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1. What’s does all this U11, U13, Uwhatever actually mean?
2. What are "skills clinics" and "ATP?"
3. What is "ODP?"
(more FAQs are in the works…) Answers Q1: What’s does all this U11, U13, Uwhatever actually mean? A1: U stands for under, as in under age 13. The cutoff date is August 1 every year, as dictated by the Alaska Youth Soccer Association. Thus, for the 2007-2008 season a player may not play on a U13 team, for example, if she will turn 13 on July 31, 2008 or earlier--she would play on the U14 team. If she turns 13 on August 1, she would have the earliest birthday allowed on the U13 team. Playing ‘down’ is never allowed. In order to encourage the development of robust teams at all age levels, JSC also requires players to play with their age-level peers and not ‘play up’ with an older age-group team. See section 5.7.5 of the JSC Policy and Procedures for more information. For the 2007-2008 season, the following chart provides an easy way to see on which team a player belongs:
Q2: What are “skills” clinics, goal keeping clinics, and ATP? A3: They are indoor training sessions offered as part of the JSC program to player-members during mid October – March. Their purpose is to develop the fundamental and advanced skills needed for competitive soccer. Goal keeping and skills clinics are co-ed. There are 2 goal keeping sessions each week, one for high school and one for younger keepers. Goal keeping is the one specialized position in soccer and we offer all the basic technical skills plus tactical disposition of those skills. “Skills” has separate elementary, middle school, and high school one-hour sessions once a week. The skills clinics primarily focus on a player’s individual ball handling and control together with physical conditioning in nonstop action. At the sessions players also learn moves and fakes as well as juggling and ball balancing tricks which add to the fun and satisfaction they get. Director of Coaching Colin Barton runs the skills and goal keeping clinics. ATP (Advanced Training Program) emphasizes a higher level of skills and strategies. Attacking, defending, and movement off the ball are some of the topics dealt with. ATP has separate girls and boys programs. Sessions are weekly – an hour for 5-6 graders and 7-8 graders. High school girls, coached by Colin Barton, practice all together. High school boys, coached by Gary Lehnhart and Matt Dusenberry, practice in two sessions, one for 10-12 grades and one for 8-9 grades. Both high school programs put emphasis on speed of play, tactical awareness, and movement off the ball, all achieved in small-sided drills. Attendance at these clinics is optional, however the players who regularly attend these clinics show more rapid skill development and improvement than those who do not. JSC membership fees fully cover participation in these sessions. Check the JSC website for session times and locations. Q3: What is “ODP”? A3: ODP stands for Olympic Development Program. It is a US Youth Soccer program to identify and train a pool of players in each age group for Youth National Teams. Each year Alaska Youth Soccer Association puts together 5 ODP teams of 18 players each in the 12-16 year-old age groups for both boys and girls. The age groups are grouped by calendar birth year – 92’s, 93’s, 94’s, etc. Tryouts for the Alaska ODP pool occur in the fall in Juneau and elsewhere in Alaska. From the fall tryouts, 25 players statewide are selected in each boys’ and girls’ age group. Those players are required to attend at least 2 of 3 mini-camps held during the winter – one each in Fairbanks, Anchorage, and Juneau – where final selections are made for the 18-member state teams. Those teams go to week-long Region IV ODP training camps each summer in McMinnville, Oregon for boys, and Moscow, Idaho for girls. At the ODP summer camps the Alaska teams train and compete against teams from throughout Region IV (14 western states). Players showing the most promise for a national teams pool are “held over” for a few days after camp for further evaluation and may be selected for the regional team. Juneau has had several players held over for the Region IV pool – most recently, Margaret Sekona in 2006. Participation in ODP has significant additional costs beyond JSC membership fees. See the AYSA or Region IV websites for more information. |
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This program is partially funded by the citizens of the City and Borough of Juneau through sales tax revenues. |
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