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An
Open Letter From Mark McQueen (Head Coach) to Coaches and Parents
The
purpose of this letter is to share an understanding of my thoughts
and philosophies with regards to the Club's player, coach and
program development.
The
long-term goal of Semiahmoo Soccer Club will be to support our
players to achieve better understanding and success in the game of
soccer, leading to enhanced opportunities for professional contracts,
university scholarships, employment opportunities and overall health
and wellness.
In
order to achieve this, the Club will adopt a "player-centered"
approach to developmental programs for all ages and specifically, all
abilities.
Having
looked at previous programming, I believe that a change in the
structure and delivery of programming is necessary for the Club to
provide optimal player development for players of all abilities.
Therefore,
the Club's programs will be restructured to allow for better
development at the base where I believe that developmental
opportunities for players of relative lesser ability have been
stifled by previous program structures.
For
example, at the mini/micro level players of a relative lesser ability
rarely have the opportunity to acquire meaningful touches of the ball
while top performers continually dominate and acquire significantly
more time on the ball. The result of this is that our weakest players
fail to develop and our top performers, although developing, are not
appropriately challenged. Therefore I believe that by restructuring,
we will better assist the development of our weaker players,
appropriately challenge our strongest, and build the overall quality
of our base.
As
such, the restructuring of our programming will begin at the
mini/micro level. I believe that these are crucial years where our
players need to inherit a love and passion for the game through their
individual successes. This can be achieved by allowing greater levels
of success for all participants. As stated, it has become apparent
that our weakest players need to be given a greater opportunity to
develop and our strongest to be appropriately challenged.
Following
is a brief overview of how the new program structure and delivery
will look as of September 2009.
U5/U6/U7
– this program has been very well received and considering that
this is the first introduction to soccer for many players and is
specifically about providing fun in a positive environment, I see no
need to change it at this point. It will continue to operate as it
has done previously at this point in time. This means 1 gym session
with 1 game for the U7s on a Sunday morning.
U8,
U9 and U10
– As normal, players will be assigned a team and coach having
registered with the Club. Thereafter, the program will be split into
two environments; training and games.
Training
–the
Club will adopt an academy type structure for training, whereby
players will be placed in appropriate groups for their ability level
rather than a mixed environment of varied abilities. This will allow
for all players of all abilities to gain success and therefore
accelerate development and growth.
Game
day
– As previously mentioned, one of the major issues arising from
game day is the opportunity for our less talented players to acquire
any meaningful touches of the ball while the strongest players
continually dominate proceedings without being appropriately
challenged. Therefore, on game day the players will return to their
assigned teams where playing players of a similar ability against one
another during games will be encouraged. The result of this will be
that our relatively average and below average players will no longer
dominated by our strongest. It will also provide our high performers
the opportunity to be appropriately challenged and acquire the
necessary technical skills and problem solving techniques to enhance
their ability to play at a higher level in later years.
Playing
up
– As earlier described if a player is not being challenged in games
or training environments, it may hinder their ability to grow as a
player. Going forward players will have no restrictions on
developmental opportunities due to their year of birth. In staying
with “what is best for the player”, the Club will accept written
requests from parents for their child to be considered for “playing
up”. Thereafter, the player in question will be evaluated by the
professional staff to determine the best age group for the player’s
development.
U11-U18
Open
tryouts
– Similarly with the younger age groups, players at these levels
will have no restrictions on developmental opportunities due to their
year of birth. In staying with “what is best for the player”, the
Club will consider the player’s ability rather than her birth date.
Any
player who believes they have the ability to play at a higher level
shall be provided the opportunity to go through the evaluation
process. If successful, the Club Head Coach will have the final say
on whether playing up is in the best interests of the player after
considering all factors. In short, the Club will adopt a mentality
whereby if a player is good enough, she’s considered old enough
with respect to playing up. There will be no “holding back” of a
player to play at the next level.
Training
Environments
In
order to provide the best possible developmental environments for our
players as well as value for money, I want to see all teams from U8
to Adult train outdoors. In my experience, the gym environment does
not lend itself to optimal player development.
One
advantage of gym training is that it provides a warm and dry
environment which is pleasant for the youngest of our players.
However, come game day the same players play outside. It is my belief
that players should train in the same environment they play games in.
To
the extent possible, our teams will train at the same time as the
rest of their age group. For instance, all U8 teams will train
together on the turf at the same time. This will allow the Head Coach
to connect and support every single player and team coach at an age
level.
I
envisage all teams/training groups at the mini/micro level following
a similar curriculum to ensure every player is receiving the
appropriate training. It also ensures that all coaches receive
experience observing and running productive sessions.
This
can be achieved by bringing all coaches to a central area while a 15
minute (standardized) warm-up is in progress. During this time, the
Head Coach can demonstrate the session to be run. Thereafter, the
team coaches disperse back to their training groups (6 teams of 12 =
72 players) and run the same session.
By
allowing the Head Coach to support every player/coach in the Club, it
ensures that everyone receives consistent and quality training value
for their registration fee(s).
Coaching
Qualifications and Coach Development
It
will be the goal of the Club to have at least one coach from each
team’s staff that has the appropriate qualifications to coach at
that level. In
order to allow coaches the opportunity to achieve the desired
qualifications, the Club will host certification courses relevant to
all age groups and actively mentor team coaches.
U8-U10
Development Program
Description
The
U9-U10 Development Program will provide high performing players at
Club the opportunity to train together in a professional environment
with professional coaching staff and
will operate as a user-pay to the players invited to the program
This
program will operate from September to March annually and will
consist of one training session per week in addition to regular
Club-scheduled practices. The program will provide entry to elite
level competitions that are deemed beneficial to the development of
the players. Additionally, some players may be selected to
participate in the Whitecaps FC Club Academy Series in order to be
considered for the Prospects program.
Player
Selection Process
Players
must demonstrate a superior level of technical and tactical ability
in addition to a high motivation level, concentration and ability to
follow instructions. Players thought to be proficient in all of these
areas will be recommended by their team coach and thereafter assessed
by the Head Coach either during games, training or an identification
process. The selection of players to the program although based on
criteria will be at the discretion of the Head Coach.
Player
Placement
The
program will be divided into individual groupings and will allow for
player movement between groups based
on performance alone.
Ability
and performance will
be
the only determining factor in the placement of players,
unless safety is of concern.
Coaching
Staff
Players
will benefit from the expertise of full time professional coaching
staff with assistance from select team coaches.
Program
Expectations
The
U8 - U10 Development Program will operate as a professional program
and therefore comes with very high expectations of players selected.
Players will be treated as young professionals and will therefore be
expected to adopt a professional approach toward the programs
objectives. The program will demand the highest expectations in terms
of attendance, motivation, concentration, performance and training
wear. Players continued attendance will be based on the player’s
ability to meet these standards on a regular basis.
This
program will be scheduled so as not to affect normal Club team
training or games. However, occasionally there may be circumstances
that require selected players to prioritize the Development Program
ahead of Club events, tournament teams or other chosen sports.
Measurement
The
short term success of the program could be measured by a simple
process of basic standardized testing that will remain confidential
between the coaching staff and Club, or by parent/player feedback.
The
long term success of the program will be measured by the selection of
our players to elite soccer development programs such as the Super Y
League, Provincial All-Stars and Whitecaps FC Prospects programs.
SEMIAHMOO SC
ACADEMY
The
following programs will also be offered as part of or related to the
Club’s Academy Programming:
Pre-season
Team Training
(user-pay) – for teams U11 - Adult wishing to be introduced or
trained in a system of play prior to the season kick-off. This will
be a 7.5 – 10 hour program running prior to the season kick-off (5
sessions Monday-Friday).
Summer/Spring
Development Camps
(user-pay) – for those players wishing to simply have fun, but also
for those wishing to enter into a competitive environment. Camps will
be grouped into competitive or recreational.
Friday
Academy Program
(user-pay) – for U8 - U18 players wishing to improve their overall
ability and opportunities for select or developmental programs. The
majority of the program will consist of U8-U13 players; however,
there may be small groups of older players wishing to participate in
additional training.
Semiahmoo
SC Development League (user-pay)
- this will be a development league for teams throughout the lower mainland to compete against other development teams at the U9 - U10
levels. This can be run in both winter and spring.
In-season
Team Training
Sessions
(user-pay) – This will be for teams wishing to receive refreshers
on their pre-season training, or for new teams wishing to work on
their system of play.
Semiahmoo
SC International Tournament
– This will be an annual tournament reaching out not only to teams
across Canada, but the U.S, U.K and beyond. The scheduled date for
this is the Queen Victoria Day long weekend in May.
Travel
Teams U11 - U18
(user-pay)
–
for highly-motivated coaches and players who wish to travel to either
local or international tournaments. These environments can be
supported by the Head Coach in a full time or part time capacity.
Flagship
Teams
(user-pay)
–
a program for those players wishing to be in a professional
environment for the purpose of competing at the highest level
throughout the season. Training 4-5 days per week with the
opportunity to attend high profile tournaments during the season
where they can be exposed to professional Club, university and
college scouts.
CLUB-AFFILIATED
PROGRAMS
Coastal
FC Y-league, PCSL U21s and Premier Teams
– For those looking to play at a competitive level and achieve
professional
contracts, university scholarships or employment opportunities later
in life. It is hoped that the U21 PCSL team will be supported by
players graduating players (U17 and above) from the Coastal FC
Y-league program.
College
Showcase ID Camps
– Semiahmoo SC will provide opportunities for college and
university scouts to observe potential players for scholarships.
Senior
Programs
It
has been recognized in many instances that youth players have little
understanding of what their options are after graduating from the U18
youth level of Club soccer.
It
is also recognized in many instances that adult soccer receives
little to no support from most organizations.
This
is not a good situation if we are to achieve our long term goal of
providing opportunities
for professional contracts, university scholarships, employment
opportunities and overall health and wellness into our adult years.
It
is important that everyone connected with Semiahmoo SC understands
that competitive soccer does not end after the U18 level. Semiahmoo
SC hopes to build towards a future where players in our community can
play from cradle-to-grave at a level they are most comfortable.
Semiahmoo
SC currently provides opportunities to play against the Whitecaps FC
reserve team and university based teams in our Pacific Coast Soccer
League (PCSL) Premier team. We also provide a very competitive
environment in our U21 PCSL team. Both environments provide great
opportunities to be scouted by the Whitecaps FC or gain scholarships
to some of the top universities in North America.
I
would like to see us strengthen the bridge between our youth and
adult programs by encouraging our youth to be an active part of our
senior teams where appropriate. I see our senior program having a
bright future should we all work towards having a true Club system
where each team within the Club supports the other at the next level.
I
believe that there will be fewer better environments in the Lower
Mainland for player development than what will be in place at
Semiahmoo SC in the years to come and I look forward to an exciting
future for our players in the South Surrey/White Rock community.
I
welcome any feedback or queries you may have and
encourage you to visit the Club’s website at
www.semiahmoosoccer.com
for more information regarding the above, as well as what all else
the Club is doing.
Sincerely,
Mark
McQueen
Head
Coach
Semiahmoo
SC
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