COACHING PHILOSOPHY
EYSA, Committed to Great Coaching
Our EYSA coaches are our greatest resource -- from the dedicated parent and volunteer coaches in our recreational leagues to the former national team and pro players with USSF National A-License coaching credentials in our premier club, and everyone in-between.
Being a youth soccer coach is a great privilege and responsibility. Coaches are teachers; the pitch is their classroom. They have an opportunity to positively impact the development of young players on and off the field, and can have a huge impact on the people they ultimately become. There are invaluable life lessons that can come from playing youth sports, and good coaches see beyond the immediate scoreline in any given match to the bigger picture, the development, character and wellbeing of their players. There's definitely more to coaching than understanding the game and being able to teach soccer skills, tactics and strategy.
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It's a tall order. And, EYSA is committed to providing its coaches the training and tools they need to constantly improve, no matter their level of training or experience, so they can be the best they can be, and our players reap the rewards.
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Dedicating Resources to Coach Development
In order to have all EYSA players reach their highest development level with technical and skill training, EYSA invests as much training as possible into its coaches, and works to provide the tools they need.
As part of the EYSA Futures initiative, which kicked off in the summer of 2014 with the goal of delivering the best soccer experience to all youth players, no matter their level of play, EYSA introduced two new, highly qualified Technical Directors, who are development assets for use by all EYSA clubs, focusing on coaching both players AND coaches alike.
EYSA is further dedicated to keeping the Coaching Resources pages of its website current, with easy acces to the tools and information coaches need, whether it's Washington Youth Soccer state-level training, providing detailed practice curriculum, concussion and other health and safety information, accessing scheduling and score reporting across the leagues in which EYSA teams play, or any of the other online resources hosted here.
If you come across coaching resources you think should be shared with all our EYSA coaches, send us a link at webmaster@eysa.org.
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Curriculum Ensures Continuity and Consistency Across EYSA
The EYSA curriculum is designed to teach possession-style soccer. Modules designed for the younger ages start with 3-a-side training, then build to 4-, 6-, 9-, and eventually 11-a-side games. Players are taught a 4-3-3 formation as a foundation for understanding tactics and strategies of the game.
The EYSA curriculum emphasizes mastery of the fundamentals, starting with its youngest players, and evolves to fit players at each stage of development, adding tactics and game strategies over time. The curriculum is designed to ensure continuity and consistency in player development across all levels of soccer at EYSA. Learn more here.