Over the last four weeks (and after having been training for 18 years), I have noticed some very concerning environments. It worries me as a coach, parent, and independent observer to have witnessed high-level, mid-level, and grassroots academies constantly being told “it’s getting better.”
I have seen some good examples of well-intentioned people managing safety while giving responsibility to young people. It is not easy to do. The other thing that is not easy to do is manage the adrenaline and the feelings. We all want our own children to do well. That’s a fact. Whether it’s homework, modeling, swimming or soccer. From the above, however, how do people change their methods? In which would an adult change his mind?
The game is exciting – Reality. People visit stadiums, watch adults, complain about refereeing decisions and complain all week if our supported teams lose. To the point of becoming almost like Piers Morgan. There is a clear difference however. The people you yell at, cheer on, and lament are indeed adults. They can cope in adult environments under pressure. The best ones can even block them and take action. It requires years of practice. Playing in the Champions League for millions of pounds is one thing, playing in front of 30 people on an artificial turf pitch 5v5 is quite another.
The two environments are not linked. They are not replicas. Children with their imagination will mentally try to visit and dream of said stadium. This is all the pressure they need.
We’re missing a big trick. The street and the patio that we talked about while we played and pretended to be Gazza or Maradona was our pressure. The next defender is pressure. The ultimate gas saver is pressure.
Unfortunately, the following is additional pressure for young people:
· Make the kids play in fixed positions – most who have played will tell you – you don’t end up playing in the same one for very long.
· Shouting things like “don’t play with that in your box, throw it away, clean it up, pass it on, go ahead” and so on. Things said from my last 4 weeks up to 25 times in an hour by one adult to 1-5 children. Confusion and stress.
· Spectators shouting “taqueallo, step-step-step, deep inside.” It’s been done for years, I know I played, but it’s no use.
· A parent yelling “tackle” is also a motivation for increased aggression. Was the boy going to board anyway? Probably.
Good players can’t play – they take on young team managers going man for man, even 2 players marking them but not managed by kids, just so the adult can win.
· I have witnessed excessive fouling by young players who, instead of shaking hands and picking up the kids, laugh because “attack” has been over-emphasized. Just wait until the block spell is at a good level (if they wield it without technique or skill, probably not), the block will turn into a chase as players will either dance around it or play through it.
Do you want your child to play and enjoy and be good and win at 15, 16 and beyond? I’m sure the answer is yes. So you need to stop now and think. The u7-9 age groups are key to the following to make them good 16 year olds:
· Freedom to try things – 1v1 moves without fear of losing the ball, playing from the goalkeeper and dribbling anywhere on the pitch.
· Remember that the 5v5 field is only a quarter of a full size field. Whatever he does in front of his own goal, he’ll do across the room when he’s older. If they just clear the ball now, they won’t notice anything different.
· Scores should not be recorded. In my opinion, any league that asks for scores for u7-14 games is failing the kids. It makes adults record them and makes them take short cuts in development. It does not make any sense.
· Trophies and Man of the Match Awards – Rarely have I seen an award given for a good series of spins, skills and technicals. I hear a lot of “brave, hard-working, and even it’s… it’s this week’s turn. What’s the point? Again, an adult idea for some weird reason, not the kid’s idea (untainted beginner).
· Do not comment on children who exhibit and force them to pass: many skills are lost, not only to face players: agility, acceleration and deceleration, movement, awareness, touch and use of both feet, use of different parts of the foot etc by not allowing dribbles and own decisions you are stopping all round sports development of children.
The best game environments I have seen are the following:
· The children arrive, shake hands with the coaches.
Wardrobe: random selection, age group pairing, no birth bias, let kids choose their outfits, get ready together if possible for social reasons
A little talk from the coaches: Besides “have fun, be an exciting player, can you think about how to improve while you play?”.
· No training organization – let it happen. The children will change their position, but they will know that they can move anywhere on the field. I often hear “be the defenders and don’t go over half the pitch”. You can also say not to play.
Never say things like “do a job or work hard” it’s not a chore, it’s a fun game
Questions are asked only at intervals, what if? How could you? If that happens, what should we do? Scenario planning.
· Do not say anything to them while playing. They will communicate if allowed anyway. They will communicate like other 7-year-olds do. Somehow they understand. Saying things during the game is one of the worst things any coach or parent can do, adding to the pressure, stifling creativity and decision-making, and leading to panic over the results.
· Is a referee needed? Or just a facilitator who manages security? The latter is fine. If we encourage honesty and fair play and set good guidelines, it works.
· Certain rules – allow dribbles, futsal passes – why do we encourage throw-ins with young children? Mingle.
Parents’ comments: are they encouraging? If I’m a goalkeeper and I stop a certain scoring opportunity, I just saved it. I am happy in myself as I was. I already know or I even anticipated it. Why then do I need a “big save” chorus since it probably wasn’t a big save but an achievement of myself and my team? Debatable?
If you have 4 outfield players, instead of saying “let’s play 2 defenders, 1 midfielder and 1 forward”, ask the kids. They’ll come up with some wonderful concoctions and then they could go and play that way or go and follow the ball. The ball, you must remember, is the real reason we play the game from a young age. This changes a bit over time as we barely spend time with him working on tactics as we get older and play a higher level. There is absolutely nothing wrong with children wanting the ball. There is nothing wrong with encouraging dribbling. They will lose the ball. That’s when the next player gets a turn. Too many are ramming passes and dumping the ball down kids’ throats. Let’s put his techniques into practice and then worry about winning later.
I’ve seen 4 weeks of games lately and I still haven’t seen any kids that have played in goal get off their line yet. Why aren’t children taught the whole game? Once again, the instruction of the adults is not that of intelligence but more of aggression and the spirit of Dunkirk.
Faced with so much frustration, a grandfather told his grandson to just kick the field “he might as well be there so they don’t score.”
I have also seen an increase in aspiring match reporters. They also talk about scores, winning, etc. Fortunately, the team my son started playing for does not promote this. The kids don’t know the sheet music. They keep playing after the game. They have the social and psychological corners taken care of. They are answering questions and behaving in a nice way. They’re playing. An opposition coach said his team had won ‘again’ 11-7 (I think). He told his player that they didn’t know, of course. Then the MOM award was presented to applause from the parents. My children’s team, fortunately, continued to play against each other in a goal while still smiling. None asked “why don’t they give us a medal?” This particular game, whatever the score, was full of “pass, pass, down the line”, but a goal was scored from a dribble without the player listening. Good job, actually you didn’t. “We won” said the coach; the other team had shared the same playing time and eliminated the two best players without worrying about the score. They changed the goalkeeper 3 times. The children had fun. This information was not taken into account by the ‘coach’, since many only live from the final result, not from the process. They don’t see the potential of a 16-year-old.
I write this with a great passion for developing young players. I’ve seen some great kids thrive in the last 10 years and sadly I’ve seen some with great potential get screwed over by coaches. Trainers that aren’t really putting themselves in the boots of the kids.
Compare the smile with the serious and pressed face and I know which identification I prefer to see.
