Thoughts from the General Manager
State
Cup is rapidly approaching and the next few weeks will be a mental
test for our player’s and staff!
With all of the recent field closures due to rain, the
championships will go to the teams not willing to make excuses.
We all must be ready to compete and above all
–
we must be ready to apply what we have learned, work as a team,
commit to doing our personal best, and accept nothing less than 110%
from ourselves and our team mates.
From
Think Like a Winner! by Dr. Walter Doyle Staples:
"If you want to get the results that winners get, you must first
think like a winner thinks!"
So how
does a winner think? Here is a list of the ten core beliefs that are
unique to all peak performing men and women. Consider each one
carefully, and imagine what your world could begin to look like if
you held the same beliefs and made them a part of your everyday life
starting today.
1. Winners
are not born, they are made.
2. The dominant force in your existence is the thinking you engage
in.
3. You are empowered to create your own reality.
4. There is some benefit to be had from every adversity.
5. Each one of your beliefs is a choice.
6. You are never defeated until you accept defeat as a reality, and
decide to stop trying.
7. You already possess the ability to excel in at least one key area
of your life.
8. The only real limitations on what you can accomplish in your life
are those you impose on yourself.
9. There can be no great success without great commitment.
10. You need the support and cooperation of other people to achieve
any worthwhile goal.
The beautiful aspect of competition is that we
can control how we prepare and we can control how we react to the
outcome. We can not
control the referees, our competition, and match conditions.
We must remain constant in our expectation of greatness by
meeting each of the challenges ahead with only positive thoughts and
by working together to achieve a common goal.
Good luck to all players, teams and families participating in
the Fall State Cup tournament and the Governor’s Cup Tournament!
See you on the field,
General Manager and
DOCO,
Huntsville
FC
|
Thoughts from the GM
Partnerships
ODP
Indoor
Soccer
Heading The
Ball
HFC
players are on the run!
Sideline
Behavior
Football
Milestones
October Issue
HFC HOME
To
contribute to the Newsletter, please submit suggestions, soccer
jokes, articles or photos to
Andrea McManus
|
| Huntsville Futbol Club is pleased to
announce the addition of Huntsville Hospital Sports Center
and The Orthopaedic Center along with D1 Sports training in
establishing a partnership to provide a comprehensive sports
medicine and training program for our club athletes. This
partnership will supply athletic trainers for our events,
Quarterly information updates related to nutrition and
health. Coaching Education and discounted rates at the D1
sport facility. Additional information will be provided in
the upcoming months. Huntsville FC is excited about our
partnership as we continue to grow and nurture soccer in
North Alabama. |
 |
ODP
preparation training
starting the week after State Cup. This is free training lead by
Coach Mo
and assisted by other DOC’s and staff coaches as necessary. More
info to come regarding times/fields.
Register
for Indoor Soccer -
Registration and fee due by
Saturday, November 28.
The indoor program is open to all players, regardless of club
affiliation through U14. All training and games will take place at
the Southeast YMCA on Weatherly Road and the D1 facility on Bailey
Cove Road.
Indoor program will begin December 1 on Tues/Thurs & Friday
nights.
 Heading
the Ball
Head injuries, specifically concussions have been in the
news lately since Tim Tebow sustained a injury which
sidelined him for 2 weeks. While a concussion could
possibly occur in any sport, most occur in football and
effect players of all ages. In fact, multiple
concussions ended the careers of gridiron greats Steve
Young, Troy Aikman and Ted Johnson. There have been a number
of extensive studies of heading and head injuries.
There is no definitive evidence that heading a soccer ball
causes concussions or other problems. If heading a
ball is properly taught, and if the players understand the
technique, then there is no danger from heading a ball.
A
study involving men's and women's college soccer teams
from the Atlantic Coast Conference found a total of 29
concussions in a 2-year period. The most common cause of the
concussions was when one player's head struck the
head of another player. This was also
the most common source of concussions in a group of soccer
players at the US Olympic Sport Festival in 1993. The second
most common cause of concussions occurred when a ball struck
a player's head. These head-to-ball concussions happened
when a player was hit in the head by a ball kicked from
close range. In many cases, the ball traveled so quickly the
player did not have time to react.
NONE
of the concussions were caused by proper
heading of the ball.
 Parents sometimes ask about soccer-specific headgear. FIFA
Laws governing the game at all levels state, under the
player safety clause, that it is acceptable and optional for
a player to wear a headband. However, this equipment cannot
be made mandatory at any level.
A few years ago, the Massachusetts State Legislature passed
a law mandating soccer players to wear headbands, and the
U.S. Soccer Federation submitted the studies and threatened
to ban their players. The State Legislature rescinded the
ban in the face of substantial evidence declaring heading a
soccer ball to be safe.
It is important to point out that there is much to learn
about headgear. A recent study sponsored by FIFA’s sports
medicine committee concluded that headgear provides no
measurable benefit in head-to-ball impacts, but does provide
“measurable benefit” in sub concussive head-to-head
impacts. However, there are still many unanswered questions
— most importantly, the extent to which this sort of
headgear diminishes the risk of concussions, if at all.
USSF’s Sports Medicine Committee continues to monitor the
available literature and push for further research on such
questions as whether decreasing impact force translates into
decreasing concussions and whether use of headgear creates a
false sense of security among players or causes them to play
more aggressively.
It is also important to remind players, coaches, and parents
that headgear is not a substitute for proper medical
evaluation and treatment of concussions. Consultation with
a doctor is always a best first step after suffering any
sort of head injury.
You can get hurt in any sport. Proper training and
technique — not headgear — are the keys. |
Huntsville FC Players Are on the Run!!
 Congratulations
to our Huntsville FC players who won or placed in recent
track events in the area.
Tucker Oliver, Huntsville FC 92 Blue won first place in the
Huntsville Metro Championship. Tucker holds a personal best
in a 5K race of 16:36. Way to go Tucker!!
 The
Liz Hurley Ribbon Run also had winners from Huntsville FC.
Abby Thornton Huntsville FC 96 Blue, Katie McMillan, 97
Maroon & Rachael Castillo 98 Blue, came in 1st, 2nd and 3rd
respectively in the (11-14 age group). This is a race where
everyone truly wins!
The Huntsville Hospital Autumn Chase Fun Run saw Katie and
Rachael running again. This time, Katie won 1st place for
7th grade girls. McKenna Matzek Huntsville FC 98 Blue won
1st place for 6th grade girls and Rachael Castillo won 2nd.
Ali Thomas, 98 White finished 2nd in 4th grade girls. |
Sideline Behavior
During any soccer season many
opportunities arise for parents to demonstrate positive
behavior on the sidelines. We get caught up in the emotions
of the game, but we need to be mindful of respectful
interaction, support of all players, appreciative of adult
coaches, and courteous to referees. In particular, parents
should be good hosts or guests because in the long run, the
game or score will not be remembered but bad behavior will.
We are all guilty of being caught up in the game or become
frustrated by the outcome or player performance. We need to
remember how our actions speak for us. Not only with regard
to our impression with others, including our own team as a
whole, but the impact our actions have on our own children.
Too often we seem to lose sight of the fact that it is just
a game.
The emphasis needs to shift to the real reason for playing
sports and that is what it teaches our children:
sportsmanship, teamwork, competition and having fun. One way
to counteract this behavior is by talking to your kids. Ask
them if your sideline behavior is embarrassing them, for
example, yelling at the ref or coaching from the sidelines.
Does your behavior make your child wish you weren’t there?
We need to listen to our children because in truth, this is
about them and not us. So what can we do to model positive
behavior? Here are some suggestions for interacting with
coaches and from the sidelines.
With the
coaches:
- Do talk to
the coach about specific skills your child can work on,
but remember to talk to the coach at times he has
indicated work best for him.
- Always
observe a 24 hour wait to talk to a coach after a game.
This gives everyone time to put things in perspective.
Don’t confront the coach in front of your child.
- Don’t use
email to resolve a problem. It is fine to request a
meeting through email but it can leave a lot to
interpretation when addressing a specific problem or
concern.
- Do not
address coaching decisions with your team’s manager. He
or she has no input in those decisions and is unable to
appropriately address these issues. They are strictly
administrative personnel.
From the
sidelines:
-
 Pay
attention to your words. Are you singling out your child
and cheering for their goal and not for the player who
made the assist? Are you critiquing another player’s
performance? Their parents may be sitting right next to
you.
- Choose
cheers that encourage the entire team. These comments
would include: “Good job,” “Great defense,” “Super
teamwork.”
- Don’t put
your child on a pedestal. Kids develop at different
rates and the most skillful player this season may
experience a growth spurt and have difficulty making
adjustments next year.
- Do not
coach. Allow the coach to make adjustments as they deem
necessary. Comments like “Stay wide,” “Clear it,” “Pass
the ball,” “Move up/back,” and “Take a shot or Shoot
it!” are often in direct contradiction with what the
coach has just told them. This also undermines the need
for the players to communicate with each other.
- Do not
speak to players on the opposing team except to
encourage. We will be playing against many of these
teams for years to come and we need to be the example of
a “class” organization. Win, lose or draw the game is
forgotten, bad behavior is not.
- Respect the
referees. If your coach is not irate over a call, then
you are probably wrong to assume the call was bad.
Constantly berating the referees is also not conducive
to maintaining a quality referee pool. How many times
have you yelled at the ref over a call and he changed
it......NEVER.
- Try to
avoid a pre-game lecture on the way to the match. A
laundry list of the player or team’s deficiencies or
pre-game advice puts kids off their optimal mental
state. Also, the inevitable critique they may hear on
the ride home can sabotage their play.
|
Before the game:
I love you.
Good Luck!
Have fun.
|
After the game:
I love you.
I liked watching you play.
Are you hungry?
|
 In short, encourage your child
and his/her teammates. Remember that they, the coaches and
the referees are human and we all make mistakes. Always show
good sportsmanship and enthusiasm. Young people learn by
example, do your best to be that good example for your
child, their team and our club.
|
|
Fri, Nov 6 - Sun, Nov 8
Fall State Cup Preliminary Round
Fri, Nov 13 - Sun, Nov 15
Fall State Cup Final Four
Fri, Nov 13 - Sun, Nov 15
Governor's Cup
Jack Allen Soccer Complex
CONGRATS!
17th Annual Kicks Invitational
Photos
Champions
99Boys Blue -Silver
98Girls Maroon - Silver
96Girls Blue- Gold
95Girls Blue
Finalist
01Boys YTS
00Boys Man U
99Boys Maroon
98Boys Blue -Gold
95Boys Maroon- Gold
94Boys Blue
00Girls Everton -Gold
98Girls Blue-Gold
97Girls Blue
Finalist
00 Academy
Midsouth
FC Fall Classic 2009
Happy
Thanksgiving
November Birthdays
Desmond Armstrong
11/2/64
Jozy Altidore 11/6/89
Jan Vennegoor of Hesselink
11/7/78
Rio
Ferdinand
11/7/78
Joe Cole
11/8/81
Ryan Giggs 11/29/73
Rain
stats for October: Precipitation: 8.17 inches Normal: 3.54
inches
Why is it always windy at soccer games?
Because of all the fans!
Soccer Attitudes
(.wmv) For Parents,
coaches and players. |
