It is easy for a coach, team, or club to say they are ‘developmental’ and that they do not care about results. They can work on passing and possession, dribbling in any part of the field and proper technique in receiving, etc. These are all largely important aspects in the foundation of the developing player and should always be the focus of training. There is very little game pressure on the coach so long as he can take something from the game that is positive in the area of technical development. It is also easy for a coach, team or club to simply play to win games. They place their fastest players up front, their next fastest player with the strongest leg as center-back, and simply hump the ball forward. Their ‘horses’ are usually the best athletes on the field and their play will usually result in winning the game. Everyone will go home happy because they won, regardless of how poor a soccer playing team they are. Both of these paths are common among teams at the developing ages and are easy for the coach and club as long as they can get the parents to adopt their philosophy and methodology. Under these circumstances, it will be smooth sailing. Now combine the two, and your task becomes much more difficult – to develop all players to perform at a high level, and through this play, achieve the desired result. This is no simple task at any level, yet this is the definition of FC 1974 – to adopt a Performance Based Success Program.
We believe that the team’s performance is of the utmost importance and a quality performance can only be attained through technically efficient players. Developing an excellent technical base, good training habits and creating a quality fast tempo playing style is the preferred method of training. We believe in quality and quantity within training, a proper training-to-game ratio and quality of games where teams are tested and measured within their development. To produce excellent performance the training environment must be highly intense, as this is where development takes place. Training sessions should be fun for the players and foster a love for the game, yet always be very competitive and demanding, forcing the players to train outside of their comfort zones and raise the level of individual play. A high level performance includes the following: from the attacking side – good ball possession, fast and efficient ball movement, dynamic movement off the ball and creating quality scoring opportunities; from the defensive side – organization between lines, compactness with pressing zones, communication, and ball winning; and the speed of transition between both offense to defense and defense to offense.
In a majority of the games, the performance of the team will be of more importance than the result of the match – this is especially true at the younger ages. However, there will be some events that the priority is reversed and the players need to know not only how to play quality soccer, but also how to win games. State and Regional competitions, as well as some tournaments are highlighted events where the result may take precedence over performance, but again, these are in the minority for developing teams. Technical development will always remain a constant factor, even at the senior ages, and through this development, a positive result will follow. Having a winning attitude and playing to win should always be important to the players; what makes an elite athlete, however, is the burning desire to be victorious at the end of the match. But for the coach, there are other factors involved: trying a new tactic, examining players in different positions, providing game experience. In these cases, the result may not matter – but the performance in the game always does. Achieving a quality performance will always be the expectation of every FC 1974 team at all ages within the program.
