F.O.C.U.S.

Following

One's

Course

Until

Successful

AGOGE!

The training all young boys underwent in ancient Sparta was called agoge. It was all-inclusive and took place 24/7/365.  Young boys growing to be Spartan warriors were dedicated to this training to such an extent only the strong survived. The Spartan was one of the best warriors in the ancient world as depicted in the movie 300 where a small band held off thousands for days.

The school I am now coaching at has a Spartan for their mascot. Recently an athlete asked of me, "What do you think I need to do to become a better player just from what we have done the past two weeks?"

First of all, asking this question is a great start. My actual response to him follows.

I believe you must discover the WILL to prepare properly. Agoge was 24/7/365. Failing to prepare properly is preparing to fail. Once the mindset is correct, improvement will come at a more rapid pace. Until then explanations and excuses will continue to rule. The ability to be coached, to be receptive to coaching is improved when the body, mind and spirit are well rested and eager for the opportunity. Most everyone is enthusiastic for game day, but the truly great ones bring the same enthusiasm to training / preparation.  (Last night) you stated you began preparing for today's match "now", but the correct answer should have been "the moment last season ended." What will the bus ride be like today? Will you / we be focused on playing or will there be a lot of messing around and talking about anything other than the game? AGOGE was complete training - physical, technical, tactical, psychological / mental and spiritual.  The bus ride will conclude approximately one hour before match time. Is one hour sufficient to prepare for a match?  Buy a composition notebook at the Dollar Store and begin keeping notes on your preparation -what you drink and eat and when you do so. When you rest and for how long. Detail every practice - mistakes and successes, what you learned. LISTEN to the game, your teammates, opponents, referees, our athletic trainer, your coaches - they all provide information / feedback. Note the information shared. Write it down. Become a student of the game. The moment you move on from playing AT soccer and begin to learn to truly play soccer is when you will really begin seeing improvement,  You have the tools to build a stronger game. We have been and will continue to supply them to you and your team. But the decision to care for the tools and actually use them is YOURS alone to make. No one else can make that decision for you. Anyone can fill their tool belt with shiny new tools, but the carpenter I want is the one whose tools show wear and tear from having been used.  Bet you were expecting a litany of technical and tactical work? That's not what is missing from your game.  See you this afternoon.  AGOGE!

The response received back from the athlete was, "Yes, I was actually like in practice you always say back foot to me. I was expecting that but thank you. I will copy and paste these into a big paragraph and read it every day."

Will this athlete follow through?  I have no idea. More importantly I know I have no control over whether he does or does not.  I do care, but as life teaches us sometimes caring is not enough.  The decision rests solely with this athlete himself.  I am encouraged by the fact he sought help of his own accord. That's a positive first step. He's talking the talk, but will he be dedicated to walking the walk?

The Anatomy of Success

A young soccer coach trying to make sense of a disappointing season sought a blueprint for success  What is it that successful teams have?  What is the "it" factor that separates the mediocre from the very good?  The result of our discussion is more of a checklist than it is a blueprint, but I think we got it pretty much right.  I am also sure we have not reinvented the wheel.  Nonetheless, it was a good mental exercise for us and in the end a productive one.

1)  Leadership

It all begins with energetic disciplined positive leadership. There needs to be driven determination with a humble attitude.  And vision.  The leadership needs a vision for what the team should look like on and off the pitch.

2) Truth and Trust

There must exist an honest assessment of where the program is before plans can be made to take it where the leadership vision believes it can ascend to. There also must be honesty in the relationships between all members of the team.  Without truth there will never be full trust and the team will never play to its full potential.

3) Buy-in

Get the right people on board, then figure out the rest of the logistics.  There needs to be a collective effort to address the smallest details of the process. This goes beyond simple accepting or filling of roles. It necessitates embracing roles and a willingness to fulfill them to the greatest extent possible. You have to get the right people before you can get the rest right.  Coach, assistant coaches, players - all facing in the same direction with the same destination in mind. 100% investment.  100% commitment, These are the ideals. The closer you come to achieving these the greater your chances for success.

4) Accentuate Strengths

Everyone has strengths and weaknesses. Sometimes the focus on weakness outweighs the focus on strengths.  Identify strengths and place people in positions and situations where they have a reasonable expectation for success based on those strengths. Can we match passion with strengths?  Is their a willingness to sacrifice for the good of the team?

5) A Culture of Dedicated Discipline

There are no shortcuts on the journey to success.  When we look at the consequences of not doing the little things we realize there are no little things. Cutting corners in practice will show up in your play in matches.  A dedicated commitment to each and every detail of the process is a must. Accountability to one another and to the shared vision for the team.

6) Innovativeness

How individual and collective strengths are utilized. Break the mold to gain the most from each player, each unit on the pitch.  Create a system unique to the present team.  Freedom to explore the game on both individual and collective levels emphasizing strengths, passion, and the pursuit of wins.

7) Freedom

Each individual brings something to the collective.  There must be room within the disciplined effort to allow for individual initiative and expression of freedom.  We play for one another and that includes assuming different roles and responsibilities in the run of play.  The expectation is for positional responsibilities more so than who mans the position. Each small initiative taken by a player impacts every other player and leads to further initiatives being taken.  Only when a role or positional responsibility goes unfulfilled is there real danger to the overall process.  Encourage freedom while emphasizing with freedom comes responsibility. The more freedom, the more responsibility.

Team Rules.

Those who have played for me appreciate that I do not have a lot of team rules. In fact, I have had only three stated rules for years now and am seriously considering cutting that number to one.

My three team rules are as follows,

1) Give the best effort you have on any given day. (Work hard)
2) Have FUN.
3) Don't piss off the coach.

In all honesty the third rule is more of a fun way to say "stay focused on soccer when at soccer."  Anyone can say "Rule #3" and the message is sent without the necessity to lecture or belabor the point.

When I have coached high school I have had to include a school's established set of rules or the"Athlete's Code of Conduct"  in my team rules package.  These will include policies on alcohol, drug and tobacco usage, academic requirements, proper care of uniforms, school attendance and the like.

Long ago I realized all these rules can be summed up with one simple word.  And it doesn't pertain just to rules for a soccer team, it works for life as well.

Respect

All rules revolve around respect.

Respect the game - the pitch, opponents, referees, spectators
Respect your teammates - players, coaches, athletic trainers, physical trainers, medical personnel, maintenance workers and grounds keepers, administrators, gate workers, announcers, scoreboard operators, concessions workers, bus drivers.
Respect your parents, family, friends

Just RESPECT the people who work hard for you and your team - you should do your part to help them do what they do for you.  Be on time.  Be prepared. Give intelligent effort. Take care of your uniform & equipment. Eat properly. Stay hydrated. Clean up after yourself.

In the grand scheme of things is there anything the one word rule of RESPECT doesn't cover?

You cannot have high standards

 

without

 

Dedication and Discipline

Extraneous Intrusions

Extraneous:  introduced or coming from without; not belonging or proper to a thing; external; foreign.

As a coach of soccer teams I cherish and treasure those seasons when extraneous intrusions are limited or even absent, rare though those might be.  This season, dealing with two U19 Men's teams I anticipated and expected there would be some extraneous intrusions to deal with.  In truth, we have had few distractions but of those we have had a couple were far more serious than I imagined.

What I expected was some who would be dissatisfied being placed on what they perceived to be the "B" team. That has happened in a three instances.  In one case, I discussed the situation with player and parent before a final determination was made. Everyone was in agreement, the fees were paid, uniforms ordered and then the player never showed to a single practice or game. In another instance a player was coming off injury and unsure if he would be able to play. Deadlines for registration forced our hand. In a third case the player and his parent greatly overestimated his talent relative to others trying out for the team.  These last two instances are typical in the sense we as coaches deal with them on a routine basis.

We have had two players run foul of their parents resulting in their being pulled from the team. I am not a big proponent of this type of punishment for a player in a team sport. Yes, taking away something the individual loves to do is an attention getter, but in a team setting it impacts the entire team and that is not fair to those left to carry on.

Then we had an issue of racism rearing its ugly head.  I was not a first hand witness to what was said and allowed our teams leadership committee to deal with in under my guidance and watchful eye.  I had no illusion of a miraculous transformation in attitude taking place, but had believed such behavior could be curtailed for the course of the season.  Today, the question was raised of a recurrence.  So, I am again investigating what might have occurred as once again I am not a direct witness to what has been alleged.

There is also the curious circumstance of a clique of players who believe themselves to be something they are not and who want to all be on the field together.  Last fall, this was an underachieving group on their high school field of play, imo.  They didn't win games they should have and even when they did win it was sometimes a struggle.  Team chemistry can sometimes be an issue.  Coaching can sometimes be an issue. I thought spring would be different for them.  Interestingly enough the second chance provided to them has largely been ignored. They are a separate entity within the team who seem to believe the team is subservient to them.

All of the instances described above concern outside influences impacting the quality of the soccer performance. These are things that have direct impact on the ever elusive team chemistry that is prized and the great teams are recognized for having.  With as much lip service that is given to the subject one would think its importance would be understood by all players.  Still, we find some who see the team revolving around themselves as opposed to being an entity that they are privileged to be a small yet significant part of.

I am reminded of Coach Boone from Remember the Titans walking out onto the lighted stadium field and proclaiming; "Hmm... This is my sanctuary right here.  All this hatred and turmoil swirling around us, but this... this is always right."   And this is what sport always was for me.  It's what I think it should be for players and coaches alike.  Not an escape from the world, but a sanctuary from the extraneous intrusions that mar the world.  At it's best, sport provides a glimpse of a better world... at least when done right.