Niagara College Tryouts - Still going

Being a parent and former player directly affects how I run tryouts.

Our college tryouts have ballooned to an outrageous number.  I would have never guessed that 56 players would have come out for a shot.

As a former player, I remember what it was like going to Mohawk College by myself in August to tryout for Varsity Soccer, and how well I was treated.

As a parent, I always watched with interest with respect to how coaches carried out their tryouts by their own methods.  I also watched my sons' reactions after being selected or released.  I didn't always agree with how tryouts were conducted but I did respect the fact that the coach did what they felt was fair.

Right now, as I deal with young men coming to me from out of town, my own son is trying out for Varsity Lacrosse at the University of Guelph.  I am very interested to hear about his experiences over the week and see what I can integrate into my own methods.

Sometimes I hear parents complain about tryouts, fairness, timing, etc, ... and all I can think is "you have NO clue".  Every coach I know works to make sure tryouts are fair and respectful.  It may not appear that way and everybody has a different idea of fair, but the thought and will is there.

Right now we are at 30 players left of 56.  By next Tuesday I expect to be down to 22.  Some boys are dealing with the realization that they are not as good, fast and/or strong as they thought they were in high school.  Others are coming to tryouts while trying to settle into a new town and not knowing anybody.  This program is their first impression of Niagara College and I have to make sure it's professional and hospitable.

My goal for the players who do not get selected is that they have a better realization of what's required to play at this level and they learned something they can take back to their regular program.  I want those players to keep playing and hopefully want to coach one day.  To support LTPD, I have to present a situation that makes them want to be Active for Life.

This Thursday, we have a pre-season game at Seneca College then an Intra-squad game next Tuesday.  The team should be complete after Tuesday.

U17 boys - still moving forward and making progress.

Our U17 boys team is still at the top of the table.  But it's not the results that turn my crank with this team.

Working with this group has been interesting.  They're tough, athletic, they want to play and still want to learn.  We still have a few players who fight us on staying organized and working through bad habits, but we make progress with them too.

During games I look to remind them of their shape, keeping the ball moving, involving everybody (including the GK) and looking to play entertaining soccer.

A few players have had a lot of success in new spots and that has given us more options to get more players on the field for more minutes.

Between players, we've had a lot of positive talk on the field and a few all our arguments about how things should have been played at certain times.  I can live with that as long as they're talking about the soccer and not each other, and get back to the business of playing.

My hope for these boys is that they all take what they've learned and apply it with their high school programs and beyond.

For each position we continue to give them suggestions on how to play different situations and getting out of jams during games.  My biggest pet peeve has been wide midfielders trying to take guys 1v1 when there was a wall-pass or penetrating-pass option already present.  We gave them options for this too.

We'll see how the season ends.  We have 3 games left with a 4 point lead.  One of our final 3 games is against the second place team.

U13 boys - 2 steps backward tonight

After two very productive training sessions this week, that last thing I expected was a flat 8-0 loss.

Our opponents were bigger, stronger and faster,  but we still have to offer up some resistance to stay in the game.

I can accept losing.  I don't like it, but I can accept it as long as there is something to gain from it.  Tonight I felt like we were teetering on the fence of success and ended up falling backwards.

With this particular group in the division we are in, we are going to run into a lot of teams that are stronger than us.  But I do expect the team to compete and look to execute what we learn in training.

During our sessions we always apply every new concept and technique in small sided games and exercises with pressure.  They will not always succeed in games right away, but we have to attempt it and attempt it again until it works in a higher pressure environment.

With the exception of a few games, I have been wrestling with this all year and unsuccessful in finding a permanent solution.  Our production in games is not even close to what they are willing to try in training.   Our passes are lighter and slower, tackles are incomplete, etc.

We've been physically overwhelmed in a lot of games, but I still want to see sparks of brilliance around the field at different times.

We have 2 games left.  One session before the first then 3 sessions before our final home game.

The kids still come to learn every session and work hard.  For this I am proud of them and it's a stern reminder that it's always the coach's job to set the boys up to succeed. 

My job is to teach, nurture, continue demanding that they compete during matches and look to execute what we learn in training. 

I do not worry about finishing last and being relegated.  It might actually be a blessing so these boys have a chance to succeed and enjoy their time with the ball on the field.  At this age success is important to keep the players interested.  It might not be team success, but there has to be individual successes somewhere along the line.  Maybe the prospect of a lower pressure environment is good medicine.

Niagara College men's tryouts

It was with great excitement that I started tryouts through my new position as coach of Niagara College's Men's Soccer Team.

Over the past two days, 46 players have come out to show their stuff.  My biggest accomplishment to date is that I now know all of their names.  For me, this is important so players know they are not operating in anonymity.  You never want somebody who wasn't selected to suspect you never knew who they were in the first place.

The sessions have been basic.  Dynamic stretch, personal stretch, warm-up drill to help evaluate individual technical levels then on to a game.  It's tryouts and they want to audition.

The first day, things went OK and I saw everybody play.  The second day really showed me what I was working with.  We have  plenty of players how can compete at the college level, but I can't keep them all.   The pace and intensity of the game today was promising.  There was a lot of communication on the field and players were really working to combine to develop smart plays.

We have several lefties out and the type of players available cover the spectrum.  They are all good athletes with suitable physical characteristics for competitive soccer.  Technical proficiency is what will separate players in the end.  The players know that their "hustle" and physical gifts are not useful if they can't control a ball and make decisions under pressure.

I shared one thing with them.  Tryouts NEVER end.  You are trying out to win a spot on the team.  Then you are trying out every session to be one of the 18 players dressing, then to be one of the 11 on the field. If you're not on the field, you want to be the first one I call from the bench..  If you're not one of the 18 dressing, you want to be the next one called.

In support of LTPD, I work to make this experience encourage the guys to be players for life.


They have 3 days off until we reconvene Friday.  The group will be trimmed after Friday then again after Monday.  We have a pre-season game Aug 30.  The season starts September 8.  Some players still have club commitments and we'll have to see how that plays out.

District Program - 1v1 attacking - letting them play

I coached the Niagara District boys program for four years and last night I visited their weekend camp to deliver a session.

The District program is for players in their U12 year and prepares them for an identification showcase for the U13 Regional program every fall.  Our district covers the Niagara area.  Our Region (Region 2) covers Hamilton, Niagara all the way up to Brampton.  The players in the Regional program are working towards spots in the Provincial program during their u14 year.

This system will be changed in the near future.

The topic of my session 1v1 attacking.  My coaching points for 1v1 attack were:

• See the ball, defender and space behind the defender
• Attack the space behind the defender
• Change of speed/direction (deception)
• Accelerate after the move
• Keep ball close when under pressure

When I arrived, I saw 28 boys and the weekend was just getting started.  I decided to coach the details less and reworked the session a bit and let the boys compete and play as much as possible.  It was a good opportunity to set the mood for the camp.

We reviewed the non-technical aspects of what the Regional coach will be looking for:

• Compete for every ball, all the time, every day.
• Show willingness to make an impact
• Every pass to start a drill must be of high quality

We started off by doing a warm-up exercise where the boys were dribbling at full pace down a lane-way.  There were 2 players in the lane-way trying to knock your ball away.  This set the mood for 1v1 attack.

Next was a group dribbling drill review several 1v1 moves that can stem from a double tap of the ball.  This video from the Internet shows the little double-tap with the outside of the foot:

We then set up four 1v1 grids with mini-goals, 10x20 bordered by cones.  One player serves the other and they play.  We stopped them a few times for coaching points, but for the most part we let them play.

The intensity level was "OK".  We stepped in to influence the defending a bit and added pushups for the loser of each play-down.  The intensity went WAY UP, quickly.  Now, we were getting the boys ready for their showcase event. 

We them moved the boys to a 3v3 situation in a 20x30 grid.  To score, you had to dribble over the end line of the grid the other team is defending.  Coaching points:

• Look to attack forward and with speed (attack open space)
• Do not be afraid to take on a defender
• For near shape, do not stand behind a defender who is pressuring your teammate.  By checking back at an angle you open up the ability for 1v1, give-and-go or a simple pass.

This was going well and got better when we made it a tournament.  The boys had pizza coming afterwards and the prize was the winners had their pizza served to them by the others.

When I saw how many boys there were upon arrival I had a nightmare of coaching details while a lot of restless boys listened.  We were successful in keeping the group active and moving with a ball.

I was hoping to arrive earlier to have everything setup for the boys when they arrived.  As a guest coach you don't want the players standing while you run around setting up your session.  It ended up being ready for the boys by 6pm, but I would have rather spent that time goofing around and getting to know them.

It was satisfying to see them all playing and whooping it up, and sticking to the theme of the evening.  I was also happy to be able to share some insight with them regarding the type of player who advances through the identification process.

It was also nice to see 8 boys that I've worked with before.  Letting a player know you remember them is important for their self-esteem.