Elite Soccer Development ACADEMY

Due to the uniqueness of each player a personalized assessment is required. Academy Pricing and Registration are NOT available online. Please contact 289.214.1414 or info@elitesoccerdevelopment.com to arrange for your child's personal assessment.

The Academy at a glance:

• 11 month program for boys & girls ages U8-U17
• Full training kit including: 2 uniforms, tracksuit, bag, and training top
• Training 2-4 times per week depending on age with qualified coaching team
• Quality training facilities
• League games in SAAC academy league in a professional structured environment
• Athletic Therapist on site at academy games.
• Periodic skills and fitness tests and annual assessment
• 6 free seminars per year on human development. E.g. Nutrition, Sports psychology, High Performance
• Friendly matches Pre season, off season and breaks
• 2-4 Tournaments in Canada or US
• SAT preparation guidance
• Scholarship Tours
• International Team Tours
• Exposure to International coaches and scouts
• Trials to Pro clubs locally and overseas for players that are ready for that challenge

NIAGARA REGION ACADEMY PROGRAM

Niagara Coaching Team:

Clayton Rosario | President | Founder | Technical Director James McGillivray | Academy Director Tony Visca | High Performance Training Coach - Goal Tending Sam Paterson | Youth Development Program | Technical Director

Academy program is an 11 month program for boys and girls age U8-U17. The academy program is flourishing in the USA and gaining popularity in Canada. Students entering the academy program will get excellent coaching from qualified high performance training coaches. Training will be at quality training locations and games at well maintained facilities with athletic therapist on site and quality referees.

The philosophy of the academy system is player development so no scores are kept up to the age of 14. All programs are designed on the European structure so training to games ratio is based on age to avoid injury and allow players time to recuperate and avoid burn out.

The goal of the academy is to guide players towards a professional career in soccer or achieve an athletic scholarship through their soccer talent. All academy students are exposed to international coaches for development and scouting opportunities.

Students age 16 and up will be guided for scholarship opportunities by assisting them with SAT preparation, DVD clips of their performance, and marketing tools to target universities of choice.

Academy students will also benefit from Tours to Europe, scholarship Tours and exposure to tournaments here and in the US. In addition, talented players will be given the opportunity for trials at Pro clubs locally or overseas. Three of our academy graduates have already gone on to play for TFC youth U16 and another U16 in Chile.

Every student coming into the academy program will be assessed and tested for fitness and technical development. A progress report will be provided throughout the season. In addition, academy players will gain knowledge from free periodic seminars on nutrition, injury prevention, high performance, sports psychology and receive frequent news letters on similar topics.

At Elite we expect our players to be students of the game. Well trained, educated, disciplined on and off the field and good role models in the community.

Stages of Academy Development

STAGE 1: Active Start (U4 to U6 females and males)
"FIRST KICKS"
At this introductory level, the objective is to get children moving and to keep them active. At daycares, schools, clubs, recreation centres and home, small children can be provided with early opportunities to learn basic soccer elements. No competitive games should be played - the objective is for adults and children to play together informally.

STAGE 2: Fundamentals (U6 to U8 females / U6 to U9 males)
"FUN WITH THE BALL"
At this stage, coaches and teachers should create a stimulating learning environment where the atmosphere is "Freedom and Fun. Game formats can range from 3v3 to 5v5 as the children grow through this stage, and the season should range from 12 to 20 weeks. In order to help de-emphasize competitiveness between coaches and parents, no league standings should be kept. A basic league fixture schedule can be created, but it is basically an extended jamboree format, and the emphasis is clearly on FUN.

STAGE 3: Learning to Train (U8 to U11 females / U9 to U12 males)
"THE GOLDEN AGE OF LEARNING"
The effect of the role-model is very important at this stage. Children begin to identify with famous players and successful teams, and they want to learn imaginative skills. Game formats can range from 6v6 to 8v8 as children grow through this stage, and the season should last 16 to 20 weeks.

League standings are still not necessary. A simple league fixture schedule can be created, but it is basically an extended jamboree format, as the emphasis is still clearly on FUN.

STAGE 4: Training to Train (U11 to U15 females / U12 to U16 males)
"IDENTIFYING THE ELITE PLAYER"
At this stage, elite soccer groups may express interest in recruiting talented youth players. Care must be taken to recognize and protect the long-term interests of each player. Risks and issues can be avoided by ensuring that the development model remains "player-centred."

Mental training introduces a pre-competition routine, mental preparation, goal setting, and coping with winning and losing. Game formats can ranges from 8v8 to 11v11 as players grow through this stage (game transitions to 11v11 at U13 age), and the season moves toward year-round play that includes appropriate rest and recovery periods.

STAGE 5: Training to Compete (U15 to U19 females / U16 to U20 males)
"DEVELOPING THE INTERNATIONAL PLAYER"
Athletes who are now proficient at performing basic and soccer specific skills are working to gain more game maturity as they learn to perform these skills under a variety of competitive conditions.

Mental training works to increase player concentration, responsibility, discipline, accountability, goal setting, self-confidence, self-motivation, will to win, mental toughness, and a competitive mentality in practice and games. Players are taught the importance of being educated in the game, and they are encouraged to watch games on TV and National team games. The game format is according to strict FIFA rules for 11-aside soccer, and the season is built on year-round play that includes appropriate rest and recovery periods.

 

Choosing the 'Academy Way'

The decision to enter an academy program is not one to be entered into lightly. There are many factors to be considered - commitment, personal comfort and cost among them.

Entering an academy program is a big commitment for both player and parents. Add together training up to three times a week for almost a full year, plus games and some travel and you have a significant number of hours required to dedicate to the sport.

The academies will do their utmost to ensure a smooth transition for both player and parents. For those that decide to enter the program, it will quickly become evident that the benefits will far outweigh any concerns that might have existed going in. Players will be immersed in a positive but intense environment with like-minded teammates. The priorities of the professional coaches will be to ensure that each player in the program develops to their full potential. They will not be placing unreasonable pressures on the players to win games and collect trophies, but rather they will challenge them to identify and develop their weaknesses, as well as to grow as individuals and as elite athletes.

One of the questions about the program is the cost. At first glance, the investment required to place your child may seem prohibitive. However, when one stops and thinks about the services being provided, it becomes evident that the cost is fairly indicative of the value.

Everyone who loves this game agrees that we need to add a significant level of professionalism to our Player Development Programs across Canada. In other words we need to emulate how the rest of the "successful" soccer countries do it. This means coming up with a systemic, consistent and predictable method of exposing our brightest young talent, to highly qualified, licensed professional paid coaches.

In traditionally "club" play, the volunteer parent coach, who make up 98+% of our coaching ranks; although these parent coaches have best intentions and well meaning, their expertise can only take the aspiring athlete so far. The results of the last 100 years of soccer in Canada prove this. To date our quantity of professionally ranked players are far and few in-between. Yes, without doubt, it is more expensive when you pay your coaches and support staff, and yes, it is more expensive when you run a 12 month program instead of a summer only one, and yes, it is more expensive when you insist on renting best-in-class facilities and purchasing only the best training equipment and uniforms available, BUT, it is the only way we are going to be able to develop world class players in Canada on a regular basis.

Until we have large, rich, professional clubs who pay for these costs, as they do in Europe, South America and parts of Africa and Asia, the Elite Soccer Development model is the only way forward.

Ultimately it will come down to a choice made by the parent/player after considering some important questions:

• Do my goals and the goals of my child coincide with those of the organization we choose?
• Is my child happy in his or her current soccer environment?
• Is my child committed to the sport to the level where a more professional program is in his or her best interest?
• Are the services being offered in line with the investment required and the needs of the player?