Tag Archives: PCA

Regressing to the Mean

Posted on September 7, 2013 by jimsakeeper1

This fall for the first time in five years I don’t have a team to coach. Long story. So I thought I should use the time to write, with busy coaches in mind. Write stuff I’d like to read if … Continue reading →

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Strength in the face of pain or grief.

Posted on December 13, 2011 by jimsakeeper1

“In prosperity, our friends know us; in adversity, we know our friends” —  John Churton Collins It’s a common tale: a professional athlete overcomes the odds to triumph. But there have been few situations darker than the hole Victor Valdés … Continue reading →

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Taking Your Beating

Posted on May 15, 2011 by jimsakeeper1

If youth soccer, as in life, we are constantly balancing what is fair with what is expedient. And as we receive treatment which is less than fair, we have the opportunity to choose our reaction. In the Viking Upper House … Continue reading →

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The Way You Do Anything Is the Way You Do Everything.

Posted on February 13, 2011 by jimsakeeper1

Sometimes I try to teach some non-soccer stuff to the Hammer but have to sneak it in, like wrapping the pill from the vet in sausage to get it into the dog. It’s hard to have time with these highly … Continue reading →

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Zen, carrots, and coaching

Posted on January 28, 2011 by jimsakeeper1

Chopping carrots is a lot like coaching soccer. I’ve been a long-time fan of the writing of Edward Espe Brown, also the documentary that portrayed his work at Tassajara’s kitchen. He sometimes offers a class there that I was checking … Continue reading →

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Plugging Along

Posted on January 17, 2011 by jimsakeeper1

I was not a good coach on Friday. Tired, short-tempered, impatient. One of my players wasn’t listening when I was talking so I stepped on his hand. I stepped on a kid’s hand. On purpose. I have another player diagnosed … Continue reading →

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Coaching

Posted on January 16, 2011 by jimsakeeper1

I went to see “The King’s Speech” to be entertained but also got a reminder about the essence of coaching. What Geoffrey Rush does portraying Lionel Logue is what I attempt to do on the training pitch: Step 1. Ease … Continue reading →

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The Idle Coach

Posted on November 9, 2010 by jimsakeeper1

I’m reading The Idle Parent by Tom Hodgkinson and it’s making me question what we’re doing in youth soccer. If you read books like The Talent Code , or just listen to popular wisdom, you know that the best players … Continue reading →

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The Conundrum

Posted on November 5, 2010 by jimsakeeper1

This is dedicated to Gilligan, who I met at the bar in the Denver Airport this week: I assume most of my sports parents don’t expect me to make their kids into pro athletes or college scholarship winners. The fact … Continue reading →

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Bad Call!

Posted on June 29, 2010 by jimsakeeper1

I’ve been writing a bit about WC10 lately but haven’t touched on the refereeing. I can’t think of a world cup where there have been so many stories concerning missed calls; partly because they impacted “our” teams and partly because … Continue reading →

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