What are the challenges involved in youth sports?

As a former player and now a coach, heavily involved in the youth soccer scene, I often see and hear many things that cause people to grumble. This might be the inability to communicate with teammates, the problem with changes in schedule, and the simple challenge of keeping everybody updated. As a coach, I have my own set of issues. I am constantly having to change my games around to fit into schedules. This becomes a huge issue when you think about the amount of people involved, and the number of conflicting schedules. If a new game time works for me, it may not work for some other families. It is certainly a balancing act. This is only one of many other things that come up each week.

Families with multiple kids and multiple schedules must have a torrid time. Balancing practice times with piano lessons, and homework, and a parent working late – problems and conflicts can quickly occur. The kids that I coach often have more of an idea of who we are playing than I do!!! As a coach, and an avid supporter of youth sports, I am interested in how life can be made a little easier for all involved.

Please send me your stories, challenges, and issues. I would love to hear them. I am sure somebody has an idea of how to help……

Players are sponges….

As a coach of young girls and boys, I have quickly realized how intelligent these young people are. It is a huge mistake to think 9 and 10 year old’s cannot absorb information and apply what you say on the soccer field. They do. I see it every week. Some concepts of course are beyond their capabilities, but it is all attainable. Lay the foundations for future success early on. For me, the focus must be teamwork, work rate, energy, enthusiasm, and communication. If you have players who want to give their all, and play with imagination and commitment, you can teach the rest. You can teach a player to pass a ball from point A to point B, but it is much more difficult to have them run from point A to point B as fast as they can every time.

Challenge players early on. If you set expectations and build an environment in practice of quality and competitiveness, the future will be bright. Build the habits that you want as a coach, and reinforce it. If a player doesn’t close the ball down, tell them. If they are sloppy and lazy in their passing, tell them. Once a player develops bad habits, it is incredibly difficult to break them of it. Players who work to their maximum during practices and games learned these vital traits at an early age. It is paramount that a player immerses themselves in a playing environment that is both fun and challenging. Playing with a smile on their face is number 1, and it is their early youth coach that allows that smile to stay throughout their career.

Health Insurance….

As a native of England, I grew up in a system of free health care and free education. Whenever I cut myself, broke a bone, or just needed a check-up, I could go down to the local hospital and be treated. After I was patched up, I would thank the doctors and nurses and just walk out. There was no excessive paperwork to fill out and certainly no bill to pay.

Coming to America, I was quickly introduced to the health care system here. The first piece of official paperwork was for my health insurance with Blue Cross Blue Shield. It was an eye opening experience to have to pay for coverage, and certainly more surprising when all my expenses would not be covered by the insurance company. This is an area of huge debate right now. President Obama is introducing a bill that sets forth a government health care option that would potentially reduce costs for the public. I see positives and negatives on this -

Positives:
Reduced costs
Another option
Children have more chance to be covered
Drastically reduce the number of uninsured
People will not be turned away from a hospital

Negatives:
Government involvement in a private industry
A significant change in American Capitalism
Huge cost – $1 trillion
Increased taxes
Forced change
Small businesses are forced to provide coverage and greatly increase costs

Questions to ask….
How to sustain the model over the coming decades?
Will the costs increase over the years?
Will the health care industry be negatively affected?
Will quality and standards be maintained?

Health care is a highly contested issue. The American public need some help after seeing premiums rise as much as 20% in the past year alone, but is such a drastic change realistic? Britain provided the social health care system after World War II, and there are many positives and negatives associated with it. If injured you can be treated relatively easily and quickly with no cost, but if you need surgery, you may be waiting months and sometimes years. Private health care is available and is often purchased to offset the delay in a future surgery.

I am not sure what the solution is, but to have 50 million American’s unable to gain health care is quite shocking. To have this problem on this scale in the richest nation in the world is baffling. We all wait with baited breath……

Heat and Hydration

Seattle is hot… very hot. We are experiencing a heat wave that has not been seen in many years. We will hit the 100 degree mark across the state, and this stifling heat will continue for several more days at least. When I lived in North Carolina, these temperatures were not unusual. Temperatures were high and humidity filled the air, making outside living conditions somewhat miserable. However, air conditioning fills the homes, offices, and shopping malls. Little time is spent outside during the peak hours of heat, and more inside in the comfort of a 70 degree room.

Seattle homes are not equipped with AC. We sit in the stagnant air, forcing air flow by way of fans, attempting to stay cool – but with little success. I have a basement which is cool and comfortable, but many do not. Those who are in apartments and condos without AC must be hit the worst. There is often no protection from the sun, especially those who face west. My advice – eat out in air conditioned restaurants, watch a movie in a theater, and crash at somebody’s house who is fortunate to have AC or a cool basement.

Coaching has been canceled tonight. It’s just too hot for the kids. Temperatures will be over 100, and add 10 -15 degrees on the turf ……… nice and toasty. There are many people who will still be working out though – including me. Drink lots of water, supplement with Gatorade, and end a workout with chocolate milk. On a normal day, you should drink eight glasses of water. With this heat, and especially if you are outside – drink, drink, drink.

Be careful, be smart, and if you can – enjoy the water…….

Which company has the best soccer cleats?

This is an ongoing debate in many soccer circles. Which company has the best cleats? Which company has the best equipment? Which company has the best balls? I wasam an advocate of Nike, after wearing them for so long. UNC was sponsored by Nike, and then I came to the Sounders a few years after college, and they were sponsored by Nike. I often changed footwear though. At first I wore leather Tiempo’s, and then the plastic coated shoes began to surface with the Mercurial’s and the Total 90’s. I liked them because they didn’t stretch and they had a great fit. However, they were extremely hot in the summer, and often baked your feet.

Then as time passed on, the plastic coated cleat changed. It got smaller and smaller in weight and design. I remember trying the Vapor’s for the first time, and they gave me the worst blisters within minutes. But some people love them. It is all preference. After several foot injuries, I eliminated the plastic’s from my rotation, and reverted back to the leather Tiempo’s. I came full circle, and enjoyed the old comfort of leather.

Adidas are obviously an incredibly strong company in soccer and other sports, and they have some fantastic gear. Copa Mondial were always the cleat of choice when I was young, but we weren’t able to wear them very often. The pitches in England were often mud heaps, and you couldn’t take more than two steps if you wore a pair of hard ground cleats. Adidas continue to design and produce some great footwear, from the classics, to the Predator, to the F- series. I have now returned to the simplicity of the Copa, and the comfort it allows.

As the world of soccer continues to evolve, Nike and Adidas will build their levels of power and influence. Puma, Diadora, Reebok, and other manufacturers will attempt to maintain their stature, but it will become more and more difficult. Not only do Nike and Adidas have good products, but they have the marketing clout to tell everyone about it. Nobody can escape this, because as a young player you want to emulate your idol, and the easiest way to do this is by wearing their shoes. But be willing to spend, because soccer cleats don’t come cheap…..

Referee’s……

Being involved in soccer for so many years, I have had my fair share of conflicts with referees as a player and as a coach. But what I do sincerely appreciate is their continued dedication to our sport.

As a player, I had a different viewpoint. I was angry when referees made poor decisions, because ultimately, those decisions cost us games. If referees at the professional level have trouble calling a game and have trouble controlling the game, then they should not be on the field. Referees should be judged like players – if you are good enough then you play, if not, you are benched.

What I do feel strongly about, is the way some coaches and parents treat our youth referees. They commit their time and energy to help. It amazes me when a parent or coach feels so strongly about a u’12 game, that they feel compelled to scream and shout at a boy or girl who is barely older than the kids playing the game. Is it not intimidating enough to referee a game against kids your own age? But then they must deal with the verbal abuse that can be thrown at them. They try their best, they try and make the right call, but sometimes they are wrong. They are not trying to make an incorrect call.

I am not here to dismiss the right to voice an opinion, we all do. But we must keep it in context, and we must be aware of who we are shouting at. We want the youth referees to continue to call our games, so that we have 3 officials at every game at every level. They are a crucial part of the game, and we must create an environment where they can enjoy the game, just like everybody else does.

Sunblock for soccer players….

Coaching and playing in the sun can expose us all to sunburn. We have canopies to protect us when we are off the field, and icy towels to cool us down. But as a player, I never figured what type of sunscreen was the best to use when I played. I often found that the sunscreen would run into my eyes, and would burn. I know there are sports versions, that are designed to absorb into the skin and prevent the excess from streaming down our faces.

To be comfortable when playing is important, but we must also be protected from sun rays. Even though in Seattle we are exempt most of the year from the baking sun, our skin is not prepared for it when it does come. Try some different sorts and see what works best for you. My fiancee recommends Aveeno face sunscreen because it is oil free and light on your face. For the body try a spray rather than a rub on. It has a better coverage, especially if the child is the one applying it. Don’t forget the top of your ears and the parting in your hair.

When all this is applied, we still have to deal with the dreaded soccer tan, or farmers tan. Our lower arms, face, neck, and portions of our leg can have great color, it’s just a shame the rest of us looks like it has never been outside. Enjoy the great weather as a player, fan, or coach. Whichever way we look at it, soccer is July is far more enjoyable than December or January.

Tournament time….

The summer is not only a time for sun, sea, and sand – it is time for soccer. If you play soccer, coach soccer, or you are a soccer parent, you understand what lies ahead. Summer tournaments are the highlight of the year for many kids. You are surrounded by hundreds of players and supporters. Everybody is there to compete, to get a little better, and to win a medal. The organization that goes on for these tournaments is incredible. It starts with selling the tournament to teams and coaches. You want to fill the brackets with competitive teams, and you want to market the weekend as something not to be missed. Once you have teams, then everything else on the list begins to take shape. You need to confirm venues and fields, vendors and sponsors, medals, t-shirts, scheduling of games, volunteers, parking…. This is to name just a few things that make up the ever increasing list of things to do.

But for the rest of us who just turn up and watch or play soccer, we just hope for nice weather, good performances, and smiles on the kids faces. My first tournament of the summer starts today, at Starfire in Tukwila. It’s the first time I am coaching my new teams, so fingers crossed it all goes well.

Black rubber pellets….

Having coached and played on turf for many years now, I can’t seem to eliminate the constant mess of the black rubber. It’s everywhere. It’s in the car, in the house, in my bags, and even in my fresh clothes drawers. It is an ongoing battle to keep things clean, and keep the carpet and floor clear of it. There is no escape from it though I guess. If you take out the rubber, the fields quickly turn rock hard, and it becomes miserable to play on. After years of playing at PGE Park in Portland, I can tell you how uncomfortable and difficult it was to play on field turf minus black rubber.

Another negative against the black rubber is the heat it generates during the summer. If you have played on turf fields in the middle of the day, you know what I am talking about. The discomfort is even greater if you play with tight fitting cleats or with shoes that are covered with the plastic coating like those Nike shoes. It can be unbearable at times. I would see players tiptoeing around sometimes, barely able to run because their feet were so hot. During water breaks, the feet would get more fluids poured over them than would be consumed. But then the cycle would start again. Instant relief would then turn into sustained misery as the heat would return, and the water which had soothed your feet, suddenly becomes the catalyst for increasingly stifling heat due to the moisture.

I did see white rubber pellets used to ward off the issue of heat, but it never really passed the test. Even if white rubber was used to reduce the heat on the field and feet, they would still litter our houses and cars…..

Busy summer ahead….

It’s been a busy last few months, and there are many more ahead of me. Business is pushing forward in the right direction, building my networks, meeting some great people, and learning all the time. At 1to1 Soccer, we are searching for new opportunities to grow our business. Building our knowledge of our market, expanding the scope of our business offerings, and redefining what we need to do is at the forefront of our minds. Seeking out some angel funding is also important right now. We have a core team of dedicated individuals, but man hours cost money. We want to accelerate our progress and implement our ideas quickly. Speed to market is key, but we don’t want to drop something that will crash as soon as it hits the ground.

Youth soccer is gaining momentum also. We have passed through tryout season, and I am now getting to know the players. We have our first tournaments coming up, and it will be a good indicator to see where we are. I am running several summer camps this year, and hope to grow these over the next few months. We are focused on teams, and how we can best serve each team and develop some improvement over the course of the 4 or 5 day camp.

The Sounders are moving forward. The game last night was unfortunate and frustrating. To give up a 2 goal lead at home was greatly disappointing to the players I am sure, and the many fans that continue to pack Qwest field. What a place to watch a game of soccer. Hats off to Adrian Hanauer and his team – they have made a great impact in this area in such as short period of time.

I will be updating more often…..