INTRODUCTION
Small-sided games have been part of our soccer history in the United States for generations. Many of our parents, our grandparents and our great grandparents immigrated to America having played this wonderful game in the streets of their native countries.
In the past it was not uncommon for small-sided games to be played in the streets and in vacant lots. Now the streets are too busy and the vacant lot is too dangerous or no longer exists. Thus, it has become the
responsibility of the soccer club or youth organization to recreate the small-sided environment.
That is what SCOR has provided with the "4vs4 Games"!
Age Groups: Boys / 2nd & 3rd Graders (fall 2021)
Boys / 4th & 5th Graders (fall 2021)
Girls / 2nd & 3rd Graders (fall 2021)
Girls / 4th & 5th Graders (fall 2021)
Days: Tuesday and Thursdays
Dates: June 15 through July 29, 2021
Times: 6:00-7:30pm
Program Fee: $185/Player
Location: Diniz field
Description: Participants receive a Program T-shirt and soccer ball. Players will be introduced to one ball skill every week at the beginning of each session and encouraged to experiment freely
during games. Games will be played in a 4vs4 format with 20 minute quarters. Attending
pro coaches will supervise and provide minimal instruction. Our hope is that the players
enjoy the real game of soccer in it's most natural and fun form.
REASONS FOR SMALL SIDED PLAY
Philosophical
1. We want our young soccer players to have more individual teaching from the game itself! Fewer players on the field will guarantee this!
2. We want our soccer players to enjoy the game for its own sake. (foster intrinsic value)
Inspiring ARTICLES
"Freddy Adu: Just Going Out To Play"
Freddy learned the game as soon as he learned to walk, in his native Ghana, in West
Africa. He didn't just play soccer; he lived it.
"I did not go one day without playing," he recalls, and it was just kicking and learning.
"It was awesome," he explains, "because, you know, like, there were no coaches, no one
to tell you what to do. It was just; you play and learn stuff on your own."
"Street Soccer And Small Sided Games"
By Andy Roxburgh
It was lunchtime in Turin, and while others around the table spoke about the UEFA
Champions League match which would take place that evening in the Stadio Delle Alpi
between Juventus FC and Manchester United FC, Roberto Bettega, Juve's vice-chairman
and former star player, talked to me about street football.
Time for self-expression
"Although I was attached to this club from the age of nine years, much of my
development took place in the streets Ð it was there that I practiced and refined my basic
skills," said Roberto, who won seven championships for the 'Old Lady' of Turin and
represented Italy on 42 occasions. What troubles Roberto, who played alongside Michel
Platini, Paolo Rossi, Zbigniew Boniek and other icons of the game, is the dominating
style of many youth coaches. With the passion of a street fighter, he added: "Young
players need some time for self-expression, for spontaneity. Their coaches need to watch
and listen more and instruct a little less."
Valid philosophy
In many parts of Europe, street football has all but disappeared, but the philosophy and
the mentality remains valid. The street game was player-centered, competitive, skilful
and fair, and the small-sided game, with one-on-one a key element, was the basic form of
play. Youngsters practiced for hours on tricks and on passing and shooting techniques,
using a wall as their silent partner. A love of football permeated all activities, and cups
and medals (extrinsic motivation) had no immediate significance for the fierce young
dreamers who were dedicated to the ball and lost in the romance of the game.