Sharing Thoughts and Reflections

Just this September I started the CoachCraft newsletter. It was born out of a love of the beautiful game of soccer and of coaching, largely informed by my years of coaching and watching youth soccer through my son’s journey from the pre-school ages (what I call “balls and snacks”) up to the high school and club level where he plays today. I am fortunate to get to coach him still, albeit in a more limited capacity. This is a journey I continue and that I share with countless others.

And now I want to share my experiences with others, as well as to work alongside the numerous other youth coaches who are working tirelessly to advance the craft of coaching young athletes. In these last few months, as I’ve plunged myself into this world, I have been utterly blown away by the amount and the quality of content available out there, particularly if you know where to look. In a few short months, I’ve met incredibly intelligent and passionate practitioners working to build and improve the knowledge base around youth soccer and it has been nothing short of energizing and inspiring. And this is just within the world of soccer. No doubt the same is happening across other sports worldwide.

So this week, I’m taking a short break from writing and pausing to share a few resources I’ve come across recently that I think might be of interest to my fellow coaches reading this newsletter. I should start by saying, there is a lot of great content out there! Whether it’s about the emotional and psychological aspects of coaching young players (including your own children), the technical and tactical aspects of the game, or the science behind how children learn and develop new skills, committed coaches around the globe are producing incredible content that is surging the craft of coaching forward.

Here are some resources that might help you along your coaching journey. Of course, this is by no means an exhaustive list, but I assure you there’s lots of great stuff that you’ll enjoy. Thanks for reading!

-Alf

General Resources

United Soccer Coaches - This past week interviewing Coach Jon Rudzinski for my first podcast episode (yes, the world needs more podcasts so I’m starting one too!), he mentioned this as a touchstone for him on his journey as a coach at the grassroots and high school levels. Tons of practical tools and tips for coaches at all levels.

U.S. Soccer Coach Licensing Pathway - I encourage youth soccer coaches in the U.S. who are beginning their journey to pursue their grassroots education licenses. The first courses are all online and provide a great foundation for coaching at all age levels of the youth game.

Surviving Your First Soccer Season - Recently I met Rick Fenoglio through his work around and advocacy for small-sided games in training youth players. Rick is a coach educator, researcher, and thought-leader around the youth game and brings a mix of science and common sense approaches to developing young athletes. This is a great resource for brand new soccer coaches.

Closer to Home

I live in Boston, Massachusetts and also enjoy working and being active at the local level. Here are some resources for those living in and around Beantown.

Massachusetts Youth Soccer Association - Earlier this month I attended the MYSA 50th Anniversary Gala where my friend and coaching mentor, Dean Conway, was honored for his incredible contributions with the Dean Conway Coach Education Grant. A worthy recognition of a great coach and a great person.

Boston Scores - I’ve recently spent some time with folks from this excellent East Boston-based organization. They’re focused on providing soccer opportunities to kids in Boston as well as developing and training coaches. A partnership with the City of Boston is a good example of this important work.

Podcasts

All kinds of great podcasts out there. Here are a few I’ve enjoyed recently.

Modern Soccer Coach - Gary Curneen has been developing coaching-related content for a while now, and is a great stop on your coaching journey. Just last week, as an example, I listened to an excellent episode on the use of AI and technology in an interview with Hugo Vicente.

It’s Only Kids Football - Just today, a friend and fellow coach, Mike Smith, turned me on to an episode from this podcast by Ben Welch, an interview with Jimmy Galustian, son of Coerver Coaching founder Alf Galustian, that dives into coaching youth soccer with a focus on coaching your own children.

Football DNA - A podcast focusing on Academy coaching, primarily in the U.K. I enjoyed a recent episode with Temisan Williams on the journey from grassroots to academy coaching.

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