Going forward

I hope last night's meeting was helpful. If you missed it and want a quick run down, just give me a call.

If you had a question that didn't get answered, feel free to call or email me.

I had a couple of things I wanted to add to the conversation, but we had all been there so long, so I saved it for here. Now, I'm not an expert on soccer, so take this with a grain of salt. Here are my thoughts on the team...

Fitness and Injury Prevention

I'm sure it seems weird to hear that the girls may not be in good enough shape, and that some injuries may be preventable through more training. I believe this to be true. It's easy to forget just how competitive sports are, especially at this age. It reminds me of a funny (but true) weightlifting quote: 

"Somewhere in Eastern Europe there is a 14 year old girl warming up with your PR." 

The point is that no matter how good you are or how much work you're putting into it, someone somewhere is working harder. 

Think of it this way: your girls spend less than an hour a day with their math teacher. But to be good at math, they'll have to do some work on their own, maybe a lot. Part of the trick is figuring out your personal strengths and weaknesses and then tailoring your self-guided study so that you can succeed. 

This isn't any different. Mark, Vedad, or whoever only has your daughter 2-3 times a week. The highest and best use of his time is teaching the sport of soccer. Fitness and strength are important and may occasionally be a focus, but they can also be done individually. At this level, the girls should be assessing their own strengths and weaknesses, actively seeking feedback, and spending some time on their own to improve these things. Homework.

You should also consider the athletic burden that awaits them in college. In two years time, they will be training 6 days a week, sometimes twice a day, strength training 3-4 times per week. There's no reason not to start doing some of those things now. 

I've learned a lot on ACL injuries from Colin's experience. And I'll just put it in these simple terms. Which one of these guys is more likely to injure his knee?

You may remember an email I sent a year or two ago, where I tried to address this issue. I bought everyone on the team foam rollers and alpha balls. I posted the "Limber 11" stretch routine. The information is there. I'm more than happy to help advise on fitness related training programs whether its running/cardiovascular fitness, strength training, or nutrition.

You should see the physical burdens they go through post-injury. Kenzie knows. Paola is finding out now. Colin is busting his tail in the gym now. If only he had done it before the injury, there may never have been one. An ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure, and it just so happens that the "prevention" makes you a better athlete at the same time.

My recommendation: In addition to training, the girls need to take ownership of their fitness levels. Like Bruce said, things like a 20 minute run before school can help. Maybe some sprint/speed/agility work if it's been more than a couple days since a practice or a game. And strength training. Vedad mentioned core strength. I could write volumes on this. TRX is fine, but I think they should be learning how to lift weights properly. Any good college program is going to have them doing squats, deadlifts, power cleans, bench press, rows, and so on. Show me someone that can squat 2x their body weight and I'll show you someone with great core strength and much less injury prone.

Next Season

I think most of us agree that USC, RPL, and NPL is a bit much, especially when you throw in High School soccer (or other sports). On top of that, this is the year to be going to as many good showcase events as we can handle.

I propose we drop either NPL or USC. There is a case for each. Vedad recommended dropping NPL. 

As for showcase events, it depends in part on where your daughter wants to go to school. Unfortunately, we're missing the Challenge event next week because of the NPL games. We should definitely do that one next year. The DeFeeters event in Dallas on Thanksgiving is supposed to be very good. It has a lot of schools from the area, and Dallas is a pretty easy trip for us. I think we should go this year. 

Surf Cup gets talked about a lot, but it's at an awkward time in the summer. Many of us have made plans already. I enjoyed the CASL event. And the Disney event is very good too. Although, they're only a month apart, so we should probably just pick one of those.

If you have a strong opinion about any of this, please let me know. Unless I hear otherwise, I think the plan next year is:

RPL

USC

DeFeeters in Dallas at Thanksgiving

CASL or Disney in December

Maybe Vegas during spring break

Lonestar showcase in Feb in Austin

Challenge showcase in June in Houston

The Team

I love these girls. As much as this manager gig is a pain in the ass, sitting on the sidelines with the girls and being a very small part of the team is a world of fun. I think this team has TONS of talent, character, and potential. Losing Mark hurts, but the club is going to throw some real resources at our group. We can use this change as a catalyst to take it to the next level.

Building on what we have will require renewed commitment. You heard if from Bruce and Vedad last night. You've heard it from Mark before. The girls have to want it. And they have to work hard. There are no shortcuts. 

Let's kick some butt this weekend, and again in OK.