Individual Skills Practice Sheet
"What can I do to improve as a player?"
After the high school season ends, you have 9 months to improve before next season... June-July-August-September-October-November-December-January-February. What you do during these months matters to progress next year. Committed soccer players generally will take a break after the school year ends and resume soccer activities after July 4th.
The most important thing you can do to improve is to join a team outside of school with a local soccer club that has a coach who wants to improve you and develop you as a player. Here are some local soccer clubs that have different levels of play - Recreational (for fun), Competitive, Highly Competitive, and Elite.
Which club team you are on or which league you play in is less important to the coaching staff than your ability as an individual player. At tryouts, you cannot bring the rest of your team with you, and you can't bring the league you play in with you, so we can only evaluate your individual ability. However, that being said, different leagues do offer different ranges of levels of play. The level that you as a player play at the rest of the year will certainly have an effect on your playing level when we have tryouts in February, but the team you play for and the league it plays in should be your individual choice.
Elite (teams for the most part have the top players in ther age group in the area): ECNL-National, possibly GAL (Girls Academy League) depending on the team
Highly Competitive (very experienced and committed players): ECNL-Regional, EDP, GAL, and the top few teams in NCSL Division 1
Competitive (players who are committed to soccer and are improving): NCSL teams outside the top few Div. 1 teams or lower third of ECNL-Regional and EDP
Recreational (playing competitively but still primarily for enjoyment & participation) NCSL Recreational & Suburban Friendship League (SFL)
Local club options:
Fairfax Police Youth Club (fairfax city) (FPYC) Fairfax Police Youth Club | Soccer (fpycsports.com)
Braddock Road Youth Club (george mason area) (BRYC) Braddock Road Youth Club | Home (brycsoccer.com)
Vienna Youth Soccer (VYS) Vienna Youth Soccer (vys.org)
Virginia Valour (Centreville / Chantilly) Travel Soccer | Virginia Valor Fc
Premier Athletics Club (falls church) Premier Athletics Club (premierac.org)
Burke Athletic Club (BAC) Burke Athletic Club | Home
Others nearby: McLean Soccer Club, Great Falls-Reston Soccer Club, Springfield Youth Soccer Club
How to try out for a club team: In most cases, you will have to email the coach, an age group director, or a technical director. You can find this information through the club's website. You may have to attend a practice with the team you are trying out for, tryout session, or an ID session depending on the level of the team. If you are looking for teams to join it is best to try out for several teams at once until you find a good fit.
Teams seeking players in NCSL, or reach to coaches in your age group to request a tryout or attend a practice:
National Capital Soccer League | Schedules and Results (ncsl-soccer.com)
National Capital Soccer League | Girls (ncsl-soccer.com)
Skills Clinics:
HP Elite & Beyond - Youth Soccer Training Since 1991 (hpeliteandbeyond.com)
Golden Boot Soccer | Soccer Trainer | McLean, VA
Youth Programs | Soccer Academy, Inc (soccer-academy.com)
Virginia North District ODP (Olympic Development Program)
ODP TRYOUTS - Virginia Youth Soccer Association (vysa.com)
Strength & Conditioning / Speed & Agility:
Strength & Performance Training • SAPT (saptstrength.com)
Goalkeeper Training:
Premier Keepers | Soccer Goalkeeping Coach
1) keep a size 1 mini-ball at home to dribble around the house. Have a ball at your feet as much as possible
2) Foot skills using the video https://youtu.be/jihymtqCt7M or Individual Skills Practice Sheet
3) pickup soccer at a local park, or play Futsal
4) any weekly skills clinics or camps - HP Elite, Golden Boot Soccer, Total Futbol, Virginia ODP Program, Premier Keepers
5) Watch soccer on TV or attend live games
6) Keep a soccer journal and write in it every day that they do something soccer-related
7) spend time practicing with a teammate, or find other kids in the neighborhood that play soccer and practice with them
8) practice juggling and break your record
9) Look up some moves / skills on Youtube of professional players and learn their moves
10) Play a lot of 1v1/2v2/3v3 in a small space (with bigger/faster/older/more skilled players, boys or girls)
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