In order to assure the continued progressive development of our players, we have developed a curriculum and a separate set of player development guidelines to help us honor our mission statement.
Our mission statement.
Develop players for selection to the US National teams, collegiate soccer programs and competition on a national platform through: (1) quality training and coaching; (2) competition against nationally competitive and recognized opponents; (3) access to quality training and match facilities; (4) a well rounded and comprehensive training regimen; and (5) exposure to scouts and coaches responsible for selecting players for advanced levels of play
Philosophy on player development.
We have an organized and developed curriculum which guides our staff in the training and development of our players. Our program is heavily invested in the TECHNICAL development of our players and very conscious of creating an environment that fosters PERSONALITY and CREATIVITY. We often describe our training curriculum and philosophy as a marriage of the typical Dutch and Brazilian soccer principles. We take a comprehensive approach to player development which includes attention to and focus on: (1) individual skills training; (2) development of personality and creativity through simulated street soccer; (3) tactical development through a variety of methods, including classroom sessions; (4) nutrition education; (5) strength, speed and agility ; (6) ACL injury prevention; (7) creating opportunities for younger players to train and compete with older members of the Academy.
Understanding how players learn. Learning is a multifaceted concept. Players learn in many different ways. They learn by (a) watching and emulating (copying) successful players and peers; (b) repeated training and participation; (c) listening to coaching instruction; (d) unorganized and informal “street soccer” where players are free to experiment; and (e) watching video tape of their own play. All of these different ways of learning must be used in order to get the most productivity out of the development process. Training and match participation alone are not enough.
As previously mentioned, the ISA game-style philosophy is principally derived from dutch and brazilian soccer concepts. As such, if you watch the Brazilian or Dutch national teams play, you will get a very clear picture of what we strive for in our end product. A summary of what you would see:
- Highly skilled players that like to attack 1v1
- Fast paced ball possession
- Patience in keeping ball possession
- Positional discipline (Holland) with players that can be creative and improvise (Brazil)
- Speed
Our training methods aim to develop our players’ and teams’ ability to keep and dominate ball possession. We want our teams to dictate the speed of the game. Players and teams that can effectively keep possession of the ball are in the best position to control their own destiny. We also aim to develop players who are skillful enough to move throughout the field with the ball at speed. We want to develop EXCITING & CONFIDENT players. The kind of players that surprise opponents. Our finest players have been able to balance (a) performing their tasks for the team, and (b) making their mark (stamping their name) on the game.
As players and teams climb up the competitive ladder, a noticeable obstacle for all players and teams is the decrease of “time and space.” Players will have less time on the ball and less space to operate as the competitiveness of the opponent increases. This means that our players will have to execute skills and think faster. This can only be developed through repetitive training in a highly competitive environment.
Our players want to please us. We understand this very well. For this reason we encourage our players to remain focused on THINKING through problems and not memorizing solutions.
Outline of Club’s player developmental curriculum:
U7-U10
Ø 70% technical
Ø 30% small-sided games
Ø Core developmental goals include:
o Introduction to individual foot skills, 1v1 attacking moves & fundamentals;
o Enhancement of the player’s love and excitement for soccer;
o Parental education about the development process & years ahead;
o Development of field awareness and problem solving through a variety of fun small sided games.
o Strong emphasis on 1v1 attacking.
U11-U12
Ø 70% technical
Ø 30% small sided games
Ø Core developmental goals include:
o Improve the proficiency and speed at which players execute individual foot skills, 1v1 attacking moves and fundamentals (passing & receiving, shooting, shielding); concentration on pushing players to the next level of execution (speed and precision);
o Continued enhancement of player’s love and excitement for soccer;
o Continued parental education;
o Combination play;
o Introduction to basic group tactics; and
o Increased attention to ball striking and 1v1 attacking.
U13-U14
Ø 50% technical
Ø 50% small sided games / tactical
Ø Core developmental goals include:
o Increased emphasis on individual dynamics on the ball;
o Increased attention to the “air game”;
o Technique, purpose and direction of first touch;
o Playing with your back to pressure;
o 3 player combination play;
o Stronger encouragement for players to train with boys and older girls;
o Further development of group tactics and positional play;
o Introduction to various systems of play;
o Increased attention to maintaining group possession of the ball and initiating runs “off” of the ball;
o Checking and getting free of defenders; and
o Significant attention added to ball striking.
U15-U18
Ø 35% technical
Ø 65% tactical
Ø Core developmental goals include:
o Speed and precision of execution of fundamentals;
o Speed of thought;
o Efficiency of decision making & choice selection;
o Enhancement of physical abilities (speed, strength, agility, stamina);
o Ability to retain ball possession under increased pressure;
o Ball striking over distances;
o Take the “air game” to the next level;
o Increase the intensity and success of defending (individually & team);
o Players to become more mature in accepting responsibility for performance;
o Bring out the personalities of the players to influence match results;
o Exposure to highest levels of play nationally;
o Improve each player’s ability to “split focus” between multiple tasks (e.g., watching ball circulate during the offensive build-up while simultaneously looking for evolving conditions in other areas of the field, like a 1v1 in the opponent’s backline);
o Improve offensive build up play from the goalkeeper, backline through the midfield;
o Improve offensive play from the midfield forward;
o Improve team’s ability to bypass the midfield;
o Improve each player’s ability to read visual cues and communicate;
o Situational training
§ Playing a player down;
§ Playing with a short lead;
§ Playing down a goal or two;
§ Playing to the conditions of the field and/or referee;
§ Playing against different systems of play & styles; and
§ How playing style is impacted by different times in the game.
o Dead ball situations (offensively and defensively)
