Sioux Falls Soccer Association/Great Plains Soccer Club is family friendly, parent and player driven, and guided by the member teams.

Great Plains Soccer Association is an association of club teams which formed in April, 1996. Our philosophy emphasizes continuous improvement of the individual player. We seek to provide opportunities for players to develop skills, increase their knowledge and understanding of the game, and experience a higher level of competition.

Coaching Philosophy

An article by Hornets Coach Kirk Evensen

"To laugh often and much; to win the respect of intelligent people and the affection of children; to earn the appreciation of honest critics and endure the betrayal of false friends; to appreciate beauty, to find the best in others; to leave the world a little better; whether by a healthy child, a garden patch or a redeemed social condition; to know even one life has breathed easier because you have lived. This is the meaning of success."
-Ralph Waldo Emerson

Why I wrote this paper

In the Spring of 1998 I coached my son’s Under 10 rec team. The team did exceptionally well, but quite often I found that well intentioned parents were providing their sons with instruction that was harming their ability to contribute. Sometimes parents would yell at players during the games (sometimes not even their own son!) simply because they were not aware of what the team’s strategy was on offense and defense. Or because they didn’t understand the fundamentals of offensive or defensive play.

The reason I wrote this paper was so that you - the parent - might better understand what I’m trying to teach your son about the game of soccer. I hope that this paper will remove some of the confusion that my other parents went through, that it will better equip you to help your son do well, and that it will help you to more fully enjoy the beautiful game.

Overview

My approach to coaching is pretty simple and straightforward. It consists of teaching my players the fundamentals of individual and team play, and then using these fundamentals as a stepping stone to helping them learn more advanced skills while continuing to reinforce what they’ve already learned.

During practice I teach a skill by having them play games. Games such as sharks, ghost busters, slalom, keep away, and freeze frame. Kids love to play games, and so this is a very natural way to motivate them. At our matches I work with them on the fundamentals of offense and defense before the match, along with having them work on a couple specific skills during the game.

What I hope that my team will be able to do is (1) have fun and show good sportsmanship, (2) understand and properly execute the basic skills of offense and defense, and (3) be able to respond to whatever is happening during a game more quickly than the other team can react.

Fundamentals of Team Play

On the next page is a flow chart that shows some of the offensive and defensive rules of team play that I will be teaching. I tried writing it out, but a diagram was much clearer.

There are a few things that I’d like to point out about this flow chart. They are controlling the ball, one-on-one defense, and team offense and defense.

In Under 10 it is pretty common to hear parents yell at their son to, "Kick it hard!!". But this is not something that my players will be doing. They will be controlling the ball - not clearing it.

Controlling the ball instead of clearing it is something that you may be uncomfortable with at first. Clearing the ball means that a player kicks the ball to an open area of the field where none of our players are waiting for it. Players should only clear the ball if it’s in our penalty area.

When your son has the ball and he’s suddenly surrounded by 4 boys from the other team your gut reaction will probably be to yell at him to clear the ball. But this is absolutely the last thing he should do. He should continue to try to control the ball until someone is open. Keep in mind that even if an opponent knocks the ball away from your son, he will have accomplished a number of really important things

1. he gave our players time to get into position to receive a pass or to defend,

2. he gave our players time to rest, and

3. he made the other team work to get the ball.

If he clears the ball then just the opposite happens

1. our players didn’t get time to move into position to defend or receive a pass,

2. our players didn’t get time to rest since they now must run across the field to get the ball, and

3. the other team didn’t have to work to get the ball since we probably just passed it (cleared it) to them.

Obviously we want our players controlling the ball, not clearing it.

A second thing to notice in the diagram is what they will be doing on defense. In Under 10 it’s common to hear fans yell at the players to "Get in there and fight for that ball!!". This is the last thing they should be doing.

What they should do on defense is actually pretty simple. They should get into position - between the player with the ball and our goal - and stay there. They will be able to stay in position if they watch the other player’s hips. The reason that this is true is because before someone can move in a certain direction, they first must point their hips in that direction. This means that you can always anticipate where a player will go next, if only you will watch their hips.

I found that this was the most difficult skill to teach. My players eyes would constantly drift down to watch the ball, and when they did the better players were able to use ball movement to get them out of good defensive position so that they could easily dribble by them. Those players who would maintain good defensive position by watching their opponents hips were able to, literally, successfully defend against the very best players from the very best teams in all of South Dakota.

Many teams I have played against require their boys to run to set positions on the field while on offense or defense. I don’t follow this approach.

I believe that there are two critical elements to beating another team. The first is being able to execute solid fundamentals of controlling the ball, dribbling, getting open, passing, shooting, and one-on-one defense. The second is our team’s ability to react to gameplay faster than the other team.

Being able to "get inside" the other team’s decision making loop is a fundamental of all team sports (and of all military doctrine). It’s why there is a fast break in basketball and why the transition game is so important; it’s why tennis players rush the net or work the ball from side to side; it was why Marv Levy had Jim Kelly use the "hurry up" offense at the Buffalo Bills, and it was the guiding principle behind Bill Walsh’s offense with Joe Montana at the San Fransicso 49ers. It’s also why the US military is spending many billions of dollars on advanced electronics and computer systems for command, control and communications.

If our team can react faster than the other team can respond, then we’ll be able to do two things: (1) score lots of goals and (2) run the other team into the ground.

Because of this principle I work with my players on simple rules that they can use to immediately make good decisions for any situation they come across while playing soccer. Some of those rules are found in the previous diagram.

I don’t believe it’s important for players to do the "perfect" thing in every situation – and thus the rules aren’t perfect. I believe that it’s much more important that they are able to immediately react in an appropriate way. Thus the rules are short and simple since team reaction speed will easily overcome - and overwhelm - another team’s taking the time to move into the "correct" positions on the field.

Fundamentals of Individual Play

The purpose for dribbling is to move the ball downfield while keeping the other team from taking it away. Sounds obvious enough, but in order to protect the ball it must be kept as close to the feet as possible - and this is the hard part since kicking the ball will not allow a player to keep it close enough. So how is it possible to dribble if you can’t kick the ball?

If you watch professional players dribble what you will notice (especially if they do the replay in slow motion) is that when they get into traffic they keep the ball close by rolling and guiding it with their feet. Thus, they actually don’t kick the ball, they use their feet to roll and guide it.

What I tell my players to do is to dribble in such a way that they can’t hear their feet hit the ball. In order to do this they have to learn how to roll and guide the ball with their feet. And if they can roll the ball then they can keep it close enough to protect it from their opponents. A player who learns how to roll the ball with their feet is exciting to watch since they will occasionally weave through a half dozen players without losing the ball, and score.

Players should be able to pass the ball with the inside, outside, instep, and front of either foot. The pass should be on target, should get to the other player quickly, and should use over-spin so that the ball stays close to the ground.

A player receiving a pass should treat it as a loose ball. They should never wait for the ball but should always move / run toward it. They should then use their body (foot, chest, upper thigh, forehead) to cushion the ball and control it. An excellent exercise for helping players learn how to trap is juggling.

For some reason this is one of the more difficult skills to teach. Players tend to believe that they are open if they aren’t covered (in other words, nobody is around them). What they have trouble understanding is that being open consists of (1) not being covered and (2) having a passing lane open between them and whoever has the ball.

Players tend to learn this skill pretty quickly. We play a number of games such as sharks that help them gain skill and confidence in their ability to keep the ball away from not just one, but a number of attacking players (and I do mean attacking). Normally players will gain so much skill at controlling the ball that I have to work with the attacking players on their one-on-one defensive skills so that they can actually take the ball away.

Like I said before, this is probably the simplest skill to understand but the most difficult for kids to execute. Given the skill of their opponents all that’s needed to effectively defend is to get into, and then stay in position. Correct position is between whoever has the ball and the goal. To stay in position all a defender needs to do is watch their opponent’s hips since before their opponent can go in a certain direction, they must first point their hips in that direction.

The most common error is in watching the ball, then being moved out of position by the opponent’s ball movement. Second most common is in not shuffling their feet (like a shortstop does) in order to maintain good defensive position. Third most common error is in trying to kick the ball away when the offensive player has good control of the ball (it’s close to their feet). At this level of play there isn’t any need to try to kick the ball away. If they maintain good defensive position then the opposing players will almost always lose control of the ball themselves.

Any guesses as to what the most important skill is? Defense, offense, dribbling, shooting, foot speed, controlling the ball, trapping, passing? Made a guess yet? The most important skill is actually none of these. But it’s the one skill that allowed a small, skinny, slow hockey player to become the Great Gretzky. Or that allowed a tall, skinny, slow, "can’t jump over a phone book" basketball player by the name of Larry Bird to become a Hall of Famer.

Figured it out yet? It’s a player’s ability to think. It starts with understanding the fundamentals and how to properly execute them. The next step is being able to apply those fundamentals in a game, and being able to recognize when you aren’t. After that comes the ability to recognize what the other team is doing, and to anticipate where the ball is going to be.

Anticipation is the one skill that made Gretzky great. Being able to read the court is what allowed a slow player like Larry Bird to be in position on offense and defense, and to get the ball to the right guy. It’s also what Pele attributed his success to - he said that he was successful because he was better at figuring out where the ball was going to be, and then he simply went to that spot.

So if you wonder why I spend so much time during games and practices asking my players so many questions, now you know. I’m trying to help them to learn to think. To understand why they are playing well, or not playing so well. To help them begin to develop skill at anticipating where the ball will be. And then to be able to execute once they get to it.

Some Tips for what to Yell (Cheer) at Games

At this point you’re probably wondering what you should yell at games - or even if you should. I’d like to encourage everyone who comes to the games to cheer for the team, and to cheer for your son. In fact, feel free to bring whatever noise makers you wish to games (cow bells, drums, whistles). However, I’d like to point out something I learned last year, and some suggestions for how to cheer.

When I went to the coaches clinic last year I was told that I shouldn’t coach from the sidelines, and that I shouldn’t say anything to the players about their performance while they were playing. This is easier said than done. Given that I had very little time to work with my players I felt that I needed to use game time to coach.

However, I also found that every time I yelled at a player for slacking off, I regretted it. I didn’t regret it because I believe that these boys have porcelain egos that will be shattered because of one negative word they heard from me. Most kids are much more resilient than that.

I regretted yelling at my players about their performance because every time I did I later discovered that I was wrong. Once I began to look a little deeper I found that the player was actually trying as hard as they could.

Here are some reasons why it looked like they weren’t trying when they actually were: (1) they were sick, (2) they were injured, (3) they were doing exactly what I told them to do, (4) they were confused, (5) they were bored with playing the same position forever, (6) they were tired, hot, and overworked, and (7) they were afraid of failing.

I found it really amazing that not once did I come across a player who wasn’t trying to do their very best at all times. Not once. So I learned my lesson - I never yell at my players about their performance. I just try to understand why they aren’t doing what I think they should be doing.

So, what suggestions do I have for cheering?

1. Take it on faith that the players (this includes your son!) are doing their very best at all times. It may take an "act of God" to get our sons to take out the garbage, but when they are playing soccer they actually are trying very hard to do their very best.

Thus I’d like to encourage cheers such as

Nice job!

Way to hustle!

Good pass!

Nice shot!

Way to get open!

Nice trap!

Way to control the ball!

Nice dribble!

Great defense, Jim!

Way to play the player, Tom!

And I’d like to discourage cheers such as

Come on Jim, hustle!

Run, Sammy, Run! (players should make certain they’re in position, and work hard to maintain their position, but most of the time they shouldn’t be running)

Andy, get in there and fight for that ball! (Andy was playing his position as left midfielder and the parent didn’t understand. Andy actually ended up with the ball, but only because he maintained his position supporting the left forward.)

Come on and hustle! They’re hardly trying and they’re still beating you guys! (I heard a coach say that to his players – pretty sad. Especially considering that his players were running and working so hard that they had sweat rolling down their faces. The problem was with the coaching - not the effort or desire of his players.)

2. Please don’t coach your son while he is on the playing field during a game.

I do a good enough job of confusing the players already. Mixing in other people’s coaching during the game will just confuse them that much more – plus you might not always understand what the team defensive or offensive strategy is (sometimes I’m making it up as I go!).

If you have any thoughts, tips, or suggestions please feel free to share them with me during the game. I certainly haven’t cornered the market on good ideas, and any that you have could really make a positive difference in terms of performance or sportsmanship.

During this past year it was quite common for a parent or older sibling (or my wife!) to suggest something to me that I would immediately put into practice. Or to point out that it looked like their son needed a rest break, or was injured. All suggestions are appreciated.

In fact, one tip that I got from an older sibling during the state soccer tournament was immediately turned into an unassisted goal against Watertown. His brother was left footed and so his shots would curve from left to right. He suggested I have his brother make the corner kicks from the right side. About a minute later I had him take the right corner kick and he hooked it in for an unassisted goal.

3. Please don’t ride the referee during the game.

Most of them are young players (14-16) who are doing their best. The only thing I worry about is if they don’t call fouls closely enough and our players start to take a few too many tumbles.

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