Important Messages from Mike Farnham, Director of Coaching, Roswell Soccer Club
Individual Player Development Curriculum
Since day one I have been talking about a (Club-Wide) Player Development Curriculum and how important it is for a Club to provide its Players with Ball Work to do on their own in order to develop the Five Ball Skills (Receiving, Passing, Dribbling, Shooting and Heading). In addition, it is equally important that the Club tracks the rate of development for each Player by periodically Testing and Recording the Skills of the Players throughout the year. Essentially, we aim to teach Players, How to Achieve a Goal.
Individual Skill Development is truly the sole responsibility of the Individual. Self-motivation is the only kind of motivation that lasts. With the right attitude I have seen players of all ages and abilities raise their Individual Skills to amazing heights. EVERY PLAYER has the ability to become a great soccer player. A great soccer player has a high level of concentration, confidence and creativity which enables he/she to Control the Ball! Like David Beckham said, "If you control the Ball you control the Game!"
I hope every single player puts forth their very best effort on a weekly basis to improve their Individual Ball Skills. Ten to fifteen minutes a day will make a huge impact. Just imagine if every player in our club is able to achieve at least a status of Level 3 (out of 5 Levels) on every single Skill Test...we would truly become one of the best clubs in Georgia. This is up to YOU to make this happen. Remember, "Make Great Habits - Habits Make You Great!"
Please let me know if you have any questions and cya on the pitch!
Respectfully,
Mike Farnham
Director of Coaching
Roswell Soccer Club
678-794-1759
PLAYER DEVELOPMENT CURRICULUM - Receiving the Ball out of the Air
SKILL TEST TRAINING For the Player
*Test #1 helps to develop control and coordination in Juggling. The Ball should bounce then the Player Juggles it no higher than the waste and then repeat.
*Test #2 helps to develop the Foundation for Juggling by focusing on all 5 Body Parts.
*Test #3 combines two Body Parts and is for the advanced Juggler that is able to achieve a Level 3 for all of the Skills in Test #1 and #2.
*The first Test will be conducted during the Week of Oct. 3 and it will focus on Test #1 and #2 to determine the Level of each Player.
*Players will be given 6 weeks to work on Test #1 and #2. The Coach will conduct the second Test (Week of Nov. 14) to determine rate of improvement for each player.
*Based on individual scores on Test #1 and #2, each Coach will determine if a player should move on to Test #3 or if more work is needed on Test #1 and #2
*The Juggling Skill Tests will resume in February during the first week of Training which provides the Players with over 2 months of time to improve.
*When the Coach conducts a Skill Test each player is given 20 Seconds to achieve their score. Players do not need to Train with a watch but instead simply focus on trying to get as many juggles as possible.
L1 - Level 1. L2 - Level 2. L3 - Level 3. L4 - Level 4. L5 - Level 5
Juggling Test #1 L1 L2 L3 L4 L5
Right Foot Juggle-Bounce 5 10 20 40 50
Leftt Foot Juggle-Bounce 5 10 20 40 50
Juggling Test #2 L1 L2 L3 L4 L5
Right Foot 5 10 20 40 50
Left Foot 5 10 20 40 50
Right Thigh 5 10 20 30 40
Left Thigh 5 10 20 30 40
Head 5 10 20 30 40
Juggling Test #3 L1 L2 L3 L4 L5
Right Foot/Left Foot 6 10 14 18 24
Right Thigh/Left Thigh 6 10 14 18 24
Right Foot/Right Thigh 6 10 14 18 24
Left Foot/Left Thigh 6 10 14 18 24
Foot/Chest 6 10 14 18 24
Foot/Head 2 4 6 8 10
==============================================================================================
Below are some important points from the Coaches Meeting for the Managers, Players and Parents.
Goal Keeper Training
Location and Time: 7-8:30pm at Waller Park (meet at the Wall)
Tuedays for U13-U19 Goalies and the U12 goalies.
Uniform Colors for Games
Home - Blue Jersey and whatever color scheme Coach decides for shorts and socks
Away - White Jersey and whatever color scheme Coach decides for shorts and socks
Parent Sideline Behavior During Games
PLEASE, do not give coaching instructions to any players during the games. All of the Coaches (and many of the players) agree that there is way too much Coaching from the Parents during Games (I know, the season has hardly started). A majority of the Parents are the perfect role models and we commend you on your exemplary behavior and support of the players, the coaching staff and the club. Howver, there are some who just can’t seem to control their emotions and therefore yell "coaching instructions" at the players.
Locker Room Area at Training Sessions and Games
The "Locker Room Area" must be reserved for the Team and wherever the players put their bags is off-limits to the parents at Practices and Games (that sounds pretty harsh but it’s the best word to describe the importance of respecting the "Team’s personal space". In fact, we prefer if the Parents remain outside the Fences during Training Sessions. Certainly there shouldn’t be any coaching of any player during Training Sessions either.
Respectfully,
Mike Farnham
Director of Coaching
Roswell Soccer Club
678-794-1759
