0708 Bangu Tsunami 93/94 Blue

With nearly 90 girls out at tryouts for this age group, I was interested in seeing if there were any girls who might warrant a look at playing on the Blue team.  I’m not all-knowing, but I’ve seen my fair share of games at our age level over the past few years.  There were only 2 girls outside of our club who I thought could come in and make an impact. 

When I say make an impact, I’m talking about coming in and being considered as a starter.   Why would I really only be interested in players like this?  Well, because kids who have been with me even for just one year have a good idea of our system of play, our team culture, and of my expectations.  I wouldn’t look to replace a “non-starter” with another non-starter.  I’ve seen how hard it is for new girls to come in and be effective in this group.  Egocentric on my part or not, there is a sort of mysticism with this team and many players from outside believe that they are not skilled enough to make the team, right or wrong.  This feeling affects confidence levels and makes it tough for new girls to feel comfortable in our playing environment, thus making it very difficult for new players to play up to their potential.  Not impossible, but very difficult. 

This is a challenge when dealing with a high level team that has found some success.  We’re not really at a point where we can baby players along anymore as the competition and training level that we live with are not very conducive to this hand-holding when compared to the levels that the majority of other teams at this age group may experience.

So, though there may be some players out there who are just as good as some of our current players (players who I think are in the lower half of the ability division on our team), I won’t take someone that will not make an immediate impact in this group.

Moreover, I don’t feel that it is fair to replace these current players who have made the commitment already to us, who have put in the time and effort in to doing what we do throughout the year, with someone who would come in and do the same job.

The issue with my view is current White team players as these players will continually find it difficult to break into the Blue team.  With all respect to every player out there, it doesn’t really bother me that this might not be fair to players outside our club who are coming to the tryouts.  We’ll have two other very solid teams at this age group that will provide solid developmental opportunities to players like this.

As for the 2 other Minnesota girls who I think would be impact players in our group, neither of them are interested in what we have to offer.  Actually, let me rephrase that. I think they are interested in what we have to offer, but not interested enough to make the full move to our club.

“Chilly” plays with the age group older Eden Prairie Premier team.  She is surrounded by some talented players and in a good community development environment and this is what is important to her and her family at this point.  And that is just fine by me.  She will be training with us this fall as most of her team has HS soccer to participate in, and she will likely guest with us if the opportunity presents itself without conflicting with her own team’s events throughout the coming year.

“Waldo” plays with the age group older Coon Rapids Premier team.  Like Chilly, she and her family are very content with their current soccer situation and have no interest in making a change.  Again, that is completely fine by me.  Waldo has guest played with us a bit this fall and may be in the mix to do more as a guest player if needed.

Though I feel our training opportunity provides more positive soccer development options for both these players, it will always be a soft sell on our part.  Here’s our opportunity.  If you’re interested, great.  If not, great.

Anyway, I had not seen anyone else this past year at the U13 age group who I thought would come in and displace any of our current players.  But I have never been with a team that did not change personnel from one year to the next and this year proved no different.

After all was said and done, Sting and Brownie ended up moving to our White team, with Lily heading to Shattuck St Marys boarding school in Faribault for an intensive, year-round school/soccer experience.  We will be re-evaluating Lily next spring as she can still play with our club in the summer, non-Shattuck months. 

We added two players, both new to Minnesota this summer.  Kaelyn "Cali" K from the San Diego Surf club and Clare (yet-to-be-bestowed-with-a-nickname) S from the Houston Eclipse club in south Texas. We are moving forward into the new soccer year with 16 players.

It wasn’t easy to let Sting and Brownie know about the shake out after tryouts. Both are talented players and I feel both are on track to play Division I collegiate soccer. I won’t say much else here about this save for the fact that I was truly impressed by their eventual attitudes and desire to remain in our program with our White team. Both will be in a position to be true impact players with that team, something that will help them both down the road in soccer as well as in life.

Last year, Jazzy and Dot were moved from the Blue team to the White team. Both were “role” players with the Blue team the year before, both emerged from last season with the White team full of confidence and as better players thanks in large part to their ability to help run the show within the White team structure. I see the same happening with Sting and Brownie. Putting myself in their shoes, anything that I say to them about this may come across as hollow. I understand this. Though I might not be their favorite person for a while, I think that long term this move will pay off greatly for each of them.

First Tryouts for U14s - Lots O' Ladies

Nearly 90 girls tonight for our first 2-hour tryout for the U14 age group.  As I looked over the group during the initial welcome, all I remember was seeing a mass of pony-tails, pre-wrapped headbands in every imaginable color, and electrical-taped up socks in bizarre patterns.  There was a nervous energy in the air surrounding the throng of onlookers as Mark Cook (BTFC Girls Coaching Director) addressed the group prior to the start of the evaluations.  I don't know who were more nervous, the kids or the parents.

Where the heck did all these girls come from?  We had four teams last year (Blue, White, Green, and Black), and though I think the great majority of these girls returned for this year's tryouts, there were a ton of new faces in the crowd. 

The girls spent the first hour or so playing in 6v6 games.  The last part of tonight's tryouts was spent playing 8v8.  In between, we held "The Race", something we always do at every age group.  It's not very scientific, we just split the girls into 4 groups, set each group on the start line, yell ready, set, go, and they're off on a 50 yards sprint.  The fastest three from each heat advance to the semifinals (12 girls in 2 heats of 6) and the fastest three advance again into the finals (6 girls) to try and determine the fastest girl in the group.  I fully realize that this is not a very exact way of measuring as some unfortunate sole who is faster than most in the entire group may have the bad luck to be in a heat with 4 other thoroughbreds, but it give the evaluators some idea of who is where. 

Speed doesn't mean anything in and of itself, but it obviously doesn't hurt.  Becs (from last year's team) worked her way into a look for the top team because she, as an unknown player to me at tryouts, won The Race last fall. 

I know going into these evaluations that there are a few players from the White team that deserve a look to make the jump to the Blue.  I also know that there are a few kids who just relocated into the area who also merit watching.  Kaelyn Korte just moved here from San Diego into the Lakeville area... Credit River Territory to be exact.  She played with the Surf's "B" team, but I had seen her train a bit last December with us when her family was up here looking for houses.  Her team just won the US Club Soccer National Championship in late July, and in speaking with her coach this week, she will likely be a very good player for us. 

Clare Shaw is also relocating to Woodbury from Houston, Texas.  Funny story really.  Hannah's (on my team) parents own a rental property in Woodbury.  They were showing it a few weeks back to a family and this girl came to the showing in a South Texas ODP shirt.  She just happened to be Hannah's age and they just happened to start talking soccer.  Hannah's mom gave the dad my cell phone number and he called me later in the day.  Clare plays for the Houston Eclipse team, one of the stronger clubs in the South Texas area.  I got her coach's number and spoke with him this week as well, and he's absolutely devastated to lose Clare.  Nice.  One team's loss is another team's gain. 

We also apparently had a goal scorer from the Michigan Hawks relocating to the area, but that never panned out. 

So tough decisions will need to be made somewhere in the coming days, and though I'm sure some girls will be unhappy.  However, based on the talent we saw tonight, our White team will be a very strong team next year and a great option for any player leaving the Blue team. 

First Weekend of Academy Tryouts Complete

Sorry for the lack of posts.  As I mentioned, this is a super busy time with tryouts and the start of our 0708 Academy year.  I've been writing, but I haven't been posting as there are some sensitive issues dealing with tryouts that I didn't feel a need to make public while things were going on.  I hope to return to semi-regular postings this week. 

As I slowly leak out my thoughts about tryouts, I'll post on the day that I wrote them.  So even though I'm posting today (Aug 16), I will keep the initial date (Aug 6) on the header here so that people know what was written when. 

Where to go with this website?  That is the question.

As mentioned, I plan on taking the U13s this next year as U14s.  Tryouts for this age group begin tomorrow, and there are 70 girls pre-registered online for the event.  Tomorrow nights gonna be crazy.

I am also planning on heading up a new group of U11 girls in the East Academy.  Whereas in the fall of 2004 with my current group we had a team of decent players to build from, at this current U11 group we have 20+ very solid players in the mix.  The remaining 10 aren't that shabby either, with more than 50% of the group better than most of my current team was 3 years ago.

We also have a very solid turn out at our U12 girls age group.  I will be working with Andy Kaasa with this group and we are excited about the nearly 20 talented girls we saw this weekend.  The problem is that we will have to make some tough decisions to whittle the roster down to 17.

U12s play 8v8 here in MN, but we are looking to model this age group's next year after my current group's U12 year as well as the current U13's U12 year; an age year that saw us play the teams up to the U13 11v11 Classic 1 division.  Both groups did very well during their respective U12 seasons, well enough to both earn places in the following summer's 6-team Premier League.

So, my goal with this site will be to track the development of these (U11, U12, and U14) teams this year.  What about the U13s?  Well, Ben Gaddis is returning to the club to coach and will be taking this team.  I helped with tryout evaluations for this age group tonight and the team will be very solid.  However, I won't have much of a hand in them this next year, but I'll keep people posted on their progress as well if I can.

I doubt I'll be able to document every single training session with the 3 age groups, but I'm going to try and do what I can to continue to provide interested readers with some insight as we battle to provide the services we offer in this area.  And believe me, sometimes it is a real battle against the envious and possessive, the ignorant, and the myopic.

One only has to read some of the MN soccer blogs to get a feel for the general animosity out there against our player development philosophy and against certain individuals (myself included) who work for our club.  We seem to be the club that most everyone else likes to hate, but that's OK.  It hasn't really stopped any of us involved from continuing to try and make strides in the MN soccer community.  In fact, I think I speak for others that this animosity has only fueled our fire.

Back to the tryouts...

The first weekend went off fairly smoothly, considering that we had almost double the number of kids attend this year than last year.  With the increased numbers came an increased level of talent, and the majority of new kids to the program left the 2 hour tryout with smiles and excitement, having just finished taking part in some very lively, competitive, and challenging small sided games.

Besides the "normal" tryout issues about team placement, I'm in a real dilemma about the U11 girls for next year in the East.  As I look at this as my next team, I obviously have a keen interest in the eventual team make up.  With nearly 30 kids in the mix, and as mentioned a great majority of them with loads of potential, the question becomes how and when to divide the girls into teams.

We let the parents know at tryouts that we reserve the right to form fall pool groups rather than set teams right after tryouts.  We do this in the best interest of the players as we realize that it is very difficult to place players after a 4-hour tryout.  Pool training allows us to work with the kids in a training setting, seeing which kids work hard, which respond to coaching best, which fit into our system best. In the end, we are able to make better decisions on team placement, helping to ensure a more quality experience to all.

There is one caveat (is that the correct word usage?) to successful pool training.  All players and families involved need to buy into our development philosophy.  They need to be prepared to be placed on our White (second) team, and they need to understand that we are going to be taking care of both teams.  We have been guilty in the past of some inequality between Blue and White teams, though I think we've all learned some valuable lessons along the way that will help us avoid similar problems down the road.  Moreover, this will be the first time when our club's White team will be a very strong team in and of itself.

So the issue stands - announce pool groups or announce set Blue and White teams.

We have 7 or 8 girls who are coming from a Woodbury team.  That team had a very good season this past summer, not losing a game as far as I know (though we don't keep score at U10, do we?).  They also played up to two U11 Classic 3 (lower level) tournaments and traveled to Milwaukee for a regional event (albeit a very weak one).

From what some of their parent group tells me, the Woodbury Soccer Club is now trying to forestall the movement towards our program by changing the way the club is looking to take care of this team.  Reactive, I think, but can you blame them?

The whole situation has added a ton of unneeded (in my opinion) stress to the parents involved.  Woodbury provided a service, the parents are looking elsewhere as they think something else may fit the needs of their child better.  What's the big deal?  Why struggle to keep families involved in your program when they aren't happy with it?  Woodbury is afraid that this team will set a precedence for others to follow in future years.  They also know that this core group of players are fairly strong and they don't want to lose strong players to a competing program in their area.  Again, can you blame them?

I can't.  We (Bangu) did the same thing a few years back with the Renegades group (now U15s).  They came out of our Academy program into our U13 year, then ending up bailing out of the club after tryouts as they felt our direction and their direction (the parent's group) were different.  We scrambled a bit to try and keep them involved, knowing that the core group of the team was very strong and not wanting to see them go. 

Anyway, as I said, maybe it's natural to react in this way.  No one likes to be told that they are not measuring up to expectations, and the people in clubs who are losing players don't want to feel inferior to anyone else.  In the end though, the positive is that the club is likely going to learn from the experience, beef up what they are doing in order to avoid a similar situations in following years, and in the end future club players will benefit.

OK, I know some people are going to go off the deep end after reading what I just wrote, so let me say that this is just the way I see it.  I speak the truth in my own little world, and that's really all the matters sometimes.

With all the misinformation circulating around this player movement, many of the families involved had some questions that needed addressing.  Here is my most recent email correspondence to them regarding this topic.

This email is going out to the Woodbury U10 families who have had their daughters training with us over the last two weeks.

If you haven’t figured it out already, I sometimes tend to write a lot in emails.  This one will be no different.

First off, I wanted to say its been a pleasure working with the girls these last few weeks.  They all have great attitudes and regardless of where people end up, it’s been a fun few sessions.

This is not life and death.  This is youth soccer.  We (Bangu) are offering an alternate development opportunity to interested players in the Woodbury area.  We believe in the technique that we are able to teach, believe in the passion that we are able to develop within the players, and believe in the life lessons we impart to the girls through sport.

With all this said, we are not set up for the average soccer player.  We are here for those who have above average abilities and interests in the game, and all your girls fall into this category.

It will always be a soft sell by us… here’s the opportunity, if you’re interested, welcome.  If not, good luck with the path you do choose.  However, it is important to me that you all have the correct information in order to come to a final decision regarding the next year of soccer for your girl.  So, for those interested in spending more than a few minutes reading in front of their computer screen, I offer the following questions-that-you-might-have-been-afraid-to-ask-me-for-some-reason-and-thus-have-sought-out-answers-through-others-and-thus-at-times-may-have-been-fed-some-misinformation.

Q1 – Is the top (Blue) team for next year already set?

Not a chance.  In fact, I’ve spent the last two months prepping current Bangu families associated with this team that I have never been with a team that has not changed after tryouts each year.  It just doesn’t happen in the environment that most competitive clubs create.  If 12 players better than our current group came in to tryouts, it would be a whole new Blue team next year.

Q2 – What is your position on playing time?

At this age level, every kid will play at least 50% of each game.  Some kids (especially our central defenders) will play more than others, primarily because 1) I like to keep some consistency in the back during the games, and 2) because players who play in the back sometimes take one for the team and don’t get the glory of goal scoring.

Q3- What is your philosophy about playing positions?

There are a few reasons that youth coaches at the younger age levels play kids only in one position game in and game out.  None of them are good.  Coaches in this camp (players play only one position) are either uber-competitive and are focused solely on results, or don’t understand the concept of player development.

All coaches see players differently.  I use my own experience for this.  Growing up I was a forward (though my dad always played me in many different positions, much to my disappointment).  In college I played center mid and forward.   My first professional season I was drafted to play wide midfielder.   I ended my career with the Thunder playing sweeper (central defense) and as a wide defender.  My ability to play a number of different positions well allowed me to extend my professional playing career and set me up for long term success.  I played where the coach and team needed me, and I was fortunate enough to be able to have experience growing up in all the positions (save GK) which allowed me to find future success.  This is what I want for the girls.  No one can say how their U14 coach will view them, how their HS varsity coach will see them, or what the varsity team may need in terms of players and positions on any given year.

Moreover, playing defense HELPS attacking minded players as they get to experience the inner workings of the defensive game, allowing the player to be armed with more knowledge to use on the opposite side of the field when they are back up top as a forward.

I’ve experienced for myself the benefits of rotating players into different positions at the younger age groups, and I’ve seen the results in the girls that I currently deal with.  You can read more about this in the Lessons >From Iowa journal update on my website as I detailed all the different playing positions my U13 girls experienced in Iowa this spring at a high level regional event.  You have to scroll down to get to this journal update once you get to the website.

Q4 – When will you announce teams for this coming year?

In all likelihood, we will look to pool train this group.  We have 30+ girls interested in the East and it will be nearly impossible to give the players a fair shake after a 4-hour tryout.

As I mentioned at the meeting, you have to buy into our player development philosophy, into how we do things here.  If we as professionals feel that pool training is in the best interest of this group as a whole, that is the way we will go with it.

If we pool train, teams will likely be finalized by the end of the fall season.  This means that the teams will train together, and be split for tournaments.

I can’t say this is for sure what we are going to do, but the chance is pretty good.

I will say it again.  If you are worried about playing for our White team (second team) at the end of the pool training, I think you are looking at Bangu for the wrong reasons.  This is about developing an eventual pool of 24 – 26 young girls.  About giving them the exact same training environment that produced a regional and national caliber team within three years.  The program and the coaching are here to try and replicate this success with a larger group of players.

Though I’m very confident the development option we are going to provide to our White team will rival and likely surpass the training that many other clubs’ top teams go through, I know that sometimes it is important for parents to have their child on a “top” team.  Again, at this point in the girls’ soccer careers, top team and second team are not very important.

Catie Sessions, from Woodbury, was on the second U11 team when she was this age. She is now in the U15 National Team pool. Good at 10 doesn’t mean good at 16 as all players develop at different rates.

Q5 – How many of your current U13 team began with you at U11 in 2004?

9 out of the 14 girls who started back in 2004 are still on the team today.  There is only one other U13 girl in the state today that I feel is better that any of these 9 girls.  They worked hard for 3 years, had the technical training, and developed a deep passion for the game – all of which contributed to their success.

Also, I’m not just saying this now to woo you guys to us.  You can read my thoughts about this group that I wrote in May after we won the MN State Cup.

It is this development that I’m offering to interested parties beginning this fall.

Q6 – What happens if we come to Bangu this year and then decide to return to WAA next year?

That decision is up to each family come tryout time next August.  I know that your child will have a positive experience with us this year, I know they will become better soccer players, and I know they’ll have an extremely enjoyable time.  It’s not a bad way to spend a year when you think about it.  It’s not like your child will regress and miss a development year if they come our way.  I say this because I know what our program can offer, I’ve seen the results.  I cannot say the same thing if you decide to stay with WAA.  Nothing against WAA itself, but there is no other program today that can offer what we offer to this age group – professional training by experienced soccer instructors in a training environment that surrounds talented players with other talented players from multiple geographic areas.

Q7 – We’ve had such a good time this past year and the girls are all friends. Now what’s going to happen?

I think you’ll have a good time this year as well and the girls will continue their friendships as more times than not the Blue and White teams will be training together.  I also know that your daughter will make many more new friends as they enter a larger soccer community.

* * * * *

That’s about all I can think of at the moment.  If there are other questions/concerns, don’t hesitate to come get answers from the horse’s mouth.

As I mentioned in the beginning, this is not life and death.  I know even the thought of “abandoning” WAA has sent some of you some sleepless nights, but in the end, I think most of you want what is best for your child and their interests.  If you feel that what is best for your child at this point in time is Bangu, great.  If you are content with your daughter in WAA, great.  I’m simply trying to get you all the most accurate information so that you can make a decision.

See people on Sunday.

It will be interesting to see where everything shakes out in a few weeks.