Forum Replies Created
-
Posts
-
Hi Miguel and Dana,
I used to live down in San Jose but up in San Francisco now. Agree with the Earthquakes comment. I used to have season tickets before I moved and it was just painful going to most of those games. Nothing but long balls and hopeful crosses into the box.
David
I also like giving them homework that doesn’t involving playing. Depending on the age and interest level, it could be as simple as telling me two MLS scores from the past weekend to sending me one highlight clip they found on youtube to attending one professional game in person. The idea being they continue their growth as players but from a different perspective. Particularly for players that don’t eat/sleep/dream soccer, it hopefully exposes them to another side of the game that they can be excited about and subsequently motivate them to practice on their own and push themselves harder at practice.
I would agree with Andrew. I coached 5th/6th grade girls for one season and had to take a different approach (more cooperative, team building type of attitude) then with boys of similar ages. Particularly for singling out players in a group setting for criticism (even with my strongest players) was something I couldn’t do.
I think as players get older, it becomes more important to understand them based on their personality type as opposed to gender. I coach an adult women’s team now and there are some players just as intense and competitive as you’d find in any mens league. There are also some players who take criticism personally so it’s key to try and figure out how to push each one. But overall I would say with girls you need to take a more cooperative, team based approach and with boys it can be more individual, competitive focused.
I think it depends on the group you are working with. If you’re with a small group that can easily hear and see you, then it might not be necessary (as long as you can speak in a way that demands attention). For a large group, it’s probably easier to have it instead of having to yell “freeze” several times before everyone gets the message. I don’t use one, but we usually get 8-10 players at a practice which I can handle.
I like “How Soccer Explains the World” for looking at soccer in a larger, global context and it’s role in different countries
http://www.amazon.com/How-Soccer-Explains-World-Globalization/dp/0061978051
Soccernomics is also an interesting read as well. Like the title suggests, model after the “Freakonomics” set of books.
http://www.amazon.com/Soccernomics-Australia-Turkey-Iraq-Are-Destined/dp/1568587015
For a book that relates more to coaching/on the field topics, I like “Developing in Game Intelligence” by Horst Wein. While it provides drills and practice ideas, it goes into greater depth on a lot of topics, with explanations of why things should be done a certain way (with an emphasis on creating technically strong and tactically smart players)
http://www.amazon.com/Developing-Game-Intelligence-Soccer-Horst/dp/1591640717
Hi,
My name is David Tkach, I’m 30 years old, and live in San Francisco, CA. I got into coaching several years ago when a knee injury forced me to sit out a season, and my youngest brother’s AYSO team needed a coach. It ended up being an awesome experience and as a few more knee surgeries have forced me to stop playing, I’ve found coaching is a great way I can still stay involved with the sport without worrying about getting hurt yet again.
I currently coach a women’s team (the age ranges from 24-34 and about 25% played college soccer) in San Francisco but have worked with different groups from U8’s to high school but have found that I enjoy the U10-U12 the most . I discovered this site about a year ago and it has really opened my eyes into becoming a more effective coach (especially with committing to a possession oriented style of play) and an overall better understanding of the game.
I’ve always believe that maintaining the ball through passing and movement makes a lot more sense than kicking and chasing but at times have struggled to teach it. I’ve used the excuse of “my players aren’t technical enough” to prevent myself from focusing on possession as much as I’d like but since coming across 3four3, I’ve been working hard to commit to this and am excited to see what the coaching curriculum has to offer.
David
