Red and white coaches were impressed by the Positive Coaching Alliance program they recently attended through NISL.  They recommended that we adopt the program ASAP as a basic vision for our club.  Even though Don McBride has taken it before he re registered to brush up.  See more information by clicking the link above to see a 1 minute  PCA Video.  

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We need a volunteer to merge in tools like this above from the Positive Coaching Alliance website and the text in of our Philosophy and policies below.  Preferably somebody from the U10 or Girls team so this can be a club wide philosophy.  If you are interested please contact Jim E or Don M

The Challenger’s Approach to Soccer and Philosophy

The following draft is a work in progress authored by Don Mc Bride the founder of the Challengers program with sections added by Jim Ensign

The Challengers is a soccer club run by parents for their children.  It is led by parents who are dedicated to providing a competitive soccer experience for their children while retaining control of the level of commitment in terms of time, travel, and money.

It is made up of volunteer parents with good soccer experience and good management skills.  All of these volunteers contribute large amounts of time while trying to balance career and family obligations.  The Challengers is not their primary concern; however, a concerted effort is made to keep the program at a par with larger professionally trained clubs.   With open communication between coaches, managers, and parents, a conservative balance is sought regarding

-         practice frequency, times, durations, and locations

-         game times, locations

-         tournaments entered

-         trainers (parent and/or professional)

-         uniform and equipment

-         overall cost

This balance is arrived at by coach/manager/parent discussions.  It often involves voting, but also a lot of responsibility is placed on individuals to do the right thing for the team.  While it is difficult for everyone to agree on each item because each family has their own respected view of how much soccer to put in front of their kid,  recommendations from the team leaders are often followed while concerns of individual parties are weighed in the balance.   In summary, there is constant monitoring of the balance between

-         presenting a competitive environment for the children to learn and improve their soccer skills as individuals and

-         over extending the children such that they get burned out or for whatever reason do not want to play the following season. 

We would prefer to error on the side of too little of the former, preferring to have our young children hungry for more, rather than overwhelmed by too much.

As such, it is important to set out expectations.  Everyone has expectations. Kids want to have fun, play in the games, win, score goals, play fun games at practice, and meet friends.  Parents want their kids to have all that and improve as soccer players under a reasonable level of commitment (time, travel, money).  Coaches want the kids to arrive on time, to behave and pay attention at practice and games and want them to provide good physical and mental effort.

Here are some general guidelines:

1. General: This is not an intense travel team.  This is also not a recreational team.  It is something in between.    The intention is to make this a positive and fun environment.  Nevertheless, there are certain sacrifices that must be made in this effort such as physical conditioning, repetitive practice of skills, playing in hot, cold, and wet weather,  travel and other miscellaneous expenses.  While the coaches would prefer not to raise their voice, kids will be yelled at and/or disciplined when they are not behaving or in general responding as the coaches think they should.  There should never be any bad language by kids or especially coaches.  Needless to say, no physical contact will be tolerated between coach and player for disciplinary reasons.   Every effort should be made for comments to players and coaches and referees to be positive and not sarcastic.  Coaches will strive to conform to the Positive Coaching Alliance principles (see www.nisl.info for more information).  Coaches/Managers/Parents are human and are also under a little extra stress due to this commitment.  Tolerance of infrequent exceptions should be considered.  Patterns should be addressed.

2. Playing Time: Every kid and parent wants to play as much as they physically can.  However, rarely is this possible. There are also favorite positions and less favorite positions.   Again, a balance must be struck with regard to playing time and the positions.  At the most objective level, everyone would play equally and at all positions in time and thus for U9s, game time (60 minutes) X number of players on the field (8) divided by the number of players is what each child should play.  For example, with 10 players this is 48/60 minutes.  With 12 players, this is 40/60 minutes.  Even something so simple is hard to do given all the variables of timing of substitutions, tired players, injuries, goalie duties.  We do not guarantee equal time; however, we also do not promote stars to be awarded an extraordinary amount of game time.  Balance is sought.  Winning is desirable, but not at the cost of some kids not getting their “fair share” of playing time.  League rules state every kid should play at least half the game and this will be obeyed.  It should not even be close.  There are many things to consider (not in order). 

   1. How well the kids are playing

   2. Team chemistry (did we get a combination of players that is working)

   3. Assessment of player effort (is someone dogging it)

   4. Conditioning

   5. Skills (does a player have the abilities to play a position like Center Half)

   6. Medical Conditions

   7. Practice history

   8. Game history

Other thoughts

1.      If there is a substitute, no player should play the whole game

2.      Players that raise their hands to come out will be taken out

3.      In the example with 10 players, a satisfactory mix would be some players 42 minutes while other players 54 minutes

4.      Goalies should be rewarded extra time because they do not exert themselves as do field players

5.      Every effort should be made to mix players on offense and defense.  No pigeon-holing a player of this age as a defensive expert of offense only.  We want to develop well-rounded soccer players.

6.      Some players struggle at certain positions and it is not in the team’s best interest to teach a position during a game.  As an example, teaching defense during a game against a strong team can determine the outcome of the game.  No one feels good about this.  If a player wants to play a position, a plan should be put in place to gradually get the player to the point where they can play it in a game.

7.      All players should get a chance to be captain and to start games.  Starting may not be equal over the course of a year, but every kid should have the chance to start.

3. Coaching:  Soccer is a players game.  The vision is that someday the kids need no coaching from the sidelines.  Coaching should be done at practice. Games are a test.  Like school, teachers don’t coach during a test, it is up to the students to make their own decisions and the results speak for their competency.  The same is true for soccer.   However, some  positive coaching is beneficial to the team and individual players in some situations. This should be left to the coaches.  Parents with their best intentions may be doing the team a disservice by shouting directions that at best confuse the player and at worst contradict what the player has been taught or the coach is trying to convey.  Referees should be left alone, especially young ones.  Team coaching can best be done with some ground rules that help 2 or more coaches share the field with in harmony.  We have found the premier teaching methods  at this link very helpful.  Additional resources available on our page.

 Practice Outline:

1.      Favorite Drill/game to get players to practice on time

2.      Conditioning (done each practice and done early to calm them down)

3.      Ball skills

4.      Movement Drill

5.      Fun game

6.      Practice Theme Drill

7.      Drill Use in game-like situation

8.      Witness theme/movement/ball skills in scrimmage, point out positive and missed opportunities

Year-long objectives Outline

·        Two Defensive tactics learned (e.g. deny the middle, clear wide, back each other up, no over commitment, quick transition)

·        Two Offensive tactics learned (e.g. diagonal pass, triangles, support from behind, possession, quick transition)

·        Two Moves learned well

·        Fifteen juggles

·        Improved foot speed

·        Good positioning habits

Red and White Roster changes Policy

(added 3/14/07.  Some of this text needs to be re-organized under the topics above)

The Challengers Red and White Volunteer Staff have volunteered dozens of hours to discuss scenarios.  Out of that we are summarizing the strategies and policies that promote the club’s goals.  It is hoped that these philosophies will help generate more positive experiences as our Challengers Community continues to Grow.

We know that everybody has an interest in what their teams’ roster will look like.  However seeking a consensus of 2 dozen families is impractical and historically would have violated individual people’s requests for discretion and privacy.  Therefore it is impractical for us to directly seek council of less directly involved parents during roster talks.  These decisions will fall to the individual families involved and the coaches.

We have also observed that this all looked much less complicated the less we knew.  The more we learned about roster changes the less exciting it has become.  I can say that none of the coaches enjoy roster change discussions.  So be careful what you wish for… next season you may be appointed to handle these tough decisions and face the consequences or rewards of your decisions.  However, you can rest assured that as true sideline leaders we would fully support your well intended decisions.

General Comments:

This is a very social Soccer Club. Primarily we are about having fun with our soccer while providing appropriate travel soccer competition and quality training. We all want our children to go as far in sports and in life as possible but in reality few youth athletes stick with sports long enough to make it to the professional level.  When surveyed many professional athletes did not join their sports before high school while many of the child prodigies quit their sport young.  Youth sports foundations stress that the sport must be fun.  Militant practices and undue parental focus on wins and losses lead to stress which causes many gifted athletes to quit their game every year.  While it’s is uncomfortable to admit, this is primarily a social club. If we ignore the bonds of friendship we will loose players.  To that end we endorse the Positive Coaching Program and encourage parents to read up on their roll in that program.  Be just a little less concerned than your child about trophies, records and rankings.  Here is what you can do to help:  Be happy on the way to and from the games.  Know it or not, your child probably plays soccer more because they seek the quality time with you their parent.  They crave the quality undistracted time with you in the car.  A great car ride to the game yields a happy kid ready to tackle the world in the game.  Use that time to build their childhood memories and your parent-child bond.  During the game cheer for both teams in a positive way and remember to laugh and smile.  Avoid criticizing the players, coaches and officials.  Greet everybody with a smile and you can’t help but be happy.  Regardless of natural ability and training, happy players are the only ones that will stick with sports long enough to reach their potential.

Respect for the volunteering’.  Most clubs are organized with the added pressures of profit or sacrificing services for financial pressures.  A key benefit to the challengers is that by design we are almost immune to those pressures.  For us we work on a philosophy of listening, working towards consensus and keeping the kids needs paramount.  We focus on your kids rather than how it affects the top guy’s paycheck.  Some higher maintenance families prefer to pay for the right to influence agendas however they choose.  These families should seek better matched options for soccer outside of the challengers Soccer Club where their money talks. This is a volunteer club that depends on every parent’s contribution.  Still some team leaders will always bear the largest weight of responsibility.  Most parents discount or forget that behind the scenes items consume dozens of volunteer hours every week. We all will get excited if our child is slighted playing time or if a team looses.  Usually the coaches want the piece of mind of hearing your opinion.  At the same time, out of respect for a volunteer’s time all parents are asked to support these volunteer leaders by following some guidelines. 

a.       Please review our WRITTEN philosophies and self screen your comments accordingly.  Avoid suggesting self serving solutions that violate our policies.  Because we respect you, our history is to take every parent comment seriously.  Sometimes a pair of "off the cuff parent remarks" have required a dozens volunteer hours of conference calls where we attempt to rectify a faulty assumption.   Please do gently remind each other when we have lost sight of our philosophies.  Your early comments have helped keep us on the right path several times.  Please do have some patience with coaches overly passionate spur-of-the-moment decisions but at the same time help us notice and correct poor behavior patterns.

b.      Whenever comfortable, please take your discussion to a private one on one discussion directly to the person involved.  Often its best to wait until tomorrow and give the person a call.  If the situation is uncomfortable, you are welcome to take your issue to another volunteer leader.  However, they might choose to just guiding you on how to best present your issue through the correct channel.   Being tactful and non- accusatory will help keep us focused on the policy or the behavior not the isolated individual or the past circumstance.  Avoiding taking your issue to third parties 1^st promotes club harmony rather than discord and saves everybody lots of time.

c.       Coaches generally volunteer because they love to Coach.  While some dream of praise and future championships none fantasize about being targeted by your angry lynch mob. Nobody volunteers because they want to compose long emails defending their integrity, spend hours on conference calls or deal with disgruntled parents.  The sad truth is that valuable coaches who love coaching are forced to quit coaching when the time commitments of clerical and non-essential 9-5 issues encroach on their primary responsibilities.  On the other hand, coaches are energized by a trusting and supportive group of parents and players.  It is amazing how much parents with a trusting team spirit can save coaches time away from the field.  We are not suggesting you to look the other way, we are begging you to never assume the worst and to exercise some self control when you are tempted by feelings that are admittedly outside of our club philosophies.  Unchecked, that behavior  would lead to losing volunteers and ultimately the failure of the club as a whole. 

d.      Please volunteer when possible, sometimes it is helping the coach heard his own kids and equipment back to the car,  finding new players, carpooling, writing a policy, taking photos, editing a video, diligently posting your game status on the blog, or openly backing and supporting your team leadership.   Every hour you volunteer encourages and honors the commitments of the other volunteers.  Successful soccer is a team sport just like parent volunteering.  We appreciate everything you do.  Your support is essential and does not go unnoticed.

 League Seeding

NISL seeding is strategically planned to yield an unscientific ranking of teams into levels.  It is far from an exact science. As a result, a wide array of skill levels exist in every level.  Many levels are very close in abilities.  Or prescient is to try to do well in the seeding tournaments but then to request to move to lower brackets if necessary to accomplish the following:

1. Lower pressure allows each player to experience their weakest positions
2. Avoid games with historically “dangerous, or rough teams” While playing soccer Challengers prefer opponents who feature ball skills and discourage sheer brutality.
3. We have changed divisions to play close to home and avoid some 2 hour drives.

Roster Changes

Roster changes are quite a mystery to most parents and players but a necessary topic for any club.  The club is growing and roster sizes must increase over time.  Also players will leave for their own reasons.  Change is one of the few constants in life.  Roster changes will predictably come up each February, May, and November so if you have a relevant need or other useful data it is courteous to share that information with your coach early.

Now that we have been around for a few years the coaches have enough experience  to set some policies relative to roster changes.  In keeping with our philosophies of individual skill improvement, being challenged by appropriate competition, individual schedules and transportation needs, social ties between players and creating a fun non-stressful environment the Red and White coaches have settled on the following roster guidelines to guide our future.  

1. Recruiting and identifying possible players (with in league rules) is essential to the survival of any club.  The more flush we are with good applicants the stronger our rosters will be.  A shortage or players leads to a loss of focus on our lofty goals as people move towards the more selfish attitudes of survival.  Please act within league recruiting policies but be on the look out to pass the good word about the Challengers Organization.  In general we will be recruiting for our club rather than for a specific team.  We do not follow the finder’s keeper’s.  Much more must be considered and the coaches have observed that that attitude rarely serves the greater priorities of our teams or our club.  “We are Red! We are White! We are ready to fight!” Is just a cheer; not a new commentary on how we deal with our rosters.  To the contrary there is a lot of history to suggest that we have recruited blindly, unselfishly and in harmony.

2. The needs of the individual player can not be ignored.  Players will and should leave if we can not meet their primary needs.  In the interest of serving the players needs and maximizing fun, new players may be placed with consideration of their personal social ties, car pooling and even schedule conflicts as expressed by the new player and their parents.

3. In consideration of team spirit, focus on fun and transportation issues we intend to keep teams intact whenever possible.  Therefore when given the choice new players will be more likely to be moved to balance roster sizes.

4. In the interest of balancing playing time, new players will be placed according to where there is an opening on a roster. 

5. Players with varying skill levels may try out for another team if that team is playing at a significantly different level of competition.  For example, a talented U10 player may try out for U11 or U12.  While it causes some team turmoil it is unrealistic to expect that a group of volunteers can hold a child back or keep him playing at a level that is too stressful to be fun.  It is important to note that while there is not a goal to create a disparity between teams that it is also not a goal to eliminate any disparity that develops naturally.  The goal here is to help the individual child play against the most appropriate level of competition.  This will maximize his balance between fun and challenging skills.  At the same time players are discouraged from jumping from one roster to the other if the teams are playing similar skill levels.  This practice or course violates the other guidelines listed above. 

6. In the interest of player development newer players may be placed according to their age and ability.

7. Best for the club.  The coaches and managers have the best vantage point to gather input, hear all the issues, ask the questions and use wisdom to make the hard decisions of what is best for the club.  More than anybody the coaches also feel the responsibility to their team and therefore have earned that right through their history of unselfish service to the organization.

8. In the rare case where the above does not yield a clear answer we will work it like a jump ball in youth basketball. The tie goes to a coin toss the 1st time and then alternates the next time.

Again:  this is a work in progress.  Your comments are invited on the blog  just click here