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#1 stopper

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Posted 01 March 2008 - 01:53 AM

Binh and Sera are both playing with RC Flames this season.

Binh is the U14B #1 keeper. He has a goalkeeper coach working with him and he is really progressing. They just played a scrimmage against Upland and Binh did well. His team is a work in progress but there are some pretty good players.

He has also been invited to play for Claremont Stars and has gotten some time in some friendlies. The coach really likes Binh and wants him to be his #1. He is going to honor his commitment to Select but will probably try to latch on with this club next season. He'll probably play on weekends when he doesn't have Select obligations. That Stars team is very good and play sexy football.

Sera will be a jack of all trades for the U12G. They scrimmaged a club last night and had a better 2nd half. It finished a 2-1 loss but it could've been tied up. They scrimmaged Upland's U12G tonight and won 3-1. Sera played almost exclusively at outside back and did well for not being familiar with the position. I'm very confident after tonight that the girls will have a successful season.

I may be taking Sera to a Claremont Stars tryout on Sunday. just to check it out. Since Binh will be getting a shot with Stars, I didn't want Sera to be excluded, but my gut feeling says to keep her in AYSO since every spring we have Select. But I don't know. I'm at a crossroads with her. I'm hearing good things and bad things.

We'll be scrimmaging next Tuesday vs. Fontana's select then playing in Downey's Tournament next weekend.

What's up with you guys?

#2 stopper

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Posted 09 March 2008 - 09:30 PM

Not a great start to the season. We lost to Westlake Village in the first game of the Downey tournament 1-0. They were the class of the tournament and we did okay but we played ugly soccer. The girls can't get past the kickball they've been groomed for.

We won 4-3 v. Pico Rivera in the afternoon. Only one of those goals was crafted, which was the game winner. All three of our goals came from slop. My girls are timid and let balls bounce that should be headed out. They are hesitant to get to the ball and end up tapping balls and leaving them right at our opponent's feet. One of my centerbacks actually kicked the ball over her own head. Really ugly stuff.

This morning it was more of the same. 2-1 loss to Diamond Bar. Sera scored our only goal, a cracker with her left foot off a good pass from one of our forwards. But the goals we gave up were very preventable.

First touch is a big problem. There is so much to teach the girls about team play, but where are you going to go if the girls can't even settle a simple pass. Easy balls were going through feet like croquet wickets. really bad. Very frustrating. Every ball in the air results in girls putting their hands up and leaning backwards.

So, I'm not very happy with the results at all. But now when I urge the girls to really work on their first touch and going hard to the ball in practice, I can point to the losses as proof. We'll see how they respond.

12-year-old girls have attitude. Seriously.

One concerning note: Sera has had a bruised knee for a week and a half now, and today she banged knees with a girl shortly after her goal. It swelled up really bad and we ended up taking her to the hospital. She has blood in the knee and is going to miss school tomorrow and needs to ice it and elevate it. We'll be taking her to a sports injury clinic this week and hopefully she'll be ready for our Grape Stomp tournament this weekend.

#3 stopper

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Posted 10 March 2008 - 08:33 PM

Sera will be out of action for 10 days. Bummer. She'll have to miss our own Grape Stomp tournament. Now we're in deep shit. We'll see if any of the other girls can step up, but it is pretty hard to do well when your best attacking mid is out.

#4 stopper

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Posted 12 March 2008 - 10:10 PM

Binh also played in the Downey tournament and his team lost all three. Not a bad team, but a few poor players and some questionable spots for some of the players. Hopefully the coaches are still trying to figure out where the boys fit in best. Binh can tell you where they certainly don't, but he's not making out the game card.

Binh is getting goalkeeper training with this select team, and it is working out well. He is improving.

However, this may be his last tour of duty with an AYSO side. He has played three friendlies with Claremont Stars, who is coached by a dad of one of the boys on Binh's Damien team. He has been talking to us about getting Binh on the team and Binh is now officially registered with Cal South. He will be playing in a tournament later this month and playing in the group stage of Cal Cup. Its a bronze team coming off a losing season but I like the way they play and the boys really like Binh. He'll play when there are no Select conflicts, as Binh is committed to RC Flames, but come July Binh will be a Star.

I may have coached Binh for the last time last November and fortunately it was a morale boosting 3-0 shutout. Or maybe not. For all I know, Binh gives it his best then ends up getting cut in the next few months or years. But if it is, its been a good ride and its been nice sharing our experiences here.

#5 GUNSLINGER

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Posted 13 March 2008 - 03:29 PM

good stuff.

Long Beach Inter SC wins 10-0 in the start of our weekday league season.

it may have been more than 10, but i stopped counting because i was paying attention more to our mistakes. as a coach, sometimes it's never enough.

#6 stopper

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Posted 14 March 2008 - 06:23 PM

No shit. There have been games where we've cruised by teams and been mad because we played poor soccer. Bones reported on just such a game a year ago. Funny.

#7 stopper

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Posted 17 March 2008 - 10:49 PM

Grape Stomp Results:

Binh's U14B went 2-1 in group play, having to come back from a late 1-0 deficit to win 4-1 in the second game, but losing 2-1 in the third. This set up a 3rd place game that RC Flames won in the 2nd overtime. Didn't watch a minute of Binh's games, but from all accounts he had a wonderful tournament.

Sera's U12G went 3-0 in group play, winning 1-0 in the opener, a hard-fought affair with my girls collecting several "ponytails", our code word for all the times we flatten a girl and make her ponytail flap. Clean, but physical.

In the second two games, won 4-0 and 3-0, the girls began to show some good soccer. It began to make more sense, and it was good to watch.

Unfortunately, we played a more experienced Culver City team in the final and ended up losing 1-0. We had several opportunities in the first half, but gave up a goal in one of our rare defensive lapses of the tournament. We only gave up one goal, and it was enough to rob us of a championship. But we were the only RC Flames side to play in a final, so we are proud of that. Still, I'm confident we would've won it all if Sera had been available.

#8 stopper

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Posted 30 March 2008 - 10:30 PM

Binh's Claremont Stars team went 2-2 in Palm Desert this weekend in preparation for next weekend's State Cup.

Binh did okay. Not great. Had some good moments but was trying too hard to impress. What is a bit concerning is how poorly the team played defensively. Learning how to work offensively is one thing. I know how hard it is to teach kids how to play good possession soccer. Lots of the kids are not anticipating or thinking two passes ahead, but it is a work in progress. But defensively, it seems like the boys do not know their assignments. Lots of head turning and ball watching. Lots of unmarked players running unopposed and unnoticed into dangerous areas. On two occasions in the afternoon game today, Binh did very well to close down on a breakaway, only to have both deflected shots fall to an unmarked forward on the far post as the closest defender jogged back about five yards trailing the play.

I've watched this team play a few times against newly formed teams and they looked pretty good. Not great, but a good work in progress. Now, really watching them against other established teams, and I'm concerned. Hopefully, there will be some hard work done in practice to resolve some of these problems.

We'll see.

#9 stopper

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Posted 06 April 2008 - 09:53 PM

Binh's Stars went 1-2 at State Cup.

More defensive woes led to 3 goals in the first half. Binh did the best he could but he ended up having to deal with two breakaways resulting from unmarked players making runs. And a PK. He did well in the second half to keep them in the game until they lost 3-1.

Binh played like "chicken shit" in the second game. His words. He wasn't aggressive off his line and it cost the team. 2-0, but not much in the way of attacking play.

They won 1-0 on a late goal today. Binh was heroic. As Binh concedes, they stoled the points today. Binh made up for his poor showing yesterday but Stars are out of the Cup.

#10 GUNSLINGER

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Posted 06 April 2008 - 10:28 PM

LB INTER SC wins 4-3 in a game where we should've smashed them 6-0.

#11 stopper

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Posted 14 April 2008 - 11:23 PM

Sera's U12 Select hosted a friendly mini-tournament on Saturday evening. We won all three games. 2-0, 2-0, and 5-0. The girls were really good and seem to have embraced sexy football. I think we are ready for our Arizona trip this weekend. Sera's knee is better and she had a great day.

Binh's U14 Select played in Diamond Bar. They lost to a decent Rowland Heights team. Binh's team was outclassed and unorganized. Too bad. However, Binh only allowed one more goal in the final three games and they took 3rd place. In the 3rd place match, RC Flames took a quick lead. Soon after, one of Chino's forwards got behind the defense and Binh came off his line and blocked a cannon shot from close range with his upper lip. He was a bit dingy but stayed in the game. He told me his goalkeeper coach had given him advice which he took to heart, "Always play as if there are hot girls watching." Binh was manly.

#12 stopper

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Posted 21 April 2008 - 09:16 PM

SOOOO close to winning it in Prescott.

We started off against the best team in the group and tied Bullhead City. After that, it was a matter of who could secure the tiebreaker.

We took about 25 shots and only managed to dent the woodwork and score two goals in a 2-0 win over Glendale, AZ. Meanwhile, City scored a 4-0 win. Advantage Bullhead City.

Next morning, we gave up two sleepy-headed goals to Las Vegas before bouncing back and winning 5-2. City was tied 1-1 against Glendale before pulling away 6-1. Advantage City.

We trounced Tucson 4-0 to secure the full 10 points. We had 32 points overall, forcing City to earn 9 points without giving up two goals in order to win the tiebreaker for less goals allowed. It was 2-0 near the end of the game when the referee awarded a PK to Las Vegas for a handled ball in the area. If Vegas hits the PK and hold on to the 2-1 loss, City only earns 8 points for a total of 31 points.

How cruel soccer can be. The girl skies it over the crossbar and Bullhead City earns the full nine points to tie us at 32 and win on less goals allowed. Very disappointing.

However, we keep telling the girls how crucial every goal is in group play and why it is important to focus for 50 minutes. They showed some sexy football, however, and we got a lot of compliments. Sera did very well.

Next week, Binh plays at Chino Hills.

#13 Captain Obvious

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Posted 22 April 2008 - 10:31 AM

SOOOO close to winning it in Prescott.

We started off against the best team in the group and tied Bullhead City. After that, it was a matter of who could secure the tiebreaker.

We took about 25 shots and only managed to dent the woodwork and score two goals in a 2-0 win over Glendale, AZ. Meanwhile, City scored a 4-0 win. Advantage Bullhead City.

Next morning, we gave up two sleepy-headed goals to Las Vegas before bouncing back and winning 5-2. City was tied 1-1 against Glendale before pulling away 6-1. Advantage City.

We trounced Tucson 4-0 to secure the full 10 points. We had 32 points overall, forcing City to earn 9 points without giving up two goals in order to win the tiebreaker for less goals allowed. It was 2-0 near the end of the game when the referee awarded a PK to Las Vegas for a handled ball in the area. If Vegas hits the PK and hold on to the 2-1 loss, City only earns 8 points for a total of 31 points.

How cruel soccer can be. The girl skies it over the crossbar and Bullhead City earns the full nine points to tie us at 32 and win on less goals allowed. Very disappointing.

However, we keep telling the girls how crucial every goal is in group play and why it is important to focus for 50 minutes. They showed some sexy football, however, and we got a lot of compliments. Sera did very well.

Next week, Binh plays at Chino Hills.



Not directed at you Stopper, but your summary of the tournament is why youth soccer is failing at developing players. Should it really matter if young boys and girls are able to secure 10 points in what four games in two days or that they can make good decisions, keep possession and play smart soccer. By forcing teams to get results, kids are not encouraged to make mistakes and learn as they play.

Time to start a youth league that plays one match a week for six or eight months of the year with maybe only one or two tournaments a year and an emphasis on learning the game and forgetting results.

#14 stopper

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Posted 22 April 2008 - 11:08 PM

No offense taken.

They ARE learning how to play the game. Learning how to defend a lead IS learning how to play the game. You should have seen how they kept working the ball into the corner and killing the clock. It showed a maturity that most teams don't have. And the best thing is that they could've kept on pounding at the goal but understood what was being accomplished.

Don't think AYSO select is all about throwing out the best athletes to the front and taking shots without development. These girls are beginning to play soccer and they are beginning to work like a team. You can tell they are enjoying the game more.

I don't get what you mean by "not being encouraged to make mistakes". There are plenty of opportunities to make mistakes when kids are learning how to play good soccer. For example, under pressure my girls passed the ball back to the center backs and to my goalkeeper on several occasions, in some risky conditions and messed up a couple of times. I told them they were making good decisions and to keep doing it because it was the right thing to do.

I could see if I was all glum after not winning and blaming the girls. Then, you'd be right on the mark. Learning why they didn't win and knowing what they have to do next time, explained to them in a positive manner, is helping learn the game.

Just my opinion.

#15 Catamount

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Posted 23 April 2008 - 11:46 AM

Not directed at you Stopper, but your summary of the tournament is why youth soccer is failing at developing players. Should it really matter if young boys and girls are able to secure 10 points in what four games in two days or that they can make good decisions, keep possession and play smart soccer. By forcing teams to get results, kids are not encouraged to make mistakes and learn as they play.

Time to start a youth league that plays one match a week for six or eight months of the year with maybe only one or two tournaments a year and an emphasis on learning the game and forgetting results.



No offense taken.

They ARE learning how to play the game. Learning how to defend a lead IS learning how to play the game. You should have seen how they kept working the ball into the corner and killing the clock. It showed a maturity that most teams don't have. And the best thing is that they could've kept on pounding at the goal but understood what was being accomplished.

Don't think AYSO select is all about throwing out the best athletes to the front and taking shots without development. These girls are beginning to play soccer and they are beginning to work like a team. You can tell they are enjoying the game more.

I don't get what you mean by "not being encouraged to make mistakes". There are plenty of opportunities to make mistakes when kids are learning how to play good soccer. For example, under pressure my girls passed the ball back to the center backs and to my goalkeeper on several occasions, in some risky conditions and messed up a couple of times. I told them they were making good decisions and to keep doing it because it was the right thing to do.

I could see if I was all glum after not winning and blaming the girls. Then, you'd be right on the mark. Learning why they didn't win and knowing what they have to do next time, explained to them in a positive manner, is helping learn the game.

Just my opinion.

Stopper asked me to weigh in, and I am happy to do so. I am 1000% in agreement with CapO on youth development. I'm not sure kids should be playing in tournaments until they reach U14. The Antelope Valley has produced more than it's share of top quality soccer players. Two of the current pros Leonard Griffin and Sean Franklin were touched at an early age Wayne Dickerson, the very best development coach for U14 and under players I've ever seen. Wayne grew up in Brazil, the son of missionaries. He learned on the streets of the ghetto like all Brazilian players.

Wayne's teams often win tournaments and games not because they are being taught to win, but because they are being taught to play soccer. Wayne simply watched kids playing in the park or on their teams at practice. If he liked a player he'd come up and say, "You might be able to play in my program, show up at 7:00 on Wednesday." He'd hand a paper to the parents and walk away. Wayne had a whole array of games involving touch, juggling, heading, etc.

The players would go for weeks just playing with the ball running with it. He never even began to play any kind of soccer game until he felt the technical skill of the players had reached a certain level. Players and parents would drop out if they didn't love playing with a soccer ball. I remember watching him coach a U12 girls team for six weeks before they even started 3 v 3. That team did not play a competitive game until the third month of training.

Then he started with the 3v3, basic tactical soccer, offense defense, balance, movement passing, always teaching, where to control the ball. Wayne's players have incredible first touch (like Franklin). The ball always moves into a great position to pass, or dribble. Wayne's players always have excellently weighted passes and great touch at speed with either foot. The girls team spent many months on 3 v 3 to 5 v 5, just working on touch, passing, movement, balance, defensive decision making. Wayne taught the players to play defense without ever leaving their feet. You don't see any slide tackling on his teams. He tells them that if you slide tackle it means you are out of position. Notice the way Franklin closes on his mark. Wayne teaches it just like that.

When it came time to play a game Wayne would select the starting lineup with a juggling contest. The last eleven players to keep the ball in the air started. He did not have positions or formations. He would have a scrimmage with the first eleven against everyone else. He just sat back and watched. The players that gravitated toward the back he put on defense. The ones who gravitated toward one side or another he put in wide positions and so on. When they got older than 14 he wasn't much interested any more. Wayne's teams played in one or two tournaments a year and the state cup.

I think Sean Franklin is exhibit A of how to develop young players. Too bad he was moved from his natural midfield position by his club coaches to right back. What a waste of a great central, creative attacking player.

We need more than criticism of the current system. We need guys like Wayne Dickerson to show us a better way to do things.




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