Today we had a meeting with staff from the first team, to begin planning the pre-season which will start in exactly 20 days. It was a very productive meeting, and for me personally it was great to finally see first-hand how a professional coach and a professional organisation functions. I am very excited for the [...]
It has not stopped raining here for what seems like the past 48 hours! Unfortunately, because of the persistent rain and poor field conditions, Academy training needs to be suspended here until Wednesday afternoon. Today I did get to have a staff meeting with the Academy coaches, and it was great to see how experienced, [...]
Hi everyone, I've begun my stay in Montevideo, Uruguay, where I am working as Fitness Coach with Canadian SC Uruguay, a professional soccer club in the Uruguayan 'Segunda' (second division). While here, I will be blogging daily about my experiences, and some of things which stand out to me the most. As soon as I [...]
Hi everyone, Welcome to the next edition of the Soccer Fitness Gols Video Blog. In this Blog, we will be providing weekly video content relating to all things soccer and fitness. In this edition, we discuss the problems with traditional March Break soccer camps, and provide some suggested alternatives for players, parents, and coaches. I [...]
Today is Monday, March 21st, and included amongst the upcoming milestones this week is not just the first day of spring, but also the end of the March Break (which in 2016 ran from Monday, March 14th until Sunday, March 20th). In Canada, the March Break is a time during which students between the ages [...]
Hi everyone, Welcome to the next edition of the Soccer Fitness Gols Video Blog. In this Blog, we will be providing weekly video content relating to all things soccer and fitness. In this edition, we discuss the importance of watching high level soccer (such as the UEFA Champions League) for aspiring young soccer players. I [...]
Hi everyone, Welcome to the next edition of the Soccer Fitness Gols Video Blog. In this Blog, we will be providing weekly video content relating to all things soccer and fitness. In this edition, we provide advice for soccer parents and players about which factors they should consider when deciding what soccer program they would [...]
Below is a link to a very interesting and well-written article, by John O'Sulivan of www.changingthegameproject.com. The article reviews a recent reality TV show called 'Friday Night Tykes' which profiles and follows the coaches, parents and players from several different "rookie" (ages 8-9) American football teams from the Texas Youth Football Association, or "TYFA" for [...]
There are over 1 million registered soccer players in Canada. Of those, over 80% are youth soccer players (between the ages of 5-17). These numbers are a great example of how much the game as grown in this country over the past few decades, especially at the grass roots level. One of the challenges that [...]
I have written and published several articles highlighting the importance of coaches and fitness coaches using objective, factual methods of analysis for assessing soccer players’ performance, from both the physical, as well as the technical and tactical viewpoints. Using standardized, objective methods of player assessment minimizes – and in some case eliminates – the influence [...]