NASL Newsletter #44 - October 24, 2002

NASL NEWSLETTER

October 24, 2002

This is the 44th issue distributed to the new NASL list. The previous newsletters are now on-line at http://www.nasl.com/current_news.htm

Articles in this week's newsletter:

Upcoming Soccer Calendar
State Cups Volunteers Needed
Alabama ODP Update
Girls Need to Learn to Run Like Boys
Big Soccer Tournament Canceled - WAGS Event Called Off Because of Safety Concerns
US Soccer National Coaching Schools - Winter 2003 Locations
Super Y-League receives Olympic Development Program Status
Communication Skills and Coaching
Coach in wheelchair seen as role model
Los Angeles Galaxy Aims for "Double" at 2002 Lamar Hunt US Open Cup Final on August 24th
Rainfall this season

Soccer Calendar - Dates to Remember

More information on all events below is available at the NASL website.

Kicks Invitational Soccer Tournament - October 25-27, 2002 in Huntsville, Alabama

"Fall" Tide American Festival - October 26, 2002 - "Location TBD"

"Fall" State League ends (D-I & D-II) - October 31, 2002 -

November 1, 2002

§1 Final fall registration is due in the AYSA office postmarked by this date and must include:

§2 A correctly prepared and readable diskette, roster or copy of the registration form containing required information for any player or coach registered after the submittal of registration information in October.

§3 Submission of Registration form and fees for additional players and coaches

Final date for Statewide Division III and Division IV League play - November 2, 2002

Snicker’s State Cup preliminary matches - November 1- 3, 2002

November 6, 2002

Entry deadline for Kellogg’s Cup for Division II U11-U13 teams.

Roster- freeze date for Kellogg’s Cup teams.

Governors Cup will be November 8th - 10th, 2002. Chevy Governor’s Cup for Division II U14-U18 and Division III & Division IV U10-U18.

The Alabama Adult State Cup tournament will be held November 16th and 17th at John Hunt Park in Huntsville, Alabama.

Samba Girls Friendlies - Point Mallard Soccer Complex - Decatur - November 16th and 17th - Top caliber U14 Girls teams from around the South will play at the Point Mallard Soccer Complex in Decatur.

Central United Methodist Church Decatur Indoor 5v5 Soccer Tournament - November 16th - Entry deadline - November 8th.

Kicks Girls U12 Friendlies - November 16th - Top caliber U12 Girls Teams from around the South will play at the Point Mallard Soccer Complex in Decatur.

Kellogg’s Cup for Division II U11-U13 - December 6-8, 2002

Snickers Cup will be December 6/7/8th, 2002 - semi-finals and finals.

Registration Deadline for Division I/II Spring League - December 13, 2002

Registration for Division III and Division IV members may begin - January 1, 2003

ODP Festival Boys - Huntsville - January 3rd - 5th, 2003

ODP Festival Girls - Huntsville - January 31, 2003 - February 2nd, 2003

Division III and Division IV players may be officially rostered to Spring teams as of this date - February 1, 2003

Submission of Registration forms and fees due in AYSA office. These must be true, accurate number of new member registrations and fees. Member cards will be issued to clubs for Division III and Division IV members once forms and fees are submitted. - February 15, 2003

Statewide Division III and Division IV League play may begin - March 1, 2003

HHS JV Super Cup - Huntsville High School will be holding a JV Tournament on March 14-15, 2003 at the John Hunt Soccer Complex. Boys teams from Alabama and Tennessee and Girls teams from Birmingham, Huntsville, Madison and Ft Payne have already signed up. You may contact Jim Saunders jim.saunders@gti-us.com 256-533-3466 for more info.
Final date for Statewide Division III and Division IV League play - May 10, 2003

"Spring" Tide American Festival - May 17, 2003

State Cups – December 7th and 8th – Huntsville
WANTED: VOLUNTEERS - NO EXPERIENCE REQUIRED

       Are you interested in getting involved in soccer but don’t coach and have no desire to referee? Do you think a 4-4-2 is an Oldsmobile? Can’t figure out how two yellows can make a red? Think a high kick is something you only see in ballet or a Bruce Lee film? Think nutmeg is only a spice and a bicycle just something you ride?
      Well here’s a great way to get started in soccer - help out at this year’s State Cup!
      The North Alabama Soccer League is hosting the 2002 Snicker’s State Cup on December 7th and 8th at the John Hunt Soccer Complex in Huntsville. On the same day we are also hosting the new Division II State Cup at the Merrimack Soccer Complex. A core group of about 20 to 25 volunteers is needed to be the Hospitality Committee. This committee serves as the “Food Service” committee for the tournament. The main requirement is to obtain donations of food (deli assortment trays, sandwiches, pizza, etc.) before the tournament and distribute the food during the tournament. The Hospitality committee will begin their work soon so please contact Christi Clark at Clarkhse@yahoo.com as soon as possible if you are interested.
      If hospitality is not your “cup of tea” volunteers will also be needed for other jobs, including such things as working two hour shifts selling State Cup t-shirts.
Please note that it is not the Kicks Futbol Club or Huntsville Soccer Club or any of our other clubs that is hosting the State Cup; it is the North Alabama Soccer League! Even if your team is not participating you are welcome to be included. We also know there are lots of people on the NASL mailing list who are with teams and clubs outside of the NASL. You are welcome to volunteer also.
      Last year’s tournament was one of the best in years. Please help us make this year’s tournaments a bigger success. E-mail Christi at Clarkhse@yahoo.com now to volunteer.

Alabama ODP Update:

Alabama's Olympic Development Program is pleased to offer the following updates - Updated 10/8/2002.

1. Phase II Details:

We are now in the second phase of the program. During Phase II players will be identified and selected into age group pools for each age group listed below. Players have been identified through District level tryouts and are currently being scouted. Players who are selected for addition into an age group pool will receive notification. Subsequently they will receive a packet of information and forms. Once those forms and fees are returned the player will officially be added to the ODP pool team for their age group and invited to participate in the winter event. Within 2 weeks of the completion of the winter event the ODP age group teams will be announced.

2. Staff selections

Girls:
85G - Mike Mitchell, Auburn University of Montgomery
86G - Keidane McAlpine, Birmingham Southern University
87G - Wolf Dieter Koch, Springhill College
88G - John Markey
89G - Shaun Edgar
90G - Heather Frelin-Blom
Boys:
86B - John Tesema
87B - Brett Teach, Auburn University of Montgomery
88B - Tom Bierster
89B - Mohammed El-Zare, South Alabama University
90B - Marty Clark

ODP Calendar – 2002/2003

Program Philosophy
Alabama ODP exists to promote soccer excellence. The program is designed to identify, select and prepare the best players per age group within our state so as to best prepare ODP Teams for Regional Camp competition. The program will also place a premium on exposing players to college programs.

Phase I - Identify

Purpose: Identify players for inclusion in ODP Pools in all four Alabama Districts. Only players who attend tryouts are guaranteed identification for Phase II and Phase III. The AYS Director of Coaching and Player Development will conduct midweek tryouts in each of the four State Select Districts.

Dates:

Birmingham - September 3rd & 4th, 2002
Site Coordinator: Joy Brown (205) 991-6788
Huntsville - September 5th & 6th, 2002
Site Coordinator: Christy Clark (256) 650- 5613
Montgomery - September 10th & 11th, 2002
Site Coordinator: Michelle Allen (334) 279-8813
Mobile - September 12th & 13th, 2002
Site Coordinator: Craig Ginsberg (251) 709-2300

All tryouts will run from 6:00PM to 8:00PM.
Cost: $35

Phase II - Evaluate

Purpose: Evaluate players for inclusion in ODP Teams.
Players identified in Phase I along with other subsequently identified players will be scouted in Fall league matches. Select players will be invited into a post Fall season Border Festival with ODP Teams from other states.

Dates:
Boys Border Festival – January 4th & 5th, 2003
Girls Border Festival – February 1st & 2nd, 2003
Scouting will take place throughout the Fall season.
Site: Huntsville's John Hunt Complex
Cost: $65

Phase III - Prepare

Purpose: Prepare State Select teams for Regional Camp and Conyers Event.
The core players identified in Phase II and invitees will participate in a second Border Festival. Phase III will conclude with a mini camp.

Dates:
Boys Training/Match March 15th, 2003
Girls Training/Match March 15th, 2003
Boys Border Festival April 19th & 20th, 2003
Girls Border Festival April 26th & 27th, 2003
Boys Training/Match May 17th, 2003
Girls Training/Match May 17th, 2003
Boys & Girls Mini Camp June 5th – 8th, 2003
Sites:
Training/Matches – Birmingham
Border Festival – Mobile, Mini Camp - TBA
Cost: $150

Phase IV – Regional Camp & Conyers Event
Purpose: Identify, Evaluate and Select players for Regional Pool.
Dates: TBA (Traditionally 1 week in July for each age group)
Sites: TBA (Traditionally: Boys – University of Alabama, Girls – Montevallo College)
Cost: TBA (Projected as $550)

Phase V – Summer Tours

Purpose: Compete with high-level teams in North America, South America, Europe and the Caribbean
Dates: TBA (Projected as a 10 day trip in early August)
Sites: TBA (Projected sites are Western Europe, Costa Rica & the USA)
Cost: TBA (Varies with tour)

Regards,
Lance M. Williams
Alabama Youth Soccer
Director of Coaching and Player Development

Girls Need to Learn to Run Like Boys

By Dennis Thompson Jr.
HealthScoutNews Reporter
http://story.news.yahoo.com/news?tmpl=story2&u=/hsn/20021005/
hl_hsn/girls_need_to_learn_to_run_like_boys

SATURDAY, Oct. 5 (HealthScoutNews) - "You run like a girl!"

It's an age-old taunt, but sports medicine experts have discovered that if female athletes are trained to run, jump and pivot like males, they can prevent serious knee injuries.

Female athletes are two to eight times more likely to tear their anterior cruciate ligament (ACL), the major stabilizer of the knee. Each year, one out of 100 high school female athletes and one of 10 college female athletes experience an ACL injury, according to the National Institutes of Health ( news - web sites).

The National Collegiate Athletic Association reports that in any given year, approximately 2,200 collegiate female athletes are expected to rupture their ACLs.

However, a special training program could be just what the doctor ordered. By teaching women soccer players to keep their knees bent and play lower to the ground, the training resulted in 88 percent fewer ACL tears.

Dr. Letha Griffin of the University of Georgia and Dr. Bert R. Mandelbaum of the Santa Monica Orthopedic and Sports Research Foundation in California devised the program.

They compared knee injuries among 1,041 female soccer players in the Coast Soccer League of Southern California who'd been given the injury prevention training. The researchers then compared those injuries to ones suffered by 1,902 players who didn't receive the training.

At the end of the 2000 season, the players who received the training had only two ACL tears, compared with 32 in the group that didn't receive training on moving more like boys.

Griffin and Mandelbaum say that's because girls don't move with the kind of flexibility needed to relieve pressure on the knee.

"Girls run and pivot in a stiff-legged, upright posture," says Griffin, who is head physician for all sports teams at the University of Georgia. "Boys, on the other hand, have knees bent and can play low to the ground."

"Boys can touch the ground from their running position. That's not true of girls," she adds.

Griffin says girls need to learn to keep their hips and knees bent, their body balanced over their legs and their posture straight.

The training program she and Mandelbaum devised for the California soccer league involved a special 20-minute warm-up that concentrated on running, jumping and pivoting with knees bent. The women would perform normal soccer movements, but with a special emphasis on centering their weight lower to the ground.

The findings on their work were presented at a recent meeting of the American Academy of Orthopaedic Surgeons.

Orthopedic surgeons have offered several theories for why females are more likely to suffer ACL injuries, says Stephanie Vlach, manager of fitness education for the Life Fitness Academy. These include anatomical differences, variations in movement patterns and muscular imbalances.

"Women tend to have much stronger quads (the large muscle in the back of the upper leg) than they do hamstrings," Vlach says about recent muscle-related theories. "Men have much more equal strength between the two muscles."

Since none of these can be altered, researchers like Griffin and Mandelbaum have focused on teaching female athletes motor patterns that will prevent excessive stress on the ACL, Vlach says.

Vlach speaks from personal experience about ACL injuries. About 10 years ago, she tore hers while a competitive gymnast, and ended up receiving reconstructive surgery and nine months of physical therapy.

"These are no fun, and more and more women today are tearing their ACLs. Coaches and personal trainers who work with girls and women really need to consider this during training," she says.

Griffin says parents who want to prevent injuries to their daughters should encourage them to practice jumping and landing in a correct body posture, with their knees bent and their center of gravity low to the ground. The girls could hop in front of a mirror to watch whether they land in a proper flexed position, or parents could videotape their girls in action and then review how they are running, jumping and landing. That will let parents identify girls who are landing stiff-legged and need more training to keep themselves in a flexed position.

"The whole idea is to train on exercises that help develop neuromuscular control," Griffin says. "The proper position comes naturally to guys. It doesn't come so naturally to women."

What To Do

To learn more about preventing anterior cruciate ligament injuries in women, visit the American Academy of Orthopaedic Surgeons or the Cleveland Clinic.

Big Soccer Tournament Canceled
WAGS Event Called Off Because of Safety Concerns

By Brian Straus and Greg Sandoval
Washington Post Staff Writers
Friday, October 11, 2002; Page D01

A prestigious girls' soccer tournament for 372 of the nation's top club teams, most from outside the Washington area, that was to be played in Maryland and Northern Virginia this weekend was abruptly canceled Wednesday night in response to the sniper shootings, forcing families from California to Florida to hastily change travel plans.
Click here to read the entire story.

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/A9590-2002Oct10.html

NOTE: As of 10/15/2002, all youth outdoor sports have been cancelled in Fairfax County, Virginia, due to the danger posed by the shooter who has murdered nine people in the Washington, DC area.

US Soccer National Coaching Schools
Winter 2003 Locations

http://www.superyleague.com/mediacenter/H/44746_E.html

    U.S. Soccer will be hosting five National Coaching Schools this winter for coaches across the nation looking to earn one of the top coaching licenses in the country. The five schools will be led by coaches who are actively involved in U.S. Soccer’s National Team network, and they include field and classroom sessions and conclude with extensive testing on the theoretical and practical applications of the game.

     Las Vegas (A, B and C License courses), Tampa, Fla. (A, B, C), Cocoa, Fla. (Pro-B) and Chula Vista, Calif. (A-Audit) will each host a course in January. (For a complete schedule of classes, please see below.)

     “At these National Coaching Schools, coaches have the opportunity to improve their knowledge of the game and learn about current coaching trends and international developments in the game from some of the best coaches in the country,” said John Ellinger, U.S. Soccer’s Director of Youth Development. “As soccer in this country continues to move forward, it is important that we are doing all we can to assure the young players playing today that they have qualified coaches instructing them.”

     The National Coaching Schools offers a complete, nine-day coaching course in a residential environment. The schools are conducted at three levels and emphasize field instruction in the areas of technique, tactics and fitness. The courses also include valuable instruction in coaching methodology, team management and sport psychology.

     Several times each year U.S. Soccer offers National Coaching Schools, with the goal of educating coaches to ensure players develop to their full potential. Since U.S. Soccer began hosting these schools in the 1970s more than 11,000 coaches have attended. Licensed by FIFA, U.S. Soccer is the only organization that is allowed to license coaches in the United States.
This year U.S. Soccer will be offering an “A” Audit Only course for the first time ever. This first-time course will be held at the ARCO Olympic Training Center in Chula Vista, Calif., and will be led by the U.S. Under-17 Men’s National Team head coach John Ellinger. Coaches will have the opportunity to observe lecture and field sessions by John Ellinger, U.S. Under-18 MNT head coach George Gelnovatch and other U.S. Soccer National Team Coaches. This course is tailored towards “A” Licensed coaches who are renewing their “A” License and only USSF “A” Licensed coaches are eligible for this course. Participating coaches will earn eight (8) Continuing Education credits toward the renewal of their “A” License.

      Coaches can register for the winter coaching courses now at the following link (http://membership.ussoccer.com/ussoccer/coachingapp/default.sps ). For questions or additional information on U.S. Soccer National Coaching Schools, please contact the Coaching Department at (312) 528-1219 or coaches@ussoccer.org. A complete 2003 winter course schedule is listed below:

2003 WINTER COURSE SCHEDULE
Dates Location License
January 2-10 University of Nevada; Las Vegas A-B-C
January 2-10 University of Tampa; Tampa, Fla. A
January 2-10 University of South Florida; Tampa, Fla. B-C
January 2-10 Cocoa Expo Sports Center; Cocoa, Fla. Pro-B
January 2-9 ARCO Training Center; Chula Vista, Calif.
A Audit

COURSE TUITION
Resident: $925 (U.S. Soccer Coaching Organization Member) $975 (Non-Member)
Commuter: $600 (U.S. Soccer Coaching Organization Member) $650 (Non-Member)
*Audit Course is $100 less course tuition
For more information, please contact Kati Hope, Manager of Coaching Programs. Kati can be reached at khope@ussoccer.org , or (312) 528-1231.

Super Y-League receives Olympic Development Program Status

http://www.superyleague.com/scripts/
runisa.dll?m2:gp::15060+Mediacenter/display+E+42257+A

TAMPA, FL – United Soccer Leagues announced today that the Super Y-League has been granted Olympic Development status effective immediately for the Super Y-League Finals to be held in Raleigh, North Carolina next week. The Super Y-League officially received the designation from the United States Soccer Federation and the United States Olympic Committee at the U.S. Soccer AGM in San Francisco last week.

“This is a great step for the advancement of the sport in this country,” said USL President Francisco Marcos. “The Olympic Development Program status will enhance the Super Y-League’s efforts to develop and identify players.”

The ODP status will also apply to a Regional Team program, which will be launched during the league’s fifth season next year. This will allow for elite level players that compete in the Super Y-League to be scouted through league play.

“We have long believed that the best opportunity for players to show themselves was in week-in, week-out competition as opposed to the current tryout system currently in place,” said Marcos. “Some players are just not tryout and practice players. What our system needed was a way to see these young athletes playing during official league competition. We don’t want to eliminate the current process, just enhance it for the betterment of the players and the sport.”

Founded in 1999 with 16 teams, the Super Y-League grew to over 300 teams in 10 regions in 2002. In 2003, the focus will shift more towards quality over quantity, expanding as needed.

“The Super Y-League has proven to elite clubs that the league structure provides regular elite level competition,” said Super Y-League Director Matt Weibe. “Every year we see an increase in interest and are now at the point to take the next step with the league. An encouraging sign of our success is that players are beginning to crack into the lineups for USL’s Premier Development League and W-League teams at 16-17 years of age, something that rarely occurred before.”

“At the end of the day, we are only targeting the top 30,000 or so players from U14-U18 for boys and girls – less than one percent of the youth soccer player pool,” added Weibe.

“Now that we have proven the system works, we are proud to welcome the official Olympic Development Program status as it will aid us in several areas.”

“Players can now focus on league play without the worry of traveling to tryouts or practices while missing league games. The ultimate goal in the Olympic Development Program is to prepare players for international competition and the closest thing to Olympic and World Cup play is a competitive league environment where the games mean something. It is important to evaluate players in this environment as opposed to an open tryout where a player can be judged and eliminated in a brief instance. The Super Y-League will provide a full picture of a player’s abilities physically and mentally over a longer period of time.”

The Super Y-League also gives economically disadvantaged and multicultural players who are unable to utilize the current system a greater opportunity to advance into the National Team system,” added Weibe. “Every Super Y-League team is required to have a program that allows economically disadvantaged and multicultural players, who were being largely missed through the current system, the opportunity to play with the club. Identifying and giving these often overlooked players a chance to play at an elite level has been a part of our mission from day one and now places them within the Olympic Development Program system.”

The Super Y-League will launch a new Regional Team program in 2003 in its continued Olympic Development Program efforts. The regional squads will be selected based on league play by scouts over the course of the season and will compete before the top National Team Coaching Staff members.

“This is a great step for soccer in the United States,” said Weibe. “Players will actually see rewards for playing hard for the entire season, knowing that each and every game could be the one that gives them the extra distinction to be selected. And when players put forth their best efforts each time they step out on the field, it pushes the sport even further in its development on the regional, national and international level. This kind of system mirrors the ones around the world which have already proven successful.”

Communication Skills and Coaching

From http://www.pelinks4u.org/sections/coaching/coaching.htm

        Effective communication skills do not come naturally for everyone but just like many other skills, it can be improved with practice and effort.
      To get a deeper look at some of the more important factors involved in effective communication and start improving the way you relate to others as a coach, head over to Sports Coach. http://www.brianmac.demon.co.uk/commun.htm
      Many first-time coaches believe that all there is to coaching is to teach athletes the skills of their specific sport and motivate them to do their best. Little did they know that communication plays a major role in their success. The Coaching Communications Resource Site at http://www.sportsmediachallenge.com/coaches/ has many helpful articles and is even promoting a manual called the Coaches Communication Playbook! http://www.sportsmediachallenge.com/coaches/playbook.html
      A great article on Coaches' Communication Skills is available on-line at http://www.brianmac.demon.co.uk/commun.htm

Coach in wheelchair seen as role model
Laura Cruz, El Paso Times
http://www.borderlandnews.com/stories/borderland/20021015-32460.shtml

      There are no obstacles in 21-year-old Tony Hernandez's life -- only challenges.
      And one of his biggest challenges is living life to its fullest despite being a quadriplegic.
      In February 2001, Hernandez, a former El Paso Community College student and International House of Pancakes waiter, was paralyzed from the neck down in a car accident in Juárez. But that hasn't kept him from coaching soccer to 4- through 6-year-olds, including his 5-year-old son, Anferniey.

Los Angeles Galaxy Aims for "Double" at 2002 Lamar Hunt US Open Cup Final on August 24th

2002 MLS Cup Champion L.A. Galaxy to visit Columbus Crew Live on Fox Sports World and Fox Sports En Español at 7 p.m. ET

CHICAGO (Sunday, October 20, 2002) - The battle for the 2002 Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup crown will take place on Thursday, October 24 at 7 p.m. ET as Major League Soccer's Columbus Crew host the defending Open Cup champion Los Angeles Galaxy in this year's tournament final at Crew Stadium in Columbus, Ohio. The championship match will be broadcast live on Fox Sports World and Fox Sports en Español.

Continue: http://www.ussoccer.com/news/fullstory.sps?iNewsid=23311

Rainfall This Season

Our local Decatur recreational soccer league had several weekends rained out this season. We have a new soccer complex with costly new turf and the city was protective of the fields - shutting them down on three weekends. Of course, some parents were not happy with expensive new fields which they couldn't use. As a response the local league president, Jay Clark, found some very interesting statistics concerning the rainfall we received this season as opposed to last season. I thought the reader of this newsletter would be interested.

Rainfall amounts in Decatur:

August 2001: 0 days of rain, total 0"
September 2001: 6 days of rain, total 2.71"
October 2001 (up to 10/24): 6 days of rain, total 0.73"

August 2002: 24 days of rain, total 1.35"
September 2002: 20 days of rain, total 6.26"
October 2002 (up to 10/24): 8 days of rain, total 2"

NASL NEWSLETTER:

You may sign up for the NASL e-mail list and also provide changes (including removing your name from the list) to your current e-mail address and phone numbers by using this form at http://www.nasl.com/Email.htm This is our means of keeping the local soccer community up-to-date on events and items of interest. If you have something to contribute please e-mail me at dsports@hiwaay.net
All of the above information and more is on-line at http://www.nasl.com