Q: Why do you offer the School of Excellence?
A: The School of Excellence (SOE) is offered to provide a complete player development program for players aged 6-12. The SOE Program provides a structured and professional progression for these players at a key developmental age.
Q: Who are the School of Excellence Coaches?
A: The School of Excellence staff are all USSF, NSCAA or UEFA- licensed coaches. They are all trained in the SOE curriculum and have had experience working with players at this age. They are all first aid trained. For more detailed information on MPS staff please click here.
Q: Where is your School of Excellence program located?
A: For 2011/12 there will be 15 seperate SOE locations, comprising of over 1100 players. Each location is designated a school. For example, the Metro-Boston School. A ’school’ defines a specific region in Eastern Massachusetts, which caters to players from the host town as well as the geographically surrounding towns. For more information on where we currently run programs please click here.
Q: What is the difference between SOE and MAPLE?
A: In short, the SOE program is focused on the development of players rather than winning at this stage of their soccer careers. We believe the focus on winning at these age groups is counter-productive to quality on the field: However we are able to control the environment in which the games take place to ensure players have confidence to put into practice what they have been learning at training.
Q: What is a typical training session?
A: All SOE training sessions last 75 minutes. The SOE has a set, age appropriate, curriculum which progresses from season to season. The focus of the program will be to help players develop technically and also think for themselves, in a challenging yet fun training environment. All sessions will begin with a warm-up, a technical component, small sided play to help with understanding small group tactics, and all sessions will end with a game and a cool down.
Q: What is the difference between Academy and Elite?
A: The main difference between the two is the commitment level. If you have been chosen to compete in the Elite program then you will need to commit to all three seasons (Fall/Winter/Spring). If you have been chosen to compete in the Academy then you will commit to the fall and spring season only (although winter still remains an option). To be chosen for the Elite program, we will be looking for players who continued to have excelled in practices and in games. For more details on the SOE Academy please click here. For more information on the SOE Elite program click here.
Q: What does a player recieve?
A: Upon joining the SOE program, all players receive:
- One set of training gear - Adidas shirt, shorts and socks
- One set of game uniform - shirt, shorts and socks - each school has its own color (U10/U11/U12 players only)
- Thunder Sports Key Chain
Q: What is the School of Excellence game Schedule?
A: All SOE games involve competition between the various schools within our club and some select external clubs with consistent development philosophy. Teams will compete against each other, with a schedule devised to provide the most appropriate level of competition for each squad. The SOE Academy game schedule will comprise of 5 regular season games in the fall and spring, with each session culminating in an end of season Jamboree. The Jamboree is a chance for all teams from a set age group to come together at one location and compete in round robin style tournaments versus other schools. More information on the schedule can be found by clicking here.
The SOE Elite teams will compete in an external league, the New England Premiership (NEP) during the course of the Fall and Spring season. More information on the NEP and the associated schuedule can be found by clicking here. Teams will also participate in the aforementioned end of seaon Jamborees. In addition the Elite teams will enter an external winter league.
Q: What is the level of competition offered by SOE?
A: SOE games are competitive but are never must win. We don’t keep standings and don’t have pressure to win at these age ranges. The best developmental environment for this age group is one where they are free to express their talents and try to execute what they learned in practice without the fear of failure. Games are very competitive and challenging and the quality of the games is very exciting
If winning a state cup at U11 or U12 is important to you, then you should not be in the School of Excellence Program.
Q: What is the Junior School of Excellence?
A: The Junior School of Excellence (JSOE) is aimed at 1st and 2nd grade players, and is very much focused on introducing and developing the key fundamental components of soccer. The program will be both fun and challenging for the players involved and will serve to ensure their enthusiasm for soccer grows along with their ability. It is the first tier of the SOE and acts as a great introduction to the program for young players. For more information on the JSOE please click here.
Q: What is your philosophy on parent involvement at games?
A: Every player and parent that becomes a part of any MPS program must sign a code of conduct. For players this places the principles of respect, responsibilty, and accountability at the forefront. We are working on developing people as well as soccer players.
For parents the same philosophy applies. We expect parents and coaches to be excellent role models for all our players. Parents are told very clearly that we do not expect any coaching from the sidelines and screaming or shouting during games. Parent involvement from the sidelines can be counter productive to a player development. They are encouraged to lend their support in a controlled and productive manner.
Q: Where do players go from the School of Excellence Program?
A: Players graduating from the School of Excellence will have the opportunity to try-out for the U13 Premier team or the U13 Premier Development team. For more information on the Premier/PD program please click here.
The U13 Premier team program uses the Super Y League as its main avenue for competition. For more information on the Super Y-League visit www.uslsoccer.com
The Premier Development teams will play in MASC. The player development (PD) teams are tiered by ability and act as a feeder system for the Premier Teams. This is also an excellent program for preparing players for their HS program.
Q: What is your relationship with town programs?
A: The School of Excellence recognizes that players that participate in town soccer may want more development opportunities than they get from their town team. The School of Excellence provides this training while working with local town programs so that players can participate in both. Mass Premier Soccer works with over 60 different communities and the SOE program is another way that we can help towns with their own player and coach development. The cooperation between towns and the SOE program is what makes it work. SOE teams do not participate in Columbus Day or Memorial Day tournaments and are encouraged to go with their town teams to these events.
Q: How do you communicate with your SOE families and players?
A: Each SOE team has a parent manager. Parent managers are in constant contact with the SOE Communications Director. The Mass Premier Soccer website is also constantly updated in case of training cancellations due to weather and is a great resource for information.
Q: How does MPS develop its players?
A: At Mass Premier Soccer, player development is our priority. Our success is largely based on our ability to move players through our player development system. From SOE program to Premier Team program, all the way through to our first teams. At every level, from the School of Excellence to our W-League and PDL franchises, the needs of the individual player are top priority. The success of our programs is testament to our ability to take players to a higher understanding of the game technically, tactically, physically and psychologically. Players are given the opportunity to develop and attain their goals, with assistance of the MPS coaches. For more detailed information on some of the success attained by MPS players click here.
