You need not agree, but why don’t you hear me out? Tryouts soccer is not to find the most competitive players; it is just to sort out players and teams through successful tryouts.
Many young coaches do not effectively distinguish between average players and good players. Their lack of experience proves that they do not recognize the promising players or overlook gifted players who can read the game and make quick decisions. And they select players who could use and handle the ball well.
Youth soccer has got many common wrong beliefs about tryouts. For instance, there is a perception that one can get into a soccer team, if one is coach’s daughter or a board member’s son. Another example is the belief that good teams have no vacancies. But the fact is that successful teams change their players every year whether due to injury, job relocations, or player’s commitments to other sports. The soccer association also encourages this.
Did you know that when a reasonably good tryouts soccer session is conducted, a mix of the good and not so good players is selected? We discussed few of the popular tryout myths. We’ll discuss some of the common failures which are experienced by even the skilled coaches.
Coaches are humans and so they have their favorites too. In some weak sentimental moments, some players are retained in the team for the next year even though he or she does not fit with the team’s skill-sets and long term objectives. Instead, they could have let that player move on to a team consistent with his or her ability and level of commitment.
The best players will be attracted to your team by your homework. One should design a precise, logical, competitive training plan for a year. To decide whether to work or not as a coach for a year-long project, people consider the account of work or the project plan.
You know that a kid is neither improving nor working hard to get better.
Do your duty by replacing him or her with an ambitious player who deserves a chance. Stop kidding yourself. If the kid has not been able to contribute much to the team’s growth, let someone else get a chance.
Having said that let me also reiterate the fact that good players, both in terms of performance and behavior, are always hard to find. Never do this mistake of replacing an injured player who is likely to come back and can contribute in a big way. If injury is the only hitch, keep the player for the soccer tournament.
In conclusion, it is you who’ll have to train players for the remaining year, so incorporate a simple skill as a part of one of your tryouts soccer sessions. This will help you to find whether the potential player actually has the intent of learning and developing the necessary skills. You can also subscribe to our youth soccer coaching community and enhance your knowledge on selecting a well balanced team.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR:
Andre Botelho is a recognized expert in youth soccer coaching. He influences well over 35,000 youth coaches each year with his unique coaching philosophy, and makes it really easy to explode your players’ skills and make training more fun in record time. To download your free youth soccer coaching guide, visit: Soccer Training Drills