Children are accepted into the full-contact soccer section from the age of 7. If in European soccer (which here is called soccer) children are divided by year of birth, here – by weight and age.
The group with the youngest players is called “anklebiters” (they are small children, the idea is that they are so small that they can bite you only at the ankle – ed.). A-football training begins sometime in early August, with soccer beginning in late August and early September. In August, before school starts, practice runs 5 days a week, Monday through Friday, for 2 hours. After school starts, it’s 3 times a week.
The workout starts with a jog, and everyone runs together – the coaches constantly remind them not to pull away from each other. Then there is stretching, push ups, short sprints and passing. Most of the running is explosive. Kids learn how to properly pile up and block enemy players and do it in a way that doesn’t injure themselves. Then they break into groups and do exercises for their position. At the end of practice, a short-distance run is mandatory.
The first workouts – only in helmet, by the end of the first week – all train in full protection (helmet, chest, legs). Add to that the Washington heat of August and you can imagine what kind of shape the kid comes home from practice in. Consequently, a car in which you can raise the roof is not a luxury, but a means to breathe the air, not yet soaked in the smell of sweat and testosterone.
The first week, the coach tries to determine which players can be the quarterback and which can intercept the enemy runners.
The soccer team is divided into two parts – defense and offense. If there are fewer than 22 players (team size), some kids will play both offense and defense. If more, then only the role the coach determines. Unlike European soccer, where all children mostly do the same drills, American soccer players have their own training program, depending on position.
Not all positions are equally popular with kids and adult players. One of the least popular is the lineman, defending the quarterback, giving him the opportunity to pass. That is why coaches always put them at the beginning of the team during formation and remind quarterbacks and runners that all of their field goals are due to the linemen.
Different positions require different skills and talents. In American soccer, there is room for everyone – the fast, the heavy, the strong and the not so strong. Again, the requirements for players in European soccer are more unified.
When school starts and practice time is reduced, less time is spent on warming up. The focus is on practicing blocking techniques, breaking blocks, and tackling. At first glance, the moves are very simple, but there are enough details that make these techniques succeed or fail. About half the time, kids learn how to intercept and properly knock down ball carriers. And the ball players learn how to dodge them. The rest of the time the team is working on game combinations. And these combinations they give names, so that the opponent does not guess what they are up to.
In contrast to many sports, including European soccer, during the game itself the coach continues to play a decisive role. It is he who decides what combination to apply, tries to analyze the other team’s play and tries to readjust to it as the game progresses.
There is a great deal of pressure during training and the game is on the team play and sense of “team. There are special synchronization exercises where kids have to clap or yell something together. At first I thought it was just a morale-boosting exercise, but then I realized it was very important for synchronized play so that all players could move to the right point together as a team.
Throughout the season, coaches try to figure out which kids are right for which positions and which kids aren’t afraid of contact. Even inside the season, they start thinking about which kids will be back next year, how much he’ll weigh, and what position he’ll be able to play in next season. This is different from European soccer, where the team adds new players every year, but it doesn’t affect the tactics of the game.