meh
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Post by meh on Sept 12, 2024 8:58:32 GMT -5
My son came to me recently and said he really wants to make his club's ECNL team. He’s in his first season of U13, playing at the lower levels of SCCL. He’s always talked casually about 'going pro' and stuff, but he never seemed super serious about putting in the work until recently.
Over the past few months, that’s changed. He’s spending more time trying to improve, and he's starting to see some results. But the only person giving him advice on what to work on is me, and honestly, I’m worried I’ll lead him in the wrong direction.
Right now, his biggest issue seems to be speed. He’s a little slower compared to others, especially for his position as a winger. He’s got the mental game down (he’s a smart kid), but his body just needs to catch up to the speed of his thinking.
I can’t afford private coaching or anything like that at the moment, so I’m hoping there are good online resources I can point him to. I want him to learn what it takes to be a top athlete—things like diet, training plans he can do at home, etc. Something that makes sense to him and that he can fit into his routine.
I’m not sure how long this burst of determination will last, but I don’t want him to get frustrated by working on the wrong things and feeling like he’s not making progress.
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Post by playfromtheback on Sept 12, 2024 10:30:11 GMT -5
You Tube is great. There are tons of videos on how to improve speed and how to improve soccer fitness. The one thing I would caution you on is that just improving speed will most likely not lead to a jump from lower levels of SCCL to ECNL. I would encourage you to take your son to a home match day and watch that team. Watch their first touch, watch how they are scanning the field, how they know what they want to do with the ball when they get it. Watch how their head is constantly up. Also see how they are moving without the ball, how they keep their shape. Your son may very well be doing some of these things, but i think it would be beneficial to see that
I'm not trying to discourage you but even with the speed of other players if he isn't doing those things he will struggle to make the ECNL team. A good coach will take someone who is doing those things that may be lacking speed over a kid who isn't but has speed.
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meh
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Post by meh on Sept 12, 2024 10:48:24 GMT -5
You Tube is great. There are tons of videos on how to improve speed and how to improve soccer fitness. The one thing I would caution you on is that just improving speed will most likely not lead to a jump from lower levels of SCCL to ECNL. I would encourage you to take your son to a home match day and watch that team. Watch their first touch, watch how they are scanning the field, how they know what they want to do with the ball when they get it. Watch how their head is constantly up. Also see how they are moving without the ball, how they keep their shape. Your son may very well be doing some of these things, but i think it would be beneficial to see that I'm not trying to discourage you but even with the speed of other players if he isn't doing those things he will struggle to make the ECNL team. A good coach will take someone who is doing those things that may be lacking speed over a kid who isn't but has speed. Thanks for the advice! We're usually so busy with his and his sibling's matches that it's tough to make it to other games, but I'll definitely keep an eye out for those opportunities. We do stick around to watch the higher-level teams play at tournaments, and he found that somewhat helpful. Though, to be honest, I don’t think he was fully committed at that point. And no worries about me getting discouraged—I have no specific expectations for him. As a father, I just encourage my kids to set big goals and chase after them. Naturally, I want them to succeed (who wouldn’t?), but my main goal is to give him the knowledge he needs. What he does with that is up to him. As long as he’s trying his best, I’ll be happy. I’m under no illusions about his abilities or how big of a jump it would be from where he is now to where he wants to be. He’s got a lot of room to grow in all areas, but he at least understands what he’s supposed to be doing on the field—scanning, looking for seams, taking only as many touches as necessary. A lot of that came from us watching YouTube videos together, and I recently bought him Dan Blank's *Soccer IQ*, which we’re reading as a family. |
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Post by blu on Sept 12, 2024 14:19:57 GMT -5
12-13 is a weird age for boys soccer, just be warned. Some boys are 6' tall and fully grown while others still have many years before they reach that point.
I would encourage your player to work on touch, game knowledge, and overall fitness. Those are the things that will certainly pay off and they are not overnight transitions.
Some good youtube channels I know my son has watched through the years are Become Elite, GEDFOOTBALL, 7mlc, and Joner Football.
Good luck.
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meh
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Post by meh on Sept 12, 2024 15:00:01 GMT -5
12-13 is a weird age for boys soccer, just be warned. Some boys are 6' tall and fully grown while others still have many years before they reach that point. I would encourage your player to work on touch, game knowledge, and overall fitness. Those are the things that will certainly pay off and they are not overnight transitions. Some good youtube channels I know my son has watched through the years are Become Elite, GEDFOOTBALL, 7mlc, and Joner Football. Good luck. Thank you so much for those YouTube channels and your recommendations on what to focus on. We'll check them out. Yeah...the past year has been comical, at times, with the disparity of where kids are in their growth cycle. Once, there was literally a 12-year-old with a full-blown mustache so thick that would have made Tom Selleck jealous. |
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Post by atlbuster on Sept 12, 2024 15:44:06 GMT -5
At that age, I'd argue that you don't know yet where his best position will be when he matures, so I'd also suggest looking for opportunities that allow him to play in some different positions, especially if he can get some exposure in the middle of the field where he'll be forced to learn to play in a full 360 degrees. That can be tough to do on a club team unless you're vocal about it, but there are also plenty of good affordable options through 3v3 and 5v5 tournaments, as well as futsal. If you can help it, you don't want him to get stuck being, or thinking he is, "just a wing player" at that age - it limits his options going forward. Also, I'd echo what blu said about touch - all you need is a wall or rebounder to work on first touch and it's so, so, so important - and the Joner videos are great. Just my 2 cents.
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Post by soulsurvivin on Sept 12, 2024 15:46:04 GMT -5
The only thing I would add would be to experiment at different positions. Sometimes when one gets up to the top level teams, versatility is key. A winger can also be a good outside back. Essentially everyone on the field can benefit from playing like a midfielder.
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meh
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Post by meh on Sept 13, 2024 14:50:52 GMT -5
Thanks y'all. You've all given a lot of great advice and excellent resources. He loved the YouTube channels you shared with me. Much appreciated.
Winger is a relatively new spot for him (moved up from the backline this season) and was the position he specifically requested to try after experimenting with various positions in the previous year. I think watching the Beckham documentary probably played a part in that as well, as that's the player he idolizes. I hear what you're saying on the mentality. I'll reinforce that he should keep his mind open.
He was in a Futsal academy for about a year (once a week training). Unfortunately, his current club schedule conflicted with Futsal, so that's not an option at the moment. I'm sure he'll want to do the local winter Futsal league again though.
For now, he's got the basic training equipment. Ball, wall, cones, hurdles, ladders, etc... He has a few other things I've picked up over the years (goals, rebounders, volley net, etc.), but those are more for just when we're playing around in the yard.
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Post by Topline Soccer on Sept 18, 2024 11:06:18 GMT -5
Try to get him to join more games. Whether it's guest playing up a level or age group. Even pickup soccer games at the park. More games will give him the experience to make better and better decisions in the game. These better decisions need to be made fast. Even if he's not the fastest, knowing when exactly to release the ball will make him seem faster then just sprint speed.
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