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New Club
Mar 26, 2015 19:33:39 GMT -5
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Post by RedDevil10 on Mar 26, 2015 19:33:39 GMT -5
What do you look for when choosing a new club ?
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New Club
Mar 26, 2015 21:16:36 GMT -5
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Post by Soccerhouse on Mar 26, 2015 21:16:36 GMT -5
I'll be quick - wanted a club that had qualified coaches, appreciated every player, had quality coaching regardless of team and didn't turn their backs on players at younger ages. Also a club that had their own fields vs random elementary schools in suburbia. It really adds to the club atmosphere and makes eveyone feel like a "family"
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Post by SoccerMom on Mar 27, 2015 7:02:54 GMT -5
it depends on the age of your kid when you're looking for a new club. At young ages, something close to home is fine, as they get older you will see if the club meets your kids needs or not. Clubs are not like gloves and they dont fit everyone the same way. You want an environment where your kid can grow
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Post by allthingsoccer on Mar 27, 2015 15:05:44 GMT -5
Agree with SoccerMom- at a younger age it doesnt really matter. Having fun is the is the key. it really depends on where you are located. Don't want to drive an hour for a u8 team..
As for fields go. That is not a requirement in order for the team to feel like a family. Most of the clubs don't "own" the fields anyway. They have partnerships with the city who runs them. A field is a field no matter where you are.
Look around. Ask other parents from your child's school. You might find some that play club soccer. If they are near you, great friendships can develop, plus soccer play dates, car pool. etc...
Cheers,
J4K
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Post by soccerdad44 on Mar 30, 2015 8:26:15 GMT -5
1. Does the club offer additional training opportunities for U6 or U8? If your child shows any interest at all, there is a big advantage to clubs that offer extra training at this age It's not serious or pushy, just gives the kids extra touches and fun and helps ensure they get some practice in weeks when when their regular practice gets rained out. For example, AFU has a great pre academy program, and at some clubs like TYSA it is even free.
2. Are the teams separate or pooled? What exactly is pooled? Is just the coach pooled (he coaches multiple teams, but they don't practice together, and there is no movement between teams), or are the teams pooled (they practice at the same time, and there is movement among teams based on performance or other criteria)? Advantages of pooled practices/coaches: (1) enough kids to scrimmage, (2) all players get a chance to play with top players, (3) incentive to practice and play hard to move up, (4) everyone given same opportunity to develop. Advantages of not pooling practices/coaches: (1) More even skill, (2) Your coach might have less conflicts so you are able to go to more tournaments.
3. Are the coaches part of the community? Do they live here year round?
4. How many teams do they have in each age group? A larger number of teams means limited tournaments. In general, more teams means less opportunity for games and tournaments. Teams are slotted for tournaments, and coaches may have no say in what tournament is best for their team.
5. What team will you be on? The top teams get more attention and tournaments. Is it better to be on a top team at a smaller club, or a lower team on a big club? I would argue the former is best almost all the time.
6. What license does your coach have? Do they have an "A" license?
7. What tournaments did the team go to last year? What ones to you anticipate going to in the coming year?
8. Do they have turf (UFA) or indoor facilities to practice when the fields are too wet to use?
9. What training do you have outside of practice? Do they offer technical training or speed & agility training? Is it free? What does it cost?
10. What position(s) does the coach see your child playing? Does that make sense to you, or is it a team that is a poor fit, and your child would have to play out of position?
11. Where do kids at the club go to school? Where do they play in high school?
12. Talk to parents who have had the coach. Being the coach of a top team doesn't mean they are a good coach or well liked by the kids. Do they get red cards? Are the screamers? Are they approachable? Do they have a personality? Are they fitness nuts who do excessive running vs. getting fit using the ball? Kids play harder for coaches who they can relate to in a positive way, the same as teachers. Not every coach is able to coach every age level.
13. Are there any conflicts of interest with the coach or team? For example, the coach is a relative of someone on the team.
14. What are the guidelines for playing time? Will they play at least a half?
15. Are there player evaluations/feedback? How often?
16. How many kids will be on the team?
17. Don't assume anything you hear during tryouts is true or cannot change. As with any dealings, it's always best to get it in writing.
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Post by greenmonkey on Apr 2, 2015 15:30:01 GMT -5
Thank you this is a question I was looking to get answered that was posted "on other forum" and quickly got steamrolled.
My follow-up question is this:
You all mention the difference "coaching" can make for the player.
Just like the comparison to quality education and teachers ...
If I pick the right club (school) how do I make sure I have the "right" coach (teacher) for my player (student)
Some schools have a parent preference form that asks what type of learning environment is right for your student and what is your students learning style
Not that I am asking for that to happen in soccer ... hmmm although :-)
Seriously though ...
How do you evaluate all those great criteria you mentioned and figure out how that applies to your player.
You don't know who exactly is coaching which team at which club until after players are evaluated in the spring?
The evaluation registration language makes it sound like you need to attend all 3 eval days?
Let's face it there are many great clubs and many great coaches all within reasonable driving distances ...
And all the great coaches might not be the "best coach" for any particular player.
Soccerdad44 gave a great checklist so now ... WHO do I ask or HOW do I found out the answers?
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Post by soccerdad44 on Apr 3, 2015 7:58:07 GMT -5
Unfortunately, in my experience, it's a crap shoot. You can put a lot of effort into getting information and making a good decision, but then things change. Like weather forecasting.
The club should be able to answer these questions: #1 (pre-academy training), #8 (bad weather facilities), #9 (additional training), and #15 (player evaluations). The information may be on the website, but most of the websites are out of date, so don't assume anything you see on a website is true.
The coach should be able to answer these questions either during tryouts or afterwards when making an offer: #2 (pooling), #4 (# teams), #5 (your team), #10 (position), #14 (playing time), and #16 (# on team). If they coached the previous year, they will know about #7 (tournaments).
You may be able to get an answer to the following on this or the other forum: #2 (coach part of community), #11 (where players go to school).
I don't know how to verify #6 (coaching license). You will have to assume what the club lists on their website is correct unless someone knows how this can be verified.
Some of the things you will have to try to find someone who knows the club, preferably someone who has a player in that age/gender group: #12 (coaching style), #13 (conflicts of interest).
I think clubs say you need to attend all 3 tryout days mainly to keep you from going somewhere else. I think the reality is it doesn't matter. But if you are only at a club for 1 tryout day, I would make sure the club knows that if they are interested, that will be their only day to evaluate you.
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Post by sweeper on Apr 3, 2015 10:03:06 GMT -5
I am going to piggyback in this thread since it is in the same vein.
We are planning to move to a new club for the first time after playing rec and academy at the same small club. The reason is that most of my sons friends on the team have moved to other clubs and the coach that will take over my sons team at U13 seems to believe that screaming and running laps is the way to develop 11 year olds (experienced this last season while our regular coach was away for a week). So building on the wonderful answers already provided:
Is it ok or even expected to talk to the coach during tryouts or is that considered pushy?
After tryouts do coaches say what team they think my son might make (top team, second etc)?
We have 3 clubs that would be an option, would we be better off narrowing that down to 2, spending one day at each tryout and then revisiting our favorite on the third day?
I am a big believer that a quality coach is more important than a winning team. I thought of watching a current session by the coach.
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New Club
Apr 5, 2015 15:17:37 GMT -5
via mobile
Post by newposter on Apr 5, 2015 15:17:37 GMT -5
Visit the club and look for parents to talk to. They will provide you all the information you seek. Also look for reputation of club. We failed to do that when we moved. We are moving in the fall again. We have done the homework.
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Post by sweeper on Apr 6, 2015 12:24:36 GMT -5
We did camps over Winter with the clubs and I spoke to some parents there. Also I am talking with parents at ODP practice. I have never approached a coach but would it be ok to approach a coach during tryouts?
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Post by soccerdad44 on Apr 6, 2015 13:13:30 GMT -5
>Is it ok or even expected to talk to the coach during tryouts or is that considered pushy?
From what I remember coaches usually gather parents around for a quick talk after each tryout day and to answer any questions. If you have a legitimate question, I would definitely ask it during the question/answer period or afterwards if it's more personal. This is when coaches are in "sales mode" so I cannot imagine a coach thinking a legitimate question is pushy.
>After tryouts do coaches say what team they think my son might make (top team, second etc)?
In general, yes. However,it depends on the club. If the teams are pooled, they may only tell you what pool you are in. Some clubs won't have pools or teams, and you won't know until the first game/tournament. You will definitely want to know how this works before committing.
>We have 3 clubs that would be an option, would we be better off narrowing that down to 2, spending one day at each tryout and then revisiting our favorite on the third day?
Yes, however, I can see where it might be hard to narrow down your choices without going through the tryout process and finding out who the coach and team would be. If you cannot narrow down your choices, perhaps you can get additional exposure at a pre tryout camp or with private training.
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