98 Pre-Academy Coaches

Can anyone please tell me who the 98 pre-academy coaches will be for all three clubs or have they not been announced yet? It seems they should know by now.

I believe FCD hasn't been decided and I would expect that the dark lord himself would take the Texans

go99 wrote:I believe FCD hasn't been decided and I would expect that the dark lord himself would take the Texans

I think the dark lord will be taking all pre-academy teams under his wing. Heard Solar may have Passos coaching the 98 pre-academy which will be made up of mostly current 99 players with 98 birthyears. I think the current 98 Solar team is made up of mostly 97 birth years.

It's a bit confusing with the age gap thing but I understand some good players from other D1 teams will be trying out for pre-academy so I would think these teams next year will look very different and should be good little competitive teams.

I know several old Andro coaches have moved over to FCD or Texans so perhaps one of them will be taking the 98 FCD pre-academy. I hear lots of changes currently at FCD hopefully its all for the better. Its really just a crap shoot until things are made official here within the next month.

bootit wrote:

go99 wrote:I believe FCD hasn't been decided and I would expect that the dark lord himself would take the Texans

I think the dark lord will be taking all pre-academy teams under his wing. Heard Solar may have Passos coaching the 98 pre-academy which will be made up of mostly current 99 players with 98 birthyears. I think the current 98 Solar team is made up of mostly 97 birth years.

It's a bit confusing with the age gap thing but I understand some good players from other D1 teams will be trying out for pre-academy so I would think these teams next year will look very different and should be good little competitive teams.

I know several old Andro coaches have moved over to FCD or Texans so perhaps one of them will be taking the 98 FCD pre-academy. I hear lots of changes currently at FCD hopefully its all for the better. Its really just a crap shoot until things are made official here within the next month.

If Passos was smart he would base his team of the SR98 born in 98 and not his 99's born in 98. I mean they did finish 2nd d1.

anatural wrote:

bootit wrote:

go99 wrote:I believe FCD hasn't been decided and I would expect that the dark lord himself would take the Texans

I think the dark lord will be taking all pre-academy teams under his wing. Heard Solar may have Passos coaching the 98 pre-academy which will be made up of mostly current 99 players with 98 birthyears. I think the current 98 Solar team is made up of mostly 97 birth years.

It's a bit confusing with the age gap thing but I understand some good players from other D1 teams will be trying out for pre-academy so I would think these teams next year will look very different and should be good little competitive teams.

I know several old Andro coaches have moved over to FCD or Texans so perhaps one of them will be taking the 98 FCD pre-academy. I hear lots of changes currently at FCD hopefully its all for the better. Its really just a crap shoot until things are made official here within the next month.

If Passos was smart he would base his team of the SR98 born in 98 and not his 99's born in 98. I mean they did finish 2nd d1.

SR 98's and 99's both finished in 2nd D1. Combining all the 98's could make a strong 98 pre-academy Solar Red team because I don't think they have much from Solar 98 Smith in that 98 birth year group right now. With Texans 99's finishing in 1st and the 98's in 5th, they will also be strong in the 98 pre-academy group. FCD 98 and 99 teams both finished in 6th and unless they add a considerable amount of new, strong players, probably won't be able to keep up with the other two 98 pre-academy teams. Might all come down to who coaches the teams and who recruits the best.

okay you guys are already off to the wrong start with Pre-Academy. It is not supposed to be about strong "teams" but about creating better players. If that is all they are going to do they might as well stay with CL and not bother with all this pre academy stuff. I am hoping the clubs take this opportunity to find "players" and teach them how to play soccer.

go99 wrote:okay you guys are already off to the wrong start with Pre-Academy. It is not supposed to be about strong "teams" but about creating better players. If that is all they are going to do they might as well stay with CL and not bother with all this pre academy stuff. I am hoping the clubs take this opportunity to find "players" and teach them how to play soccer.

I agree with go99. The purpose of the Pre-Academy is to develop players and not all about winning. Winning does help recruiting but ultimately, players development is why this league is created. For those who likes to play lots of games and win as much hardware as possible needs not join.

I've been seeing a bunch of Andro. full teams out at FCD practices and tons of single players coming out too....

SoccerNutz07 wrote:

go99 wrote:okay you guys are already off to the wrong start with Pre-Academy. It is not supposed to be about strong "teams" but about creating better players. If that is all they are going to do they might as well stay with CL and not bother with all this pre academy stuff. I am hoping the clubs take this opportunity to find "players" and teach them how to play soccer.

I agree with go99. The purpose of the Pre-Academy is to develop players and not all about winning. Winning does help recruiting but ultimately, players development is why this league is created. For those who likes to play lots of games and win as much hardware as possible needs not join.

develop for what? for college? for HS? for their 18 year old birthday? for the pro's? I keep hearing the jargon 'we must develop, not just play to win' but I have yet to hear what they are being developed for. Do HS football/baseball/basketball teams concentrate on 'development'? I hardly thing so. Developing kids and winning are not mutually exclusive. Both can be done at the same time.

hookem wrote:

SoccerNutz07 wrote:

go99 wrote:okay you guys are already off to the wrong start with Pre-Academy. It is not supposed to be about strong "teams" but about creating better players. If that is all they are going to do they might as well stay with CL and not bother with all this pre academy stuff. I am hoping the clubs take this opportunity to find "players" and teach them how to play soccer.

I agree with go99. The purpose of the Pre-Academy is to develop players and not all about winning. Winning does help recruiting but ultimately, players development is why this league is created. For those who likes to play lots of games and win as much hardware as possible needs not join.

develop for what? for college? for HS? for their 18 year old birthday? for the pro's? I keep hearing the jargon 'we must develop, not just play to win' but I have yet to hear what they are being developed for. Do HS football/baseball/basketball teams concentrate on 'development'? I hardly thing so. Developing kids and winning are not mutually exclusive. Both can be done at the same time.

How about develop to better their skills, tactics and to learn how to play the game. Maybe if they are good enough, they would play college balls and getting scholarship money or playing in the MLS someday.

again that was not the purpose of this league. CL was left untouched for those who desire to win now. If the pre academy turns into the same thing then why even bother, just let kids continue to win. Football and soccer are entirely different sports and require a different mentality. The reason it is difficult to develope in a win first enviornment is the exact nature of learning soccer. If you ask your defenders to play the ball out of the back ans solve their problems instead of kick it out of the back or just kick it out you make a better player. At the same time a young player who is still earning will make mistakes that will cost you games. If I ask the team to hold possesion and they are moving the ball around with 10- 15 or more passes, it only takes one bad decision or touch to lose the ball. If I shorten the number of touches between goals I lessen the chance for mistakes thereby increasing my ability to win. The development is for the good of pros and national team and that is the reason behind the league like it or not. Plenty of people stated that they didn't want CL changed and just wanted to win now. Done! Got their wish but doesn't mean they need to change this league into CL2. If you don't want development they why play in a developmental league?

SoccerNutz07 wrote:

hookem wrote:

SoccerNutz07 wrote:

go99 wrote:okay you guys are already off to the wrong start with Pre-Academy. It is not supposed to be about strong "teams" but about creating better players. If that is all they are going to do they might as well stay with CL and not bother with all this pre academy stuff. I am hoping the clubs take this opportunity to find "players" and teach them how to play soccer.

I agree with go99. The purpose of the Pre-Academy is to develop players and not all about winning. Winning does help recruiting but ultimately, players development is why this league is created. For those who likes to play lots of games and win as much hardware as possible needs not join.

develop for what? for college? for HS? for their 18 year old birthday? for the pro's? I keep hearing the jargon 'we must develop, not just play to win' but I have yet to hear what they are being developed for. Do HS football/baseball/basketball teams concentrate on 'development'? I hardly thing so. Developing kids and winning are not mutually exclusive. Both can be done at the same time.

How about develop to better their skills, tactics and to learn how to play the game. Maybe if they are good enough, they would play college balls and getting scholarship money or playing in the MLS someday.

How about developing their skills while at the same time teaching them to win? Are not coaches capable of teaching them the skills, while applying tactics to win at the same time?

hookem wrote:

SoccerNutz07 wrote:

hookem wrote:

SoccerNutz07 wrote:

go99 wrote:okay you guys are already off to the wrong start with Pre-Academy. It is not supposed to be about strong "teams" but about creating better players. If that is all they are going to do they might as well stay with CL and not bother with all this pre academy stuff. I am hoping the clubs take this opportunity to find "players" and teach them how to play soccer.

I agree with go99. The purpose of the Pre-Academy is to develop players and not all about winning. Winning does help recruiting but ultimately, players development is why this league is created. For those who likes to play lots of games and win as much hardware as possible needs not join.

develop for what? for college? for HS? for their 18 year old birthday? for the pro's? I keep hearing the jargon 'we must develop, not just play to win' but I have yet to hear what they are being developed for. Do HS football/baseball/basketball teams concentrate on 'development'? I hardly thing so. Developing kids and winning are not mutually exclusive. Both can be done at the same time.

How about develop to better their skills, tactics and to learn how to play the game. Maybe if they are good enough, they would play college balls and getting scholarship money or playing in the MLS someday.

How about developing their skills while at the same time teaching them to win? Are not coaches capable of teaching them the skills, while applying tactics to win at the same time?

Sure why not. But the focus for Pre-Academy is not all about winning. IMHO, I think eventually it will be but not at the U13 & U14 age group.

go99 wrote:again that was not the purpose of this league. CL was left untouched for those who desire to win now. If the pre academy turns into the same thing then why even bother, just let kids continue to win. Football and soccer are entirely different sports and require a different mentality. The reason it is difficult to develope in a win first enviornment is the exact nature of learning soccer. If you ask your defenders to play the ball out of the back ans solve their problems instead of kick it out of the back or just kick it out you make a better player. At the same time a young player who is still earning will make mistakes that will cost you games. If I ask the team to hold possesion and they are moving the ball around with 10- 15 or more passes, it only takes one bad decision or touch to lose the ball. If I shorten the number of touches between goals I lessen the chance for mistakes thereby increasing my ability to win. The development is for the good of pros and national team and that is the reason behind the league like it or not. Plenty of people stated that they didn't want CL changed and just wanted to win now. Done! Got their wish but doesn't mean they need to change this league into CL2. If you don't want development they why play in a developmental league?

so what I am reading is that you do not believe that kids are able to learn how to play the game and win at the same time. In other words, that sweeper cant be taught to move the ball out without just kicking it? I still do not get it. I firmly believe that you can coach kids (develop them), and teach them the tactics to win at the same time.

No what I am saying is that kids are not stupid and they are born with the desire to win. No matter what you "say" the kids understand that CL is about winning and that there are rewards and ramifications based soley on those results. The kid will not take the risk it takes to play himself out of the back. The kids will not hold and posses the ball, when the style of play is not paramount. They will take the path that takes them to the wins. That path is big fast get the ball to the goal as quickly as possible with the minimum of touches. Lose in CL and you drop. Lose in pre academy and you come back in pre academy next season. You don't have to teach the kids to want to win. DD's 04 team lost their first game and it may have been her best game of the season. No matter how much I told her so or how much the coach praised the teams play there were tears in the car. Find me a kid who doesn't care if he causes his team to lose and I will show you a kid who will not make it in competative sports. There has to be something bigger there to chase or all you get is the desire to win now. That something bigger is development. I don't think it is for every kid or family nor should it be. Some kids already know they have no intentions of staying in soccer so why do it? I understand parents desire to win and not care about development. it's practically the american way. But I am not getting the need to turn a "developmental" league into a purely competative one. If thats your goal why not just stay in CL. I personally think the competition will be better there.

I agree with Hookers point that winning and developing are not always mutually exclusive. I hope NTX will put together some very competitive PA teams capable of representing our region. Yes, that means traveling and winning...

so what I am reading is that you do not believe that kids are able to learn how to play the game and win at the same time. In other words, that sweeper cant be taught to move the ball out without just kicking it? I still do not get it. I firmly believe that you can coach kids (develop them), and teach them the tactics to win at the same time. [/quote]

Oh but what I am saying is that the type of game that you need to develope will cost you wins. The type of game that wins in youth soccer is not successful at older levels. So let me ask you are you OK if your sweeper comes under pressure and instead of kicking the ball he tries to beat his man one on one or make a quick combination pass and loses the ball costing you a goal? Are you ok if a kid gets the ball in front of a 4man back line and instead of just pushing forward to beat them all on his own he plays the ball back and builds numbers but then losses the ball? Are you okay with the players first touch when he wins the ball to be away from pressure and back towards his own goal even when it is intercepted and cost you a goal? How much are you willing to let them discover the game and not joystick the players? when the easier choice is just to tell them what to do and exactly where to go. So can you do all of that and win? sure, possibly. If you are way better than the kids you are playing against then sure you could probably do all of that and still manage to win. We look at Barcelona and marvel at how they play but fail to realize they started playing that way at 11, 12, and 13 and it didn't quite look as good at that age.

go99 wrote:again that was not the purpose of this league. CL was left untouched for those who desire to win now. If the pre academy turns into the same thing then why even bother, just let kids continue to win. Football and soccer are entirely different sports and require a different mentality. The reason it is difficult to develope in a win first enviornment is the exact nature of learning soccer. If you ask your defenders to play the ball out of the back ans solve their problems instead of kick it out of the back or just kick it out you make a better player. At the same time a young player who is still earning will make mistakes that will cost you games. If I ask the team to hold possesion and they are moving the ball around with 10- 15 or more passes, it only takes one bad decision or touch to lose the ball. If I shorten the number of touches between goals I lessen the chance for mistakes thereby increasing my ability to win. The development is for the good of pros and national team and that is the reason behind the league like it or not. Plenty of people stated that they didn't want CL changed and just wanted to win now. Done! Got their wish but doesn't mean they need to change this league into CL2. If you don't want development they why play in a developmental league?

Agree it should be about development. However..... I believe that the players that are playing in their birth year .....like a 98 birth year playing 98 and is doing well against the competition is going to do better than a 98 birth year playing 99 age group . One year at this at this stage of development physically is huge. I know we see the difference with our team when BB team scrimmages a year up. Hard for his team to adjust to the speed and physicality of the game. 98 birth years may shine playing 99's. may not look as good playing 98's. this goes for all pre-academy age groups. So really need to pick the best players per age group for the teams regardless of how the did against potentially less competition.

The problem with this whole model is the coaches will pick the most athletic players and run with them. They will play and train the same way as before. Nothing about pre-academy is different than before maybe better talent. As many pointed out, soccer is a complex sport. Without proper training when they are young, they will become big, strong players without alot of skill. They will run fast, win the ball and send it ahead to the speedy forward who moves in on the goal like terminator. That will work until they get older then they run into really solid defenders like we saw in the Dallas Cup with some international and US teams, they will strip the ball away, shut down that huge forward, and then they will surgically pass all around the academy team and score beautiful goals. That is the challenge our US National teams have great athletes who do not control the possession of the ball. 1 pass 2 pass turnover again and again send the ball over the top and use your physical size and presence to score a goal. Ugly but it works. Not the beautiful game like it is played around the world. If the Pre-USSF academy does not totally focus on technical training, it is a waste of time and money. You could combine the same teams in the classic league and accomplish the same result with the same coaches and that is it used to be done in the classic league. So what is different, sticker on car, bragging rights, being on an "elite" team, etc. that is OK but I do not buy the set up of these new league if the propugate the same training/playing style with the same coaches with better players. One exception, I have watched the FC Dallas Academy U18 videos posted on the FC Dallas site with their coach talking one touch passing, possession, etc. and although they still dribbled too in the game I thought they are getting really good coaching and their is a team focus on playing the game correctly. He sounded like a really sharp coach and I thought the players were passionate about playing quality soccer. They were still behind Tigris players in development and speed of play except a few FC Dallas players.

Loved the use of the word propugate. Carry on.

Thank god for this "PreAcademy" program. I hope this grabs all the good kids from around the country and stop their chances of getting some real development even earlier. So there will be less kids for my boys to compete against in the future. LOL They should start at U11. LOL. PLease tell them to keep it simple. The intentions may be good, but the reality is that it will be another win by any means necessary league. While the top kids from around the world will still be getting developed, our pour rich kids will be worrying about more and more games. I guess there will be more spots for international players in the MLS.

hookem wrote:

develop for what? for college? for HS? for their 18 year old birthday? for the pro's? I keep hearing the jargon 'we must develop, not just play to win' but I have yet to hear what they are being developed for. Do HS football/baseball/basketball teams concentrate on 'development'? I hardly thing so. Developing kids and winning are not mutually exclusive. Both can be done at the same time.

It won't be for HS, that's for sure. DA has announced that HS soccer will no longer be allowed.

Soccernovice wrote:The problem with this whole model is the coaches will pick the most athletic players and run with them. They will play and train the same way as before. Nothing about pre-academy is different than before maybe better talent. As many pointed out, soccer is a complex sport. Without proper training when they are young, they will become big, strong players without alot of skill. They will run fast, win the ball and send it ahead to the speedy forward who moves in on the goal like terminator. That will work until they get older then they run into really solid defenders like we saw in the Dallas Cup with some international and US teams, they will strip the ball away, shut down that huge forward, and then they will surgically pass all around the academy team and score beautiful goals. That is the challenge our US National teams have great athletes who do not control the possession of the ball. 1 pass 2 pass turnover again and again send the ball over the top and use your physical size and presence to score a goal. Ugly but it works. Not the beautiful game like it is played around the world. If the Pre-USSF academy does not totally focus on technical training, it is a waste of time and money. You could combine the same teams in the classic league and accomplish the same result with the same coaches and that is it used to be done in the classic league. So what is different, sticker on car, bragging rights, being on an "elite" team, etc. that is OK but I do not buy the set up of these new league if the propugate the same training/playing style with the same coaches with better players. One exception, I have watched the FC Dallas Academy U18 videos posted on the FC Dallas site with their coach talking one touch passing, possession, etc. and although they still dribbled too in the game I thought they are getting really good coaching and their is a team focus on playing the game correctly. He sounded like a really sharp coach and I thought the players were passionate about playing quality soccer. They were still behind Tigris players in development and speed of play except a few FC Dallas players.

I can agree with that. I am hoping more development goes on with Pre-Academy. I will venture to say there are a few teams in D1 that do dribble out of the back and play with possession as a defender. I know....it costs our team on many occasions but it develops them in the long run....no kick ball. I just hope for more development with full team development and not just relying on size and speed. Sure that is part of it but not the only part. I do agree that if players never learn to use their skill they will be in trouble with time and will not be able to compete. That is why I always play my BB up when possible to the boys are bigger and faster. BB has no choice but to develop possession skills and use his body and play smart. You don't learn these skills if you just can tap the ball in front and run around everyone. I never understood parent who have huge kids and never challenge them. It is like having a manchild playing against boys and think he will improve. If he is a manchild....put him with the MEN! That is were he is going to develop.

bootit wrote:

go99 wrote:I believe FCD hasn't been decided and I would expect that the dark lord himself would take the Texans

I think the dark lord will be taking all pre-academy teams under his wing. Heard Solar may have Passos coaching the 98 pre-academy which will be made up of mostly current 99 players with 98 birthyears. I think the current 98 Solar team is made up of mostly 97 birth years.

It's a bit confusing with the age gap thing but I understand some good players from other D1 teams will be trying out for pre-academy so I would think these teams next year will look very different and should be good little competitive teams.

I know several old Andro coaches have moved over to FCD or Texans so perhaps one of them will be taking the 98 FCD pre-academy. I hear lots of changes currently at FCD hopefully its all for the better. Its really just a crap shoot until things are made official here within the next month.

Which ones went where?