Success over the 11/12 season at JIYSC with the U9 Hurricanes and Stingers

The winners of the SCYS Fall Festival. The JIYSC Hurricanes Select - Here is the link to the standings It was a very fun weekend. The kids needed to be in the Academy division, but we didn't know that before going. This was our first tournament of the year. We scored 45 goals and only allowed 3 in 5 total games. Yup, thats right.

I am trying to find a pic of the James Island Cup. The Hurricanes lost in the semifinals to the MT. P Water Mocs. It was a shootout and we lost by one goal. This was a heart breaker, but a lesson lear

ned in focus. We were up 3-1 with 5 minutes left.

Over the winter, I picked up a new team, the JIYSC Stingers, another U9 team.  We moved some players around and put them with boys that would be moving up or staying the in the same age group in Fall '12. We went to a couple of 3v3 tournys and did pretty well. The Hurricanes placed 2nd in the North Charleston 3v3 after losing to a bunch of young ladies from Mt. P. They took that pretty hard. All the girls were huge compared to my guys. They pushed a lot. I told my boys to stop crying and push back. The Stingers got man handled by a NASA team and took a little time to get used to the 3v3 game. They ended up placing 3rd in the tourny. Our next 3v3 was in Hilton Head. Both teams were placed in the same group. The Stingers lost in the 3rd place game to those NASA boys again, while the Hurricanes made second place.

These are the Hurricanes 3v3 Select. I will try to find some pics of the Stingers and add them.

Over the Winter, we also played Futsal. We finished in 4th place, but that wasn't important. It was all about developing skills and relationships. The Futsal season helped these boys really understand how important it is to practice your footwork.  

Next we had the JI Soccer Festival. The Hurricanes had an amazing shootout in which Nathan Leader made to great saves. The shootout was to determine which team would go on to the semifinals to face...The Stingers, of course! There were approx 150 people around the field watching the young men go through the grueling kicks from the mark. The tension was high and so was the excitement. Each goal, save, or miss enduced a loud response from the crowd. It was really a memorable experience. So after the emotion of the shootout, the boys had just a few minutes to get ready for their game against the high flying, high scoring Stingers. Unable to coach  both teams, I had help from Coach Andrew Guinn with the Hurricanes. The Stingers put a hurtin' on the Hurricanes. I did my best to limit the damage, but kids are kids...they see a goal and they kick at it. After the game the boys all got together for a few pics and tried to move on from the intense game. After all, this was the beginning of the Spring season. And these boys were about to practice, train, and play together for the next 4 months.

The Stingers lost to arch-rivals DISA in the final. The first of several Final encounters with the team from DI.

Next tourny was in Columbia for St. Patty's Day. This time it was only the Stingers Select that went to play.

We went to win and that we did. In fine style, too. We played some great teams from across the Southeast. The best part of the weekend was the performance of the boys. They were amazing. The conviction they displayed was altogether impressive. They knew they were going to come home with the Championship.

In March, we played back to back tournaments for the Stingers. They met up with the DISA boys again in the final and lost. IT was a tough one, as the Hurricanes were also in the final of their group...at the same time. I had to pick my son's team. Had to. It was hard, but I believed in the Stingers and knew that they would do a great job. The Hurricanes played against a SCU-MP team that the Stingers had beaten on St. Patty's day the week before. Those boys dropped a division and ran into my other squad...and lost again. I was extremely proud of the Hurricanes for beating a team that tried to take the easy route to victory. The Hurricanes won 5-2.

The Kohl's Amercan Cup was in April. Both teams competed. The Hurricanes played up a division. They came out flat on Saturday, but ended the tournament with an amazing game on Sunday. The boys pulled out a 2-1 win with every last player giving their very most. They truly left it out on the field. Pics to come...

I am so proud of my Stingers. They ended the State Cup tied for 1st place, but kept out of the final by goal differential. These young men put together some fantastcially remarkable plays. Very proud coach. I lost my voice this weekend. So pumped up and excited for the boys. Next year, we win it all!!!

Our last tourny was in Myrtle Beach at the Coast Spring Classic. After an absolutely thrilling semifinal game that went into overtime, we had to play...guess who....yup, DISA!!!! Dang-it. And we lost again. I don't want to use them as our measuring stick, but they have definitely become our Achilles' Heel.

                               

James Island Soccer Festival

This past weekend was the JISF. It was two fantastic and exciting days of soccer from dawn to dusk. Coaching two u9 boys teams in the same division as well as filling in for another coach meant that I was busy every minute of each day. I barely got a chance to see any other matches. I heard that we represented well though. I know that many of the JIYSC teams got to the finals in their respective divisions. I'm just not sure how they all did yet.
My two u9 teams were supposed to play in two separate divisions. But due to lack of teams, they were thrown in the mix together. I figured it would be good experience for the younger group. I really wasn't sure who the competition was aside from the one local team, DISA.
When we started the games, it was evident that the older Stingers were in a much easier group than the Hurricanes. They racked up 17 goals for with 2 against in two games.
The Hurricanes had two very tough games. Drawing 6-6 and losing 5-3, we thought they were done and not moving on. However, they were tied all across the board with a team from Liberty Point SC. So this meant that on Sun morning, kicks from the mark would be needed to determine who would move on to the semifinal.  The boys arrived at the field and were
very nervous and excited to get started. I found myself feeling the butterflies flapping around in my stomach. I even had to run to the bathroom a few times while the boys took practice shots.  All the boys were hitting good shots, stretching our keeper out and forcing him to make great saves. 10am came and it was time to get going. We went 11 rounds that saw 5 saves by our keeper and a few chances for redemption for a couple of the kick takers. The crowd swelled to at least 150 onlookers. It was a very memorable.moment for me and my boys for sure. Their faces were priceless as they looked around to see all the parents, refs, coaches, and other teams cheering for the well struck goals and great saves. I don't think I will ever forget the look of my keeper. He was so steely and laser-focused for his age. The boys let the pressure roll off them like water from a duck's back. And they won!
So after all that emotion, the highs and the lows...they had to immediately play the semifinal game....against my other team. Yup...so what do I do?
Lucky for me and the kids, our coaching staff at JIYSC is awesome and my friend Andrew offered to help me with my dilemma. Of course I still found myself coaching both squads a little bit. The Stingers went on to win.the match. And there were definitely some hard feelings on the losing side. But as I always tell my teams, win or lose - its about the experience, and we can always learn something to help us grow.
In the final, the Stingers lost 3-2. It was a frustrating loss. We gave up two goals off of free kicks. We dominated the match but couldn't find the net enough times to win. But second place ain't that bad now, is it?!
At the end of the weekend, the great highs and awesome experiences trumped the low moments. This was just the start of a long Spring soccer season. With 4 more tourneys to go, as well as the league play, the memories will surely start to pile up. I will try to relay those as they happen.

Getting the creative bug again

So its been awhile since Ive been on to write. No excuses. Just didn't feel like it for a while. I am coaching two U9 teams right now and they have got my creative juices flowing. It is a lot of work trying to come up with age/focus specific training to get them ready for the season ahead. With one team playing division 1 and the other in 3, the pressure is on to be successful. So I think that I may start sharing my practice plans, what worked and what didn't and try to find corresponding youtube videos to post.

This week I introduced two new games/drills to the teams:

The first one is Flying Changes. Both teams loved the fast play and the quick transition from Attack to Defense. The D1 team, the Stingers, took to this drill with a little confusion at first. But a few minutes in and you could see the boys learning to make the most of a numerical advantage and attack with speed. It became very exciting and the results were very good.  With this drill I am hoping to see even better accuracy with angled passing into space to beat the defenders as well as learning to quickly transition from the attacker to defender. This is something that both teams need to do better. Over the next few weeks, I know they will improve.

The next drill that we introduced was 2v2+4.

This drill started with no goals in the middle and just free play. The goal was to make 10 consecutive passes. This worked very well. Once the boys got in the groove, the movement off and on the ball was very positive. One thing that the boys must do better with is making quicker decisions on the ball; identifying when to shoot, dribble, pass, or shield.

As I was looking on youtube for some examples, I have found a a wonderful resource in the many great intructional uploads by YSC/Philadelphia Union. I just hope that the vids remain available as I may just invite my players and their parents to watch them and learn by example as well as by doing the physical work.

STATE CUP FEVER

Ten teams from around the state will be competing for the title of Men's Division 1 State Cup Champions. And of course, my team will be represented by a strong, capable lineup come Saturday. We are going in to win. Anything less will be disappointing. Hopefully we will come home with the title.

Positive Mentality and Living 2-Seconds Ahead

One thing I learned from a very good coach I had once a long time ago...he said that in order to play good soccer, you must maintain a positive attitude. Some times when stuff goes wrong in a game...like a bad trap or pass, missing a wide open net, or any other mishap that can have you second guessing yourself or worse, drawing the criticism of your mates. I learned that you have to let that negative moment go. Let it leave your mind. And make sure that you exercise positive self-talk and that your next touch is a better one. Because if you focus on the mistake, your next touch will be poor, and most likely the one after that...which may send you into a downward spiral and will ultimately lead to your butt getting pulled from the game.

So you say that it's tough sometimes to get past a blunder. Sure, that's true sometimes. But Coach had that answer for that as well. He said to "split your focus in game situations into two parts. It will be an 80/20 split. The 20% will be "living in the moment", allowing you to be aware of your surroundings and remembering to breathe and all that simple stuff." Coach stated that the 20% was comprised of the things that you worked on in practice. "In practice you develop your fitness, ball skills, passing ability, technique, and the muscle memory that will carry you through the match. These things are embedded within your subconscience.", Coach would say.

"The most important 80% is what is going to make you a winning member of a winning team. This portion of your focus is going to allow you to be the machine out there on the pitch. It is going to keep you from getting too emotional when times get tough." What he said next was that "Your mind has to be aware. You must be 2-Seconds ahead of the match at all times. You have to be alert to your options for ball distribution. You must know where your opponent's weaknesses are and exploit them. You need to be living in the future. And the future was always changing. You have to adapt constantly."

"Coach, I sorta get what your saying. But how does this all tie-in to the positive mentality thing you started talking about?"

"Well, when you make a mistake, your gut reaction is to feel bad. If you dwell on that moment, you are living in the past. If you are living in the past, the game runs away from you for a little bit. You will have to play catch-up. If you linger too long in the past, the game will run away from you entirely. So it is simple. You always live 2-seconds ahead of the game. If you do so, you will stay mentally strong. Your body will do what it has practiced. It is okay for it to not work correctly sometimes, it is human. But your mind must work like a machine: Constantly working by always analyzing the field and opponent.  And just to be clear, I don't mind at all (in fact I do encourage this) if you feel like a little bit of time travel is necessary in order to acknowledge your teammates' good plays or even their mistakes, as long as you are positive in doing so."

So as the no-see-ums and mosquitos descended upon our team during Coach's lecture, we got up to play our game. 11 machines on the field. Working hard together to win the game. Staying positive. Doing our best to heed his advice.

And I think his speech is WAAAAAAYYYYYY better than this guys speech. But who's judging?

A Team On The Skid.......

Our team has got to rise up and take a new form to find success this season.  With two losses and a tie from our first three games, we find ourselves asking many questions of each other and of our own ability. I read somewhere, some time ago, that smooth seas do not make skillful sailors. In other words, when facing adversity, remember that a kite rises against the wind. And in even better words, "You may not realize it when it happens, but a kick in the teeth may be the best thing in the world for you." -Walt Disney

With only minor changes to the team, which consist of three new players on the roster, it seems very odd to be experiencing such a negative slide in the standings. It seems like we have forgotten how to play smart soccer. With players running the same routes, therefore occupying the same space and others getting pulled out of position...it is easy for our opponents to take advantage of our weaknesses.

Last night, we had a very good turnout for a scrimmage against a local High School team. The team we played against was not a challenge at all, and we knew that going in. It was intended to be  "coaching-game" set up to help out the kids and coach before their season started. But what the night turned out to be was a great time to kick the ball around with the boys and just have some fun. No pressure. Just solid hard work.
We tried out a new formation that everyone saw great promise in. I have referred to it in a previous post, the 3-6-1.  With the focus shared between flooding the midfield with options and encouraging strong wing-play, the 3-6-1 enhances our strengths and forces us to play a style of soccer that you just don't see within our league very much. However, our last defeat came to a team that utilized that wings extremely well. And that got me thinking about imposing this style again. I had mentioned it once or twice to the guys and received glazed over looks and mutterings about 4-4-2's and this and that in grumbled tones. But after 3 games without a system. We have to do something more composed and organized to achieve our desired 3 pts.

Most importantly, we have to stay positive. Much too often I have seen great teams fall to pieces in the tougher times. With the frustration building, it gets easy to point fingers. The blame game gets revved up and can easily dismantle a good solid team quicker than Greased Lightning. And I am not talking about the fixer-upper turned sick ride from my first grade girlfriend's favorite movie that I was forced to watch about 100 times (and sing along to as well...I still know all the words...stop laughing now).