As a soccer coach in a clinic league for five and six year old children, I see many children participating in an organized soccer league for the first time. The thing to remember about clinic leagues for this age group is that they are supposed to be fun. Children learn about the basic rules of soccer in these leagues, and how soccer gives them an opportunity to maintain their physical fitness. As parents, don’t set your expectations too high. Instead, read the communications from the coach closely, as he will explain the purpose of the league and what will be taught.
Basic Skills
To prepare your child for a clinic soccer league, start to teach him the basics of the sport. This includes purchasing a soccer ball and kicking it around in the back yard with him. Don’t worry about technique at this point. The coach will teach the proper kicking style, which includes kicking it with the side of the player’s foot. Kicking the ball around in the back yard will teach your child how to make contact and keep his balance when kicking the ball. Set up a stick, pole or other object for him to try to kick the ball towards. This will teach him accuracy.
Accuracy is not the only skill that is helpful for children to have when learning the basics of soccer. Another is controlling the ball. This is done through a skill known as dribbling.This involves very short kicks, keeping the ball close to the player’s feet so he can transport it down the field using his feet. Remember, using your hands is not permitted on the soccer field. Transporting the ball must be done with the feet.
Equipment
Now that you have taught your child some of the basics for the game for his first practice, you must purchase some equipment. For the first season, cleats are not required, but if you purchase them they should be plastic instead of metal cleats and should not have a cleat pointing out from the front toe. That cleat could hurt other players. Safety is the key during clinic soccer leagues, and each child must wear shin guards to protect them in case they get kicked in the shin. Shin guards may be purchased that are part of a sock, frequently sold in stores such as Target, Walmart or K-mart. Another type of shin guard gets inserted into the player’s sock. Unfortunately, these frequently pop out from under the sock, so the ones that are sewn into the sock are a better choice.
Set Your Expectations
At this level, it’s important to set your own expectations as well as your child’s. Clinic leagues involve teaching the rules and basic skills. Winning is not as important as learning at this level. Don’t worry, there aren’t going to be any college scouts at your child’s five and six year old clinic league. Some clinic leagues don’t use goalies and some don’t even keep score. Everyone wins in these leagues. Unlike traditional soccer that uses 11 players, clinic leagues may use as few as six players on the field at a time for each team, and play on fields that are much smaller than regulation leagues.
The coach’s job is to make sure every player gets close to an equal amount of playing time and learns the different positions. Your chld will be likely to sit on the sideline for one or two of the four quarters in the game. Even if you think he’s the best player on the team, don’t get offended. This is the policy for clinic leagues. Nobody will play an entire game, unless your child’s team is very short on players.
Remember that the coaches are volunteers. Respect the work they do in teaching the sport to your child and the others on the team. As a parent, please respond to coach’s requests in a timely manner. You may be asked to bring snacks for one game a season, or help work at the concession stand during one game. Keep in mind that these contributions keep your costs down and allow the youth athletic association to offer sports throughout the year for your child to learn about and participate in. In the end, the goal is for your child to learn and have fun. As a parent, support these goals and have fun watching your child’s skill level improve throughout the season.