02 Keepers

dirknowitzki wrote:It all sounds good and might work as long as both keeps are close to each other in skill and effectiveness. If one does much better than the other, pressure cooker starts. Coach starts second guessing the plan. Big games will be on agenda. Parents put pressure to win in Lake Highlands especially if at bottom on the relegation zone. Other parents don't dig keepers in the field if they think they are some of the weaker field players they have. It does take time away from normal field players which results in more unhappiness. I agree that foot skills are important for development but development is not the only agenda item in NTX soccer. This will get complicated. Any coach trying to keep 16 or more players in enough minutes knows it. There is a reason the rotation gets shorter in the NBA playoffs. Same here.

You are assuming all coaches crack under the "pressure cooker" idea. There are some excellent coaches on NTX who have a bigger picture in mind and parents either will or won't buy in. It's up to coach and families to be on the same page then for coach to manage and follow through with the plan. One would have to trust the coach to follow through accordingly.

I guess my point is that not all coaches are cut from the same cloth.

pro16 wrote:

dirknowitzki wrote:It all sounds good and might work as long as both keeps are close to each other in skill and effectiveness. If one does much better than the other, pressure cooker starts. Coach starts second guessing the plan. Big games will be on agenda. Parents put pressure to win in Lake Highlands especially if at bottom on the relegation zone. Other parents don't dig keepers in the field if they think they are some of the weaker field players they have. It does take time away from normal field players which results in more unhappiness. I agree that foot skills are important for development but development is not the only agenda item in NTX soccer. This will get complicated. Any coach trying to keep 16 or more players in enough minutes knows it. There is a reason the rotation gets shorter in the NBA playoffs. Same here.

You are assuming all coaches crack under the "pressure cooker" idea. There are some excellent coaches on NTX who have a bigger picture in mind and parents either will or won't buy in. It's up to coach and families to be on the same page then for coach to manage and follow through with the plan. One would have to trust the coach to follow through accordingly.

I agree. Either you like his plan or don't. There are plenty of other coaches that are in it to win it and don't give a flip about your daughter's development. We have played his team for the last several seasons and they keep progressing skills wise while playing others who win it now with HUGE girls and kick it to the fast forward style of play. This Sting team will be one to watch. Our team loses some games, but skills wise we are way better than others. Time will tell, but those coaches that do truly develop the fundamentals over the win at all costs, kick it to the speed demon up front and hope to be onside when she makes her run, will have the better teams come around U12-14.

pro16 wrote:

dirknowitzki wrote:It all sounds good and might work as long as both keeps are close to each other in skill and effectiveness. If one does much better than the other, pressure cooker starts. Coach starts second guessing the plan. Big games will be on agenda. Parents put pressure to win in Lake Highlands especially if at bottom on the relegation zone. Other parents don't dig keepers in the field if they think they are some of the weaker field players they have. It does take time away from normal field players which results in more unhappiness. I agree that foot skills are important for development but development is not the only agenda item in NTX soccer. This will get complicated. Any coach trying to keep 16 or more players in enough minutes knows it. There is a reason the rotation gets shorter in the NBA playoffs. Same here.

You are assuming all coaches crack under the "pressure cooker" idea. There are some excellent coaches on NTX who have a bigger picture in mind and parents either will or won't buy in. It's up to coach and families to be on the same page then for coach to manage and follow through with the plan. One would have to trust the coach to follow through accordingly.

It seems like finding players who can fit the plan is important.

oldboot wrote:

pro16 wrote:

dirknowitzki wrote:It all sounds good and might work as long as both keeps are close to each other in skill and effectiveness. If one does much better than the other, pressure cooker starts. Coach starts second guessing the plan. Big games will be on agenda. Parents put pressure to win in Lake Highlands especially if at bottom on the relegation zone. Other parents don't dig keepers in the field if they think they are some of the weaker field players they have. It does take time away from normal field players which results in more unhappiness. I agree that foot skills are important for development but development is not the only agenda item in NTX soccer. This will get complicated. Any coach trying to keep 16 or more players in enough minutes knows it. There is a reason the rotation gets shorter in the NBA playoffs. Same here.

You are assuming all coaches crack under the "pressure cooker" idea. There are some excellent coaches on NTX who have a bigger picture in mind and parents either will or won't buy in. It's up to coach and families to be on the same page then for coach to manage and follow through with the plan. One would have to trust the coach to follow through accordingly.

It seems like finding players who can fit the plan is important.

I agree

pro16 wrote:I guess my point is that not all coaches are cut from the same cloth.

True. Many coaches don't communicate their ideas clearly, often & in writing to parents and players. Not everyone gets it from passing verbal comments. People have patience if the objective is clear and understood. Clear comms are critical. Bravo to one that does.

TFC Wes Larry's team is also looking for a keeper. We practice in Plano(Legacy/Custer area). You can contact him at 972-785-7569 or wes_larry@yahoo.com

I never comment but thank you so much for this discussion on goalkeeping. It caught my eye so I had to read. With a dd at 10 who is both a great field player (she is fast, yes she has skills, and yes she can shoot) and a great goalie we have struggled with the decision of whether we should allow her to specialize. I personally have felt that she is too young to choose, especially because she is good at both and loves them both, but since entering the NTX academy scene... I keep hearing that she needs to specialize at goalie because it is such a unique position and can really be a difference maker for a team. I think she is a difference maker in both but we have certainly felt the pressure for her to make as great or greater a contribution every time she steps on the field so that bringing her out of goal makes sense for the team. It has been a battle but it was so encouraging to read the posts, and especially the one by Pro16, who gave me encouragement to stay the course we have chosen for her until she is old enough to decide for herself.

It was a great post with lots of positives unlike many that seem to turn ugly ...I appreciate reading the feedback.

Thanks so much for the encouragement.

So am I doing my dd disservice for allowing her to only play goalie? My dd choice to play keeper and loves it. If you ask her that is the only place on the field she wants to be. While she does play defender here & there and she is decent at it. It's not where she wants to be. Is it wrong for her coach to push her to specialize in a position that she has chosen to play?

While I agree with Pro16 that it's never wrong to have 2 keepers but I also don't think it's wrong or a bad idea to only have 1 if that player has choice that position themselves (and not pushed there).

To be a great keeper that player has to choice to play that position. You may have a player that is good at the position but doesn't want to play that position. That player will never be a GREAT keeper. I say this from experience with my other dd that was being pushed to play this position when she didn't want to.

I wouldn't say that it is a disservice to allow her to specialize if that is where she wants to play and she loves that position and only that position...it is really about the love of the game for your dd. However, I think certain skills and field presence are mostly learned on the field and can be beneficial to a goalie and their knowledge and experience of the game.

In my response, I said it was nice that someone said that maybe, if they are able and wish to pursue it, there is a benefit to allowing them to play both if they can and if they have the desire to do it as well as have the skills to do it. I have mostly on this forum that a player can't possibly be beneficial to a team in two positions and because goalie is such a vital position to the team it is almost impossible for them to make as big a difference on the field as they can in goal.

I just don't want my dd to choose until she is ready to choose. And I don't want her to choose just because she thinks that is all she can be or that someone tells her that is the best place for her for the team. She is 10. She is still developing. Learning. I don't know what kind of player she will be in a year, two years. She will be a totally different child by then and a totally different soccer player. I want it to be for her and only her and for her to make her own choice when the time comes.

I don't think it is ever wrong to have two keepers if you can find two that want to do the job. I have seen keepers go down..get hurt, have a bad game. It is nice to have a back up. Maybe with different style and skill set. It is lucky if you have two... but at this age it is challenging to find.

As a keeper coach for multiple GKs in the Frisco/McKinney and also playing in High School, a bit of Select and at the College level I believe if the GK/player wants to play in goal then so be it, but they must also train with the team for skills, passing, controlling the ball with their feet, etc. It is lethal in Select/Academy to have a Keeper that has great feet, team can play the ball back, draw the team in then switch the point of attack...again your keepers should be able to do this. It should be a comfort zone, not oh no they are playing the ball back to her...believe I have said "oh no" to myself quite few times while coaching.

One quick point, read below regarding Hope Solo from Wikipedia:

Amateur and Collegiate career

Solo has played soccer with the Three Rivers Soccer Club in the Tri-Cities. As a forward at Richland High School, Solo scored 109 goals, leading her team to three consecutive league titles from 1996–1998 and a state championship in her senior year.She was twice named a Parade All American. At the University of Washington, Solo switched to the goalkeeper position and was the teams all-time leader in shutouts, saves, and goals-against average (GAA). She was a four-time All-Pac-10 selection and a three-time NSCAA All-American.

Played forward all the way through High School...makes you think.

Again, as a collegiate scout, I find that the better keepers are the ones who have developed the most as a field player and have shared their time on the field. And again, it's unfortunate that the pressure is applied so heavily on these kids by their parents and coaches to acquire the most success today. We often point the finger at the coach when time and time again the parents drive the bus of success and appearances just as much if not more than most coaches. Most "fail to see the forest because of the trees."

goalpatrol wrote:As a keeper coach for multiple GKs in the Frisco/McKinney and also playing in High School, a bit of Select and at the College level I believe if the GK/player wants to play in goal then so be it, but they must also train with the team for skills, passing, controlling the ball with their feet, etc. It is lethal in Select/Academy to have a Keeper that has great feet, team can play the ball back, draw the team in then switch the point of attack...again your keepers should be able to do this. It should be a comfort zone, not oh no they are playing the ball back to her...believe I have said "oh no" to myself quite few times while coaching.

One quick point, read below regarding Hope Solo from Wikipedia:

Amateur and Collegiate career

Solo has played soccer with the Three Rivers Soccer Club in the Tri-Cities. As a forward at Richland High School, Solo scored 109 goals, leading her team to three consecutive league titles from 1996–1998 and a state championship in her senior year.She was twice named a Parade All American. At the University of Washington, Solo switched to the goalkeeper position and was the teams all-time leader in shutouts, saves, and goals-against average (GAA). She was a four-time All-Pac-10 selection and a three-time NSCAA All-American.

Played forward all the way through High School...makes you think.

Goalpatrol:

Check-out the article quoted earlier in this thread - it also discusses Solo and her thoughts on specializing a keeper.

http://www.socceramerica.com/article/30861/youth-beat-field-play-makes-better-keepers.html