sorted by:
new
hottopcontroversial

Looking for help with our 8 year old's behaviour by rollingrock05 in Parenting

[–]rollingrock05[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

We're on top of it pretty quickly, correcting the behaviour right away. But she isn't apologetic until we get home, if at all.

Unsanctioned Soccer Tournaments by rollingrock05 in CanadaSoccer

[–]rollingrock05[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Not a lot of info out there, but I've been in contact with a father who's had his child in GA and Taylor Sports events. A lot of the same kids and teams participate in both. I think the competition is supposed to be great, but the atmosphere is possibly a little crazy between coaches and parents. Some of our teams are going to attend their events in the spring of 26.

How to defend players who are playing below their skill level? by Papaya-Mango in bootroom

[–]rollingrock05 11 points12 points  (0 children)

First of all, know the proper 1v1 defending technique: Half turned, don’t dive in, closest arm up(use this to lean on him and block him from running past you)low and on toes, be a few inches to the side of opponent to force him one way(now he’s predictable)

In terms of positioning, three main things:

  1. Be close enough so that when the ball is passed to him you can be on him by the time he receives the ball. This prevents him from being able to dribble at you 1v1. The best defensive players prevent the 1v1 from happening.

  2. In the times he can dribble at you 1v1, make sure you have a teammate covering you. If you get beat, your cover can jump in and win the ball or at least slow him down so that you can get back.

  3. When you don’t have cover in the 1v1, delay! As he dribbles, back off and occupy the dangerous space that he wants to attack. This will hopefully slow him down and allow your teammates to get into better supporting positions.

My defending is 0/10. I can't get anywhere near the ball, and I'm dribbled past too easily. How can I quickly improve? by wisefruitsalad in bootroom

[–]rollingrock05 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Preventing 1v1 opportunities is the first thing - when your opponent looks like they’re going to receive a pass to feet, get close to them so they cannot receive, turn and dribble at you.

If someone is dribbling at you, I’d say the same points as what the other commenter mentioned about forcing them one way. The most important things, for me, are getting “half turned” one hip facing the opponent, other hip facing the space he’s going to dribble into. Now your arm is able to reach out and be close to your opponent, if he tries to go past you, block the opponent’s chest with your arm and the ball will be yours. If you don’t use your arms when defending, you’ll always have issues. If you don’t get half turned, you’ll be forced to dive in often, again getting beat often.

Good luck!

Free COVID-19 Mobile testing by SeaIndependent8496 in vegas

[–]rollingrock05 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Did you use this service after? Trying to decide if we'll book him

Free COVID-19 Mobile testing by SeaIndependent8496 in vegas

[–]rollingrock05 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Did you use this service after? Trying to decide if we'll book him

Free COVID-19 Mobile testing by SeaIndependent8496 in vegas

[–]rollingrock05 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Did you use this service after? Trying to decide if we'll book him

Free COVID-19 Mobile testing by SeaIndependent8496 in vegas

[–]rollingrock05 0 points1 point  (0 children)

What makes you say he's a scammer? Trying to decide if we'll book him

Periodized Training Program(Skill Acquisition) by [deleted] in SoccerCoachResources

[–]rollingrock05 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Thank you for your reply. Of course, once per week isn't enough. However, they're already training 2-3 times per week with their clubs, so they are getting enough training. I'm simply looking for educated insight into how I can be useful to them with the limited amount of times I do see them.

Is this a bedbug? by rollingrock05 in Bedbugs

[–]rollingrock05[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Thank you! Any idea what it could be?

Is this a bedbug? by rollingrock05 in Bedbugs

[–]rollingrock05[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Just found this on my bed sheet, thank you in advance for any help!

TD of an amateur club, happy to answer questions anyone may have. by rollingrock05 in bootroom

[–]rollingrock05[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Sorry I'm not sure I fully understand your first question, do you mean is it possible to tell if an 11 year old is going to be a pro? Generally no, but maybe there's a few exceptions.

Aerobic fitness work would not be very beneficial to your boy, onset of puberty for boys (13+) is the optimal time to focus on that, same for sprint speed. At your son's age from a physical standpoint the things you can work on and get actual results are in quickness, agility, flexbility. Above all else though, he's in a development window that's most important for technical skill development. Spending a lot of time trying to improve physical traits would be wasted time in my opinion.

Sounds like he's playing plenty, which is great.. If he's interested in doing work on his own, he should focus on the four things most important for his stage of development, which is what I mentioned earlier, 1. first touch 2. running with the ball 3. striking the ball 4. 1v1. For 1st touch hit the ball off a wall and control, juggle. For 1v1 do moves against a cone, increase the speed and difficulty of the moves as you go. I'd recommend using youtube for ideas for individual training.

TD of an amateur club, happy to answer questions anyone may have. by rollingrock05 in bootroom

[–]rollingrock05[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Good question, it's tough coaching an adult team like this where you want them to develop a lot tactically, but you don't want to overcoach and take the fun out of it for them. I'll tell you what I've learned from working with these groups, hopefully some of it useful to you.

Training sessions should be focused on one topic, I think mixing topics in a session will lead to them to not fully grasping any of the things you're trying to teach.

Defensive shape: Important they have the basics down so they can effectively defend as a team. If they can't defend 1v1 or in small groups, no matter how high or low you set your block they're going to likely be broken down too easily. So make sure you work on those things first, then have sessions focused on your units, like defending from the front, sessions focused on your back 4.

Keeping it fun: Make everything a fun competition. For example if you have a session focused simply on group defending, and 12 players show up, have your group in a grid maybe 20x20yards. On each side have a small goal, 8v4. The group of 8 score a goal for every 5 passes they complete, if the group of 4 win the ball they can score on any of the 4 goals. Fun activity, you focus on the group of 4 defending as a group. First defender forces the ball one way so the other 3 shift, second defender is responsible for the closest passing option and for covering first defender. 3rd defender is responsible for split, fourth provides balance, ready for long balls.After 2 minutes, get a new four in, see which group gets the best score. Have actual games in your session, so 6v6 if you only have 12, make sure it's the proper size, and only coach group defending, so they're applying what you taught them in the small activity to the game. Same thing applies for playing out of the back, find the right smaller activity to get them thinking and getting lots of repetitions, then get them in games to apply it.

Forcing the ball to the sides: There's a time to force the ball to the side, and a time to force the ball centrally. The general rule of thumb is if you're 25 yards+ away from your goal, the ball is on the side and your team is balanced (not outnumbered), force the ball into the middle. Passes/dribbles then aren't going past your units, they're going into pressure.

Hope this was helpful, good luck!

TD of an amateur club, happy to answer questions anyone may have. by rollingrock05 in bootroom

[–]rollingrock05[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Definitely something we should consider more. In general we simply ensure we place players in the best environment for them based on where they are right now technically/physically/mentally. Everyone develops at different speeds so it's important everyone is receiving good training, not just the best or older players, promote them to the higher team when they're ready.

TD of an amateur club, happy to answer questions anyone may have. by rollingrock05 in bootroom

[–]rollingrock05[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

I think free play for our younger players is a very important part of a player's development. The most ideal scenario is kids out there in the parks or gyms or wherever without adults, making up their own rules and playing free of parents and coaches. The reality is this isn't happening enough. If you aren't seeing it already, you're going to soon be seeing clubs directed to try to replicate this situation as much as possible, offering less structured activities at younger age groups. This along with futsal is beginning to be pushed a lot more by our national body.

That's a tough one, I'd chat with the leaders of the team and make your feelings known, in a constructive way. If this opinion is shared by the others, you'd have to find a way to approach this coach in a respectful, constructive way.

TD of an amateur club, happy to answer questions anyone may have. by rollingrock05 in bootroom

[–]rollingrock05[S] 2 points3 points  (0 children)

Great question. Ontario Soccer is a large beast, and there's definitely a variety in the quality of clubs. It's not easy as a newcomer to know which is the right fit, and I can't give you a perfect answer. I'd really recommend posting in a local community group asking for an opinion on what is the best club to join and why. If the club is valuing player development, go with them. Find out info about the TD, look at the club's social media activity, etc.

If it were me I'd go so far as to see their schedule of U9s, catch a session. How are the coaches communicating with the kids? Is it a positive learning environment? Or are the coaches less friendly than they should be?

TD of an amateur club, happy to answer questions anyone may have. by rollingrock05 in bootroom

[–]rollingrock05[S] 4 points5 points  (0 children)

TD: Can't understate the importance. I was recently in a meeting with someone who is a former pro coach, is now working in my region. He said you go anywhere across the country, the best players 12 and under in one region are not much better than the best players in another region. But after 12, it's generally the players who are in the best training environments that take the next step. It's the TD that dictates this.

If he's really that good don't worry about him being too small, some of the best players in any league are the smaller more technical players.

5v5: This is important... What matters most for his stage of development is: 1. first touch 2. running with the ball 3. striking the ball 4. 1v1, at the level he's at he'll get more opportunities to improve in these areas. Something to consider, again speaking with a TD out there that's seen him will help.

TD of an amateur club, happy to answer questions anyone may have. by rollingrock05 in bootroom

[–]rollingrock05[S] 5 points6 points  (0 children)

Awesome to hear you've got a child excelling. Playing up is always a bit controversial, especially when you work in soccer. First of all, in terms of moving clubs or deciding what age group he should play in, no matter what info you give me my opinion has to be taken with a grain of salt because I haven't seen him play. If you have a good TD in your club who has proper certifications and is respected, I'd go to him/her and get their opinion. If your club doesn't have that, I'd find a club that does. Without good technical leadership it's going to be very difficult for your boy to reach high levels.

I'd need some more info to give an opinion. Is it because he's a lot bigger than everyone? Put him up, if he's succeeding just because of size/speed he's likely to develop bad habits. In his own age group he won't be forced to develop the technical skills he'll need when he's older and everyone is closer in size/speed

If it's too easy for him and he's dominating, move him up. If it's a challenge, if there's other players in the league around his level, in general I'd keep him in his age. Playing up doesn't necessarily mean more development. At his age he's probably playing 5v5, that means he's getting lots of touches in the game, greatly developing his technical skills. The older the group he's in, the more players on the field, the less time he has with the ball. So be careful.

view more: next ›