Pre-Season Meeting
February 2nd
The following is a recap of
items discussed at our Pre-Season Meeting:
Purpose Of Meeting –
Plan for Spring 2008 Season.
Team
History
Predators soccer team
has been playing for 11 years. Originally a Rec team the
boys moved to Premier division in 2004 – The boys have Won
and Placed in Premier Divisions – ODP – 4 Predators have
represented Kansas in tournaments and inter-state friendlies
since last season. Our goal is to get the boys ready for
high school teams and college for those who wish to play at
the next level.
Fundamentals
We play possession
soccer as contrasted with the Whack-Ball style seen in lower
division club play and many high school teams.
Number of touches means
little if you constantly turn the ball over to the opposing
team.
Gifted athletes do not
necessarily make great soccer players. You need to work on
your "total skills" package. We work on eliminating "playing
out-of-control" that may look exciting from the
sidelines.... but constant breakaways and long misdirected
clearing kicks do not do much for your team if the ball is
turned over, goes out of play, or you can't get back to
defend.
Soccer speed is more
important than "Track speed". You may be the fastest
sprinter in the World ... but that doesn't help if you
over-run the ball, can't pass the ball to teammates, or
can't shoot accurately. We work on improving breakaway
speed, ball control and delivery.
On field communication
helps your teammates know when they are under pressure, have
an opponent closing in, or when they have time to settle the
ball and make a move.
Responsibility
Players are responsible
for all aspects their involvement with our teams, not
parents
You are not in
Kindergarten – It’s Premier Soccer not Rec Soccer – Your Mum
and Dad are not on the team… You are!
No
Tolerance Policy
You will be treated like
you are playing on a college team.
No drugs. No alcohol. No
legal problems. (No Discussions - Off The Team)
No failing grades.
(Suspension from games until grades are satisfactory).
No inappropriate
behavior at practice. (Suspension from practices and games
after apologies to coaches and teammates).
No Red Cards during
games. (One game suspension from league play. Plus...
Possible additional games suspended by team depending on the
offense).
Injuries
Serious injuries should
be referred to a doctor or physical therapist. At this age
injuries can be or become career-ending if not treated
correctly.
Concussions
are a serious injury. Anyone suffering a concussion during
the season will need a doctors clearance before resuming
practice or playing in games.
Anyone suffering a
concussion will be expected to wear protective headgear at
least through the end of the season.
Communication
Web site
– Email –
I need player email
addresses and any new email addresses for parents.
Broadcast Text Messages (2 lists)
Please email me cell
phone numbers for players and parents.
We will set up separate
lists for players and parents.
Uniforms
Jerseys supplied
Buy shorts asap
Links to Suppliers are on our
Uniforms Page
Two
Teams – To accommodate HS team
players and provide challenging level of competition.
Combined State Roster -
One Select Team – One Development Team
KSHSAA 6 Player Rule –
Team/Practice
Heartland Seedings –
Recommended Div 1 – BVSC – All Independent teams placed in
D3 and D4 –
Tournaments where we
will play D1 and D2 teams become very important for future
seasons and for exposure to college coaches.
Observations on HS
Season – While some team placements seemed inappropriate you
could see reasons why the coaches placed you where they did.
– It gave us an opportunity to sit back and study what you
have to work on individually – First touch, ball control,
playing out of control, defensive turnovers, getting back on
defense.
Team
Placement
Will be influenced by
KSHSAA 6 player rule – Practice Conflicts (other sports) –
Vvailability for Sunday games
Celtic – Full Roster – Div 4 – Players can play-up in
Div 3 as reward for outstanding performances. Could play on
Celtic and Liverpool same day/same weekend if schedule
permits
Liverpool – Div 3 (with top Independent Teams ie
Galaxy, Shawnee Elite) – Roster probably 13-14 – Can have 3
“guest players” per game. KSHSAA 6 player rule limits.
Liverpool Teams will be
announced by mid-week for following weekend games.
Team
Captains
When team rosters are
finalized players will elect team captains.
Team Captains will be
responsible for organizing kick-arounds and warm-ups before
practices and games.
Kick-Arounds
These are not official
practices. Should be organized by players. Get together as
much as possible. Work on Skills… Conditioning.... and
having fun.
Pre-Season Conditioning
Don’t come to practices
out of condition and expect much playing time in games.
Jogging with surges will build endurance. Work on footskills.
Become A Student of The Game
Watch EPL games on Fox
Soccer Channel. Watch the “highlights of the week” show.
Study the position you
play. Watch positioning. How they set up plays. How they
defend. When the goalie comes off the line. Varying disposal
so you do not become predictable.
Practices
Tuesday and Wednesday
5:30-6:30 and 6:30-7:30 at Pleasant Ridge Middle School
Practice Squads – Based
on Teams with adjustments for practice conflicts
Practice Field assignments
allow only two one-hour sessions each week.
Arrive early so you have
plenty of time to stretch and warm-up and are ready to get
started as soon as practice sessions begin.
Trainers
Brian Roberts - Majored in Psychology at Yale on
academic scholarship – four-time All-Ivy selection -
Defender – Played with Wizards – TV Commentator for 2007
Wizards games.
Ryan Pore – Wizards Striker - Spent six years as a
member of the Cleveland United club team ... participated in
the Under-14 Nike Int'l Premier Cup National Champions in
France in 1998 – Member of Ohio ODP team in senior season –
Tulsa's only two-time All-America selection. As a junior, he
was named Soccer America's Player of the Year and was one of
three finalist for Hermann Trophy... NSCAA All-America First
Team.. - Selected 16th in 2005 MLS SuperDraft
Mark Lenahan – Outstanding high school goalkeeper –
Kansas ODP team - Soccer Scholarship…. Blew knee out during
first year pre-season. Trains some of the top local high
school goalkeepers
Trainers Fees
Please pay your $125
Trainers Fee before February 15th
Special App Coaches
Max Jorgensen, Changiz
Fardipour
Volunteer Coach
We will need a Volunteer
Coach for Celtic in case of schedule conflicts
Season Schedule
Should be released first
week of March
Limited Fields because
of fields under construction at 135th Street will put a load
on Hertiage.
We can expect one
weekend where we play Back-To-Back Games in Topeka.
We have requested
Saturday games whenever possible.
First Games scheduled to
be played March 15th.
Spring Break. - We can
expect to play league games during Spring Break.
Tournaments
We will play several
tournaments
during Spring and Summer.
Preference will be for
Showcase Tournaments attended by College Coaches scouting
talented players.
State
Cup
If we play well early in
the season we will register to play State Cup.
This is a Single
Elimination Tournament for the top teams in the State with
games starting June 4-7
College Prep
Check the list of
Colleges and links on site
College Prep Seminar
Make every effort to
attend the BVSC
Symposium onFebruary 23rd
College Coaches Invited to Games/Tournaments
We will invite selected
College Coaches to our games again this year to see the boys
in action.
Summer Camp
If enough players are
interested we will hold a one-week Team Camp during Summer
Break featuring College Coaches and Professional Players.
Summer Teams
We plan to have a Summer
Tournament Team again this year for all those who are
interested to play Showcase Tournaments during summer
vacation.
|
