What do coaches look for in tryouts?

[Unregistered]

I hope whoever asked this question reads my response.

First off, I'm a coach of a USDA team. I hold tryouts every single year for a dozen years, and I can tell you that just about everything written above is horrific.

ALWAYS tell your son to be themselves - just tell him to do his best, get involved, and have courage. You love him, you support him, and to have some fun.

Coaches can spot athleticism and talent very easily, very quickly. Telling someone NOT to pass the ball at tryouts makes me want to throw up in my mouth. We look at passing and receiving skills probably more than anything else.

Does the player pass to the front foot, do they receive with weight on the balls of their feet.... there is an art to this and NONE of that art has to do with PIZAZ or hogging the ball or not passing.

Tell your son to be himself.... ALWAYS, in the game and in life. He'll find his place, and on the pitch that place should start with having some fun, and being a good team mate.

Good luck to you

Umm. If that makes you want to throw up in your mouth then 99% of coaches in the U.S. will have you vomiting all over yourself.

Fact is, all coaches "say" they want passing and decision making and team play. Yeah right. But all coaches offer spots to the flashy-moves ball hog who repeatedly makes poor decisions and loses the ball. Sad truth.

I know of multiple players exactly like that (other kids hate to play with them because they refuse to pass) and they get offers at EVERY club they tryout for. Period.

[Unregistered]

Do any of the coaches out there look at RAE? Curious.

This is a very interesting topic. Expecially at younger ages and up to about 15 or 16.

US Soccer just had its first Bio Banded Games. Kids were put into buckets based on maturity and not calendar year birth age. Still a subjective method, but just a different way to evaluate kids.

I am guessing that the large majority of coaches not only have no idea of the kids age during tryouts, that they don’t really care. They are trying to get the best kids at that time for their team. I think the DA may look at this, because they are suppose to. Maybe an outlier coach here and there. But overall, if you ask an average coach what does “Relative Age Effect” mean to them, they won’t even know what it is.

[Unregistered]

They should evaluate players based on the sideline behavior of their parents at games.

[Unregistered]

They should evaluate players based on the sideline behavior of their parents at games.

that's funny. Clubs fall all over themselves for the best kids. Their parents can tell coaches to F*** off and they will not only keep the kid, but start him and let him play for free.

[Unregistered]

that's funny. Clubs fall all over themselves for the best kids. Their parents can tell coaches to F*** off and they will not only keep the kid, but start him and let him play for free.

Only for a top stud. The issue is most parents THINK their kid is a stop stud when they really aren't. Those are the parents that get booted eventually for bad behavior, usually with the rest of the parents cheering them off. Those kids will get dragged for 4 clubs in 5 years and eventually quit and hate the parent.