Winston-Salem ODP trip

I traveled with the Georgia 98 Olympic Development Program to North Carolina to play boys ODP teams from VA, SC, & NC. This was a first class experience, from traveling on chartered buses, to feeding hungry players, to the excellent soccer complex.

The weather was cold and windy but the soccer was very good. The coaches did a great job educating the boys on how they expected them to play with video clips pre and post game, and stimulating these points on field in warm ups.

The two teams won three and lost three but the important thing was they experienced different levels of play and really tried to play the way the coaches wanted them too. Not launching long balls with hopes of out running opponents, but trying to unbalance the teams defense with good ball movement and staying organized defensively.

Overall, a great experience!

2010 Winter 4v4

4v4 Tournaments are back!

We had a very good crowd for the 2010 Winter 4v4 at SSC. This is one of the biggest social events for soccer players ages 8-14. It's a great opportunity to play and enjoy the game. There will be teams that dominate and win every game, teams that are overmatched and lose every game, teams that improve as the day goes on and teams that surprise at the end of the day. We play all day with a short break for lunch.

We had three teams that dominated all day long only to lose in the first round of playoffs. One team had not lost a game and had the number one seed. Not sure what happened but I've seen this time and time again. Teams that are losing are also strategizing to come up with a win, while teams that are winning are enjoying their successes. In the end they all end up learning a valuable lessons. Stay humble and think of ways to improve your game.

Next up: MLK 4v4 Jan. 17th.