What's the difference?

With every camp season I discover new facets of the game to consider. This summer the differences between programs / teams seems to always be at the forefront of my thoughts. After a recent camp session I overheard two parents discussing the prospects for the coming season.  Their children play for a program on the upswing and the conversation was about the difference between where their program was, where it is now and those programs that are still clearly better.

They ticked off a list of similarities - conditioning, weight training, summer camp, preseason tournaments, skill sessions, two-a-days, kids playing club soccer, active booster programs to support the team. The list of similarities seemingly went on and on.  The sentiment was "We are doing everything other teams do so why aren't we experiencing the same level of success?"

Standards.

Yes, every team does the same things so it becomes about the standards set for doing those things.  What are the expectations when preparing to play and is everyone held accountable to those standards? What separates the really good teams from everyone else is the difference between what is allowed and what is demanded in meeting the standards set for a team.  The really good teams demand excellence where everyone else wishes or hopes for excellence as if it is something that can be granted. 

Many teams go through the motions or play at being excellent. They talk the talk but don't walk the walk. There is little accountability for meeting and maintaining levels of excellence and so their overall standards are much lower than those of the really good teams and consequentially so too is their quality of play on the pitch.

If your team wants better success, set higher standards and demand they be met by holding everyone accountable to them.