Silent Soccer weekend – some thoughts from participants

May 18, 2012 by admin
Filed under: Lions

ASA conducted a Silent Soccer weekend May 5 & 6 with most Rec & Teen teams. There were many sentiments expressed before the weekend, some positive, others not. After Silent Soccer, much of the tone seemed to change.

The goal of Silent Soccer is to give the game back to the kids by reducing adult influences during play. Read these comments from ASA participants. These were received after the Silent Soccer weekend.

From other ASA Coaches:

“The girls communicated more and commented that they weren’t as confused when a couple of coaches are yelling at them what to do.”

“I must confess, I was a little skeptical about how this would work in practice, but, after two games this past weekend, I am a total convert. These were the two most enjoyable games of our season so far.”

“As a parent and a coach, I thought it was great. Was it tough for me at times? Yeah. But it was great to see the kids have to manage on their own; to see if what we’ve been working on with them as sunk in or not.”

From an adult referee who officiated many U13/14 ASA games that weekend:

•    The teams came out with their usual energy but within 2-3 minutes dialed it down to a more comfortable pace for them. Without constant exhortation from fans or coaches they just played in a more accommodating fashion. Some might feel they didn’t play with as much enthusiasm or passion. But you would have to ask the players how they perceived it.
•    They fouled much less often and with much less force. I issued no cautions in four games and had only two injuries where I had to stop play and have the player leave the field.
•    Virtually no player questioned me all day and when they did it was relatively understated and short. I don’t remember a player yelling at me.
•    The coaches all cooperated, though one or two were clearly struggling to keep quiet, and a few of them thought it was ridiculous. Some used their substitutes on the bench to provide direction which I thought was fine.

From Coach Bob:

“I think it was a great opportunity to examine coaching philosophies and styles. Soccer is different than many other sports – the players need to think for themselves. Coaches should provide those opportunities.”

“It was very interesting to me to hear how difficult it was for some adults to remove themselves from the game. This game is for the kids, not the adults. Most of the negative comments I received were in regard to how the coach wanted to do this or the coach didn’t want to do that – very self-centered comments from some coaches.”

“From a coaching and child development perspective, the silent soccer weekend was very useful. I think many parents & coaches were able to see the benefits of not providing constant directions and allowing the kids the freedom to play. I saw several great games where the players on the field were talking to each other, making decisions for themselves and really enjoying the game.”

“Just wanted to say “thank you” for instituting silent soccer this weekend. I, for one, have been growing a bit tired of hearing parents and coaches yell/criticize their children from the sidelines.”

Silent Soccer is an experiment, not an approach ASA wants to move to all of the time. Based on the results (which were overwhelmingly positive) we may institute Silent Soccer for one weekend a year, just as a reminder to the kids and the adults. Stay tuned….and thanks for supporting the players during Silent Soccer weekend and all of the rest of the season as well!

Tags: Silent Soccer