Maybe this would be better for the first post of the 2020 Managing Thread, but I had my 19U league scheduling meeting yesterday. It's always amusing to see which teams' coaches and managers think they're the most important in the play group. Dude, I'm sorry that you over-committed yourself and your team, but it's not my fault that you decided you can't play any games after the end of April in a league that plays through May. It's also frustrating that our opponent for the Presidents Cup didn't get back to me on scheduling our group stage match before my meeting when their league schedule has been set for weeks. I'm sure I'll get big timed by them too now that my available dates are limited. Happy 2020!
This is likely the last season I'll be able to coach for the year. Unless I get a new job. Bit of a bummer since I've been doing it for the past 10 years. I'm coaching a 2nd team at my youth club and it will be my second season with the team. I took over last fall from a coach who meant well but struggled coaching any sort of technique. We have gone from being unable to pass the ball more than twice in a row and not winning more than 2 games in two years to scoring several beautiful team goals and finishing 5th out of 18 teams in our bracket. Huge improvements from the players and reignited my love for coaching. I haven't had this much fun in a long time.
Recently offered a directorship position at a club, but life's timing is always odd. Just the week before I was mulling taking the Fall 2020 season off from coaching. I had a lighter coaching load since November (but also in weird twist I'm coaching less total hours but making more per hour) and I really liked that family-wise. Life wasn't so crazy. I wanted to take the next step and take an even bigger break from coaching. Then this offer comes along. More loot than I ever thought I would make coaching. More importantly, my soccer values and this club's align very well. We want to be an alternative to what's on the scene but BUT I've also become very cynical about club soccer. Can we actually hope to make meaningful positive change in this dysfunctional soccer landscape? My kids are happier in their sporting lives than at any point in the recent past—mainly because we consciously opted out of dysfunctional club soccer. I'm happier because of the lack of traveling and being home with the fam—some nights we even get to sit down to dinner together.
I left coaching full time because I got cynical. You’re probably a bit older than me and been at it longer, so it is interesting to read your perspective. I hopped around the country to a couple different clubs and furthered my soccer career, but I was left unfulfilled and never found a club that matched my philosophy, ideals, and desire to make positive change. I decided to just leave the career full time and maybe start my own club one day.
In my area, the State CARTEL won't let you start new clubs. They said they capped the number of clubs. HOWEVER their logic is faulty. Several clubs merged over the years, so slots should've opened up. NOPE. What's the lesson from the man of La Mancha? Is it worth tilting at windmills?
First, congrats, it's nice when good people get recognized. Technically it's if they drop below 12 clubs, or 5000 new players u12-20 show up in one year. We just gotta convince those climate refugees to settle here
Although I feel like, if I went back to like my 2016 copy of the rules & procedures, it would say if they drop below 16 clubs or 5000 new players show up....
Thanks. A bit humbling because I wasn't looking for a gig, much less THAT kind of gig. Like I said, I was looking for LESS GIG. .
My spring 19U calendar is set. I managed to schedule 10 games with only one Saturday/Sunday back to back and one Friday/Sunday. The rest are one-game weekends, and I avoided Mother's Day. My wife should be thrilled.
Ha. The same thing happens out here. A guy I know started his own club and joined US Youth Soccer instead of our State association and he's been blackballed. The state says he cannot play friendlies against other clubs because he isn't insured. It is total BS because he is insured and USYS falls under the USSF umbrella which means this club can play versus any other club. Kinda ridiculous how closed the system is for everyone in this country.
I was at our state DOC/TD meeting on Saturday, and my impression is that it all stems from USSF not putting their foot down and making the various sub-associations fall in line with their rules. Basically, the problem is that the USSF allows USYS, AYSO, and whoever else ignore the USSF guidelines and still accredits them. It would make a lot more sense if we had a national body which oversees regional sub-bodies which oversee the state associations. Now we have the national which "oversees" several national sub-associations and the states, and the states can be members of whichever sub-associations they want. Expecting anything sensible out of the USSF is laughable. This is the same organization that has had over a year to replace their CEO and haven't done so. Now they're losing their COO(?) too. Who's steering this ship?
Our local pointy football team is going through a "rough patch". They haven't won a game in about a decade, turnout is low. I was standing next to an oldtimer after my daughter's soccer game and the local varsity soccer team took the field next. He said to me, "I can't believe these guys don't go out for football." I couldn't blame him. A couple lean, agile, athletes about 6'3" were on the field. But they only have themselves to blame, the culture went toxic a long time ago.
I have a player at a crossroads. She's found her skillful, confident self on the field. But with that rep finds herself man marked, finds herself hounded by the opponents best defender, finds herself hacked, pushed, grabbed, tripped, kicked. By nature, she's a sweet, mild-tempered kid so I'm curious how she is going to respond to this attention. They lost this weekend and this had been the case and she labeled the defenders "annoying" and fessed up she wanted to do stuff to them. Is it time to introduce the Dark Arts with the reminder to practice self control? Or do you just turn the other cheek?
Assuming she's in the U10+ age range, yes it is that time. You start getting extreme size discrepancies, girls starting to learn dirty deeds without emotional control, and you have some refs that will still treat them like U6's - "cute, little girls". Left unchecked, she'll either start retaliating and getting punished for it, or somebody is going to give her a serious injury. A player who is that good, should have the tactical sense to learn when it is appropriate to embellish, and when to tough it out.
I am not sure of what your "dark arts" are meant to refer to. I understand completely about being angry at being held, tripped, pushed, cursed, and otherwise fouled. Being man-marked and even double-teamed was not upsetting to me, because I played sports against man-to-man coverage more often than zone. I never thought it frustrating. Double teaming is an opportunity. The defense is unbalanced. "Bumping" and other physical play never upset me. It just made me smile and play rougher, but never enough to be a foul. I had physical advantages of size and strength, but I also had training in pointy football, basketball, judo and tae kwon do. I never lost a physical battle with a marker. I also was never carded although I was often the biggest guy. Tight marking was an advantage for me. I was smart, deceptive, could out accelerate everyone. So my view is to teach her how to handle physical contact (hint: strong stance, low center of gravity, vectors, and slipping punches), deception, and work on SAQ (in an age appropriate way). Leave them in the dust. They can't hold you if you are gone. They can't tackle the ball if it is gone. Speed of play. Soccer IQ. I have coached U10Gs and we played against a select team that was going to be next years A travel team. They were about 5-6 inches taller, had hit peak height velocity, but we played them physically successfully. Our advantages were lower center of gravity, shorter (i.e., quicker limbs), and more coordinated and confident in body movements. When the ball is on the ground, being taller is a physical disadvantage. If charging properly, weight is not an advantage. Power comes from the legs, not the upper body. The torso transmits the power from the lower body. (Pointy football lesson.) Weight is only an advantage when not in motion. Weight is a disadvantage when you drag it around. So always be in motion when it counts.
Assumptions in my previous response: 1) Issue is the fouls, not the man-marking or double-teams, and refs are letting it go for the most part. 3) Dark Arts = selling fouls. Embellishing, darting away during a jersey grab when ref is looking. Yelling out "Let Go!" when being held. Things like that. Stomping on a foot when being grabbed is over the line and not ok.
How about playing some different positions to get away from some of the unwanted contact. I don't know ... sometimes a player is upset and emotional after a game but bounces back soon after.
Thanks guys/coaches. I will jump back into "dark arts" convo in a bit. Wanted to share a high point in coaching for me that happened this weekend. It's second session indoor so some kids have spent the early part of the winter playing other sports. Yesterday, a trio of my players with lower technical skill had a great moment in the game. They found themselves in a triangle and connected a few passes while moving the triangle up the pitch. I usually watch these games with detachment, because it's winter and we're not training. But I snapped out and excitedly hit my co-coach on the arm like "did you just see that shit!" I'm usually pretty reserved on the sideline and don't say much but this fired me up. They UNDERSTAND! Yes, it was one time in one game (so far) and it wasn't that many passes (maybe 4 total) but it seemed evident to me that they were doing it with thought and intent. To me, it was special because these aren't the "studs" on the team and it wasn't the labored type of soccer I see week to week. It was functional and effective. It was special because we're not team practicing right now and 2 of the 3 are removed from practice for about 3 months now. I'm excited. I hope they do it again next week. I gotta remember to talk to them and catch them being good.
Shame that as a club president I've seen emails from refs justifying doing nothing against this saying: "That's how the game is played in the US" "You're expecting too much from u10, they can't control their bodies so if they kick someone it's not intentional." "Ive seen kids trip running along with the ball, of course they're going to get their legs tangled and go down when there's two of them." Note all of those were from my own club's refs responding to a complaint by one of my coaches who had the temerity to grow up elsewhere and teach his kids how to play well And this in game classic while coaching u12 at an away game "They aren't hurting him, if he goes down again I'm going to have to pull out my cards". I'd imagine there's a little less homerism in the p2p ranks vs community, is that your experience?
I have reffed in house and at the time, the quality in the league was pretty good. But I have seen plenty of clubs where adults are not used. Makes a difference when you use 12 year olds as refs. The worse comments I have heard have been from high level refs who don't take rec matches seriously. The bottom line is refs are supposed to adjust their foul recognition to the level and gender of the match. So judgment always enters the picture. In my experience, most players are upset with calls because they don't know the laws, not that the referee made a bad call or no call. I can't tell you the number of times I have told my team that I would have made the same call. That isn't meant to express disagreement with you CoachP365. I have seen some terrible refs and heard them make silly excuses. It is just that the quality of licensed refs is very high in my opinion. Keep in mind that the lowest rank only has to get 80% of the test on laws correct. They are expected to grow into the job. So constructive feedback is needed.
Depends on the home club. I can't comment on my club refs impartiality. I think they do a good job being neutral but who knows. I'm prob blind to my own bias. P2P reffing in our area can be atrocious. We have a full crew for Travel and only one ref for Cup at u10 and younger. What gives? Many refs are insufficiently trained, speaking as a former Grade 7. Then their training only goes into making calls and not Game Management. THEN, over the years, my thoughts on officiating have crystallized to believe that youth refs are more than just judging infraction/no infraction—they need to be part of the education process. State Associations push for attractive soccer but if our refs allow thuggish play, how can attractive soccer flourish? I'm a fly on the wall in many games before and after mine and I've heard any number of parents and coaches instructing players to be more "physical".
I said this often,coaches and clubs are responsible too for how the team acts on the field. Refs have to be reactive, but clubs and coaches can be proactive. That is an advantage. Too many adults involved in youth sports are disrespectful of the sport and the other participants. It sets a terrible example. We have all seen it.
Btw, our state is making it even harder to get certified to ref. Prepare for a huge shortage in the next season or two. Maybe more as current refs get burned out and quit.