School of Excellence: Program Re-Structure 2008/2009

2008/2008 Tryouts Announced

Mass Premier Soccer is excited to announce new developments within the School of Excellence (SOE) program for the 2008/2009 season. This fall will see the addition of the SOE Elite program to complement the current SOE structure which is to be known as the SOE Academy program moving forwards.

The SOE Elite program is being introduced to place individuals in the most appropriate training/game environment possible in order to maximize player development.   The philosophy of the SOE Program will remain consistent, with player development being of paramount importance.

SOE Academy

The School of Excellence (SOE) Academy Program is effectively the same as the existing SOE program. The one significant exception is that players are required to commit to both the fall and spring seasons with winter remaining optional but being strongly encouraged.

The program will run for 3 seasons (Fall/Winter/Spring) and for 8 weeks each season.

For the Fall/Spring seasons, JSOE (Junior School of Excellence 1^st/2^nd Grade) teams will practice once per week for 6 weeks, U9’s and U10’s will practice once per week for 8 weeks and U11’s and U12’s will practice twice per week for 8 weeks. U10-U12 teams will play a 5-game schedule against other SOE Academy teams. JSOE through U12 teams will also compete in an end-of-season Jamboree.   For the winter program U9-U12 teams will practice once per week for an 8-week season. JSOE Winter programs are dependant on location.

Upon acceptance into the SOE Academy, players will be required to make a financial/personal commitment to participate in the fall 2008 and spring 2009 sessions. The winter 08/09 is also strongly encouraged, but will remain optional as per previous years.

SOE Elite

The new SOE Elite program will only be for players that have consistently excelled in both level of play and attitude/commitment to training/games. Participation is by invitation only. 

As with the SOE Academy, the SOE Elite will run for 3 seasons (Fall/Winter/Spring) and for 8 weeks each season.   At the SOE Elite level there will only be U10, U11 and U12 teams. The JSOE and U9 teams will be part of the SOE Academy program.

As part of the SOE Elite U10/U11/U12 teams will practice twice per week for 8 weeks in both the Fall/Spring. Teams will also play a 6-game schedule against other SOE Elite teams with possible games against external opposition.  All teams will compete in an end-of-season Jamboree.

For the Winter season all teams will increase from one session per week (SOE Academy) to two sessions per week; one of those two events will likely be participation in an external league.

SOE Elite players will be required to sign up for the Full Year (Fall/Winter/Spring). If players do not wish to make the commitment to the winter program, then they will have the option of continuing their development in the SOE Academy program.

2008/2009 School of Excellence Tryouts

As we look to implement this new structure, we have strived to confirm our 2008/2009 tryouts earlier than ever before. All Tryout details have now been confirmed, and can be viewed by clicking here or by visiting our website at www.masspremiersoccer.com.

We would encourage all current players/families to pass this information on to any appropriate players who are not yet a part of the MPS development system.

All current players will be notified of their position for the 2008/2009 season prior to their team tryout. Players will either be told:

1)  Congratulations, MPS would like to offer you a position in the SOE Academy/SOE Elite for the 2008/2009 season. Details on how to sign up will also be communicated at this point.

2)   MPS would like to invite you to the upcoming tryouts in order to review your position for the 2008/2009 season. Details on how to sign up for the tryouts will also be communicated at this point.

2008/2009 Game Format

The MPS Technical Department, in conjunction with the SOE Director, have made the decision to change the School of Excellence game format for the 2008/2009 season. This will begin in the Fall 2008.

The new game format would take the following structure:

As with any major decision taken by Mass Premier Soccer, the reasons behind it are purely developmental and focused solely on the best interests of the individual.

The decision has been taken to reduce the number of players on the field at the U9 and U10 age groups. This will increase contact time with the ball for those players during games.

There are a number of developmental reasons for this program adjustment:

• More Touches: Players participating in games with less players on the field will be required to take more touches of the ball, hence enhancing their individual technical skills in a competitive environment.
• More Involvement: Smaller sided games means there is more opportunity for players to be involved at all times.
• Awareness: Because there is less space on the field, players are required to make quicker decisions when in possession of the ball.
• Position Rotation: Players are less likely to be confined to one ‘position’ with rotation on the field actively encouraged in smaller sided games.
• More Goals: Smaller fields means that there will be far more opportunities to shoot, and hence more goals.
• More Excitement!: As a result of more goals being scored and more individual involvement, players tend to enjoy the experience far more which in turn will enhance their development.

If you have any questions please feel free to contact either myself (jcapell@mpsbr.com) or Director of Coaching and Head of the MPS Technical Department, Peter Bradley (pbradley@mpsbr.com).

Regards,

Justin Capell

School of Excellence Director

Mass Premier Soccer

781-891-6900x20

Visit us at www.masspremiersoccer.com