Minnesota Thunder Academy and Shattuck-St. Mary’s Start USSF Development Academy this Weekend
This weekend will mark an important date in Minnesota Soccer history. The Minnesota Thunder Academy (MTA) and the Shattuck-St. Mary’s School (SSM) will start their US Development Academy schedule with games in Chicago, Illinois. Both programs were granted acceptance into the academy last spring and have been going about their business of preparing for the league ever since.
The US Soccer Development Academy was an offshoot of the USSF’s Project 2010 which looked at ways of improving soccer in the United States. Ten years ago the U-17 Bradenton Academy was cutting edge and graduated players like DaMarcus Beasley, Kyle Beckerman, Landon Donovan and Oguchi Onyewu. While the Academy is still active, youth players now have many more options for becoming competitive soccer players. The Development Academy system is one of those options.
The Development Academy (DA) concept sees youth players in a highly competitive program, playing less games with higher quality contests and training more often. Sound familiar? It’s modeled after the youth club systems from around the world where perhaps a River Plate of Argentina or Everton of England invites young players to train and play with their youth teams in the hopes of developing the next star. There are currently 10 MLS teams that now have Development Academy teams. Overall there are now 78 U-15/16 teams from across the U.S. and and equal number of U-17/18 teams.
Because we don’t have a DI or DII men’s college program in Minnesota we’ve sort of been stuck on this Island. I feel like were now becoming part of the continent.
Rob Zahl, MTA Boys Coaching Director
It’s easy to deduce that fewer games with a higher level of competition and quality training will improve players. But a factor one might not initially see is how it also improves the quality of coaching. Coaches must have their A-license and run 3-4 training sessions a week with only 2-games allowed per week and only one per day.
Beyond that lies a Development Academy rule that U. S. Soccer staff coach Roberto Lopez says is improving coaches and in turn improving players.
“I think that’s one of the biggest improvements I’ve seen in the program,” says Lopez in reference to the Development Academy using international rules on substitutions. Where state youth organizations that oversee youth soccer programs allow unlimited substitutions, the international rules only allow 7 subs and a player is only allowed in and out of a game one time.
“It’s teaching players to pace themselves and get into the rhythm of the game,” said Lopez. “We are seeing players learning to manage themselves for 80 or 90 minutes. It’s also teaching coaches to be better game day managers. In the game itself coaches don’t have that big of an influence like they do in some sports. Their biggest influence is in substitutions. So now if you sub out a player too early – too late, or if you sub the wrong person, or at the right moment with someone who is going to get you back in the game, or to hold the game or manage the game, well that’s huge.”
Former MLS player and current NSC Stars head coach Manny Lagos says he’s also a believer in the Development Academy and the international substitution rules. When with the Thunder Lagos helped to make application for the DA for MTA and SSM which was turned down in their first attempt.
“There’s no doubt that when a coach goes from playing a youth tournament every weekend and playing 5 games in a weekend with unlimited substitutions, he’s thinking about how to manage his guys from Friday though Sunday and how to get to the championship,” said Lagos. “In the new model, coaches are now managing their players like a professional coach. How do I train on Monday versus Tuesday versus Wednesday winding down to a weekend game with travel? At 16, 17 or 18, there’s no reason why it shouldn’t be like that. These kids are developing mentally and physically and are ready for it. The coaches need to be ready for it as well which will in turn make better players.”
Lopez says that there are about 4 Academy scouts per region. Staff coaches like Lopez also scout and they also use 50 per diem scouts around the country as well. Lopez said that in 2009 scouts saw each team at least 10 different times. “You get to see a player on his team, in his natural position with his teammates in a very competitive setting,” said Lopez. “That’s a very good way to see if a player has talent or not.”
Rob Zahl, Boys Academy Director for the MTA Boys programs, also oversees the club’s Development Academy teams. He says that it’s not only US Soccer scouts that are watching these players intensely. There are lots of college coaches as well. Zahl said he’s been to tournaments all over the country but never has he seen what he observed at a Development Academy tournament this past year for a U-15/16 game.
“It was a travel event so there were no parents on the sidelines, but everywhere you looked there were these guys in chairs and they all have notebooks,” said Zahl. “I’ve never seen anything like it. And that was repeated on all 20 or 30 fields at this site. You’re looking at mass exposure and these guys are keeping tabs on all the players. No one is getting missed.”
“Without even playing a game in the academy, I’ve probably received ten times the amount of emails and inquiries from college coaches than I have in the last five years,” continued Zahl. “USSF has a questionnaire that every player fills out with information including grades. When scouts sit down to watch a game they have access to a profile of every player on the field. Because we don’t have a DI or DII men’s college program in Minnesota we’ve sort of been stuck on this island. I feel like were now becoming part of the continent.”
MTA will need to reorganize their boys teams to fit their Development Academy teams into their existing programs. State soccer organizations use an August 1st birth date for registering players which follows along high school grades. The Development Academy uses the international calender which starts January 1st. That will cause some reorganization of those players who will play in the two age groups. Zahl says they will still have teams in each age class that plays under MYSA, but players that participate in the DA are not allowed to play in other programs including ODP. A rule that has changed the face of that program in many states.
“Initially it’s going to take a shot,” said Zahl. “Ninety percent of our top DA players are ODP kids. I can list 5 who were regional ODP players. The DA is the highest level, but now there will be kids that will come into ODP that didn’t have the chance to play. With that they will receive opportunities to get better that they’ve never had before.”
The MTA boys director of coaching says his club will also try to coordinate other MTA teams to build their level of competition as well. For instance, this weekend MTA will bring their U-14 pre-academy team with to Chicago where they will also play the same clubs the Academy teams play.
Shattuck-St. Mary’s will also need to alter a few things in their program. Director of Soccer Tim Carter founded the soccer program at Shattuck and says their residential program currently has a U-16, U-17 and U-18 program that includes 60 boys. Because they are now involved with the USSF DA program, they will add a U-15 team. He also said that the U-15 and U-17′s will continue to participate with the US Youth Soccer program while the U-16′s and U-18′s will participate with the USSF Development Academy. He said there will most likely be a few boys in each of his two Development Academy teams that play up a year.
Another change is that players that participate in the academy will now need to stay at the school from September through the end of June when the DA season ends. Carter said they will keep about 40 players on campus even after school ends and will continue to train. If his teams make it to post season tournaments then they would need to stay even longer. The DA tournaments run from the end of June into July.
One difference between Shattuck’s program and MTA’s is SSM is not a high school and therefore does not participate in a Minnesota High School League. Players involved with MTA have just finished up their high school seasons. Since SSM does not participate in high school play, they’ve gotten a jump start on the Development Academy season by playing 7 friendlies over the last 6 weeks.
“I still feel that U.S. Soccer believes that high school soccer is holding everyone back because of the schedule,” continued Carter. “But they can’t change that right now. I think high school soccer serves a purpose in that it allows kids a chance to represent their school, town or community. I think everyone can recognize that and it does serve a role for kids that aren’t in an academy. It’s a place for them to play soccer and enjoy it. But As far as developmental models go, it’s not the best vehicle. The season is compressed and there’s too many games in too short of a period.”
MTA and SSM will play in the Frontier Division of the Central Conference in the Development Academy. Other clubs in that division are St. Louis Scott Gallagher Metro(IL), St. Louis Scott Gallagher Missouri (MO), Real Colorado, Colorado Rapids (CO), Colorado Rush AJ Auxerre (CO) and the Kansas City Wizards (MO).
MTA and SSM will be paired as “travel partners” meaning the two teams will travel to the same cities and play the same opponents. The first weekend sees both teams traveling to play two games, one against the Chicago Magic and another against the Chicago Fire.
The following weekend sees Development Academy soccer coming to Minnesota for the first time ever. Both age groups and both teams will play games at Macalester College on the weekend of November 20 and 21. The opponents will be FC Milwaukee and Sockers FC.
Zahl said that the real test will come in December when his teams will participate in the 2010 Development Academy Winter Showcase at the Reach 11 Sports Complex in Phoenix, Ariz. Zahl said it could be “welcome to the show” as his MTA teams are scheduled to play the New York Red Bulls, New England Revolution and CASL (NC) Chelsea FC Academy.
“It’s going to be exciting,” stated Zahl. “The fields are great, the referees are the best, and the quality of teams is excellent. We will get to watch the Under-17 Men’s National Teams from the U.S., Brazil, Korea Republic and Turkey play each other. It’s an environment you just won’t get anywhere else other than the Development Academy.”
“Our kids are excited as well as our coaches,” concluded Carter. “It gives us something else to measure ourselves by.”
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This is an exciting weekend. Interested to see how we do against these Chicago teams. They are the best of the best in Chicago and very tough. They have only recently developed these academy teams from the Fire and Magic so we really haven’t played them before.
Ok, granted I haven’t been paying close attention to the developmental academies as I have more of a wait and see attitude. However, from what I’ve read, the clubs have to maintain 36 full time players on their roster. Is that per age group or per team? If you’re a developmental player can you still play at State Cup? Do you just train but not get to play with the teams?
My next question, why does it seem like the men’s soccer and women’s soccer has two different approaches? Or are they the same thing just called different things?
As I read back on past articles I noticed Scott Kerssen took several shot at me because I did not congratulate SSM on making it as a Developmental Academy. I think that was his grip. Scott…believe it or not, I work very hard and at certain periods in time I do not think about soccer nor am even in MN. Last April was one of those times. So, my silence was deafening because I wasn’t around. The fact that SSM has made it into US Soccer Academies doesn’t change my mind about SSM nor the quality of their teams at U18 in 2008 and 2009. Their team in 2007 with Teal was a quality team. I will continue to maintain that any program that cost the kind of money that SSM cost is not good for soccer. Most of my trepidation regarding the developmental academies is how much it will actually cost families. I have heard from friends in Colorado and Michigan who tell me the cost seems to be around 10K to 15K. This is still crazy. Based purely only on my families economics, we could not afforded that kind of price tag.
Congratulations to Shattuck-St Mary’s, and Minnesota Thunder for becoming USSF Academy teams. It’s the best thing to ever happen to Minnesota youth soccer.
“Since its launch in the fall of 2007, the Academy has provided an increased focus on training and player development by providing a clear connection between the U.S. national teams and more than 4,000 young players across the country. Top youth coaches and players have direct access to U.S. Soccer staff on a regular basis through the structured programming overseen by U.S. Soccer Youth Technical Director Claudio Reyna”.
http://www.ussoccer.com/News/Development-Academy/2010/11/2010-Development-Academy-Winter-Showcase-and-Nike-International-Friendlies-Set.aspx