spend more time on player development through raising the technical demands on their players, and encouraging them to be creative and dynamic, then the results will speak for themselves. I personally don’t care if my team doesn’t win the State Cup when they are 10 or 15 years of age. It would be nice, but not if I’m sacrificing personal growth just for the win. My idea is to encourage our players, and more so, our parents, that if we concentrate on allowing our youth players to better understand the demands of the game with training where the content is realistic, and the flow simple to complex, that in turn will build upon itself and create opportunities for success by allowing the game to reveal itself to our kids.

 

I often tell the younger players (U9-U12) and for that matter my U18’s, that the game should be played by them and not me on the sideline. If I’m offering too much instruction, then I didn’t plan well enough during practice. With the younger players, the more we think we’re doing right by them, by yelling out what they should be doing “shoot’ “pass” and the best one “score” the more harm we’re actually doing. If we don’t let them solve their own problems early on, then they’ll never grow and develop a real understanding of the beautiful game.

 

“I don’t understand trees.” Now, I know that’s a random statement, and one that clearly has no bearing on player development. However, I think they’re fascinating, wondrous things that give shelter to so many different animals, provide shade on a warm day, cover on a wet day, and provide us all with the air we breathe. I don’t have to fully understand them to appreciate them. I learned all about them just by watching them grow. Maybe we can’t just stand idly by and watch our children grow without any guidance or direction, but we can let them discover their full potential by encouraging them to reach higher. “The giant oak is an acorn that stood its ground, and had no help other than mother nature."

 

My personal goal with this new curriculum, is to follow the growth of our U10s (00’s) through to our current U14s (96’s) over a three year period. That will see our 00’s at the age of 13 having a comprehensive grasp of the technical demands of the game, and the 96’s at the age of 17, playing at the top of their game in major college showcases.

 

On top of the components outlined here, we’ll also be introducing all of our players to nutrition and how the decisions they make can have an impact on their performance as athletes. The club will continue with its injury prevention program by incorporating both the PEP Program and the FIFA 11+. Both programs are designed to help prevent knee injuries in female athletes.

 

I would be happy to discuss this new model with anyone who is interested. I can be reached at info@patriotsfc.com if anyone has questions or just wants to learn a little more.

 

 

Thanks, and I look forward to seeing all of you at your games this spring.

 

 

Steve Davis

Director of Coaching

Patriots FC