Welcome to the new season! We will start training a little early, this coming Monday and Wednesday from 5:30 to 7:00 in the Brookdale meadow. We may have a small sided session on that Friday but I need to confirm. Please send me a quick note to say whether you will be around next week.
The normal season starts the following week. Sessions will be Monday and Wednesday, 5:30 to 7.
This year there will be some big changes. At this age, the boys are entering a developmental period where they will be able to understand a bit more about the larger concepts in the game as well as have greater focus. They will also be playing on a much larger field with more players (11 to each side). You will hear me editorialize on many occasions that this move to the larger field is premature for the cognitive, physical and emotional capacities of boys this age. However, we must contend with the system for youth soccer in New Jersey. We will remain focused on building strong players as well as providing them with a rewarding experience.
Last night I met the new coaches for this year: David Bulmer and Andre Viola from TSF. I was well impressed. They come very highly recommended for their work with other age groups within MUSC (e.g., the U10 boys). The club policy is to rotate trainers regularly to provide a well-rounded experience, yet I look forward to working with David and Andre for the next couple of years. It was quite evident that both are passionate about soccer and take their vocation—developing young players—very seriously.
David Bulmer hails from Darlington in the north east of England. He’s played semi-professional (a defender) and has coached youth soccer in England, Australia and here in the US. He noted that u11 is a great age to work with since so many changes make for an exciting experience for the boys. In his words, “this is a time of transition where it becomes more serious as the boys are maturing physically and mentally.”
Andre Viola hails from Clifton NJ and remembers playing against Montclair in his youth. He played college at New Jersey City University then left for Spain to develop further as a player. He enjoys helping players develop and says this requires patience and quiet determination from a trainer. He played as a goalie, so he emphasizes getting the boys to think about developing play from the back (defense) forward.
David and Andre (as does their organization, TSF) both subscribe to playing possession-oriented soccer where the players focus on patiently making short passes and working the ball up the field. This can be contrasted with what we see most often: kicking the ball up far to the swifter players (a run and gun game). I think this focus on passing and teamwork well suits our boys, whom I would characterize as very intelligent. As David said, “soccer is about knowing what to do when you don’t have the ball as well as when you have the ball.” The team that can work well together and make good decisions will have good success.
Both trainers emphasized that their emphasis will be on player development and their benchmark for success will be whether each boy is playing better at the end of the season compared to the beginning. While each wants to field competitive teams, they emphasize that success over time comes from a solid base of strong individual players. The goal is to make ‘complete players.’
I'll be sending along more information over the coming week. Let me know if you have particular questions.
Kind regards,
Charlie
-- MUSC U11 Boys Academy
We build total footballers
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