Analyzing the Game

Contrary to what some people may think I do not have multiple personality disorder.

Bet that opening statement got your attention, didn’t it? People do sometimes see very different sides of me at soccer matches. While I am usually pretty laidback there are times I get a “little”excitable. There is a rational and simple explanation for this. Watching a soccer match and analyzing a soccer match are two very different things. Most times when I watch a match I am analyzing it. I cannot help myself. This is the laidback person people most often see. However, there are times when the fan inside of me emerges and I do become a “little”more animated and vociferous. It is the analytical mode that I wish to write about today.

Teamwork

I cannot begin to count the number of pickup games I have played over the years.  Basketball, baseball, soccer, football, kickball, whiffle ball: we learned early to pick sides and play. My wife always marvelled at how I could find a group of complete strangers playing a game at a park and in no time be a part of the action. A quick introduction during a break in the action and when play resumed I had a new set of teammates and more often than not new friends as well.

As I watched my son and his friends participate in the Ohio South ODP College Showcase event this past weekend I was struck by how quickly the players established roles on the field. These were basically pick up games involving 70 of the best 16 year old soccer players in Ohio South. There was potential for a lot of selfish play to present itself, but on my son's "Ireland" team this never became a problem.  From the very beginning the individuals shared the ball with the passing being quite good. It was much the same on the defensive side of the ball as players instinctively worked together.

Yes, there was some individualism that reared its head but the kids took care of that themselves and did so in relatively short order. I have seen this through the years and it never ceases to amaze me.  If you won't pass the ball, soon you will not be passed the ball either.  If you pass the ball and in doing so help your teammates look good, they will generally return the favor or will find themselves being isolated from play.  If you play defense, you immediately earn the respect of your teammates. If you don't defend, your team will work to isolate you so you are not involved in defending.

The boys were allowed to call off the player they wished to substitute for and by the end of the first session it was clear which players were earning the trust of their teammates and which were being subbed off on a regular basis. The best teammates played the vast majority of minutes in these games. Not always the best players although that pecking order was being established as well, but the players that played best with others.

As a coach, I am always conscious during training of the player(s) who constantly breakdown an activity. Who are the players whose decision making is most questionable, who take excessive touches, who are always losing possession of the ball or are the weak link defensively.  Even in training, as the competitive spirit comes forth, these players will be isolated from play. I observed the same thing happening at the ODP event this weekend.

I remind the members of my teams constantly that every time they step onto the field it is a tryout. Not only a tryout in terms of soccer but also in terms of life. You never know who is watching: a college recruiter or a possible future employer, someone you might call upon as a reference, the young lady you might want to date or even marry might be watching you.  First impressions as crucial. This was evident at the ODP event this weekend as well.  If your first touches on the ball involved poor decison-making or selfish play, it set the tone for your weekend. If your first opportunity to defend involved poor or little effort, it set the tone for your weekend.

These were lessons I learned early in life.  Scoring the basketball was always my strength, but sometimes that was not the role I needed to play for my team. In those pickup games of my youth, there were often older established players or perhaps scorers who were better than I or merely more familar to the group I had joined. I filled other roles until I earned the right to score the ball by taking advantage of opportunities through the run of play. Defending and passing the ball are excellent ways to establish trust with new or familar teammates. Making hustle plays endears yourself to teammates - rebound goals as opposed to the primary shot or winning / saving a loose ball to a teammate instead of waiting for someone to do so for you.

I became a very good defender by choice.  In pickup games almost no one wants to defend the other teams best scorer. It involves hard work of both mind and body. I always took the other teams best scorer.  I gained immediate acceptance in any group by doing so. And it led to opportunities to do what I liked to do best - score the ball. That approach helped earn me my first job in corporate accounting for an international retailer before I ever graduated from college.

As I watched the play this weekend one thought was constant in my mind: the kids that were showing well all played with an attitude of "what can I do for my team" while the ones that struggled were seemingly all about "what the team should do for me".  Pickup games are often like that, but so too is life. As a coach I look at a players decision-making abilities as the key consideration in any evaluation of their play.  This lesson was learned from playing (and observing) countless pickup games over the years. The ability to identify players who make good decisions with, AND perhaps especially without, the ball are the ones I want on my team. 

Next time you ask players to choose up sides or are involved in a pickup game yourself take note of when players are taken.  The ability of being a good teammate is highly prized often times even over playing ability. There's are reasons for that.

If you can't pass, you can't play.

(originally published August 4, 2012)

I have at times referred to Graham Ramsay on this site. "If you can't pass, you can't play" is a phrase I have heard him utter often during the camps he has conducted for us. I have myself repeated it to players and teams I coach. It is a basic and simple truth of the game, but I have come to realize it is also much more and that players tend to receive different and varying messages from the phrase.

Technical excellence
Vision
Soccer IQ or Game Intelligence
The Will to Prepare
TEAM First attitude

The ability to pass begins with mastering proper technique and maintaining it at the highest level. "Toes up. Heels down. Strike with the ankle bone." is a mantra echoed during training sessions around the soccer world. Unfortunately for many coaches and players alike the process of passing begins and ends here when there are actually several other significant elements that go into being able to pass the soccer ball.

"Vision" is another word commonly associated with passing. Left to stand on its own "vision" implies "seeing the pass" within the context of the game about you. At first glance this seems like another basic and simple truth, but once again there are layers of complexity involved.  Every player has "vision" but what separates good passers from the rest is what they see and when they see it.

Soccer IQ or Game Intelligence are terms that apply to a players decision-making process.

When do I shoot?
When do I dribble?
When do I pass?
Which direction - diagonally, forward, backward, laterally - should I pass?
What do I do after having passed the ball?

The correct decision is the one that scores the ball or maintains possession of the ball for your team. In terms of passing the decision-making process is all about possession and creating scoring opportunities. What is the longest secure pass I can make?  How many defenders can I defeat with a single secure pass? What is the safest pass I can make to relieve pressure and maintain possession? What is my next movement after having passed the ball.

Timing is also a critical element in Soccer IQ. The timeliness of a players decision making often determines the success of failure of the action take. Too early or too late breaks the rhythm and flow of the game and can lead to lost possession.

Hall of Fame basketball coach Bobby Knight stated "Most people have the will to win, few have the will to prepare to win."   Preparation is the king consideration to successful passing. Before your first touch on the ball, you need to have a plan for how you will play the ball.  EVERY option for play must be explored before your first touch - Do I shoot, dribble, pass? Which technique should I use to execute my decision? In what direction should my play be made?

A willingness to pass, a willingness to share the ball with teammates must also be in evidence. If a player is unwilling to pass he will soon find others are unwilling to pass to him. However, is a player truly unwilling to pass or is his decision-making process leading to the pass short circuiting? Is the player selfish or merely struggling with proper individual pattern of play?  It is important to analyze and work with the player to establish good on-field decision-making skills for these are the basis on TEAM play.

When any of the above facets are missing a players ability to pass is impaired. Aside from technical excellence a player must get in the habit of collecting all the information available concerning what is happening in the game.  Scan the field constantly and consistently, but especially before receiving or winning the ball. Secure the ball in a manner that leads into the play you will make based on your scanning of the game. Then look to the play you have decided to make and execute the correct technique.

What happens if part of the process breaks down or is skipped altogether?  

For instance, what if the player fails to scan the game before securing the ball?  The focus is on "winning the ball" and figuring out what to do with it after that fact?  "Win and whack" is often the result. A player "wins" the ball only to turn it over by creating another 50/50 ball when his winning touch is nothing more than whack the ball in whatever direction he happens to be facing. 

Or what if the player does win and secure the ball but has no plan for how to play it?  If he has space and time he may look up and find a quality play to make. If he secures the ball under pressure without a plan for play excessive touches will ensue as he attempts to find space and time to get his head up and find a play. Often times the player will eventually find the correct play but his excessive touches have broken the rhythm and flow of the game.  The timing that would have made the pass easy is lost. A success rate of late or mistimed passes is significantly lower than well timed, accurate and properly weighted passes. It is often the lack of preparation / vision / game intelligence that dictates success of a pass more so than a lack of technique. 

Once again, success is found in the details of the process.  No single detail of the process can be ignore or overlooked without impacting the quality of the process. "If you can't pass, you can't play" runs much deeper than imploring players to pass.  Is the player selfish, inept or does his thought  and decision-making process need a tune up?  As coaches we must be able to discern the root cause of a players struggles and do our best to help them fine tune their game. As it concerns passing, this can be a more complicated process than it seems at first glance, but since a player really cannot play the game without being able to pass effectively we must be diligent in improving our players ability to pass.

Do we want Robinhos or Robots?

I think this is a good companion article to 11 Captains.  It is probably not a coincidence that I found both articles in the same file. The credit for this one I think goes to Mike Woitalla via Soccer America magazine from several years ago. Great reading and I know I have shared the thoughts if not the actual article with teams (and their parents) in the past.  Enjoy!

Do we want Robinhos or Robots?

How over-coaching and the emphasis on winning stifle young American talent.

The little boy dribbled and kept dribbling. He had taken the ball away from the midfield pack and zoomed toward his own goal. This surprised the other children and allowed him to keep the ball to himself for much longer than any player had managed during this U-8 game.

Having put some 15 yards between himself and the other players, he slowed down and seemed to marvel at all the territory he now had to himself. He started making a wide U-turn and flashed a big smile.

Why 4 v 4 should be a staple of training.

If I could change one thing about youth soccer in our area it would be to teach the four basic elements of the game – penetration, depth, width and mobility.  

Some years ago I introduced 4 v 4 spring soccer league in our local school district. Four field players with no goalkeepers. We utilized 4’ x 6’ goals with a 5 yard restraining arc around the goal for safety purposes and to prevent “guarding” the goal. 

4 v 4 is the fewest number of players that can represent penetration, depth and width around the ball carrier without duplication.  Every season I ran this league, each and every team eventually settled on a diamond or 1-2-1 alignment on the field.  It can be helpful to think of playing in 3 lines with a forward, two midfielders and a back. Or simply as having penetration, width and depth present.

Preparation is the Key to Increasing Pace of Play

It is better to look ahead & prepare than to look back & regret. -Jackie Joyner-Kersee

Soccer is a game that’s played with the brain. - Johan Cruyff

By failing to prepare, you are preparing to fail. - Benjamin Franklin

Everybody has a will to win. What's far more important is having the will to prepare to win. - Bobby Knight

What the mind can conceive and believe, the mind can achieve and those who stay will be champions. - Bo Schembechler

A good hockey player plays where the puck is. A great hockey player plays where the puck is going to be - Wayne Gretzky

There are no secrets to sucess. It is the result of preparation, hard work and learning from failure. - Colin Powell

 

PREPARATION

 

Breaking lines is one our favorite warm up activities.

(See Emma Hayes of Arsenal's Ladies Academy demonstrate Breaking Lines here)

 

Why breaking lines? 

My analysis of our recent play revealed slippage in our quality of first touch and execution of the basic push pass. We were beginning to struggle possessing the ball despite improved tactical recognition. The intent was to sharpen our technique and by extension take fuller advantage of the improved tactical recognition I was observing. In short, I planned a practice to solve a problem we were encountering on the field as we prepare to play again this weekend.

The coaching points for breaking lines are centered around preparing to play and proper technical execution in receiving and the push pass.  I worry a bit when addressing fundamentals with teenage players as they often approach such activities with an attitude of having progressed beyond the need to work on basics.  Silly boys. 

As I watched the players participate in this exercise many of the quotes listed above began to come to mind. With a small group and by utilizing only one ball I was able to concentrate on individual players. Technical assesments ranged from very good to fair to below average. At times I brought forth the coaching points associated with breaking lines to both individual players and the collective group.

Coaching points, especially in this case, serve the purpose of helping players to solve the problem of self-inflicting pressure. There were fascinating dynamics at work within this group activity. Some players paid particular attention to the minutest details in an effort to hone their skills. Other players continued to make the same mistakes over and over again with little apparent interest in improving.  What I was actually seeing is varying degrees of problem recognition and problem solving skills being demonstrated by the players as well as varying commitment levels to the team and teh game itself. Some were taking to my suggestions, others were tweaking and adapting aspects of their play on their own accord. A couple just went through the motions of the exercise largely unconcerned with the fact the exercise broke down on their watch more than anyone else's.

As I watched the players who continued to struggle with the exercise it occurred to me that in at least one case the player would have been classified among the "biggest, fastest, strongest" players coming through the youth ranks. I make this point because he largely relied upon physcal dominance to be successful. He did not "need" technique at the younger ages because he could cover for lack of technical excellence by outworking almost everyone else. He put forth great physical effort and was handsomely rewarded with praise and results. Now in his teen years he is slipping down the depth chart despite continuing to give huge effort and doesn't understand why. He has been unable to solve this problem and until or unless he does he will continue to struggle.

I blame his struggles on lazy coaching during his younger years. No one held him accountable for learning proper technique. His youth coaches played to his strengths - size, speed, strength - without addressing his weaknesses - technical skill and tactical understanding.  They failed to prepare him for more advanced play. A result is this player does not understand or appreciate the value of preparation. By extension the huge effort he gives on the field is now far less productive than it once was in youth leagues.  In his case, it really isn't a matter of working harder, but a matter of learning to work smarter.

At one point during the training session driven, or at least lofted, service was required in order to work on directing balls taken off the chest. One player who is quite good with his foot skills struggled mightily in attempting to chest the ball let alone direct it where he wanted it to go. I am quite certain he is capable of doing so, but lack of quality service was a problem at least in his mind.  I watched time and again as the service to him went over his head. Granted he is one of our shortest players, but he never got to the point of adjusting and adapting his preparation to play the ball. If the ball was not perfectly delivered to where he awaited it, he would expend energy jumping or lunging  in an attempt to make the play as asked in the exercise. He never progressed to expending the same amount of energy in preparing himself better to receive the ball. For instance, he could have checked away as his partner was preparing to serve him the ball thereby allowing him more time and space to adjust.  Instead he chose to remain stationary and demand perfect service from his teammates. 

The season plan has been to extend our on-field thinking from one decision soccer to playing multiple decision soccer - a wordy way of stating increasing our speed of play. 

Preparation is the key consideration in playing fast soccer.  Before your first touch you need a plan for what you will do with the ball on your first touch and any succeeding touches.  Even before that you must anicipate the flow of play and "get in the vision" of the teammate who has yet to execute his first touch on the ball.  Why?  Because once the teammate looks down to execute his first touch he becomes blind to 99% of the pitch - he needs to know his options for play before he ever touches the ball just as you will.

In contrast, "one decision soccer" involves gaining possession of the ball and then figuring out what you want to do with it.  This is a serious means of self-inflicting pressure and slowing the pace of play for your team.  The thought process becomes "See ball. Win ball. Dribble Ball or Whack Ball." and results in a lot of 50 / 50 balls won but nearly as many created or given away. The ratio of physical effort expended to mental effort expended is completely out of whack.

As Johan Cruyff stated,  "Soccer is a game that is played with the brain."  Playing fast is about problem solving. It is about preparing to play in advance of touching the ball both in terms of receiving it and setting yourself up to execute a quality first touch as your play or leading into your next play.  Preparation to play is about expending mental energy moreso than expending physical energy although the physical component is equally as important in its own right.

Breaking lines... a simple, basic, perhaps remedial exercise incorporates all this and more. The emphasis cannot be on successfully moving the ball around the grid. That is just part of the process in improving the various techniques involved. The tweaks I make to the exercise to include checking away and checking back to the pass helps simulate the rhythm of the game just as the prescribed route of the ball helps to re-inforce the idea of having a plan for what to do with the ball before your first touch on it.  It is a little static in nature, but just as muscle memory is important in establishing proper technique so too is developing the proper pattern of play important to increasing the pace of play.  Scan, touch, look, play is much more effect than touch, scan, look, play.

Failing to prepare properly is preparing to fail.

Lack of proper preparation leads to slowed pace of play that results in lost possession which leads to expenditure of energy in regaining possession. It's a vicious cycle that requires huge amounts of physical energy especially in relation to the amount of mental energy being expended.  The one thing I seek to impart to the players is that soccer is a game that is played with the brain.

Soccer is a game that is played with the brain.

Soccer is a game that is played with the brain.

Soccer is a game that is played with the brain.

Analyzing Team Play - it's probably not what you think.

I have been coaching so long I sometimes take things for granted.  This is precisely why I visit youth soccer matches every so often. And when I say youth soccer matches I mean U8 - U10 ages.  There is so much to be learned ... by me... at those levels of play. I reflect back on my own experiences when coaching those ages to find better understanding of how I negotiated the process back then. It can be both a rewarding and humbling experience for me. Sometimes it even frightens me.

In talking with a coaching colleague about how to analyze her teams play I had another of those reflective moments. New and inexperienced coaches tend to think analyzing a teams play is all about watching and evaluating the athletes.  It is not. It's all about determining the coach's performance in training the team.

Where does one begin analyzing a teams performance? 

What is the coach's season long plan?

This is where we begin the analysis process.  The coach should have identified 1-3 major areas to work on during the course of that season.  Some favorites are knowing when to tackle the ball, possession, heading the ball properly, crossing and finishing, as examples.  The focus for the entire season is then on these 1-3 areas. That's not to say other techniques and tactics are ignored. No, it means other techniques and tactics are worked on around and in conjunction with the identified  1-3 identified areas of concentration.

The analysis of team play then measures the success in the process a team is making in those areas of focus.  The success of the teams play is tied directly into the season long plan for improvement the coach has laid out.  If a coach doesn't have an identifiable season long plan she will at times find herself feeling as though she is driving a car without benefit of a steering wheel.

Back in those good old days of coaching youth soccer in the WCOSA we were given 4 preseason practice sessions before play began. Recreational soccer at its best, or would that be worst?  At U10 I quite literally focused on 1) Restarts  2) Receiving and dependent on the age either running with the ball or the push pass.  One restart - kickoff, goal kicks & corner kicks, throw-ins and free kicks per practice session.   Combined the actual taking of a restart with receiving the ball from a restart.  Penalty Kicks we addressed with a fun exercise call Butts Up!  I measured our success by the progress we made in taking and receiving restarts. I analyzed our play in that context. By the end of the season we were knowledgeable of when the game required a specific restart and how to execute that restart. We had also planted the seed in their minds that a restart is a possession, thus it was considered to be a shot or a pass to a teammate who was expected to receive it. A by-product of our concentration in these areas was a deeper understanding of the value of  possessing the ball and the associated techniques required to possess revolving around receiving and passing

Until the coach understands analyzing team play is less about the players and more about the coach (s)he will struggle with the process of analyzing play and making the necessary adjustments to correct the play (s)he feels needs to be addressed.  They tend to take a fingers in the holes of a leaking dam approach to analyzing their team.  One match it is poor technique for passing so training focuses on passing technique.  The next match the team is weak on keeping their shape so that becomes the focus of the next group of training session as emphasis on passing technique fades away until it resurfaces at a later point in time. It's a haphazard approach... and trust me, kids pick up on this. Their confidence in the coach is not what it might be.

Steady as she goes.  Select your 1-3 points of emphasis early on in the preseason. Stick with them. Build confidence in your players as they notice their improvement in the areas you are emphasizing.  Watch as associated areas of play also improve through confident players working on them in relation to the main focal points of training. 

The bottom line with analyzing team play is to analyze the job you are doing as a coach. Remember that in analyzing your teams play you are in effect analyzing your performance in training the team.

Eleven Part Harmony

One of our favorite training games is a simple game involving a ball, a wall and 1 or more players. Our kids call it Slam! We use benches laid on their sides as a surface to pass the ball against. It can be a competitive game or a nice training tool that sees individuals setting personal records for consecutive touches. When playing as an individual I encourage players to listen to music, sing, hum or play a song “in their heads” to help establish a rhythm in their play. When harmony is established between body, ball and bench the number of consecutive touches add up quickly.

Eleven Best or Best Eleven?

Each time I assemble a team questions regrading starting assignments and roles arise.  My standard reply is "We have a roster full of starters".   This is a true statement.  I do not keep you on the roster if I do  not believe you can play. As the head coach I will strive to determine the 11 who play best together.  Not necessarily the 11 best individual players.

That said, I do rank the members of the team 1 - 16 for field players and 1-2 for goalkeepers.  Players will move up and down in the individual rankings throughout the season dependent on their performance in training and ultimately their performances playing in matches.  I will strive to start as many of the top 10 ranked field players as possible.  This is where player versatility becomes important.  If starting is the issue, a back up DM might need to be willing to start as a center back, for example.

This ranking of players is for coaching staff use and is never shared with the players individually or collectively. Parents never see it and I will not discuss a players position in the rankings.  It is a subjective ranking with little in the way of empirical data to support it. 

The only statistic I am mindful of is attendance and promptness - a players commitment to the team.

So, why rank the players?

For me it serves as a reminder for use in late in the game situations.  If we are up a goal and need to hold the lead. If we are even or down a goal.   I might refer to the rankings to make sure I have best personnel available in the game. 

The real value I derive from the rankings stems from the associated notes I make about each player.  From the tryout process through the early preseason I will formulate seasonal plans for each player.  These seasonal plans will focus on accentuating strengths and improving weaknesses.  Players will move up (or down) the rankings based largely on how they address weakness in their games.

I will also use the individual seasonal plans collectively to discern a team seasonal plan. When certain themes repeat themselves amongst a number of players, we will add this to the teams seasonal plan as something we want to address.  By the same token, when a strength manifests itself repeatedly in individual seasonal plans, this is an area we will seek to accentuate in our teams system of play.

The preseason rankings are a starting point.  It is the final rankings that I have the most interest in.  Did the player progress?  Sometimes a player may not move up in the ranks but progress will be obvious through the final notes associated with his rankings when compared to those early season notes. 

And, yes, there are rare occasions when a player remains stagnant and drops down the list.  These players rankings and associated notes are of particular interest to me.  Did I fail this player as a coach and if so, why?  Sometimes, a player self-selects.  That is, he is overwhelmed by the talent that surrounds him.  He will realize his passion for the game doesn't measure up to that of his teammates. He will discover that while his teammates have a ball at their foot away from team activities he would rather be playing video games, working or devoting more time to his studies - he has other activities higher on his priority list than soccer is in relation to where soccer falls on his teammates priority lists.

There are times when we as coaches just do not connect with a player though.  It might be personalities. It might be a coach teaches in a manner that does not fit how the player best learns.  It might be any number of reasons.  If we want that player back for another season, we must do all we can to uncover where the disconnect has occurred.  The alternatives are to be up front with the player and suggest he move on to another team or simply cut him from your team.

This brings us back to the tryout process where the final rankings from the previous season can come into play. Tryouts are about forming the best team possible. It might be a prospective new player would rank higher on your individual player rankings than the last returning player on your list. At that point, a change in the teams roster might occur.

A ranking such as we are discussing here should never be the "be all end all" in determining a teams roster, starting positions or any other spot on a team.  We all know at any given moment a player is capable of "getting hot" or "finding a zone" and we would be foolish to grant this more significance than player who performs consistently over a long period of time.

We have also seen the talented player who is a train wreck of a teammate.  While he might rank high in the individual rankings he is not one of the 11 who play best together. 

Team chemistry is so very vital to team success that it simply cannot be overlooked. I have had players who were clearly among the top five players of our individual rankings who we simply could not start or play on the field at "crunch time" because they had no clue how to fit their talents cohesively into the team. Chances are pretty good that would have been one of the points of emphasis in that players seasonal plan.

In the end, I use the player rankings and associated notes as part of my personal self-evaluation.  I identified strengths and weakness in each players game. Did I place the player into a position and situations on the pitch from where he had reasonable expectations for success?  Did I help the player address his weaknesses as I identified them?  From the final rankings and my self-evaluation springs the beginnings of a new season.

REACT & RID The push pass

REACT moment: Your Push pass is played lacking pace and accuracy.


Real Time: 
Was my plant foot pointed where I wanted the ball to go?
Were my toes raised and ankle locked?
Did I strike at the midpoint of the ball and on the ankle bone?
Did I follow through?

Immediate:

At the next dead ball opportunity take a practice kick (or two) on an imaginary ball using the proper techniques to reinforce correct muscle memory required to execute an effective push pass.

Delayed:

Practice against a kickback board or with a partner emphasizing proper execution of proper technique and reinforcing proper muscle memory.

Analyzing Team Play. What and Why.

If you go to any Internet soccer forum or message board you will find a frequent topic of discussion is the lack of proficiency in scoring goals. This is one of the areas I am most often asked to address in the team camps I conduct. There seems to a general consensus in thought that a magical drill or practice exercise exists that can improve a teams ability to score goals. Of course, this just isn't true.  In fact, the reasons a team struggles to score can often times be a lot more complicated than one might suspect. Before coming up with appropriate exercises to address a teams struggles to score I have to figure out why they are struggling to score.

A friend contacted me after the 2012 high school season lamenting his team generated 22 shots on goal for the entire season. On the other hand, they had converted on 21 of those chances!

For our purposes here we will use the official FIFA definition for shots on goal:  A shot on goal sees the struck ball travel within the frame of the goal and results either in a goal being scored or a save being made.  So, if the shot strikes post or bar and bounces out, this is not considered a shot on goal. And, of course, any shot high or wide of the goal is not considered a shot on goal.

The  coach referenced above is a former college goalkeeper and knows the correct definition of a shot on goal. So I was really curious as to how a team could convert on 21 of 22 chances. That is one of the most confounding statistics I have ever heard of. No wonder he was interested in getting his team to take more shots on goal!

The question I had to answer was, why only 22 shots on goal over the course of 17 games?

The first hint I got was the coach telling me his team refused to shoot from distance. They insisted on being at nearly point blank range before attempting a shot.  Aha! That explains the tremendous conversion rate. It also provided a vital clue in terms of questioning why they only took 22 shots on goal. My suspicion was a lack of striking skill and this was confirmed during my first session with the team. They didn't take more shots or shots from greater range because they could not execute the required skill to do so. Now, I knew where to begin addressing the issue of generating more shots.

Conversion Rates

In baseball, basketball, football and other team sports there are established success / failure rates that define the game and those who play it.  In baseball a Batting Average of .300 or 3 hits in 10 at bats establishes one as a great hitter or an Earned Run Average of 3.00 per nine innings establishes one as a great pitcher.  In basketball converting on 50% of field goal attempts or 33% of 3 pt field goal attempts are standard measures of success / failure.  In football averaging 5 yards per carry is an accepted measure of success for a running back.

What about success / fail rates in soccer?

I had once been told that converting 1 of every 10 shots on goal was an acceptable rate of conversion in soccer. A shot on goal being defined by the NCAA Soccer Statisticians Manual as being a shot on net (see Section 3, Article 3). An article at Soccer Analysts  makes a case for a rate of 10.8% or one goal in every 9.25 shots on goal with a median of 1 goal in every 11 shots in the 4 professional European leagues they tracked. So, 1 goal from every 10 shots on goal wasn't a bad number.

Now, if we refer back to the definition of a shot on goal we discover that "results of a shot on goal must be either a save by the goalkeeper or defending team or a goal by the attacking team. This would indicate the save percentage for goalkeepers should be fairly high and if we check the MLS statistics we find typical save percentages for starting goalkeepers consistently in the low 70's percentile range. 

I have never quite bought into the 10% conversion rate for scoring goals. In the interests of consistency and fairness I took a look at MLS conversion rates and discovered the top goalscorers are actually converting at a far higher rate than 10%.  In 2012 leading goal scorer Chris Wondolowski converted on 27 of 55 SOG or an eye opening 49% conversion rate. The league conversion rate was 29.8% or nearly 3 of every 10 SOG resulting in a goal scored.

It would seem logical to look at what percentage of "shots" are actually "shots on goal".  This number is actually quite low at 25.6% for the 2012 MLS season or a little better than 1 of every 4 shots taken are actually shots on goal. If we look at the conversion rate of goals in the context of total shots taken the number drops all the way to 7.6% which is a little worse than the 1 in 10 number originally quoted to me.

What does it all mean?

I am reminded of hockey great Wayne Gretzky's quote, "You miss 100% of the shots you don't take."

Quite simply, one must shoot if one wishes to score, but accuracy of shooting (shots on goal) is extremely important as the conversion rates referenced above attest to. The more shots taken that a player or team can put on goal the better the chances are for scoring. Common sense stuff, correct? 

Key Considerations for Alignment and System of Play

Key Considerations for Formational Alignment and System of Play

 

1) If the other team cannot score, they cannot win.

 

·        We need to be secure defensively

·        The alignment of players within the defensive system of play must consider the attacking abilities of each player as well

·        Line of confrontation – where do we wish to win the ball?

 

·        Where do we want to funnel the opponent / where do we wish opponent’s shots to originate from?

·        What is the strength of our goalkeeper? What type of shots does he handle best? How can we best funnel the opponents attack to our goalkeepers strengths?

·        How can we best funnel the opponents attack to best create the space we want to use in transition and attack? Can we play 3 to 4 steps ahead defensively to set up our transition to the attack?

2)  If we cannot score, we cannot win.

·        Identify the players with the best attacking skills and finishing ability

·        Identify the players that form the best attacking combinations

·        What space must we open up for the best attackers / combinations of attackers to play in?

·        How do we best position the best attackers / combinations of attackers defensively to move them as quickly as possible into the space from which they can best utilize their attacking abilities?

·        We must recognize that variety of attack comes from not establishing a single pattern of play – that how we attack down the left flank might differ significantly from how we attack down the right flank and that how we attack through the middle should be a constant variable both player based and availability dictated.

3) Rate each player on the team based on individual strength and weakness.

 

·         Determine overall strength of the team and overall weakness of the team.

·         How can we best play to our strengths?

·         How can we best limit the opponent’s ability to expose our weakness?

Looking for Change in all the Wrong Places.

No, this is not a takeoff on an old country song. Nor is it an expose' on how to find loose change with a metal director or in the nether regions of your car seat or sofa.  In watching soccer matches this week I have noticed teams making changes to formations and personnel.  With the season now more than half over I found myself wondering about the motivation to make changes now.

Injuries could certainly be a reason to prompt personnel changes and perhaps to a lesser degree be a reason to contemplate a formational change. Other than that, I can only think of dissatisfaction with how the season has progressed thus far as the reason to be changing personnel and formations this late in the season.

Have shortcomings just now revealed themselves?  Or have issues plagued your team from the onset of the season?  Has the coached recognized, but stubbornly refused to address personnel and formational issues to this point?  Perhaps the coach only recognizes that something isn't quite right and is attempting personnel moves or changing formations to spark better play?

In the end, I think one running theme is the coaches level of ability to correctly analyze play. If there is a second running theme it is personalities - sometimes a coach will have a "pet" player (s)he plays over someone who is obviously better in the minds of teammates and casual observers alike. Or a coach simply does not like a player and either doesn't play him or doesn't play him in a preferred position. Maybe we are touching on a darker side of coaching, but no one can deny that these things do happen.

One of the hidden gems of coaching wisdom I learned at a very early age from an old pointy football coach was the need for the head coach to be a stable rudder throughout the process of a season. Set your course and only minimally adjust your tack to stay that course. Starting over in mid season is not a prescribed coaching methodology.

Analyzing play is an art form and one that must be worked at to be developed and maintained. The coach has to analyse the scientific data and convert it into coaching and training programs to help develop the athlete. This analysis process relies heavily on the coach's experience and knowledge of soccer and the athlete concerned.

One particular team really stood out to me this week. I have seen them 3 times this fall and each time they have employed a different formation with personnel in different positions.  Yes, they are struggling, but it's not due to personnel or formational issues. No, the problems are much more basic than those. I almost immediately recognized this particular team could benefit from one of our Pace of Play camps next summer.  I have presented the coach with my business card.  This team's problem is not related to deployment of personnel or team shape as defined by a formation. They have trouble with preparing to play the ball, proper touch, sequence of touches, recognizing their next play before their first touch and properly executing a pass.  That can be fixed. I can help fix that for them. Attempting to address these issue by changing personnel and formation is not going to yield the desired results.

So, let's take a brief introductory look at how to analyze a soccer match.

How to analyze a match is one of the most frequently asked questions in coaching clinics I conduct. One might think there is a standard response, but it isn't that simple. To begin with, does the questioner wish to know how to analyze the match in its entirety or is he asking how to analyze specific parts of play? Does he want to look at his own team or the opposing team? Does he wish to analyze individual play, positional unit play, how players or units link together?

Why the coach wishes to analyze play is as important to ascertain as is what portion of play he is interested in analyzing.

Does the coach wish to analyze play in-game so he can make adjustments to the game plan?

Does the coach wish to analyze play so he can address issues in training sessions in the days after the match?

Perhaps the coach wants to attempt to do analysis for both in-game purposes and post game purposes.

More often than not, the coach will not have thought this out as thoroughly as he should have before asking about analyzing the game.  This is a topic that invariably dominates discussion once it has been broached. Today, I am going to walk you through some basic ideas on how to analyze a match.  As with any undertaking we need to establish a solid foundation for our efforts and so this is where we will begin.  This is also where I lose many of the coaches who initially show great interest in learning to analyze a match.

Know the game.

This may seem like an obvious statement to make, but it is the cornerstone for being able to analyze a match properly. Knowledge of the technical aspects of play is a must. From a tactical standpoint a coach needs a vision for how he expects his team to play. Determine what your team is, then set the course for where you want to take them.

Know your own team.

If you are going to analyze your own team, either individual players, positional units or in its entirety, you must first know your team.

What is your base formational alignment?

What are the variations to the base alignment or alternative alignments you employ?

What is your system of play?

Does your system of play and formation(s) compliment one another or are they at odds with one another?

Does your formational alignment and system of play fit the strengths of a majority of your players?

Do the skill sets of your players fit the system of play and formation you wish to employ?

Have you defined specific roles for each position and positional unit within the formational alignment and in tune with the system of play you desire to utilize?

Have you aligned personnel within the formation in such a way as to play to the strengths of the individuals?

Does your system of play factor in how to link the positional units and within that context how to link your best players within each unit - you do want your best players getting the most touches on the ball, don't you?

Do your players know, understand and appreciate their roles within the formational alignment and system of play?

You may or may not be surprised to learn that many, perhaps even a majority of, youth coaches never consider these questions with specific intent. I find that many wish to begin the process of analyzing their teams play by beginning in the middle of the analyzation process. This, of course, will not work.

I suggest coaches begin learning to analyze play by learning to analyze their players technical play first and how this is impacting the teams ability to execute tactically.  Fix the technique necessary to perform the tactic. Then you can move on to adjusting tactics be that through formation, shape or system of play.  Look to first make change where your team can most beneficially do so and then take a look at the larger picture. 

With our spring team I will use our indoor practice sessions to focus almost entirely on technique.  Over the course of the first few sessions I will identify specific techniques to be focused on. Then I will use our first college showcase event to analyze our formation and tactics. By the second college showcase event I have set the teams seasonal course. Adjustments after the fact are minimal. I want to provide a stable environment in training and in play.

This is who we are.

This is what we do.

I feel drifting of course with personnel and or formation changes can send the wrong message to the team unless the reasons for doing so are made crystal clear.  The last things you want is to have players questioning the coaches judgment or even worse, the coaches confidence in the players. Choose your course wisely. Select the provisions you will need - a season long training plan to achieve your vision. Provide a confident, stable rudder for your team as they navigate towards fulfilling your vision for them.  There are going to be rough seas. The key is to not allow rough seas to blow you off course. Stay true to the seasons course and come out of those rough season having made progress in the process. Come out stronger, wiser and with the experience of having done so. This is how you grow a team. 

I learned attacking soccer from a goalkeeping coach.

One of the first coaching courses I took was the old NSCAA State Level Goalkeeping course.  I was extremely fortunate to have Tony Waiters, Tony DiCicco and a young man named John Murphy as the instructors for this course.  Tony Waiters and Tony DiCicco were each stars in their own right before becoming clinicians and I thoroughly enjoyed their presentations and learned so much from each of them about the fundamentals and some of the nuances of goalkeeping, but it was John Murphy who stole the show, in my opinion.

Before becoming the National Soccer Coaches Association of America's first Director of Goalkeeping, Tony Waiters had a long and distinguished playing career in England before turning to coaching / managing. He coached Team Canada in the '84 Olympics and '86 World Cup.   Waiters is the founder of World of Soccer which led to Total Player Development which in turn spawned  Byte Size Coaching.

Tony DiCicco is probably best known as the coach of the United States Women's National Team compiling an impressive record of 103-8-8. A lesser known aspect of his career is he started as the USWNT and Men's Under 20 National Team goalkeeper coach before getting the head women's job. In 1982 DiCicco founded Soccer Plus Goalkeeper School.  In 2006 he succeeded Waiters as Director of the Goalkeeper Institute for the NSCAA. 

John Murphy has coached in the college ranks and is currently at Anderson College. At the time of the coaching course I took he was the goalkeeper coach for the New England Revolution and soon to become goalkeeper coach of the Columbus Crew. Murphy has also coached Livingston of the Scottish First Division and in doing so became the first American to coach British professional soccer. Murphy remains on the National Staff for the NSCAA.

So, yeah, I was not exaggerating when I stated I was extremely fortunate to be a member of that particular goalkeeping course. I was also not kidding when I stated John Murphy stole the show.  The one point Murphy made and illustrated for us in both film sessions and on-field work was the fact that to be a good goalkeeper you must understand attacking soccer. In the film sessions Murphy broke down goals allowed by tracing them to their point of origin out on the pitch. More often than not he could trace a goal to a specific breakdown 30, 40 or even 50+ yards out on the pitch....  but he didn't just focus on the defensive break down. No, Murphy was interested in what the attacker(s) had done to create or force the break down.  Then he would look for, define and detail what defenders could have done differently to recover position preventing a cross or shot from being taken.  Murphy would then show us film of defenders and goalkeepers making the correct plays in similar situations.

The bottom line for me was coming out of that course with improved knowledge about goalkeeping and a vast appreciation for becoming a student of the art of goalkeeping and the overall game. Any goalkeeper I have worked with over the last couple of decades will surely tell you that I make them analyze every goal scored in a match - both allowed and scored for their team.  We trace goals back to their point of origin on the pitch and discuss what went right and / or what went wrong on the play. It is through studying the game from this perspective that I have come to understand attacking soccer.

Knowledge has a ripple effect as one thing learned leads to another avenue to explore. The cycle of learning never stops. And so it was that I realized there is real value to rotating players through a variety of positions. The back line positions are especially valuable in helping players learn a broader perspective of the game. Think about it for a minute, the whole of the game is before the backs. They are able to see the game unfold before them and if they are astute and wise, it is a learning experience for them in terms of attacking soccer as much and perhaps even more so than learning to be a defender.

This, of course, goes back to the idea of Total Soccer that advocates a nearly complete interchangeability in players manning positions on the pitch.  Versatility combined with specialization is the epitome of a modern soccer player.  It goes back to the 1980's business mantra of cross training employees in various roles within a business. Each player has a role to fill, but each players value is enhanced by his ability to fill multiple roles.

I have learned if a forward is struggling, the key to unlocking his potential might be a stint as a back and vice versa. We must be able to learn from the players we play against and then apply that knowledge against them. Some high school players are exceptional at this while others will obviously still need to work on developing this ability.  Make no mistake that as the modern game continues to evolve the value of an individuals Soccer IQ continues to increase in value as well. Close no doors to education. Kick them all in and learn as much as you can from every available source. That is the lasting lesson one John Murphy imparted to me.

Why?

When our son's were young and learning to think critically and write extended response answers my wife and I came up with a little call and response game to help them remember the questions that need answering when solving problems. It goes like this,

Call: Who?
Response: What?
Call: Where?
Response: When?
Call: How?
Response: Why?
Call: Because.
Response: I
Call: Love
Response: You

Okay, the last parts are obviously an expression of our family's love for one another, but the first parts are the key to problem solving. I share this with you today because a coach of a team I conducted camp for this summer asked me for help in identifying why his team struggled to possess the ball and build an attack.

Why?

In analyzing play most coaches can identify areas of the game their team struggles with.  However, many coaches end up addressing symptoms of the problem they identify instead of focusing on the root cause of the problem. 

For example, this particular team struggled mightily with their first touch. As we watched the film together their coach described to me how they worked on first touch constantly.  One of the activities was to pair up facing one another with one person serving to the other. In this manner, they worked on every conceivable form of receiving or trapping the ball. Even though their technique was improving it didn't seem to be translating into better possession play in games.

I didn't have to wait :15 until I paused the film. What we saw was a perfect in-game example of the drill work he had just described to me. The technical execution of the first touch wasn't bad, but still possession was lost.

Why?

Anyone who has ever parented a toddler knows they typically go through a period of development that sees them ask "why?" constantly. It can drive the best of parents to the point of covering their ears and sing "la, la, la, la, la" to avoid having to hear the question repeated yet again.

We should all pay closer attention.  Kids are way smarter than we give them credit for.  In my opinion, "Why?"  is the most important question we can ask in problem solving and a primary consideration when analyzing game film. From the mouths of children ...

The film showed one teammate passing the ball to another teammate at a distance of approximately 15 yards. The receiver was lightly guarded, the pass was to feet, weighted properly and accurate. So, why did this sequence of play result in a turnover?  It was a text book example of the drill work they did in practice.

That was the problem.

The teammates, passer and receiver, were facing one another. This meant the options for play the receiver had, without turning into pressure on the reception, were in the general direction the ball had just come from.  Why was the ball being passed to him in the first place?  Because the passer was being pressured.

We discussed how the now identified problem could be solved. On the most basic level, what needed to be addressed was the receiver's preparation to play. There were other facets of play that would need to be addressed as well, but proper positioning to receive the ball was the first priority.  How could the receiver have been better positioned to receive the pass? 

By being sideways on and receiving the ball across his body to the back foot. This would position the receiver's hips open to the field of play and provide him with many more options for play while avoiding the one option for play most dangerous to his team - playing the ball back into the pressure it was just passed from. Receiving sideways on was the technical issue to address.

So, once we identified the problem and then identified why the problem existed, we were able to design a camp experience that would help equip the players to solve the problem. By the end of camp, the players were much improved in their possession play. Receiving sideways on was not the only correction we made in their play that week, but it was the starting point that we built all else upon.

Coaches, when analyzing play to identify problems remember to ask all the pertinent questions,

Who?
What?
Where?
When?
How?
And most especially, Why?

Knowing what to correct is not enough. You must identify why it must be corrected and then design a proper activity for how to correct it. Falling short in any of these areas might result in exasperating the problem more so then helping with it.

Mistakes are Opportunities to Learn

Learning from mistakes is the key to positive soccer experiences from both coaching and player perspectives. I would like to concentrate on the coaching aspect of learning from mistakes to help fellow coaches improve their work. The following paragraphs will highlight some common coaching mistakes and provide alternative ideas that you might find useful.

1) The position an individual coaches from is vitally important and unfortunately one of the most common mistakes made. We must remember that we can only coach what we see. Therefore if we are involved in active participation of the activity we will be unable to see the entire picture due to focusing on our role or responsibility as a participant. In similar fashion if a coach assumes an observation position in the middle of an activity he is likely to see only half of what is happening about him.

When Plans Go Awry

Here is west central Ohio it has been a difficult winter to prepare for the spring soccer season. As we approached our first tournament we had been able to get outside exactly one time. Such was the snow and cold weather this winter.  I'm not complaining. We played indoors and practiced in gyms as we could.  As the weekend of March 15 & 16 approached I made formational, system and lineup plans as best I could.  They night before the tournament began I went so far to script the line ups and rotations for each of the three games we would play that weekend knowing full well I would not stick to the script.

Our first opponent had already played a few games so we were playing catch up from the start, so to speak.  Although they had a much better run of play early we found ourselves up 1 - 0 on a penalty kick.  The opponent quickly asserted itself and won the match 1-3.  They were certainly ahead of us at this point in the season so the loss itself was not disappointing. They way we played did concern me though.

To be honest, there were so many issues to address I struggled to find a starting point.  Thankfully we did not play again until the next day so there was some time to gather my thoughts.  I spoke with various team members and listened to their input, but still struggled with where to begin addressing things. So, I did what I often do in such situations - I said my prayers, went to bed and slept on it. 

When I awoke in the morning I did not go off script, no, I tore the script up and started over.

I had had it in my mind that we would play a 4-5-1 formation with a zonal system defensively and a wide open counter attacking style of play.  We have the wings to do this both in quality and in quantity.  It just didn't click in that first game and the question I ended up struggling with was whether to stick with the script or scrap it in favor of something else.

I had to consider the experience level and soccer IQ of the players we were dealing with.  I do not think I over estimated either, but I also did not factor in the rather limited experience playing in different systems.  "My" system was far different than what most, especially the new additions, were accustomed to. I allow a huge amount of freedom of movement and play. The exchange is the players must take on a huge amount of responsibility for this freedom. In hindsight, I was too ambitious too early in the process.

So, my solution was to scrap the formation while maintaining the zonal defending system. The freedom of movement remained but the rotations were also simplified by reverting to a 4-4-2 formation.  This is a formation predicated more on channels or lanes to align in than is the 4-5-1. It is far easier to understand and requires less thinking in the moment.

We begin clicking in the second game of the tournament.  Although we lost 0 - 2 it was light years better than the first game with credit going to the "new" formation and simplified play with in it.  I would go so far as to say, we were the better team in many facets of the game. Just not in the one that counts the most - the scoreboard.

The third match of the tournament went our way. We played our best match of the tournament against an opponent that had fared well against our two common opponent. We ended up winning 1-0 and generally controlled the run of play. The opponents generated too many chances for my liking, but our goal keepers were up to the task. Our attack missed too many chances but converted on the one we needed to for the win.

A week later we played our first league game.  We were able to practice outside twice and that undoubtedly helped. Still, I was nervous about the match.  To make matters worse we would be missing 4 key players for this match.  We came out strong and although the match was tied 0 - 0 at half there was little doubt about who the better team was that day. The second half things began to click as we scored 3 while maintaining the shutout. 

The point I seek to make to fellow coaches is simply this - when things are not going as expected you face two basic choices: 1) persevere with the belief that what you are doing will work with time or 2) go ahead and admit you might have had it wrong and change things up.

I recall a coaching mentor early in my career who never changed formations or systems of play. He steadfastly believed in "his" way.  Any changes he made were to try different combinations of personnel in an effort to find the right combination.  It quite literally took almost 4 years of discussions before he decided to finally change formations within his program. It didn't seem to matter that current personnel were better suited to playing something else.

I also witnessed another coaching colleague who changed formations and systems of play on a match by match basis which was no good either.  His players were largely inexperienced and his reason for the constant changes was in trying to find a competitive edge against each opponent.

My reason for change was grounded in the recognition that nothing was working as I had envisioned. Even when I narrowed it down to a few specifics to focus on improving I realized the players were likely lacking confidence in what I was asking them to do.  The formation and system were fine. They players are sound. The two just were not as good of match to one another as I had thought. No problem.  It was easier for me to change than to ask eighteen 17 & 18 year olds to do so.

One of the tougher aspects of coaching.

Coaches in general often think they can "coach up" anyone and make them a contributing member of a team.  In most cases the object of their attention is the would be star with a horrible attitude.  This is not always the case though.  I myself am in the midst of trying to figure out how to coach up a young man who is good kid and loyal to our team.  Yet over the last 3 springs he has fallen behind his teammates in his development.

Players all develop at different rates but rarely does the disparity grow to this extent. "Mark" is basically the same player he was three seasons ago.  Individual player rankings of our team from years ago would have found Mark middle of the pack. Now, Mark is the last player on a 19 man roster.

I have the power to cut Mark from the team, but have been reluctant to do so for a number of reasons.  Family friend, attends the same high school as my son, he's very athletic and in a way he needs soccer and perhaps more specifically, this team.  This is one I am loath to give up on and so I continue to try.

One of the tougher aspects of coaching is recognizing when to let go of a favorite player.  I know Mark cannot compete with his current teammates. He lacks game vision to an extraordinary degree. This is undoubtedly related to the fact he learns differently than most.  I feel I have failed Mark as I have not discovered a way to properly teach him.  It is not that Mark is incapable of learning - he is a bright intelligent young man.  He's just not catching on as his teammates have and continue to do.

Keeping him with this team would be a disservice to his teammates especially if there is an expectation on Mark's part that he would receive playing time commensurate with that of his teammates.  Mark is the weak link on the pitch when he's in the game.

Now, in fairness, Mark is playing up an age group with this team.  When that decision was first made 4 years ago, this was appropriate for Mark.  As time has passed and his teammates have left him behind, this team is no longer appropriate for Mark to be on.  His teammates have been patient, understanding and helpful. Many have tried to mentor him and help him develop his game further with the same frustrating results I have had.  Mark's teammates appreciate he does not belong with this team and it's beginning to show as Mark continues to struggle with his play.

As coaches we know there is always that one player who, because their level of play is lacking, breakdown every exercise.  They are the one who always loses possession of the ball for their team often by self-inflicting pressure.  They are the one that opponents always seek to isolate and take advantage of because they lack self-discipline and will repeatedly stab or dive in effectively eliminating themselves from play.  Mark has become that player on this team.

Thankfully, there is another option for Mark. We will field a "B" team this next season.  Previous attempts to move Mark down to his own age group have been met with emotional responses. This is not unexpected, but the degree to which it manifested itself was.  Mark and his family essentially gave me an ultimatum that he either plays with our team or he won't be playing at all.  I am hopeful the idea of still playing up but doing so on the "B" team will be palatable to Mark and his family.  He needs to play and will not get that chance with the "A" team. With the "B" team he should play the majority of each match.

If Mark and his family are not agreeable to this, I will have to accept the challenge of their ultimatum and cut him from the team.  Even if that means he will not play soccer at all.  What it comes down to is the necessity of doing what is best for the team with an understanding that no one person is more important than the collective team. 

I am making one last attempt to bring Mark up to speed with this team.  If it is unsuccessful, I will move him to the "B" team and continue working with him in that setting.  I will need to take a step back from where that group from where the "A" team is now.  I am hopeful "re-taking" a season of soccer lessons will be enough to help Mark develop his game further.  As a coach, this is my "Hail Mary" attempt to reach Mark.  I pray that it works.

Tryouts begin tomorrow

Final tryouts for 2014 Spring teams begin tomorrow.  Our U17 Men's team had a very successful season this spring and I am anxious to see how this will impact tryouts for next years team. Will most of the team want to return? I do not actively recruit players to tryout for our teams so I just have no idea. 

What I am going to touch upon today is what I will be looking for at tryouts.

1) Decision making skills.   Soccer is a game played with the brain as much, if not more so than with physical ability.  There is a misconception that "big, fast, strong" athletes equates to the ability to play fast soccer. This just isn't so.  The ability to play fast is based in the player's ability to make good decisions in a timely manner.  The faster one thinks the game the faster one is capable of playing the game.

2) Is the player coachable?  I don't want know it alls who are stuck in their ways.  I want open minded young men eager to learn. I am looking for Great Enthusiastic Attitude.

3) Intelligent workers.  Yes, back to the brain, again.  The overwhelming majority of players will give good to great effort.  What I am looking for is intelligent effort.  Ball watchers tend to waste effort whereas game watchers tend to maximize the effort they give. Intelligent workers play simply. 

4) Leadership.  I believe the game requires 11 captains present on the field all working together to achieve a common goal.  The result - win / lose / draw - will be a common result so I want a team that will work with one another as equals with shared accountability and responsibility.  Once again, Attitude.

5) Passion for the game.  Love the game.  Respect the game. Honor the game and all its participants.