Junior development is more important than points

[johnydep]

I did some research a while back, and found that most strong footballing nations do not have a points and ladder system for their junior football. The ones I read about do not start competition in their youth system until U13/14.

Should we (South Australia) follow suite? Do we really need the U12 & U13 teams playing for points, and fighting for a top spot on a ladder? There are other ways to give these age groups a competitive game; mini tournaments, gala days, etc.

Taking the pressure off of clubs, teams and coaches to win games and finish top would open up more opportunities to concentrate on developing all the players in a team. With a tournament solution, all games prior to the tournament can be development games, true trial games where the coach tries players in different positions, without fear of the outcome of a loss.

Inventing The New Germany: Youth Development and the Bundesliga

Germany’s system emphasises development in elite centres from a slightly older age, and focuses on small-sided skills at younger ages. Via Honigstein: “We start with the U-9s. They play four-a-side, on small pitches, to encourage individual skills,” said Thomas Albeck, head of youth development at Stuttgart. “We then add players every year, only the U-13s are playing with full teams.”

There are many lessons here to consider for countries around the world struggling with trying to work out the best way to develop young domestic talent.

How Germany reinvented itself

The German FA realized that something had to be done. It looked at the French system and decided that something similar was needed...All across the country, 121 national talent centers would be built to help 10- to 17-year-olds with technical practice...It's no coincidence that this is the youngest ever German team since 1934... The changes that were introduced 10 years ago have paid dividends: In the last two years, Germany won the European championship at U-17, U-19 and U-21 level..."We have undoubtedly more talent than 10 years ago,"..."We start with the U-9s. They play four-a-side, on small pitches, to encourage individual skills," Albeck said. "We then add players every year, only the U-13s are playing with full teams."

Germany provide the blueprint for England's academy system

• Germany overhauled youth development system in 2002
• Current German squad has an average age of 24.7 years

As English football looks to come to terms with another tournament failure, the head of Germany's Bundesliga has detailed how his country overhauled its failing youth football structures in the wake of Germany's "horrible" Euro 2000 performances.
The new structure, implemented in 2002, has resulted in a resurgent German side - their youngest team ever, with an average age of 24.7 years.
Seifert stated that the German system costs clubs "only euros 80m" of the Bundesliga's euros 2billion turnover. The German structure only takes boys into the academy system from the age of 12, with around 5,000 players going through the system at any one time.

English clubs currently spend more, around euros 95m per season, and put 10,000 boys aged between nine and 16 through a much-criticised structure designed by Howard Wilkinson in 1997. About 1% of boys who join an English academy aged nine become professional footballers.

England reached the European Under-21 Championships final last summer, but failed to qualify for seven of the previous 10 tournaments, and England's teams at senior and youth level have failed to win any major trophies since the academy system was established.

World Cup 2010: How Germany planned a flair revolution

The transformation of Germany's football has been based on an attention to detail and investment in young talent that shames the FA and Premier League

"Ranking and results are not the only criteria. We have to look at our style, our play, our intentions," Löw says. "We thought about what football we wanted to display, what philosophy we wanted to follow, and how we'd implement that.

At grassroots level, a nationwide network of 366 training centres has been set up, mostly using the infrastructure of local clubs with above-average facilities, where 14,000 youngsters aged 11-14 receive extra tuition by way of a weekly two-hour training session imparted by a DFB-appointed coach. This is in addition to the training they do with their respective clubs. It is more than likely that some of them will feature in the German national team eight years from now.

"Further up the line there are 46 club academies. Twenty-nine German further-education schools have been designated Elite Football Schools. Students receive a perfectly normal education, up to the Abitur granting university access, but also benefit from plenty of football as part of the curriculum.

"Finally we have made sure that all the DFB's junior national teams, from U15 onwards, benefit from basically the same level of support, the backroom staff including a sports psychologist, a physical fitness coach, as well as first-rate doctors and physios. An extensive database has been set up, allowing our coaches to access information – medical data, physical test results, performance analyses, personal characteristics – for every player. Obviously, the underlying purpose of all of this is that no player with good potential shall be allowed to slip through the net."

"There was a lot of scepticism before the tournament and I kept reminding the doubters of the qualities the players have," he says. "I've had a scenario in my mind for months: this is the kind of football I want to play at the World Cup. We've been aiming for that. I didn't just want to impose some tactics on the players. Rather, this is what I wanted to do, and I selected the players around that.

"My players have to fulfil tasks. They have to be disciplined in their play. There is no straitjacket I impose on them but they have to work on the pitch within my tactics. They can't just do what they want. We have to be faithful to a particular tactical play but they've bought into it and it's been working.

[Stitch This]

Junior development is more important than points

I haven't seen anyone seriously claim anything to the contrary.

[johnydep]

"WHEN YOU DO WHAT YOU HAVE DONE ALWAYS, YOU WILL NEVER REACH ANY FURTHER"

Horst Wein believes that all things in nature have a gestation period and must progress through a natural sequence until reaching maturity. Natural learning in any team sport should work the same way ! The step-by-step approach is one of the keys to success in his model, which uses the brain's innate ability to make memory-building connections. Each accomplishment is broken down into a series of small steps, gradually and methodically leading to the final goal, the mastering of the 11-a-side game.

First the young players from 7 years onwards are exposed to a program of " Games for developing basic skills and capacities". Once the youngsters have mastered a great variety of multilateral tasks (incl. the "Football-Decathlon"), they progress to the program of simplified games 2 against 2 and 3 against 3. Here they can experiment and improve on the skills and basic tactical behaviours which they learnt before when they were exposed to a great variety of stimuli included in the dribble games, games for tackling, games for passing, controlling and shooting and multilateral games.

In the 2nd and 3rd level of formation, the players understand and learn to play successfully the competitions of "Mini Football" which is considered an ideal base to prepare the 8 and 9 years old players (together with the practice of several simplified games for teams made up by 3 and 4 players) to face with 10 and 11 years the more complex and difficult problems included in 7-a-side football. Finally with 12 and 13 years the young players show their excellent skill level and football intelligence in the competition of 8-a-side football which is played between the two penalty areas of the full-size filed on mobile 6m x 2m goals, always with a frequent interchange of players.

Every two years the difficulty and complexity of the competition are increased in harmony with the physical and intellectual growth of the players. That means that the competition (as well as the contents and methods used in the training program) is adapted at each stage of development of the young player to his characteristics and not vice-versa. In this way the child always has the feeling of accomplishment, will love the game and want to come back for more.

The young football player progresses slowly from one unit or game to the next one, confronted continuously with slightly more complex and difficult problems, in a similar way to the lessons received in mathematics in school. The progression occurs when the technical and tactical requirements of one simplified game or competition are understood and mastered to a high degree. Advancing in Horst Wein's detailed program of teaching and learning to play football the natural way, the coach of the young football player experiments that training is a process of development by gradually increasing demands.

IT IS NOT SUFFICIENT TO DEVELOP YOUR PLAYERS WELL, IT'S ESSENTIAL FOR FUTURE SUCCESSES TO PREPARE THEM BETTER THAN THE OTHERS!

"IF IT'S OUR DESIRE TO TRIUMPH IN FOOTBALL, WE HAVE TO LOOK OUT FOR NEW HIGHWAYS OF SUCCESS INSTEAD OF USING ALWAYS THE OLD BUMPY ROADS OF THE PAST VICTORIES. A MAJOR OBSTACLE FOR THE PROGRESS OF FOOTBALL IS THE FORCE OF HABIT. BECAUSE OF SLUGGISHNESS MOST OF THE TEACHERS/COACHES CONTINUE WITH THEIR OLD HABITS WITHOUT THINKING SUFFICIENTLY ABOUT WHAT THEY ARE PRACTICING WITH THEIR PUPILS"

the young football player is given ample time to be creative and expressive. Constantly the thirst for knowledge within the child's mind is awaken until it is properly equipped with the skills and capacities necessary for matching after 8 years of progressive and attractive training the challenges of a full game.

[johnydep]

In the second of our four-part series, we meet the Europeans who are leading the way in youth development.

...the Dutch are masters...five clubs dominate youth development: Ajax, PSV, Feyenoord, AZ Alkmaar and Heerenveen. “Across all the age groups, the successful teams are spread between those five clubs, but no one club dominates,” adds the former Holland international. “Ajax have a great programme, but it’s no better than many other clubs.”

The reason, says Roxburgh, is simple: “In Holland, they don’t just make the kids do training drills. They’re given time to practise on their own so they can develop individual skills. The preparation that goes into youth development in Holland is very detailed.”

“With our seven to 12-year-olds the first thing we work on is individual skill, playing on their own,” Sturing explains with gusto. “Then we move them into one-on-one situations. Then into two attackers against one defender. After that it’s an eight-versus-eight game situation where winning is not important and the emphasis is on taking risks and playing attacking football. You can see with players like Arjen Robben [a PSV youth product] that this is the way he learnt to play the game.

This blueprint is not unique to PSV, either: it’s written and handed down by the KNVB, the Dutch FA, and all the country’s professional clubs buy into the vision. “When we play 11 versus 11 we must play 4-3-3,” says Sturing, pointing at yet another diagram on his computer. “It’s a more difficult system, but it’s more flexible and it means players can adapt more easily.”

One country which has managed to become world champions and play great football is France. Over the last 10 years alone, they’ve won the World Cup (1998), the European Championships (2000) and reached another World Cup Final last year. The reason is simple: they’ve moved ahead of the rest of Europe in the development of players.

That France is now producing more top-quality players than any other country in Europe is largely down to George Boulogne. In 1966, he sat down with the French Football Federation and decided the national team weren’t good enough. So, in 1973, he created the French academy system that was to lay the foundations for les Bleus becoming world champions 25 years later. Along with the club academies there are now nine regional elite centres (Clairefontaine is just one), where the best players spend the week before returning to their clubs at the weekend.

Over four years, between the age of 12 and 16, a French boy attending an academy receives 2304 hours of training, twice as much as in England. But it’s not just more quantity, there’s quality too. “It was Gerard Houllier’s idea to introduce what is known as ‘preformation’ training,” says Andy Roxburgh. “The idea was that between the ages of 13 and 16 most of the coaching should concentrate on individual work and developing technique. Gerard believed that if a player got to the age of 16 and his technique wasn’t up to scratch there was no way of ever catching up.”

“Marcello Lippi is always bemoaning that kids are playing far less street football today,” says Roxburgh. “In central and northern Europe we really need to try and recreate an environment where there is more spontaneity and freedom of expression with a football. They play a lot of futsal in Spain and Portugal, which is what the Brazilians do, and it’s great for the grass roots..

“The Spanish system is pretty comprehensive,” says Englishman Phil Ball, resident of San Sebastian and author of Morbo: The Story of Spanish Football. “They combine schools football and club football, so that one weekend the kids will play with the school and a week later they will play for the local clubs. The coaching is more specialised at the clubs and the best players at the local clubs then get invited to train with the professional club, but the school and club teams are being monitored all the time so nobody can slip through the net.”

One player earning rave reviews in San Sebastian at the moment is an 11-year-old called Harry Ball, Phil’s son (“a chip off the old block” jokes Ball senior). He’s recently been invited to train with Real Sociedad. “He’s not allowed to officially play for Real until he’s 14, so until then he’ll keep playing for his school and his local club and we’ll see what happens.”
..“Whenever I go back to England I watch kids of the same age as Harry and the main emphasis seems to be on running, breaking sweat and kicking the shit out of each other...

[johnydep]

In the second of our four-part series, we meet the Europeans who are leading the way in youth development.

“When I left Holland to play in England I was 27 and already a Dutch international,” says Arnold Muhren, the former Ajax, Ipswich and Manchester United midfielder who is now coach of Ajax’s under-14 side. “These days the players are leaving at 17, 18 and 19.” Muhren points to Liverpool’s recent signing of 18-year-old Ajax striker Jordy Brouwer as a typical consequence of the Bosman ruling. “He won’t succeed in England,” says Muhren with a hint of annoyance in his voice. “He’s a good player, but he won’t be playing in the first team. He’s so young and now he’s in country with a completely different culture, so he’ll be homesick. He’s gone for the money and nothing else. We need to give these players better and longer contracts so at least if they want to leave we can get a transfer fee for them. But it all comes down to money.”

[johnydep]

Sports director Fernando Hierro and technical director Ginés Meléndez explained the basis for Spain's success at the UEFA Conference for European National Team Coaches.

""When a good job is done at youth football we reap the benefits"," Hierro said. "This World Cup victory is an acknowledgment for all those who have worked with the youngest players for all those years.

"The philosophy of Spanish football is to develop our players from grassroots with our own personality, our own way of understanding and style of football. It's easy to say with hindsight after winning the EURO and the World Cup, but our great philosophy is to build upon the successes of youth football."

Meléndez has played a leading role in the process. He told the conference what the RFEF looked for in a player and the importance placed on character as well as skill. "We want the players to be very level-headed, psychologically and emotionally stable. Euphoria or sadness [after a match] can lead to a drop in performance.

"Group cohesion is very important. "We work on values which are fundamental in life but also in the development of a player". They will be better players if they are good people. We have two fundamental goals: training and educating young players."

[johnydep]

The French Football Federation Youth Development Program

Working with 13-15 year old Players

Players are identified at age 11 through districts and then regional teams. The best 20-30 players at age 13 go to the national training center in Clairefontaine...the players are educated with these concepts in mind:

• • To forget what is at stake
  • That results only come from the game
  • To respect the principles of playing soccer and play within the structure the coach gives you
  • Victory is the only goal
  • The first consideration is to be present (to become an impact player) in the game, to free yourself from your opponent, and to ask for the ball

Training Issues:
When the coach is preparing his training sessions, the emphasis should be on technical ability, and his own convictions and conception of what soccer should look like. He must take into account the age of the players and the proper objectives linked to that age. He must be precise and professional. Every coach has access to many soccer exercises but has to know the proper way to proceed and to present them. The advice given to each player is very important. The coach must be careful of his language in order to help the players understand his methods. No yelling is tolerated. Objectives and issues in training are clear to the players. The players have the best training conditions and train one time daily, five days a week.

The priorities for the players are:

• • To become a professional player with the maximum chance of succeeding (this includes the four factors of soccer)
  • Keep up with their studies so they can have a career in case soccer does not work out

The priorities for the coaches are:

• • The methods in which they work. France is the only country in Europe to have a youth coaching license required
  • To develop a highly qualified technical staff, all licensed and well trained

The Weekly Schedule (club):

• • U13 – Participate in two to three training periods and one match
  • 13-15 years – Participate in four to five training periods and one match with a minimum of 35 matches a year

The Weekly Schedule (pros):

• • 16– 17 years – Five to seven trainings with one match, 40 matches per year and four to five weeks without any training at all
  • 17-20 years – Seven to nine trainings, one match, with many competitions against older players

Training Priorities:.....

[johnydep]

http://www.a-league.com.au/site/_conten ... source.pdf

[johnydep]

[johnydep]

When you have kids playing to avoid relegation - that's ridiculous

[johnydep]

Players from the ages of 5 until 9 should be allowed to develop naturally, away from the win-at-all cost mentality pushed by parents and coaches.

[johnydep]

http://www.footballaustralia.com.au/sit ... source.pdf

[Željko Jurin]

I guess we know best, that kids must win and have tables at a young age hey ??

Lionel Messi and Co graduated from Barcelona's La Masia academy schooled in the fine art of the beautiful game

By Henry Winter, Football Correspondent
05/05/2011

Barcelona’s fabulous Champions League finalists were forged because of the Catalan club’s commitment to youth development even when some of the youngsters struggled, according to coach Pep Guardiola.

As well as reaching the Champions League final at Wembley on May 28, Barcelona’s mix of home-grown and expensive recruits could seal La Liga this weekend. If Real Madrid fail to defeat Sevilla, Barcelona will retain their title by beating Espanol.

The success of the La Masia finishing school is phenomenal.

Eight of the Barcelona side involved in their triumphant Champions League final win over Manchester United in Rome in 2009 were home-grown (Messi, Iniesta, Xavi, Sergio Busquets, Gerard Pique, Carles Puyol, Victor Valdes, who had a brief teenage spell at Tenerife, and sub Pedro).

Six of Spain’s 2010 World Cup final starting XI were La Masia graduates (Pique, Puyol, Iniesta, Xavi, Busquets, Pedro). The three finalists for last year’s Ballon d’Or, Iniesta, Messi and Xavi, were all nurtured at La Masia.

Barring Dani Alves’s involvement, Barcelona’s goal in the 1-1 draw with Real Madrid was a home-grown affair, started by Valdes and accelerated by Iniesta with that magnificent pass to Pedro, whose finish brooked no argument from Iker Casillas.

The quality of Barcelona’s football was particularly seen in a purple patch midway through the first half when Madrid could not get near the ball, which danced between Iniesta, Messi and Xavi while Pique often worked the ball out from the back via the deep-lying midfielder, Busquets.

As well as schooling them in such a sophisticated style of football, Barcelona’s academy inevitably breeds a camaraderie. There is a togetherness to Guardiola’s side born of their days growing up at La Masia.

But it has not been a seamless progression. “We have had to be so patient with these players,’’ said Guardiola, himself a hugely successful graduate of the academy.

“When they were 12 and 14 in the youth team they won nothing. For six years they didn’t win anything and they could have been kicked out of the club. But we were patient. We believed that home-grown talent was important and we took strength from Real Madrid in the 1980s when they won so much with local players. So we waited.

“Players like Xavi and Iniesta were not that good as youth players and developed. At 18 and 19 they had lost more games than they won. Now look, a beautiful team. The hard work by so many people has paid off. The fruits of our work is before you.

“They have gone from zero to big success and I am grateful to these players. It is not easy to win so much and stay committed in every competition. It is a privilege for me to be their coach.”

It is not cheap, the operation reporting to cost around £5 million a year, but the rewards are obvious. On form, and taking Cristiano Ronaldo’s £80 million as the benchmark, Messi alone is worth more than £100 million.

“He’s one of the greatest players created and the best in the world today,’’ added Guardiola after the draw against Ronaldo’s Real.

Barcelona’s coach added that the club were determined to mix in the best talent from elsewhere. “It is also important that we continue to sign top players, like David Villa,’’ said Guardiola.

Guardiola was aggrieved this week by Madrid accusations of play-acting, pointing out the character of his squad. “They might think we are unsporting but I think exactly the opposite,’’ he reflected. “Fourteen of 20 players in the squad have grown up in this house and they all respect the values of the house. They have been educated and trained to play Champions League finals.’’

In the fallout from the fractious El Clasico semi-final, Uefa still has to investigate the conduct of particularly Jose Mourinho, the Real Madrid manager who alleged a conspiracy of referees favouring Guardiola’s club.

On Tuesday, Barcelona’s Javier Mascherano was constantly play-acting, an issue that will continue to be an issue in the build-up to Wembley.

Mascherano’s behaviour was a contrast to the likes of La Masia alumni such as Iniesta, Messi and Xavi, who use their skill to defeat the opposition, although Busquets is hardly an ambassador for Uefa’s Respect campaign.

Wembley, though, will be a showcase for Barcelona’s exceptional academy of arts.

[AL K HOLIC]

I'm sorry but comparing our 2 night a week training sessions with that of a 5 day a week structure at an academy is chalk and cheese.

Many clubs do not even have access to a full size pitch or even half a pitch to train on 2 nights a week.

Some clubs scream development while the same people will not allow 3 nights a week to train, let alone pay a coach to do it, that actually has some type of desire to coach and teach.

Shit we can't even get a ref at all games and you think our governing body could structure this? lol, it's nice to dream and have a fantasy but while the rest dream of what may be most clubs just want to survive and pay their bills. Unfortunately parents/kids want A league teams not B and C, therefore, we will never get better, just the big get bigger.

Why not just shut down all leagues and let AC do it all, after all they have the best coaches right? or possibly as I stated just the better players because the parents/kids would rather play in their 3rd or 4th team than try a smaller club, this is the reason why we suck, because so much talent is lost trying to play somewhere and they lose interest, rather than trying to play.

[johnydep]

I'm sorry but comparing our 2 night a week training sessions with that of a 5 day a week structure at an academy is chalk and cheese.
...........

Some clubs offer 3 nights training per week + game. Our club offers the third night training session as non-compulsory, next year it will be standard for all JPL teams to have 3 training sessions per week + game.

Add to that the State and Development training sessions for identified players, that makes 4 - 5 training nights + 2 games.

Players that have not been identified are able to join private Academies and receive up to 2 nights training.

An authorised referee and linesman would be great, but is not necessary for development. Especially if we get rid of the competition system, which causes all the on and off pitch trouble due to teams fighting for points, etc.

Get rid of the competition system in the junior set ups, have the league structure for game development only with no ladder or points, and bring in a improved cup tournament with multiple layers for different levels of winners.

Then you will see a different style of football and improved development, because there will be a different set of goals to achieve.

At the moment, while teams and clubs are battling it out for top spot and relegation, the FFA Football Curriculum is the right answer to the wrong problem. http://www.footballnews.com.au/forum/vi ... =7&t=53634

Whole system has to be changed to take advantage of the FFA Football Curriculum.

http://www.footballnews.com.au/forum/vi ... =7&t=53441

http://www.footballnews.com.au/forum/vi ... =7&t=49495

[stiring the porridge]

what / whom is right?

E&D who have leagues from U/6?
FFSA who have leagues from U/12?

I know who is bigger, does that mean they are better?
Who does produce more talent?

We sure all know who has more refs..

But seriously;

Do more players come from E&D and join the FFSA in later teenage years, or does the FFSA actually supply more players through their junior system.

I think if you held a championship day and had the winning 'A team' from FFSA leagues play against the winning Div 1 team from E&D (U/12 to U/17) I think the E&D teams will come out on top.

So the answer needs to be asked who does develop better players and why not follow their lead.

What a great day that would be at Hindmarsh.

[Green_Manalishi]

I think if you held a championship day and had the winning 'A team' from FFSA leagues play against the winning Div 1 team from E&D (U/12 to U/17) I think the E&D teams will come out on top.

Funny post

[stiring the porridge]

I think if you held a championship day and had the winning 'A team' from FFSA leagues play against the winning Div 1 team from E&D (U/12 to U/17) I think the E&D teams will come out on top.

Funny post

You disagree or a mixed bag of results?

[Željko Jurin]

I think if you held a championship day and had the winning 'A team' from FFSA leagues play against the winning Div 1 team from E&D (U/12 to U/17) I think the E&D teams will come out on top.

Funny post

You disagree or a mixed bag of results?

Ask Gawler, they've made the switch, and I have seen some not so flattering performances .....

[stiring the porridge]

You disagree or a mixed bag of results?[/quote]


Ask Gawler, they've made the switch, and I have seen some not so flattering performances .....[/quote]

I wouldn't say that Gawler were a big power club, but it is a good point, I will say it would make for an awesome end of year carnival and I think some great football on show.

[Željko Jurin]

Ask around about St Jays Futsal, and which association the kids from the better teams are from....

Yes, different form of the game, but you can still see a good player compared to an average player....

[Green_Manalishi]

.....I will say it would make for an awesome end of year carnival and I think some great football on show.

I wouldn't mind seeing it, but I think the Fed clubs would clean up.

The U12 - U17s FFSA cup finals can be a pretty awesome carnival. The E & D lads might think twice after watching some of those games

[zackadacka]

.....I will say it would make for an awesome end of year carnival and I think some great football on show.

I wouldn't mind seeing it, but I think the Fed clubs would clean up.

The U12 - U17s FFSA cup finals can be a pretty awesome carnival. The E & D lads might think twice after watching some of those games

I coach an E&D under 14 team that is top of Div 1 currently. If we were to finish the season in that position, and play the Fed Div 1 winner, we wouldn't stand much of a chance to be honest.

Having said that, an Under 11 or 12 winner would probably fair much better, as the talent drain hasn't occurred yet at that stage.

Also, E&D only have leagues from Under 10's, not U6's.

[corona]

we cant pretend to develop as:

• 1- coaches needed at a high level
  
  2- your looking at things that happen in Europe where soccer is the number 1 sport .
  
  3- and they pick the best in there zones .
  
  4- the local league haven't the funds these big clubs have and so they provide the best training possible .
  
  5- and EVERYONE wants to win (no-one remembers second place).
  
  6- A-league clubs should be putting this in practice, which i believe they are trying with selected kids.

[The Shot-Cross]

.....I will say it would make for an awesome end of year carnival and I think some great football on show.

I wouldn't mind seeing it, but I think the Fed clubs would clean up.

The U12 - U17s FFSA cup finals can be a pretty awesome carnival. The E & D lads might think twice after watching some of those games

I coach an E&D under 14 team that is top of Div 1 currently. If we were to finish the season in that position, and play the Fed Div 1 winner, we wouldn't stand much of a chance to be honest.

Having said that, an Under 11 or 12 winner would probably fair much better, as the talent drain hasn't occurred yet at that stage.

Also, E&D only have leagues from Under 10's, not U6's.

E&D is definitely from U/6 and has been for a long time.
http://www.elizdists.com.au/leagues.html

[zackadacka]

Also, E&D only have leagues from Under 10's, not U6's.

E&D is definitely from U/6 and has been for a long time.
http://www.elizdists.com.au/leagues.html

LEAGUES!!! Where competition is involved, u6-u9 are all friendlies

[The Shot-Cross]

Also, E&D only have leagues from Under 10's, not U6's.

E&D is definitely from U/6 and has been for a long time.
http://www.elizdists.com.au/leagues.html

LEAGUES!!! Where competition is involved, u6-u9 are all friendlies

Ah, my apologies. Yeah quite right.
On that note, I wonder if U/10 is still too young? I know that a lot of the AFL leagues don't start till about 12/13 year olds.

[johnydep]

Get the coaches right and our players will learn
15 Aug 2011 Craig Foster

Many people are asking for more information regarding my comments about the recent performances of the Joeys and Young Socceroos.

This is excellent because it shows that people want to learn and evolve - something we desperately need to happen in Australia in order to have higher level football debate.

There are many opinions about the teams and their play which is fantastic. But from what I've heard, most opinions are based on little substance. Generally they are based only on what people see occurring, without consideration for why it's happening.

Many fans watch the Joeys and Young Socceroos and see the play breaking down, or the loss of possession and conclude that the players can’t do anything. This is not the case. Connor Chapman can play, Jesse Makarounas can play, Mustafa Amini can play, Hamill can play, Terry Antonis can play, Tommy Oar can play and Ben Kantarovski can play. To name a few from both sides.

Other people blame the system, believing we lacked the players to play it effectively. I question that. The Young Socceroos had wingers in Oar and Kofi Danning, play-makers, a very good number six and good central defenders on the ball. This was actually a very capable group for the 4-3-3 or 4-2-3-1 system.

They just didn't know how to solve problems they were set by opponents, who usually waited for the first pass into midfield, set the trap, pounced and fed. This is not the players, it about how they are organised.

The issues surround the way a team moves collectively. Can it create space or close it down? Can it support players or expose them? The system of play can make average players look excellent or excellent players look poor.

This is the difference between a 'system of play' - the movements within a basic framework, or formation - and ‘positional play’ which relies heavily on the players. When a team moves together in sophisticated patterns where every player knows ahead of time what is going to happen, or what the intentions are, it is able to move a step ahead of the opposition and play in space, rather than under pressure.

Football is not only about the ball, but about the movement off it. Without this, a player can’t survive for long.

The problem with our junior teams is that with no or little movement to create space, the players must always receive the ball under pressure. Passes are being forced rather than played because play is too static in midfield. I feel sorry for the kids, because they are better than what they are being given a chance to show. They are not world class, sure, but nor are they incapable of playing very good football.

We are 20 years behind the best and I've spent the last decade of my life trying to get this message across and encourage change. However, the way a team is made to play can put it under pressure and make it look much worse than it is. Every former player knows this instinctively, having worked under different levels of coaches during a career.

Some coaches rely on players and can only succeed with an excellent group. Others can make something more of the parts. This is what a well-trained system of play does, increasing the value of the whole.

There are three core elements which the best nations are doing, that our young teams are not: create space in midfield through movement; wide players coming inside to support; fullbacks attacking. These are specified in the latest FIFA report as fundamental elements of modern play to build the play safely and break defensive blocks. All of these factors serve to create better movement and fluency, which helps the players.

To illustrate the point, I have uploaded an analysis of Japan at the 2007 Olympic Youth Tournament by my brother, Paul, a former AIS scholarship holder and assistant coach, (soon to be youth national coach of Hong Kong).

Paul demonstrates some of the principles (below): creating space through wide players coming inside, exploiting space through movement, automatic patterns of team play; defensive strategies and combination play in final third of the pitch. Compared to this, what the Joeys and Young Socceroos did was extremely basic, to say the least.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3eUdGLpQ ... r_embedded



Japan is playing a 4-4-2 here, however the movements and principles are almost precisely the same.

This clip shows how far we are behind in our tactical thinking as a culture, since this type of analysis is almost entirely absent in Australian football discussion and also how static our young teams were.

Watch the players move in sync in midfield, particularly in and out of space, and then watch the Joeys midfielders, most of whom have been in the AIS for a considerable amount of time, or the Young Socceroos. There is no comparison.

Don't get me wrong, Australian players adapt to these movements very quickly, I have seen it many times. It is just that very few coaches have had the capacity to teach them.

Some would say I am quick to blame coaches. But I have high expectations because I know our players learn quickly. People are too quick to blame the players because most can't read the football and see what they are being coached to do. Australian coaches have been blaming our players for years. But the players have been ahead of the coaches for over a decade.

For example, few thought the senior team could play as it did in 1997 under Terry Venables, whose system came from Barcelona. Likewise in 2005, most argued the team was not capable of playing as it did under Guus Hiddink (who had Bresciano and Sterjovski coming inside as wide players to open space for the fullbacks). Contrast those teams with the side that played against Germany at the 2010 FIFA World Cup. I disagreed with Pim Verbeek's assessment of the players then and still do.
What we are trying to achieve now through playing in an advanced way, or attempting to, is a different level entirely and the only way to move ahead as a nation.

Australian football has just woken up to the amount of work required to catch up, at last, and if the performance against Spain is the catalyst for everyone to start working effectively and intelligently, then it's been of immense long-term value.

But the most important lesson is also that we need to have the appropriate people in charge of our youth to ensure we progress as quickly as possible.

Otherwise, we’ll be having this discussion in 50 years.

[johnydep]

Time for an update and discussion on this subject.

[johnydep]

It's time to get serious about junior coaching

19 Aug 2011 Ned Zelic

Several weeks ago I attended the Kanga Cup - the biggest junior tournament in the southern hemisphere. One team that really caught my eye was PoCheolDong PS from Korea - a team of 12-year-olds playing an age group up.

Within a few minutes I could see these boys were something special; skilful, quick and aggressive. They had flowing combinations but one sequence of play really caught my eye.

One of the kids broke down the right into the penalty box and instead of shooting (which is what most kids do in that situation), he looked up and cut the ball back to a better-positioned teammate, who obliged with the goal.

It was an extremely intelligent piece of play for a kid that age. The player not only knew that there was a better positioned teammate, but that all the focus so close to goal would be on him…respect!

It happened over and over again with the ball-carrier constantly searching for a free player in a better position. In Australia, this quality is missing in junior football. The amount of times a better-positioned player is overlooked in games is scary. Is it not being coached? It looks that way.

PoCheolDong PS went on to win the tournament in that particular age group. Their intelligence, vision, quick thinking, awareness and excellent decision-making set them apart from all of the other teams they played.

I saw several players in that team that have the potential to be international stars one day. Yes, we had a few good teams there too, teams that tried to play good football as well, but the Koreans were playing a different 'tune', one that you could listen to all day.

In terms of coaching, the difference was also striking. With many of our teams, when a player was under pressure he would boot the leather off the ball to a destination unknown, then be applauded. On the sole occasion I saw a Korean player do it, rather than applaud for clearing the ball, the coach ferociously corrected him for straying from the philosophy.

The Korean team came to Australia to win, but to win a certain way. Many of our teams tried to play an attractive style of football, but as soon as they hit the lead or went behind, the philosophy of attractive football went straight out the window, to be replaced with a desire to protect the lead by playing ‘no risk’, conservative football.

The long ball method was employed when chasing a result. There is no point playing attractive combination football if you are going to abandon it when the game changes. A cultured football philosophy must have durability. Putting trust into it is vital as well as demanding the implementation of it from the players, regardless of the score.

As you might have read in my last blog, I am an advocate of teaching the importance of winning, but it must be achieved with a certain style of play.

The Korean coach effectively combined the need to win with attractive football. I was struck by the level of respect he was given by the players. They showed a remarkable level of discipline for 12-year-olds, both on and off the park.

At halftime the players wouldn't go to their drink bottles in the corner of the field, they would assemble on halfway in front of the coach. He would give the nod for them to go get their drinks. It was a lesson in discipline and that respect for the coach was paramount.

When I saw this unfolding was: how should a coach be with his players to get the best out of them? Is being too much of a 'buddy' to players going to achieve this? Do players need a coach with a certain mean streak to keep them on their toes?

I believe respect for a coach is gained through authority, knowledge and the demand for discipline, these attributes will get the best out of players. I know I disliked some coaches at junior and senior level, but I still learnt so much from them. They had a presence about them that got the best out of players.

Ottmar Hitzfeld was a great example. He is considered a consummate gentleman off the park, but it was a totally different story in the dressing room. He had the ability to tear you verbally to shreds, not with pointless screaming, but with clear, direct, and at times brutal analysis.

Players didn’t like being humbled by him in front of the whole team, but you always went away thinking “the man is right”. His ability to get into players’ minds, his authority, knowledge and presence is what has made him one of the world’s most successful coaches.

What concerns me is stories of parents with zero background or knowledge of the game coaching junior teams because nobody else could be found. This isn’t necessarily the fault of the parents, who must be applauded for investing their time, but it’s not a solution to the problems facing our game at junior levels.

Clubs take registration fees and have a responsibility to supply the best coaches. It should never be a stop-gap solution. Our duty as parents is to enable our kids to enjoy playing the game but also to give our kids the best possible tools to improve and maximise their potential, which of course includes playing under a coach that will improve them.

I am also a basketball fan. If I were to coach a team, I could set up some drills, map out some exercises, let them play, but I wouldn’t be able to improve a player’s skills because I lack the inside knowledge of what needs to be done in situations on the court.

Essentially, it boils down to if and how much we want to improve our kids, or if training at junior level is looked upon as just motion therapy and a bit of fun. Believe me, for a lot of countries, it is serious business.

I believe we need to concentrate on improving the individual at junior level and not be too concerned about systems. The better the individual player is, the easier that player will adapt to various systems. Ultimately it will be the individual quality of the player that will set him apart (or not) from the opponent.

Developing individuals with skill, creativity and imagination must be our priority. Thinking a step ahead, setting high goals with training techniques. We must encourage former players to take an active role in visiting junior clubs or schools, taking a session, offering advice and sharing experiences.

There are so many cases of former greats not being cut out to coach because they lack tactical knowledge or leadership skills, but what a former player can do is improve the individual quality of a player and help them by passing on knowledge of what to do in certain situations on the pitch, which is vital for development.

Yes we need to offer junior coaches a pathway to gather knowledge by attaining coaching licences and it must be made economically realistic to do so, but that does not necessarily mean they will automatically be able to improve the individual quality of players.

Coaching is about having a philosophy and everyone with a clipboard has his own idea of how the game should be played. I know coaches without a coaching license, whose views and knowledge of the game I respect more than some coaches that do have a license.

I lost count of the times Richard Money, my coach at Newcastle Jets in the first year of the A-League, mentioned he had a UEFA Pro Coaching Licence in team talks. However he didn't want us building up from the back, he preferred the keeper to thump it long and then fight for possession. That was his philosophy and he is entitled to it, but is that a facet of the game I would want to see our kids learn and aspire to? Not a chance.

How lucky we are in Australia to have so many grounds to access within close proximity, nice big parks for our kids to get down to and have a kick. We need to encourage our kids to do so.

We have all the facilities we need to be great - a shell is in place - we just have to work on and improve the contents.

http://www.kangacup.com/wp-content/uplo ... oee-21.pdf