The Coach Diary Football Blog

Author: The Coach Diary

  • These principles are respect, responsibility, commitment, work, discipline, self-demanding and, above all, humility.

    These principles are respect, responsibility, commitment, work, discipline, self-demanding and, above all, humility.

    La Masia – The Value of having Values. 

    “The value of having values” was one of the slogans used to commemorate Barça’s recent League title. But what does it really mean? The slogan takes life on La Masia’s day-to-day operation. Carlos Folguera, the director of Barça’s youth academy, La Masia, shares his thoughts on what moves the academy to provide young gifted kids with both sports and life education. Here are some excerpts translated from an interview to EFE, published by Sport.

    The goal of the staff at La Masia is to provide young kids with an education that goes far beyond football tactics and technique; it makes them good people, with strong values.

    Carles Folguera

    states that “it is possible to become a worldclass football player and a good person at the same time“. Strong values are part of the education that young boys receive when they join Barça’s La Masia.

    “We teach the boys the same principles ​that any wise parent would teach to  their children,” says Folguera. These principles are respect, responsibility, commitment, work, discipline, self-demanding and, above all, humility.

    Read more: http://www.totalbarca.com/2011/youth/la-masia-the-value-of-having-values/#ixzz1pbPgnzw1

  • Coerver Coaching Youth Diploma Dublin & Belfast

    Coerver Coaching Youth Diploma Dublin & Belfast

    Following the success of the Youth Diploma in Dublin last year which was attended by 96 coaches, and the recent diploma course held in Galway, Coerver Coaching is delighted to announce two further Youth Diploma courses taking place in Dublin and Belfast in August. Expert tuition will be provided to all attendees by former Chelsea legend and Coerver Coaching Co Founder Charlie Cooke and Coerver Coaching Ireland Director Austin Speight.

    The Youth Diploma course will take place at the following dates and venues:

    New University of Ulster, Jordanstown, Belfast – August 18th & 19th

    Oscar Traynor Development Centre, Coolock, North Dublin – August 25th & 26th

    The Diploma

    The purpose of the Coerver® Coaching Youth Diploma is to give attendees, whether you are a professional academy coach, junior coach, teacher or parent a greater understanding of how to plan & deliver more effective coaching sessions.

    This will be made possible by learning to use the New Coerver® Coaching Session Planner which will provide a quick & easy solution for all attendees who would like to construct weekly, monthly or even season long programmes using proven, high quality drills & games from Coerver® Coaching, “The Worlds’ Number 1 Soccer Skills Teaching Method”.

    Course Overview

    The Coerver ® Coaching Youth Diploma is a 2-day course that has been broken down into 4 modules that will be presented through lecture presentations & practical demonstrations:

    • Module 1 –
      The Coerver® Approach To Coaching
    • Module 2 –
      The Coerver® Curriculum
    • Module 3 –
      Coerver® Session Planning for your Season
    • Module 4 –
      Coerver® Tips To Be A Better Coach

    Charlie Cooke

    Charlie played for Aberdeen and Dundee in the Scottish First Division before joining Chelsea in the English First Division in 1966 where he played for the next 11 years. He made 380 league and Cup appearances for the Blues and played in four Cup Finals, winning the English F.A. Cup in 1970 against Leeds and the European Cup Winners Cup in 1971 against Real Madrid. He also played 16 times for the Scottish National Team and a World Select Team in 1979. He shares the Chelsea club record of three Player of The Year awards with Gianfranco Zola and in 2005 Chelsea’s Centenary celebration year he was selected for the Chelsea All Time XI.

    Coerver Coaching Ireland

    Coerver Coaching runs a weekly Performance Academy for boys and girls aged 6-14 in South Country Dublin, Galway, Limerick and Castlebar and will be opening several new centres in the coming months. Coerver will also be holding Player Development Camps at Easter and throughout the Summer at various locations throughout the country. Coerver Coaching Ireland also offer coach education clinics to clubs with the main focus being the Coerver Pyramid of Player Development and how this can be used to develop the technical level of young players.

     

    Contact:

    For more information about Coerver Coaching in Ireland and to book a place on the Youth Diploma contact Austin Speight on 086 796 9974 or email austin.speight@coerver.ie.

    Austin is the Director of Coerver Coaching in Ireland and is a former coach at Manchester City, West Ham United and Blackburn Rovers. Austin has worked with players such as Steven Gerrard, Joe Cole, Phil Jones and Junior Hoilett.

    Cost:

    The cost of the Youth Diploma is €239 and includes the 5 Disc Session Planner DVD worth €69.99 and all course material.

    On Behalf of Coerver Coaching Ireland

  • 11v11 = 22 – ‘That’s 22 kids getting very few touches of the ball’

    11v11 = 22 – ‘That’s 22 kids getting very few touches of the ball’

    So far this year I have had the pleasure to be involved with a u12s and now an u11s team. One thing is clearly wrong, the kids should not be playing 11v11 at u12s, that’s 22 kids getting very few touches of the ball.

    At U12s the majority of goalkeepers can barely kick outside the box and most don’t even take goal kicks due to this and the competitiveness of some of the leagues. For me one of the most important players is the keeper and I will always encourage the keeper to be the one to start play. We know that most keepers now act as sweepers and recent studies showed that a keeper touches the ball on average 3 times with his feet for every time he uses the ball with his hands.

    We want more touches….

    Our big pitches and 11v11 game is preventing players getting more touches of the ball and in particular the keepers. On average a u12s player touches the ball 13 times per game and this is nowhere near enough for any player to develop his technical skills or game intelligence. The touches increase slightly in the 9v9 and so on, down to 3v3 where a player could get as many as 100 touches of a ball. 

    “recently against Racing Messi got best 93 touches the ball, 2 goals and 4 successful dribbles”

    Very few kids can switch a ball across the field due to the enormous size of the adult pitches these kids are having to play on. Another issue is the keepers move from the SSG goal to full size adult goals, which as we know are the same goals adults need ladders to put up the nets on. (see featured image)

    Cups

    A major distraction are the cups competition, they are of no benefit to kids at these age groups and all they do is feed into the egos of some coaches. I have witnessed first hand coaches going to look at the opposition, viewing the facilities and requesting that the entire club come down to support the team (which is fine if its to cheer the team on and nothing more, but we all know that large crowds prowling the line leads to aggression and tension on the pitch and this only puts more pressure on the kids to perform).  In an ideal world no parents or at least no screaming parents just spectators would be beneficial to all. One of the many issues with the game in this country and cup football at the younger ages, it the pressure on the kids to WIN! That pressure can sometimes be what drives a child away from the sport for good.

    My Campaign

    I recently sent an email to O Creevey SSG administrator of the  DDSL asking for her opinion on this matter, I have yet to receive a reply. We have 3 leagues in Dublin all doing different things, why can’t they all be doing the same thing?

    I strongly believe that we need further changes and the kids who enjoy football every weekend in this country should be given just that. The first things that should happen is to extend the 9v9 game to u12s, remember the only thing that changed from last season was that the kids jumped up a year. The age changes happened without even considering the numbers of players on the pitch.   The administrators of the leagues in Ireland do a great job administrating but they know nothing about coaching and clearly know nothing about what is best for the kids.  Do they even look into the vast amount of studies carried out about kids sports and football?

    Many coaches in Ireland are now starting to realise that alot of what we have been doing is incorrect and we need change. Alot of this change depends on the leagues adapting to what is needed for both the kids and coaches; I and many other coaches around Ireland and in other parts of the world have realised for a long time that competitive leagues (at certain ages), coaches, parents and managers etc are having little benefit to the development of children in football and/or sport. Football has changed alot since we played but many are still stuck in the past.

    Be the voice – make the change!

  • Futebol para Criancas – Jose Mourinho

    Futebol para Criancas – Jose Mourinho

    A good friend of mine in Portugal, sent me this link. Fascinating insight into the mind of Jose Mourinho. I had the pleasure to meet him once, the man is an inspiration.

    Football for Kids by José Mourinho

    is one of the most complete and inspirational tools available for kids and teenagers around the world who aspire to be footballers.

    It also show how coaching kids is not just about winning that we as coaches have an obligation to teach this young boys and girls the way of life. Every child will not be a professional footballer but every child will mostly likely grow up and eventually get a job of some sort; become a professional in something.

    We can teach kids from an early age to cooperate, to communicate, to make eye contact, to say thank you, to shake hands, to support and help each other and most of all to learn how to respect each other.

    Football gives children so much, but we as coaches that can help mold children in the right direction. For me personally, football coaching is all about educating the child not just in football but in LIFE!

    Click on the link below

    http://www.videoelephant.com/items/2117/Football-for-Kids-by-Jos%C3%A9-M

     

  • Trophy Clear-out

    Trophy Clear-out

    If anyone is looking for Trophies, http://www.terrifictrophies.ie/ are having a clear-out sale

    Contact Colm: 087 612 0496 – 085 8192288

     

    TCD has not received a gratuity for this add!

  • Chocolate Milk is good for your recovery!!

    Chocolate Milk is good for your recovery!!

    Dump the after game snacks and hand out the Chocolate Milk. Yes, you heard me right. Believe it or not thats the “theory”.

    When you take a look sports drinks they have very similar attributes to those of chocolate milk. The Indiana University conducted a study in conjunction with a grant from the dairy council. They wanted to put this theory to the test. The results were,

    “As compared to the commercial products tested, (sports recovery drinks), chocolate milk is an effective recovery aid following exhausting exercise.”

    Why is chocolate milk good for youth soccer players after a game?

    The study found that athletes who drank chocolate milk after an intense bout of exercise were able to workout longer and with more power during a second workout compared to athletes who drank commercial sports beverages.

    Researchers stated, “Chocolate milk contains an optimal carbohydrate to protein ratio, which is critical for helping refuel tired muscles after strenuous exercise and can enable athletes to exercise at a high intensity during subsequent workouts.”

    Some points…

    1. Kids don’t drink to “re-hydrate” like athletes. They drink only when they are thirsty or when something tastes good.  Tricking them into drinking more because something tastes great makes sense for any one who has dealt with young athletes.
    2. The addition of protein is good for muscle recovery, growth and refueling.
    3. Milk is naturally high in Potassium, In fact a class of milk and a Banana are wonderful together.
    4. Chocolate milk naturally contains both salt and potassium – key electrolytes that can be depleted during extended exercise.
    5. One cup contains more protein than an a large egg.
    6. Chocolate milk is 85% water, making it a very effective fluid replacement after exercise.
    7. Chocolate milk and other flavored milks have less sugar than sodas and most juice drinks…and pack a whole lot more nutrition. All milk has about 14 grams of natural sugar (lactose) per cup, so if you see 20 grams of sugar listed on the label of chocolate milk, only around 6 grams is added sugar

    Confirming these results was a study by Dr. Janet Walberg-Rankin and co-workers at Virginia Tech.  This study compared body composition and muscle function responses to resistance training in males who consumed a carb drink (Gatorade) or chocolate milk following each training session. Chocolate milk consumption immediately after each workout tended to increase lean body mass and body weight compared to supplementation with carbs. This study clearly shows that carbs-only post-exercise beverages don’t cut it.

    Make sure its non-fat

    The one thing you want to keep however is that you want to select a non-fat or skim chocolate milk.

    • Forty-eight percent of the calories in whole milk come from fat;
    • 33 percent of the calories in 2% milk come from fat;
    • 20 percent of the calories in 1% milk come from fat, and 0 percent of the calories from skim milk come from fat.

    So, when reaching for chocolate milk as your post-workout recovery drink of choice, choose the non-fat version.

    Before you start laughing about handing out chocolate milk after a game, think about the junk in the snack box they’re about to eat.

    Must give this a go!!

    -End

    I always like to hear your opinions and views. If you feel you have something to say, please comment below or email me info@thecoachdiary.com If, you don’t have anything to add then please forward this on to a friend. As always, thanks for reading.

    I’m also on twitter @Coachdiary

     

  • TCD have teamed up with Tactx to offer YOU…

    TCD have teamed up with Tactx to offer YOU…

    Brought to you by UEFA Training Ground, TactX is the revolutionary subscription based on-line coaching software which produces realistic 3D animations generated from motion capture software. With a TactX subscription you can create training drills & practice sessions, plan formations & set plays using an intuitive control system. Text annotation can be added to emphasis key coaching points and drills can be viewed from multiple camera angles.

    Click here to view how TactX is being used in the Premiership

    Click here to view TactX being used on FourFourTwo Performance

    COMMUNICATE

    Subscribers also have access to TactX Board which allows them to communicate their animated sessions with players and colleagues.  Group areas can be created, such as First Team, Under 19s, Under 17s etc and populated with e-mail details for all relevant group members.  TactX Animations, diagrams and images can then be posted on your TactX Board page and the link shared with your groups via password protected e-mail links.

    Click here to view an example post to players using TactX Board. (Password required is tactX)

    CONVERT

    TactX Animations can also be converted to Video Files with purchase of a TactX Video Exporter which offers further user benefits.  TactX Video files can be viewed out-with the TactX software, inserted into offline presentations or even  displayed on portable devices such as  iPhone or iPad. Users who wish to post their TactX Animations on websites or use in commercial projects can also apply for a TactX publishing licence.

    Click here to download the latest TactX Features Demo as a MP4 Video file.

    COACH

    TactX provides the coach with a modern method of communication to help with their own personal development and of that of their players.

    **Extended Limited Offer for The Coach Diary.com subscribers

    Contact TactX Development Executive, Steven Hastie using the details below and quote “TCD TactX” to purchase an annual TactX subscription for only €99 (27c per day), saving 10% against standard subscription costs.

    **********************************************************************************************************

    This offer is valid until 31st December 2011 and is made possible through UEFA’s commitment to coach education and player development.

    You must mention The Coach Diary.com QUOTE……. “TCD TactX

    Contact

    Steven Hastie

    T.+44 (0)1224 217390 E. shastie@avcmedia.com