UNDER-17 WOMEN'S WORLD CUP

Americans may still think of themselves as the dominant power in the world of girls soccer, but they were given a lesson in attacking soccer by Japan in their first game at the inaugural Under-17 Women's World Cup in New Zealand. The Americans needed only 139 seconds to go ahead on Vicki DiMartino 's goal, but the Japanese then bombarded the U.S. goal, hitting the crossbar three times in the first half and twice coming back from one-goal deficits to win, 3-2, on three stunning goals. - Read the whole story... SEE ALL THE HIGHLIGHTS

SOCCER AMERICA'S TOP 25, WOMEN

It's the final weekend of the regular season for teams in the Soccer America Women's Top 25 except for those in the three conferences that don't have postseason tournaments (Ivy, Pac-10 and WCC). For this week's Soccer America Women's Top 25 results and schedules

SOCCER AMERICA'S TOP 25, MEN

No. 1 Wake Forest and No. 8 Loyola (Md.) put their unbeaten records on the line this weekend. The Demon Deacons travel to No. 7 North Carolina on Saturday, while the Greyhounds host St. Peter's and Manhattan in MAAC action. For this week's Soccer America Men's Top 25 results and schedules .

Change in Rush Athletic Trainer Availability

Chrissy Ames, the Virginia Rush athletic trainer, will now be available at the BSCHS turf field to see players on Mondays, Tuesdays, and Wednesdays from 5:15 to 9:15. Please refer to the Sports Medicine page on the website for more information on clinic hours and how to be seen for injuries. www.varush.com

TIAS

Read This is Amerinan Soccer's interview with Tim Schulz, Rush Soccer President. Tim talks about a future Rush-only MLS team, the deal with AS Monaco and what makes Rush Soccer unique.

USSDA SUNDAY GAMES VS CONCORDE FIRE LOCATION CHANGE

The location of the USSDA games vs Concorde Fire scheduled for Sunday October 26th have been changed to Warhill (Field #4). The game times remain the same. The U16s will play at 9am and the U18s will play at 11am.

USSDA SATURDAY GAMES VS AFC LIGHTENING LOCATION & TIMES CHANGED

The USSDA games vs AFC Lightening scheduled for Saturday at the Hampton Roads Soccer Complex will now be palyed at Warhill Field #4. The U16s will play at 2pm and the U18s will play at 4pm. Please check back for updates for Sundays games.

Need an idea for a Free Kick?

Something for all you coaches and players who might want to add another element of unpredictability to your free kicks!

Reading FC Academy Head2Head

Two Reading Academy players go Head2Head in this weeks juggling contest. Those shorts sure do stretch. dw

USSDA Teams Resume Action This Weekend

VA Rush US Soccer Developmental Academy teams resume action this weekend:

The VA Rush U16 (0-1-2) and U18 (1-1-1) USSDA teams will be playing at home this weekend, both Saturday and Sunday, October 25/26, 2008.

Saturday October 25 vs the AFC Lightening (Atlanta, GA) with the U16's (2-5-0) at 1pm and the U18's (1-3-1) at 3pm At HRSC field #13.

Sunday, October 26 vs the Concord Fire (Atlanta, GA) with the U16's (2-2-2) at 9am and the U18's (1-5-0) at 11am at HRSC field #8.

http://www.ussoccer.com/teams/acad/index.jsp.html

HOW DO YOU HANDLE PRESSURE???

Pressure plays a huge role for any sportsman when competing but those who make it to a professional level have the added STRESS OF EXPECTATION brought around by the media, coaches and spectators who follow them. At times the pressure to win is so intense that competitors find their emotions uncontrollable and this can lead to a public display of anger, otherwise known as a tantrum!
Famous tantrums, McEnroe/Tennis, Cantona/Soccer, Drummond/Track and Field.
What are the consequences for this type of behavior?
How would you handle this pressure?

College Soccer Top 25 Women

There was no change in the top five spots in the Soccer America Women's Top 25. Florida, Virginia and Florida State each moved up two spots to claim 6-7-8. For this week's Soccer America Women's Top 25 and last week's results ... - Read the whole story...

College Soccer Top 25 Men

The top six teams kept their places in the Soccer America Men's Top 25. North Carolina and Loyola (Md.) were the big climbers, both rising eight spots to No. 7 and No. 9, respectively. For this week's Soccer America Men's Top 25 and last week's results ... - Read the whole story...

U12 Boys Academy Training Cancelled

Both 8am and 9:15 U12 boys Academy sessions are cancelled

Cancellations

For Saturday, October 18:
All Southside Developmental and Advanced Games are Cancelled.
HRSC is closed - all Competitive matches are Cancelled.
HRSC Hotline: 757-518-5176
U12 Boys Academy Head Coach Sessions (Warham) are Cancelled
Please watch this space for further updates.

If you have an away game, please use the field hotlines available through the VSLI

State Cup Games Moved to Warhill

The 16 Nike Girls will play at 4:00 PM on Turfield 1
The 17 Nike Girls will play at 2:00 PM on Turfield 4

Good luck to both teams.

Player Development: Team or Individual

Read Brad Partridge's Soccer America Blog on Player Development in our country. Here is an excerpt:

Instead of focusing on the development of individual players, we have focused on team development. We are measuring our success based on team results rather than on individual results. For our youth players the structured game has become the developmental paradigm. Many youth teams, U-14 and under, are playing more than 50 structured games per year while some players play 75 to 100 games.

Read the article here.

ACADEMY OVERVIEW VIDEO: ‘WHAT’S IT ABOUT?’

The ‘US Soccer Developmental Academy: What’s It About?’ video was broadcast on ESPNU during Academy Finals Week. The VA Rush U16 and U18 US Soccer Developmental Academy teams return to action the weekend of October 25/26 at HRSC. Saturday October 25 vs AFC Lighting U16 @1pm, U18 @ 3pm, field #13 and Sunday October 26 vs Concord Fire U16 @ 9am, U18 @ 11am, field #6.

Repeatedly Showing The Mother Of All Misses

Most soccer fans will have seen by now Scotland debutant Chris Iwelumo's notorious miss against Norway in Glasgow Saturday, when the striker fluffed a chance from two yards out with nobody to beat six minutes after coming into the 0-0 game as a substitute. Suffering fans in the stadium were not spared either. Despite having seen the blunder live, they were subject to a repeated replay on the stadium's giant screen.

But Iwelumo, 30, was sanguine about the miss. "There's nothing to be embarrassed about," he said. "I am a striker. I like to score goals, but missed a chance. I can't say more than that. I'll go away, look at it, analyze it, come back and show you I can score goals. In hindsight, I should have swung my left foot at it. On another day, it's in the net and another story."

Good review for extra linesmen

Read the review of adding an extra linesmen for the game?

US Women will play South Korea in Richmond

The US Women's National team will travel to the University of Richmond on November 1 to take on South Korea. Click on the link to get tickets and information.

Soccer Americas Top 25, Women

The only change in the top five was at No. 5. North Carolina moved up one spot to No. 5, replacing USC, which dropped one place after tying Washington State, 0-0. Florida State returned to the top 10 at No. 10, while Texas fell from No. 9 to No. 11. For the complete Soccer America Women's Top 25 ... - Read the whole story...

Soccer Americas Top 25, Men

Previously unbeaten UIC lost at Butler, 1-0, and dropped from No. 4 to No. 7. Saint Louis also lost for the first time when the Billikens fell, 1-0, at Fordham and dropped seven spots to No. 13. The only unbeaten teams left are No. 1 Wake Forest (12-0-0), No. 4 Northwestern (10-0-2) and No. 17 Loyola (Md.) (10-0-1). This week's big climber was UC Davis, which moved from No. 17 to No. 7. For the complete Soccer America Men's Top 25 ... - Read the whole story...

TRAINING FITNESS AND ATHLETICISM IN THE GOALKEEPER

TRAINING FITNESS AND ATHLETICISM IN THE GOALKEEPER
(Part 1 of a 4-part series)
The requirements placed on the goalkeeper are unique, with components of both fitness and athleticism playing varying roles in a keeper’s success. More than any other position the success of the goalkeeper is tied to multiple components of athleticism. The areas of primary concern for goalkeeping are: coordination, agility, speed, and anaerobic endurance, and their constituents of balance, flexibility, core stability and strength. Maximizing the development and performance of the goalkeeper presents a unique challenge for the goalkeeping coach. The goal of this four part series is to increase the goalkeeping coach’s awareness and understanding of how to integrate fitness and athleticism into goalkeeper specific training.Fitness training for the goalkeeper consists of a three-tiered approach with injury resistance and resilience the primary concern. All coaches want their best goalkeeper to play. Second is the development of athleticism and performance, with development consisting of a long-term approach to increasing movement ability and efficiency in order to maximize performance. Third is increasing the physiological fitness level of the goalkeeper, where the goal is to ensure the goalkeeper’s resistance and resilience to physical and mental fatigue during the course of a match. The integration of movement training into the goalkeeping session may be done via a number of training opportunities with focus being placed on coordination, agility, and speed of movement.Coordination is grounded in a player’s awareness of the body’s position in space and time, and the ability to perform movement in a purposeful manner. Training the coordination of the goalkeeper consists of general coordination, timing, turning and twisting. All components look to develop the goalkeeper’s ability to move efficiently with focus placed in each area as follows:General Coordination
General coordination is the largest contributor to the technical ability and development of a goalkeeper.
Upper and lower body coordination: The goalkeeping coach should look for upper and lower body movement to contribute to the intended action with movement efficiency and control the primary concern. Control of the body’s mid-section, and head should be such that balance and posture is consistently maintained.
Developing movement: Movements utilized should be developed in a slow to fast, and simple to complex manner. Movement efficiency should never be forfeited for complexity and speed of action.
Timing
The keeper’s ability to coordinate movement in relation to the ball, and other players contributes to the keeper’s technical ability, and effective decision-making. This is consistently a well-developed component in elite goalkeepers.
Spatial awareness: In developing keepers, the primary goal is to increase spatial awareness by developing the goalkeeper’s perception of the ball, another player’s speed, their own, and increase the keeper’s ability to select an appropriate angle and running speed.
Turning and Twisting
Goalkeeping requires the ability to turn and twist quickly, and cover space effectively in response to both the ball and other players. Focus in training coordination of turning and twisting relies on the keeper’s ability to maintain spatial awareness in order to conduct purposeful movement.
Coordination of movement: In both actions, movement may be seen as coming from the head downward with the head leading the movement to find the ball and players, followed by the shoulder turning in order to accelerate the trunk and the hips begin to turn.

AS Monaco and Rush Soccer Ink Deal

Rush Soccer and AC Monaco have agreed to a partnership. Jump over to our website for the press release.

Pali and Freedom players dominate general draft of Women's Professional League

[WPS] Seven players from the 2008 W-League champion Pali Blues and six players from semifinalist Washington Freedom were among the 28 players taken in Monday's Women's Professional Soccer General Draft. The WPS Freedom took W-League Freedom star Sarah Huffman with the first pick. For all the selections ...

Brilliant Goal

For years we have worked with players on being able to do "moves" and do them at speed. Have you ever wondered why,when and how they would be used? See how many of those "moves" are used in this goal scored in the Dutch Eredivisie by Moussa Dembele

GREAT GOAL!!!!!!!

ITALIAN SERIE A AND INTER MILAN'S Zlatan Ibrahimovic ..............

College Soccer Top 25 Women

There was no change among the top six teams in the Soccer America Women's Top 25 with unbeaten and untied Notre Dame still No. 1. Virginia climbed four places to No. 7 thanks to 6-0 and 7-1 wins in ACC play. For this week's complete Soccer America Women's Top 25 ... -

College Soccer Top 25 Men

Besides No. 1 Wake Forest, Akron was the only other team in last week's Top 10 to go unscathed. The Zips climbed five spots to No. 3. Creighton also jumped five places to No. 2 . For this week's complete Soccer America Men's Top 25 ...

Winter League and Tournament Under the DOME

Check out the Tidewater Indoor Soccer League (TISL). They are offering winter play (leagues and tournaments) on the turf at Bishop Catholic under the dome. Bye-Bye Hardwood, Hello Turf!

Offside Explained

Does the offside rule have you confused? This will explain everything you need to know.

Norwich City Academy Head2Head

Two Norwich City Academy players go head2head juggling. Don't practice this one on your little brother or sister.

Conor Casey MLS Player of the Week

Conor Casey earns player of the week honors with a hat-trick performance.

http://www.coloradorapids.com/News/NewsDetails.aspx?NID=axs1nbtGKTU=