By Randy Vogt, Director of Public Relations, Eastern New York Youth Soccer Association
February 9, 2012-Under the umbrella of the Eastern New York Youth Soccer Association (ENYYSA) and Long Island Junior.jpg)
Soccer League (LIJSL), seven LIJSL clubs are playing in the Nassau Development Program (NDP) so that their young intramural players––boys and girls in the Under-8 and Under-9 age groups––can develop to their full potential.
The NDP is a cooperative partnership of the soccer clubs in East Meadow, Garden City Centennials, Oceanside United, Plainedge, Plainview/Old Bethpage, Rockville Centre and West Hempstead Chiefs. This partnership does not have a formal Board of Directors but rather a group of soccer clubs that support one another.
“These seven clubs work with one another and support each other’s tournaments,” commented Oceanside United President Steve Padaetz, the organizer and founding member of NDP. “The relationship between neighboring clubs has never been better partly because of NDP.”
This program began in the fall 2010. NDP involves controlled games (“friendlies”) within a group of geographically-convenient soccer clubs sharing a common focus on proper, age-appropriate match conditions in support of a focus on the development of players. The spring season will kick off on Saturday, March 31, 2012.
The philosophy of the NDP is commensurate with U.S. Soccer’s Best Practices for Coaching Soccer in the United States:
Competition is a central element in a player’s development. At the youth level (ages 6-12), however, a competitive environment should not be a result-oriented environment. The differences must be clear. A competitive environment at the youth level encourages decisions from player and coach alike that focus on performance rather than outcome (favoring ball skill and inventiveness as the means to find success within the rules and spirit of the game). The result is just one indicator of performance and at this age, not the most important one…At the youth level, matches are important as a means to player development (enjoyment, ball skill, insight and fitness), not as the aim. These competitive situations are a series of tests for kids. In this respect, the usefulness of the game can occur in many different forms. Focus on the process and performance rather than the outcome.
NDP provides a highly-flexible and cost-effective environment for introducing young players to a competitive environment while ensuring an appropriate focus on development. NDP games are played in lieu of or as a supplement to other intramural games. The suggested format of games is 6 vs. 6 for Under-8 and 8 vs. 8 for Under-9 but may be adjusted depending on the size of the field and the number of players.
Results of NDP games are not recorded and there aren’t any standings for NDP teams. The focus of the NDP matches is performance without emphasis on the results. Opposing teams are believed to be roughly the same caliber and coaches are expected to take necessary steps to keep goal differential within a reasonable margin.
Games are officiated by youth referees of the home team’s club. Coaching from spectators is not helpful to players and not appreciated during NDP matches.
“The match conditions with no recorded scores or standings support an atmosphere of players taking ownership of the game,“ said Oceanside’s Padaetz. “This atmosphere also becomes a training program for our referees and coaches as they do not have to worry about results. Summing up, every NDP weekend is Player’s Weekend!”
Any questions or inquiries regarding the Nassau Development Program can be sent to Mr. Padaetz at smpad5@aol.com or 516-678-4491.