Season opening weekend

[Regs]

So who's excited the most for the start of the season this weekend?

Kids, Coaches, or Parents?

Good luck to everyone involved and enjoy yourselves!

Then come back here and post your complaints

Cheers,

Regs.

 

[juninho]

This coach wishes he had a couple more weeks with boys who only just got back from holidays, and a chance for some to recover from off-season injuries...

 

[rich]

This coach wishes his goalkeeper didn't go mountain biking the week before the season started...I leave you with 3 words.
Handlebar
Impale
Thigh.

 

[Regs]

You guys were supposed to wait until Monday to complain, LOL

@rich Ouch!

 

[easoccer]

I wish they didnt push some of us back to the 19th.

 

[TKBC]

Well I am loving opening weekend. No team to coach. No game to attend. Sun to enjoy! LOL, taking a break from coaching for the first time in 10 years. Often coaching 2 teams at a time, typically only having July off and a few weeks over Christmas (and the odd weeks here-there that normally teams get). Although I am not old, 10 years of coaching made me feel it!

Knowing my previous team is kicking off tomorrow is going to bother me not being there but am really really pleased with the coach that took over the reins from me - they are in great hands!

 

[easoccer]

Well I am loving opening weekend. No team to coach. No game to attend. Sun to enjoy! LOL, taking a break from coaching for the first time in 10 years. Often coaching 2 teams at a time, typically only having July off and a few weeks over Christmas (and the odd weeks here-there that normally teams get). Although I am not old, 10 years of coaching made me feel it!

Knowing my previous team is kicking off tomorrow is going to bother me not being there but am really really pleased with the coach that took over the reins from me - they are in great hands!

Sometimes I feel this way. I have 4 kids playing and usually coach 3 of them. This year I am coaching one. I wanted to drop to parent status but the wife wont let me. LOL. Sometimes I get tired of the politics, but I sure do like being around the boys and helping them develop.

 

[Regs]

For you coaches, do you lay out a plan before the season starts on goals for your team and if so, do those plans change after the first game drastically, i.e., you futz'd up evaluating where they were and need to alter training sessions?

Cheers,

Regs.

 

[TKBC]

Absolutely lay out season goals. Ideally those goals don't include your ideal W-D-L record. Make sure you share your goals with the team, and parents, and how you intend to achieve them. Outline who is responsible for what - coach-parents-players. Outline expectations and consequences. Stick to them.

Do I change goals after the first game? Nope. My team was 0-0-5 last year. I stuck to my guns and we ended the year unbeaten for many months and won a few things. Kids need predictability!

 

[rich]

Yeah, what TKBC said. Definitely have season goals. My planned pathway to getting there may be tweaked after a couple of games, once strengths / weaknesses / habits are observed. I always try to get a few preseason games in to assess that.

 

[easoccer]

Obviously your gameplan and goals are going to change drastically as you go higher in divisional/metro/bcspl. I think for the most part at div3 for me it's always possesion and positional awareness. These kids are usually pretty fit, fast and want to have fun. I have had technical directors promote working on passing for 2 months and then defending for 2 months, etc. Always focusing on one thing until satisfied. We play year around so I dont really have to wait to implement changes if needed.

At Div 4, the kids just want to scrimmage and I'm ok with that.

 

[Regs]

Thanks for the insights!

How did your teams do this weekend - not you @TKBC as you're not coaching I believe this year ?

Any surprise performances from individual players?

 

[TKBC]

Nope I took this season off, Regs! My former team smashed it first weekend tho

 

[WTF]

Boys teams Ladner U17 & Langley U17 look too strong for Div 2 and should be looking to move up into Div 1 .

 

[Milhouse]

U16 DCS looking to repeat as Provincial champions. Easy 4-0 win over Langley. Could have been 10. Langley keeper made some great saves, couple of posts and a crossbar.

 

[TKBC]

Re: the u17 and u16 posts above - guys it's a long season. Do not be so quick to judgement.

 

[juninho]

U17B Langley D2 hasn't lost a league game in two years (since they dropped down to D2).

We dropped a tough 0-1 away, dominated posession and game for large stretches but couldn't score. Caught by a quick counter off a turnover and beat our 3rd choice keeper. Good way to start the season though, lots of good things to build on.

 

[easoccer]

Are the games really close in D2 during those years? Otherwise why havent you moved back up to D1? I know it's fun to win and all, but going unbeaten for 2 years kind of makes playing in that division pointless.

 

[juninho]

I think there are 2, maybe 3 teams in that division that are continually better than the rest, and the drop off after that seems pretty large from past history... I guess the lower divisions are always going to have these kinds of issues when tiering is left to the clubs?

 

[WTF]

U17B Langley D2 hasn't lost a league game in two years (since they dropped down to D2).
.

Langley doesn,t have a Metro or Gold team in U17 so all their top players are on the Div 2 team. Its the same for Ladner - no Gold team .
The Dist 5 leage should def move these 2 teams into Div 1