A note to my U10s.

Parents,

    I'm seeing the same things you are seeing in so far as other teams pass the ball more than we do and are thus more successful at moving the ball quickly into shooting range.  But try to see things from my perspective for a moment, from a perspective of player development rather than one of game outcomes, and I think you'll appreciate the progress that these teams are making.  They don't pass often and so they do miss some opportunities.  They try to dribble rather than clearing the ball out from the danger areas in front of our goal and so they concede some easy goals to the other team.  They execute dribble moves that actually take them backwards sometimes giving up two or three yards only to lose the ball and so they've conceded field position to the other team.  I know you all see it too.  They dribble, dribble, dribble...doing some crazy play-behind or spin move, gaining barely any space at all, stumbling along hardly making any progress up field and then (of course!) they lose the ball again and the other team is off and running.  If they are successful and stumble through the other team's entire defense and find themselves in shooting range they don't see the obvious passing opportunity but rather they stubbornly try to take one more touch and get the shot for themselves.  In short, they fail and fail and fail again.  They fail like crazy.  They fail everywhere on the field.  At both ends and in every imaginable situation they fail repeatedly...and they do so fearlessly!  Beautifully!  Gloriously!  They fail without being defeated, without giving up.  They fail and then they charge in to take another chance.  They want the ball.  

     How many of you played baseball or softball as a kid, maybe just at school?   Do any of you remember standing in right field thinking "please, don't hit it out here"?  Many of the boys on these teams, when I first met them were players I would assess as being somewhat timid on the field, as being perpetual second stringers who look to get rid of the ball rather than face the pressure of being the one who takes charge, the one who dominates and charges forward.  And now!?  They're ball hogs, rarely showing any hesitation to get the ball and get to work trying to dribble around everyone in their path.  Now they're the kid who wants to play shortstop, who says in his head "yeah, hit it to me".   Is passing up field more effective?  In the long run, yes, obviously, and that aspect of the game is a beautiful thing too.  At this age though, is passing also easier on a team, on individual players?  You're damn right it is!  And look at your boys, doing the hard work of learning how to dribble, how to be a creator of space and opportunities.  Look at how hard they work!  And look at how they love it.  I don't know what they say about the games on the ride home, if anything.  But I can tell you that their attitude in the games and on the sidelines is excellent.  They're relaxed and joking with each other, giving each other the business about this or that like a group of locker room veterans, enjoying themselves thoroughly.  They're a pleasure to be around.

Take away the pressure to win now.  Take away the concern over the score and make the game about how they each as individual players challenge themselves in a game and see how they relax and throw themselves into the joy of it.  And then think of how valuable that same frame of mind will be to them in other aspects of their life, in school work in particular.  Aren't there situations in their schoolwork where they complain and hesitate because they fear the work and the possibility of failure?  But look at how they are learning a different attitude, at least in regards to soccer where they are learning to think "Hard work?  Failure?  Well that's just part of it.  Let's get on with it then."

Passing will come.  For some of the boys passing opportunities are something they already see and try to take advantage of.  I'll encourage that sort of creativity too when I see it.  They'll get stronger and develop better shooting strokes.  They'll get faster.  Wins will come too.  For now, though...patience.