Learning to Win

Many people would rather be certain they're miserable,

than risk being happy.

 

This is what I mean when writing about learning to win and how some seem more comfortable existing in an established comfort zone than breaking out to explore the entirety of the game... or life. I am reminded of Patrick Swazye's line from the movie Road House, "it's amazing what you can get used to, huh?"

When you truly believe in what you are doing,

 

it shows.

 

Winners are those who are excited about playing.

 

It is seen in the urgency of their play.

 

It is on display in their passion for the game.

 

There is an understanding

 

that any game might be their

 

final time on the pitch

 

and there is a dedication and determination

 

to make the last and lasting memory

 

a GREAT one.

Every kid around the world who plays soccer

 

wants to be Pele.

 

I have a great responsibility to show them

 

not just how to be like a soccer player,

 

but how to be like a man.

Pele

Ask for help.

One thing I have learned from coaching is the necessity and benefit of asking for help. The more perspectives on a matter, the better in many cases.  I value assistants who will speak up and offer input even when... perhaps especially when... their opinion differs from my own. That has never been more true than this spring.

In coaching two teams I am sometimes spread pretty thin. Admittedly this accentuates the tunnel vision I am prone to during a season anyway.  In recent matches I asked assistants to manage the game for me, give the half time talk and generally assume the responsibilities of a head coach in the game.  I learned a lot through how they interpreted the games they managed.  Their substitution rotations and patterns differed from my own.  The positions they played some in differed as well. Not only did I take notice of all this, but I embraced some of the things the assistants did and incorporated them into my own management of games.

Another thing I do is to seek input from players on a wide range of matters. I will ask players to suggest starting line ups.  I seek their input on positions.  I encourage their input during matches, at half time and in post game evaluations. I have found a players perspective can be among the most enlightening.

I will also ask coaching peers for their input. Sometimes I ask someone to come observe a match. Other times I will send video of a game to colleagues and ask for their impressions.  I did this very thing recently as I struggled to find the 11 best to start games and the substitution rotations that would keep us well balanced throughout the game. I went so far to seek input on who the 10 best field players were on the team and how they might fit into a lineup.

One observation from a group of colleagues was that opponents seemed to pick on our left back position.  I knew this was happening, but assumed it was because most teams are right foot dominant.  My peers thought that was not necessarily the case and suggested I move the left back(s) to the right back spot to see what happened. It did not take long to discover teams were "picking on" players more so than the left back position.  One player really struggles with first touch and opponents seem to sense they can pressure him into mistakes.  The other was very offensive minded and slight of build. Opponents seem to think they can out-muscle him and take advantage of his aggressiveness in attack.

An associated observation was that we were wasting the talent of the player manning the right back position. It was suggested he needs to get a lot more touches on the ball.  That was one I had wrestled with quite a bit as it was my son manning the right back position.  We were told he is the best right back in the state by ODP coaches. So, right back seemed to make sense, but it appears it really doesn't in this case.  We were probably wasting his talent at right back when he could use it as a center mid.

Fitting a formation to the talent on hand can also be a difficult.  In terms of center midfielders the talent we have suggests playing 3 of them.  We tried this early in the season and it was a disaster. I perhaps abandoned the 4-5-1 formation to quickly, but the team settled in pretty well in a 4-4-2 before opponents began exploiting our aggressive attacking mentalities at the position by counter attacking directly down the middle of the pitch.

To say the team was underachieving and that my inability to uncover the 11 who would play best together was a root cause would be a significant understatement.  So, as I have already stated, I asked for help.  I spoke with coaching colleagues and peers. I shared match video with them. I spoke with players. I asked referees I know and who had officiated our matches for their input.

Position and personnel changes have followed.  We now play a 4-1-4-1 having inserted my son in as the one holding midfielder. We had one very accomplished forward and playing him as a lone forwarded opened space for him to play in.  We have strengthened the back line and improved the defensive presence in the midfield. And tonight the final piece may have fallen in place for us - thanks to input from an assistant coach we found a second player more than capable of playing the target forward position.  The team is beginning to play closer to their potential. Possession and ball movement has improved. Varied attacks and multiple goal scorers are becoming the norm.

Some feathers have been ruffled. With every decision there are consequences and as I alluded to earlier some players have lost starting positions leading to dissatisfaction with my decision-making. I have had to speak with some individuals about accepting new roles for the good of the team. Some embrace this idea while others are more selfish in pouting about the change in their role perceiving it as a demotion or a reduction of their importance to the team which isn't the case at all. It's nothing other than a change - no more and no less.

However, there have been rewards as well.  The former left back who struggled with first touch has had much better touch as a midfielder and forward.  I am not yet quite sure how to interpret this.  He had several "whiffs' in the games before the position switch and not a one since?  He has played as defender for a couple of seasons and I wonder if he became bored with the position or perhaps merely wanted to play a different position? It might be that I rarely substitute backs and he has been fresher physically and mentally in playing fewer minutes thereby reducing mistakes caused by fatigue.  He is now playing in 12-15 min shifts with short breaks between them and making far fewer mistakes. 

The new right back has a tremendous leg he is using to switch fields and explosive speed he is using in combination play with midfielders to get himself into the attack.  The new left back has given us a physical presence, improved and increased distributions in starting the attack.  Our new holding mid is protecting the center backs, providing the pivot in transition, switching play and distributing the ball extremely well. A former forward is being allowed to play to his strengths as a midfield wing.

Overall the team is beginning to click. I take the blame for it taking this long, but also accept the credit in the sense that I am the one who ultimately makes the decision. However the real credit goes to Steve, Marc, Phil, Bruce, Randy, Keith, Mac, Billy, Kyle, Dave, Greg, et al. and our players who have provided input and insight. Without contributions from our coaches, colleagues, peers, players and officials I fear my tunnel vision would still be inhibiting the teams ability to play closer to their potential.  So it is, that on behalf of our team, I thank each and every one of you who have shared thoughts and suggestions with me to date. Please, please, please keep up the good work!

MAP for Success

My eldest son taught me an invaluable lesson some years ago.  While in middle school Grant carried some "baby fat" as many boys do before the fully hit puberty.  I believe it was during his 8th grade year that he began to grow tall.  That summer Grant had to have a tonsillectomy.  Definitely not the way to spend ones summer when you are 14 years of age, but there was a side benefit - Grant shed all his baby fat and with the help of Tim & Tina Lones at F.A.S.T the transformation of his body in a few short months was astonishing.

Grant was blessed with average physical abilities. Not exceptional fast or quick his best attributes are strength and intelligence. That combination provided him with great endurance while on the pitch and provided me with the invaluable lesson I spoke of before.

You see, once in shape, Grant never stopped moving on the pitch. His movement was not that frenzied all out activity we sometimes see in players. No, Grant was simply in constant motion while on the pitch. Walking, jogging, loping, sprinting, backpedalling, shuffling... just constant movement.  Maybe most importantly, his eyes and mind were in constant motion as well which made Grant an intelligent player and directly impacted the quality of his physical movement on the pitch.

The lesson?

MAP for Success.

Motion
And
Participation

For

Success

Grant was a game watcher at an age when most of his peers were still ball watchers.  He had a coach at the U13 age level who made an indelible impression on him.  That coach underestimated Grant.  All he saw was a big kid who couldn't run well.  Then, in a game where Grant had been inserted as a left back, Grant made a run from his own half to the back post to an attempted shot off a cross.  The midfielders and forwards were nowhere to be found, but there was Grant at the back post.  That coach chastised the rest of the team scolding them that if Grant could get to that ball, then the mids and forwards should have been there too.  It was an overt reference to Grant's physical conditioning at the time.   I had watched the described action unfold and knew that Grant had not outran anyone to the back post. He had not been a blur of physical speed on the pitch, but his eyes and mind had allowed him to anticipate the play while his steady pace put him in position to make a play.

Grant's junior varsity teammates hated him.  Well, not really, but they did not like the "warm-up" runs Grant would lead them on as a Captain.  Several players and parents commenting on these runs stated something to the effect "Grant can run forever" and there was more than one suggestion that he should perhaps consider cross country as his sport of choice.

Grant made up for average physical quickness and speed with endurance.  Constant motion won out over short bursts time and time again and more so as the game progressed. Imagine if you will, a wing or a center mid never being substituted for in high school soccer.  That was Grant.

Grant knew at what pace he needed to move and when he needed to be somewhere on the pitch. He used his eyes and his mind in conjunction with his feet and lungs to rarely be out of position. It gave him a distinctive edge over those who simply saw the ball and moved accordingly.  Watch a youth... or even a high school soccer match... and take note of the players who are giving huge physical effort.  Note that when away from the ball they typically stand and watch.  When the ball comes near, when they believe they may have a chance to touch it, only then do they become active often times exerting tremendous physical energy. Then ask yourself, what if they had been in motion before that opportunity for a touch had begun to materialize? 

I like to frame that question in this manner;  What if that player were a game watcher instead of a ball watcher?

So it becomes a matter of timing the motion in pursuit of success.  Motion, or effort, alone are not enough to bring you consistent success.  One must participate fully in order to accentuate and take full advantage of ones movement. How one does so determines the consistency and measure of one's success... on the pitch and in life.

Some players are ball watchers and as such only fully participate in the game when the ball is near them.  They are content to watch their teammates and opponents play the game when the ball is away from them.  They enjoy success sometimes - they make a good defensive stop or score a goal but don't do so as often as their "talent" suggests they should.  We hear those players, their parents and casual bystanders make comments like, "when given a chance that kid is really good".  

Even a blind squirrel finds a nut once in awhile.

When not taking advantage of the full measure of one's resources scoring a goal or making a great defensive play is a lot like that blind squirrel finding a nut. All the physical gifts in the world sans intelligent effort will bring nothing more than inconsistent and limited success. Whereas intelligent usage of all available resources will lead to sustained excellence and reward... in soccer and in life.

The question becomes, do you wish to participate only when you personally have something to gain or will you participate in the full measure of the game?  Do you wish for a partial experience or will you immerse yourself in the entirety of the experience.  Do you want full reward or are you seeking only the limelight?

Motion - constant and consistent.  Predicated on what the eyes see and the mind interprets.

And

Participation - motion gets you to what you see. The more you see, the more you get to.  The more you get to, the more opportunities for success you will find for yourself and create for others.

Success - is found in direct proportion to the intelligent effort you give. One must constantly maximize all of one's resources to their fullest measure as consistently as they can.  This is the difference between spectating (ball watching) and participating (game watching and analyzing play).

For you kids out there today... imagine playing a video game with a broken button on your controller or being able to view only half the screen.  You may have some success, even spectacular success, but in a limited fashion.  Only by employing all your resources - a fully functioning controller and being able to see the complete picture can you maximize your success, right?

 

Only as high as I reach can I grow,

 

only as far as I seek can I go,

 

only as deep as I look can I see,

 

only as much as I dream can I be.

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.

Fighting Yourself.

Anyone that sticks with the game of soccer throughout their youth and as they enter adulthood certainly has a passion for the game. As coaches, especially those working with the young, we are charged with helping to develop a love for the game. Love for the game can often be sparked by success. Therefore how we achieve and handle success becomes very important.

I am currently coaching a couple of young men whose early success was apparently defined by an ability to score goals.  The ability to score goals is a very fine thing, indeed!  While it is certainly true that Defense wins Championships it is also true that a team must score to win games. The means to the end is what concerns me with these two players and is what today's writing is about.

I do not find it a coincidence that both players are sometimes referred to by teammates as "the great black hole". This goes directly to the fact neither is very keen on passing.  Once they obtain possession of the ball their first thought is to shoot and if not in range they will attempt to take on all comers to advance the ball into shooting range. Passing the ball is a secondary thought even if by doing so their ultimate goal of scoring a goal might be made easier. In essence, they have become their own worst enemy in pursuit of what they desire.

The one gentleman plays on the wing and at some point early in his career must have enjoyed success (scored a goal or two) by making an inside run from the weak side.  This undoubtedly occurred at an age when crosses from teammates were not strong enough to carry to the back post. There is evidently an indelible memory of making inside runs to goal scoring opportunities in his mind.

Now as a young adult he continues to make inside runs from the weak side flank without consideration that his teammates have little difficulty in driving the ball to and beyond the back post area.  We have instructed and reiterated ad nauseam the approach for a wing on the weak side should be from the corner of the 18 through the corner of the 6 to the back post.  This approach allows the wing to adjust their path to the crossed ball whereas a path inside these parameters all but eliminates an ability to do so.  The inside run is so ingrained, the bad habit so firmly established, this player seems unable to stop himself from making it.  He is addicted to the inside run because at one point in his early development it was successful for him.  There is no cognizant recognition that since the game has changed as he has grown older that his recipe for success (scoring goals) needed to change as well.

The second player is of a similar single mindedness.  He plays forward and regardless of field position or situation his first instinct with the ball is to take on any and all defenders while attempting to get to goal.  He is quite obviously a product of kick and run youth soccer that featured "big, strong and fast" as the primary tactical considerations. The only problem is at this point in his life he is undersized and below average in speed although physical strength does remain. His role in youth leagues was to stand with the opposing backs waiting to be fed the ball by teammates and then take the ball to goal. He really struggles with any deviation from this pattern.

With both players their primary focus remains on scoring the ball. With both players they have become their own worst enemy in pursuit of their scoring goals. Both players are stubbornly insistent on sticking with what once worked well for them while missing the fact the game is passing, or even has passed them, by. They stubbornly refuse help from coaches and teammates alike in pursuit of scoring goals.  They become frustrated because the help offered deviates from what has previously been successful for them.  In short, both of these athletes seem to have fallen in love with soccer at a young age based on an ability to score goals, but have failed to nurture and develop that love since then.

This may well be the fault of their youth coaches who might have viewed these young men as budding stars.  The coaching attitude may have been, "why fix what isn't broken" as they watched these individuals and probably by extension their teams have success. In actuality we as coaches must fix what isn't broken as a proactive or even preventative maintenance program.  We need to help flame the spark of passion in players by expanding their game beyond initial success. As coaches we need to continually ask players to move from their comfort zones and expand their games.  It is obvious that these two players have been in an arrested state of development for some time before they came to us.

Our mission with them has been to break down the established and ingrained habits allowed to take hold when they were young youth players and provide them with the means to branch out of their comfort zones, to explore and expand their games in order to become unpredictable and more dangerous in pursuit of scoring goals. 

It's tough love at this point.

The first player refuses to stay wide and make his weak side run corner, corner, post run. Last night his stubbornness cost him 3 splendid opportunities to score goals. Instead of learning, he offers excuses.  The second player refuses to utilize drop passes when playing as a target with defenders draped all over him. He continues attempting to turn and take on defenders in these situations with the result being lost possession and growing reluctance on the part of his teammates to feed him the ball. He blames his teammates for not passing to him or providing him opportunities.

In both cases, it is the player himself who must recognize that what they have always done no longer works. They must seek, ask for and willingly accept help to expand their game that their strengths might be accentuated instead of being minimized as is the current trend. In short, it is their decision to make.  The quality of their soccer will be directly impacted by the quality of their decision making. 

My fear is the frustration both are displaying will continue to grow instead of their passion being nurtured.  They will never again be goal scoring machines on the scale they were in youth leagues, but they both have the potential to be solid goal scorers at their present level of play provided they recognize the need to expand, to nurture and grow, their individual games within the game itself.  The game at their age is about freedom of play and both seem ready to embrace this yet remain reluctant to accept the responsibility that comes with freedom. I'm not sure we will ever get to that point with either of these young men. It certainly has been a struggle to date.  I do know this, it is their decision to make. They hold the key to success in the palm of their own hand. Whether they decide to keep the door locked or open it to new possibilities is entirely up to them. It is a battle they fight with themselves.

Coaching is one of the most difficult things I do.

Aside from the effort I put into my relationship with my wife and parenting our children, coaching is probably the most difficult thing I do.  Coaching involves the teaching of fundamentals and tactics, sportsmanship, life lessons, and so much more. The bottom line with coaching is relationships though.

This spring my challenge has doubled as I have 36 players on two different teams. I was speaking with a coaching colleague recently who also is coaching two teams and about the same number of players.  His philosophy seemed to be "focus on winning games" because with that many players it is too difficult to spend enough quality time with them all.  I disagree, at least in part.

It is true, that 36 players is a lot to work with during a soccer season.  It is also true that it is important to build a relationship with each one of them.  It takes a lot of work so the key is to work smarter rather than harder for there is indeed limited time.  Working smarter is also necessary in maintaining relationships that have been established. 

I am not sure why, but I continue to be amazed when God stands my well laid plans on their ear.  That God's will prevails is a lesson I have learned repeatedly.  Even so, I do plan meticulously for each season, each team and each player. There is a certain amount of anticipation involved in the planning for both season and individual players.  Just as I implore players to expand their play from "one-decision" soccer to "multi-decision" soccer I must do this in my coaching.  In the context of coach / player relationships this involves putting the TEAM first while also being ever mindful of the individual players that comprise a team.

In spring club soccer there are usually limited disciplinary actions required. I am very flexible about players who must miss for a school sport or school activity. The same holds true for players who miss due to work.  Church and family always come before soccer. The point being absence is not usually an issue. It was in one instance this spring when a player elected to referee a match a couple of fields over while his teammates played a match at the same time.  In this instance I turned to the team leadership to resolve the issue and they did so in an amazingly mature and fair fashion.

Rather, in spring club soccer the bigger issues can be of players buying into a teams philosophy and system of play.  Sometimes a lack of time to devote to the team can be an issue in this area. Other times it can be a lack of humbleness in a player that detracts from team play.  Being humble does not entail thinking less of yourself so much as it entails thinking less about yourself and more about your team. I suppose President Kennedy would have put it, "Ask not what your team can do for you, but what you can do for your team".

At a recent match involving our "A" team I made both a formational change and personnel changes to address on-going concerns in our play.  In short, we were lacking consistent back to goal target play, were clogging the face of the goal in out attacking third and were poor in our transition from attacking to defending especially in the center midfield.  So, we switched from a 4-4-2 to a 4-1-4-1.  The initial results were mixed. The general comments were largely supportive of the formational change.  As might be expected, other areas of concern arose. Somewhat unexpectedly was the fact some of the areas of concern were still personnel based as could be witnessed on the first goal we allowed.  In general, the first half of play was different than what we had been experiencing although I would not say it was fundamentally better overall.

I pondered what to address as half time approached.  There was just so many things to select from I was feeling overwhelmed in identifying 2 or 3 to really bring focus on.  We were down 0 - 1 to a weaker team.  The mistakes made on the goal the opponents scored encapsulated the way the entire half had been played by our team.  I preach "attention to the details of the process" as a king consideration to success in sports and in life. This was severely lacking in our play on the field by a majority of the team.  Missed assignments. Mental errors. Selfish play.  One-decision soccer.  Multiple touches on the ball when 1 or 2 would have sufficed. Self-inflicted pressure. Basically we were still underachieving and this was largely due to individuals self-inflicting pressure on themselves and by extension the team at large.

To be honest, what I witnessed was an accumulation of factors that had been building over the course of the season. This team has 16 players capable of starting. It is an area all-star team. There are many players who were captains of their high school team, the go-to guy on their high school team, all-league, all-district and all-state players.  The key to the season would hinge on their willingness to sacrifice for each other.  From a team perspective we had been failing miserably in this regard.

Too many individuals playing for themselves is a recipe for disaster on any team. The truth of the matter is, one player playing for himself on a team is too many.  We have had several this spring.  So while we have won some games we have also lost some that we should not have.  In those tight games when we needed to rely on one another, we had individuals playing outside their roles and generally trying to do too much on their own.  We were unable to trust one another because we had yet to sacrifice and embrace one another.

As a coach there is an acknowledgement that sometimes team chemistry just isn't what it should be and however unfortunate this might be there is precious little a coach can do about it.  Team chemistry is largely outside the realm of control of the coach.  Yes, team bonding can be worked on and enhanced, but the responsibility rests largely with the individual players buying into the teams philosophy and system of play.  There are seasons when team chemistry never establishes itself to a satisfactory level. Those seasons tend to long, very long, for everyone involved and are blemished with underachieving play and results. As half time approached during this recent game I felt we were on the precipice of that type of season.

The challenge then was to uncover enough players willing to play for one another.  A couple of weeks ago there was a parent who complained I didn't have the best 11 players on the pitch.  I would largely agree with that statement.  Reality tells us it is not about having the best 11 players on the pitch at the same time but having the 11 who play best together on the pitch at the same time.  This is the approach I took for the second half of this recent match.

I selected a starting 11 whom I believed would play for one another.  Even more than that, I felt the starting unit I put on the pitch would not want to let one another down. I attempted to select 11 who would raise each others level of play and by doing so would raise the teams level of play. 

We went "ironman" which is tantamount to the U.S. military's "broken arrow" call sign in terms of my coaching philosophy.  I would not specifically call for substitutions. That responsibility would remain in the provenance of the individuals who started the second half. If they wished a break, they would ask out. I would name a substitute to replace them. When rested and ready to return to action the starter would sub himself back into the game for the player who had replaced him.  In the world of free / unlimited substitution soccer this is a drastic, even extreme measure.

I struggled with which eleven to name. Two players in particular were worthy of consideration for the 11 who would start the second half, but were ultimately left off that unit primarily as a function of positions played. The risk involved in this strategy was immense and dependent almost entirely on those 11 who would be taking the field. In them, I put my trust as a coach.

Would these 11 individuals come together to play as a team? 

Just as importantly, would be how these 11 individuals would respond to the responsibility of calling for their own substitutions. That is, which of the 11 would trust a teammate to play in their stead.

The results were a bit mixed. We scored in the first few minutes of the second half to even the score at 1- 1 only to allow a second goal against due to poor decision making. Down 1-2 the next few minutes were dicey until we evened the score on a PK. From that point forward we began playing as I had envisioned we would when this team was assembled. On the other hand, to say there had been limited substitutions would be an understatement. This is something that will bear very close scrutiny going forward.

There was one bench player in particular who I felt was slighted in the amount of playing time he received in the second half.  The question I have been pondering is why of the five players he could have subbed for positionally only one elected to take a break and that for 5 minutes.  Is there a trust issue with his teammates in regards to his play?  Is he not viewed as a team player?

None of the bench players played extensively in the second half. Two did come off the bench to score goals for us in limited action which is good. To illustrate where we are I will share a comment made about the proper perspective of scoring goals;  "Scoring goals will be used to justify why they should be on the field while the reasons they aren't in the game are completely ignored."  An extremely interesting observation and telling commentary from a teammate.  It tells me we have a ways to go yet in this process of buying in.

So, a formational change and personnel change failed to initially stimulate play to the degree hoped for. It took an extreme change in game management to generate positive on-field results.  Now the question becomes the response of those players who were left on the bench for the majority of the second half. Will they began to take ownership of why they sat or will they blame the coach or their teammates? 

For me to think we have everything solved or worked out would be foolish. This team and this season could still go down the tubes in a hurry.  Just under four weeks to go in the season and I am left to wonder if they will go painfully slow or exquisitely fast?

As the season hangs in the balance it is ultimately the relationships that will determine which way it falls.  Discovering who is willing to put forth the effort to build relationships between players and between coaches and players will be key.  It is sometimes said a team is only as strong as its weakest player. In this case, the teams strength will be measured by the quality of relationships. Are we willing to work, to put intelligent effort into establishing better relations?  Are we willing to sacrifice the Me for the We?

Regarding line up changes

Over the years when I have made personnel changes to line ups invariably players who are displaced want to know what they have done wrong. Many times changes are driven by faulty decision making. What players fail to realize is the decision making being questioned is that of the coach as much or even more so than that of the player.

As I contemplate line up changes for our Grand Lake United BPL team today I can most definitely say they are coming about because I, as their coach, have failed to get it right.  I thought my decision making process was sound, but this past Friday's match proved otherwise.  Strange thing is, we won the match against a rival club on their home pitch.  I should be happy, right?

We won the match in spite of ourselves.  Some individuals really struggled to conform with our system of play in their decision making. Collectively we struggled to find a proper rhythm because we were not on the same page in our decision making.  It would be easy to single out certain players as the root cause of our problems. It would also be foolish to do so.

Consider for a moment that it is the coach's responsibility to place players in positions and situations in which they have a reasonable expectation for success.  This is true with individual players, in combining players in units and in the collective 11 man side. 

I put considerable time into deciding line ups. I attempt to find the proper position for individual players and the right combination of players and skills.  Sometimes what looks good on paper just doesn't work well on the pitch. Then another round of decisions must take place. Is patience required? Does a player or combination of players simply need more time to sort things out?  Was it simply good intentions gone awry?  Is there a better position for an individual player or a better combination of players?

These are questions I have been pondering.  I have asked a handful of people for input and others have offered unsolicited input. I have concluded the quality of my decision making left something to be desired.  Now I need to put it right.  Direct and honest communication with the players involved will be vital.  Some will be happy with the changes. Others will not and perhaps even become angry. My hope is all involved will embrace the changes in recognition they are being made for the good of the collective. For the good of the TEAM. 

Experience has taught me the importance of having "Buy in" in your program

Head Coach, Assistant Coaches, Players, Parents, Administrators

Success requires everyone to buy into The Process.

When commitment and dedication to one another are present

The Process will take care of the outcome.

Grand Lake U19 season begins.

As I mentioned in an earlier post, last season's success has generated a lot of interest in our team, our program.  For the first time ever, we will field two teams in the U19 age group.  I have refrained from labeling the teams "A" and "B" although it is obvious one team is more talented than the other. I want very much to foster a sense of community within our club and especially amongst our two U19 teams.  So far, so good with one small hiccup that I believe has been put to rest.

The BPL Grand Lake United team began play by participating in the Ohio Galaxies College Showcase.  Our first match was the second time we were outside all winter. We played against a team who had already played in a couple of tournaments.  The results were predictable. We struggled and looked completely out of sync if not out of place on the pitch with them.  It just was not a good start.

In the second match we regrouped and played much better overall.  We still took the loss, but we competed well.  Had we been able to finish on a respectable amount of our chances the result might have been different.  In the end, we came away with something to build on. A foundation for success was laid, if you will.

The third match we won against a team that had defeated our previous two opponents.  Yes, we made significant improvements throughout the course of the weekend.  We played better in every aspect of the game and for the first time played as a team.  Not a perfect game by any means but another step forward.

The following weekend we played our first league game.  New league. New opponents. A fair amount of trepidation.  From the opening whistle we played well. The run of play was fairly equal in the first half although I did believe we were the better team overall.  The second half proved me right as we finally found the ability to finish some chances.  The resulting victory put us on a early season mini - win streak and evened the season record at 2-2-0.

Next up was the Early Bird Classic and frankly, I wasn't sure what we had gotten ourselves in for.  Our scheduled opponents were from Wisconsin , West Virginia and Ohio.  A couple of these squads had very impressive resumes.   When we took the field Saturday morning it was immediately obvious we were up against a very fine team.  Big, strong, athletic and highly skilled.  They took it to us early on and went up 0 - 1 on a laser strike from 40 yards out.  The ball never got more than 5 feet off the ground and found back netting on the left side of our goalkeeper.  A tremendous shot by a high school aged player.

That goal allowed actually seemed to settle us down and as we approached the 5 minutes remaining mark I hoped to get out of the half being down just one.  No more had that thought entered my mind then the same opponent struck again... and again from nearly 40 yards out. Again another laser shot that never got above head high. This time to the right of our goalkeeper and into the back netting.  Unbelievable.  I was speechless.  One such shot might have been luck. He proved the first shot by duplicating it with a second. I honestly thought the rout might be on.

Thankfully our players had different ideas. With less than a minute remaining in the half and going into the face of a 20 mph wind with falling rain / sleet we got on the board on a superbly executed bangoo goal from our forwards.  That goal put us back into the match and gave us momentum going into half time.

We enjoyed the better run of play in the second half although we did have to weather a couple of  serious sustained attacks from our opponents.  We got the equalizer about 12 minutes in and this seemed to grow our confidence and shake that of the opponents.  I am sure the deteriorating weather conditions played a factor as well. We scored the winning goal with 8 minutes to go, survived one more serious challenge from the opponents then closed out the game in their end of the pitch.

The end result will show a win for us. We certainly showed further improvement.  I seek not to diminish our accomplishment but given that match was our opponents first of the spring and their first time outside all spring, well... I wouldn't want to face that team in a month's time. They are going to be an elite side.  This was a signature win for our team.

Unfortunately the remainder of the tournament was cancelled a couple hours after we completed our match. I would have greatly enjoyed playing again to see if we could continue our steady improvement or if we might have suffered a let down after a big win.

This week the Grand Lake United Wolves begin league play on Thursday. We scrimmaged our U17 team last night. Like the BPL team, this team struggled early on but made steady progress throughout the scrimmage.  The two U19 teams will scrimmage each other this evening for about 40 minutes and that will provide a stiffer challenge and a better indication of where the Wolves stand. The BPL team returns to action with a league game on Friday night.

Good luck to both teams and our program as a whole!

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.

Behind me is infinite power

We cannot change the past only learn from the lessons it has taught us.

before me is endless possibility

We are only limited by our imagination, the most powerful nation on earth,

around me is boundless opportunity

The future is ours to mold as we choose.

Summer Camps Schedule is beginning to fill up.

Good Sunday Morning!

We are back! 

Our Grand Lake United spring seasons are underway and the summer camp schedule is beginning to fill up. 

The U19 A team played well at the Ohio Galaxies College Showcase.  We went 1-2-0, but considering it was our first time outdoors due to snow and cold, we did well.  Our opponents had all played in early tournaments further south of us so we were playing a little catch up early on.  By Sunday afternoon it looked like we shook a lot of the rust off.

Yesterday this team played in it's first BPL game and came away with an impressive 3-0 win over the S.P. S.C.  at Ohio Northern University.  ONU has a new turf field and it is really something.  Thanks to the Polar Bears for hosting the game! The team is back in action next weekend in the Early Bird Classic.

The Grand Lake United B team is eleven days out from it's first action of the season, a MVYSA game at home vs the Raiders. This is a newly formed team and a younger group overall.  I am interested to see how they come together.

Summer Camps

If you have not already done so, get in touch with Conceive Believe Achieve Soccer now for your summer camp needs. We offer team camps, small group training and specialized goalkeeping camps. Contact us at tbrown@wcoil.com or 567-204-6083