Priorities of a Youth Soccer Coach
  • Safety:  
    The coach is ultimately responsible for the welfare of the players, parents, spectators and staff.  This broad range of
    items includes everything from players leaving with the right adult to walking the field before events looking for trip
    hazards.  Players and parents depend on the coach to oversee and maintain their safety, this is especially true for
    the younger age groups.  In all cases, safety should be your number one priority.

  • Fun:  
    The best way to learn how to play the game and build skills is through fun events.  The best way for a coach to teach
    soccer is to involve the team in fun activities that they (the coach) personally enjoy playing and teaching.  The best
    way to build a team with returning players each season is to make it fun.  Players who are not having fun will not only
    progress the least, but they are considerably more likely to move on to other sports and not return to soccer.   

    A special note:  The ability for a player to have fun while developing their soccer skills is far more important than
    positioning for advantage, making the next score, or winning a game.  

  • Player Development:
    Coaches must strive to train and place players into situations where they can be successful.   Success can be
    measured in many ways and will be different for every player.  The key is to analyze each players abilities and
    attempt to provide a fun way to grow both physically and psychologically during the game. See: Player Skill
    Assessment and Player Goal Setting

  • Sportsmanship:  
    Leading by example, coaches should commend and reward players for demonstrating positive sportsmanlike
    behavior while correcting those who do not.   Any unsportsmanlike activity is a direct reflection on the coach, the club
    the league and our community as a whole.  It is VERY important to discuss sportsmanship with the entire team
    (players and parents) in the beginning and several times during the season.  See  Sportsmanship

  • Communications / Team Management:  
    The coach is overall responsible for communicating team event information (time & location), and demonstrating
    leadership to the parents by keeping them informed in a timely and accurate manner.  The coach must also be a
    problem solver and negotiator when it comes to resolving conflicts that naturally arise during the season.  See
    Communications

  • Education - Improvement:  
    Recreational soccer coaches will have a wide variety of backgrounds from having never played Soccer to being a
    Licensed professional.  One thing they all have in common is the need to take responsibility for their personal
    education and continuous improvements on the field.  Coaches should regularly participate in club sanctioned
    training events, take classes from OYSA (Youth Modules) and work to obtain their age appropriate Coaching
    License.
Go Westside Warriors!  -  Coaching Priorities