Looking For Guidance

Three weeks ago I was involved in a conference call regarding the role of MN ODP. This round table discussion was led by Ian Barker, Minnesota's State Director of Coaching, and involved a number of Minnesota soccer people as well as some USSF National Staff members.

One of the people on the phone was Janet Rayfield, USSF National Staff and Head Women's Coach at the University of Illinois. I had gotten a chance to meet her back in February at the MYSA Winter Symposium and thought that she had some very useful ideas regarding the development of the women's game here in the US. I also thought she brought up some valid points in the MN ODP discussion, so I thought I'd send her and email and pick her brain a bit.

Here is an excerpt from the email I sent:

Hi Janet,

I was on the phone bridge with you yesterday. I don’t know if you remembered, but I was the guy who sat down with you, Mike Dickey, and Roberto Lopez for a while at Bruegger’s Bagels (across from the Augsburg Dome) prior to your presenting at the MYSA Winter Symposium. Always helps to put a face with a name as I’m sure you run into tons of people in your work.

I enjoyed listening to your thoughts here in Minneapolis back in February and again yesterday on the phone. I was a professional player for a number of years both here in the states and abroad, and I’ve been coaching young soccer athletes for nearly 15 years - mainly dealing with the 9 to 13 year old female players. I helped begin the Bangu Tsunami Soccer Academy program three years ago to provide structured, year-round, professional training in a team context for those players interested. We are currently working with some very committed and athletic 10 to 13 year old girls here in Minnesota, and I don't want to pass up the opportunity to pick your brain a bit.

Any thoughts you can provide about what you see as lacking at the top levels of the women’s game would help me design training sessions to better help these young, committed players find success down the road. I think I have a very good eye for talent at the younger age groups, and I personally believe we have a number of Catie Session-type players in our mix right now. These players LOVE the game and I want to continue to get new ideas from those who have experience like yourself in order to help develop these athletes in the most effective way possible.

I know you’re busy, but any thoughts on this matter would be appreciated. Please get back to me whenever you can. Thanks in advance!

I brought up Catie Sessions' name because 1) she is a very talented player from the area who Janet knows, and 2) since I worked with Sesh for a number of years on the WSC Inferno, I know where she was at skill-wise at the 10 - 12 year old age and can compare that to what I see from girls in our program today.

Janet got back to me with the following:

Mark –

Sorry to take so long to respond to your questions. Never enough hours in the day to get it all done...

With respect to what I have seen “lacking” with talented players --- on the attacking side: movement and creativity.  The movement without the ball is predictable – towards the goal or towards the ball.  The vision to see ahead of the game, to make runs away from the ball, to unbalance so that you create a space to attack is lacking in the players that have the technical and physical ability to do more than play one and two touch.  Possession is valued for possession sake – or not valued enough.  Possession as a means to breakdown a defense doesn’t seem to be part of the mentality.

On the defensive side I think it is a product of the environment but TRUE pressure isn’t really understood.  I think because at most level token pressure will result in a turnover and therefore players sense they are pressuring adequately and timely when at the next level the distance and timing are not precise enough to dispossess or pressure an opponent into a predictable pass.  This one is hard to train because the training environment has to be conducive to requiring good pressure and without a compliment of talented players this can be more difficult for coaches to create.  This is where players playing up or girls playing against boys can help the top players develop.

I hope this is the sort of answer that you were looking for.

Interesting.  I'll probably email Mikki over at the University of Minnesota to pick her brain as well. 

MN ODP Round Table Discussion

Ian Barker, our State Director of Coaching, sent an email last week to a number of coaches in the area requesting presence at the MYSA office today to discuss the role of Minnesota ODP within the state and to try and help determine how much programming to do.  I was not able to make it into the office in person and took part via a phone bridge for the 90 minute discussion. 

In attendance at the MYSA office were the following people:

• Ian Barker, State Director of Coaching
• John Curtis, Associate Director of Coaching
• Jen Jaeger, Associate Director of Player Development
• Candace Daley, Executive Director
• Alan Merrick, VP of Player Development
• Steve Bellis, Head Coach St Kate's (MIAC) and ex-Wings SC Coaching Director
• Manny Sanchez, Wings SC Coaching Director
• Mikki Denney-Wright, Head Coach University of MN Women

On the phone bridge with me were the following:

• Janet Rayfield, Region II ODP Girls
• Jim Launder, Region II ODP Boys
• Roberto Lopez, USSF Men's National Staff Coach
• Kate McNeil, Long time MN ODP Coach and Women's Head Coach, College of St Benedict

Mike Dickey (USSF Women's National Staff Coach) was also supposed to be involved, but he apparently thought it was 12:30PM EST instead of CST. 

It was a very interesting discussion.  Ian was moderating and looking for feedback on frequency of ODP programming, identification/selection criteria for players, and all around improvement of the ODP experience as a whole for the players.  There were many very knowledgeable soccer minds in this group, and to be honest, I felt a little out of place.  I did a lot of listening and there were a number of key issues discussed.

I had only worked in the MN ODP program for a few years in the late 1990s.  I remember running a crossing and finishing session for the 12 year old 84 ODP girls in the West District.  There was this little girl who had a pure knack for finishing and an instinct for making well-timed near post runs.  I remember pointing her out to a number of the lead ODP staff members at that time, saying that she had the potential to do good things.  They commented about puberty, body changes, burnout, etc, but the little girl (Caroline Smith from Edina) went on to have a stellar youth playing career with the Tsunami Sota team as well as to set all kinds of collegiate scoring records at Kansas.  Caroline currently plays for the Minnesota Lightning.

I would have liked to stay involved on the ODP staff for I enjoyed working with the talented players.  However, MYSA was taking some heat about ODP coaches recruiting players from OFP for their own club teams and I really only had an interest in working with the younger girls age group.  With my affiliation in the years to follow with the WSC Inferno and now with the U13 Bangu girls, I would likely not have been given that age group to work with. 

Anyway, the discussion went on with Ian looking for guidance from the higher ups in Region II ODP (Rayfield, Lopez, and Launder), input from the college coaches (Bellis, Denney-Wright, and McNeil), and then thoughts from the higher level club directors (Bellis because of his long history with the Wings prior to taking the St Kate's position, Sanchez, and myself).  Sanchez had also been the State Director of Coaching in Tennessee, and had extensive ODP experience in Region III.  It was a nice mix of personalities and experience, and I think it was a very productive meeting for the MYSA ODP people.

From a club directors position, I appreciated the chance to make my voice heard and have some say here.  I believe in ODP (having gone through it for 6 or 7 years growing up) and I believe Ian and the MYSA staff have a real interest in making it an effective programming.  All but one player from my team last year took part in the program and they all had a great experience at ODP camp last summer.  You can read more about why I encourage participation in ODP here - Why I Send My Girls To ODP