The
ingredients for a successful tryout:
- Show your
leadership qualities. Always be first class in the way you dress,
talk, warm-up, and interact with other players and coaches.
- Be composed
at all times. Carry yourself with confidence and dignity. Keep
that head up and be alert to the coach's demands.
- Show your
strengths, hide your weaknesses.
- Show your
general athletic ability, including running speed, technical speed,
and your speed of thought in your tactical decisions under pressure.
- Show your
intelligence by making simple yet positive decisions on and off
the ball.
- Show a variety
of ways to get out of situations on the field.
- Play with
your head up show your ability to read the game not just react
to it!
- When your
open demand the ball with your voice and hands, but if you do
not get it do not make a negative gesture or facial expression
or comment, move on and be a leader on the field by your example.
- Play away
from pressure constructively, either by utilizing short simple
supportive players around you or a long driven diagonal ball to
demonstrate your capacity to not play into the pasta of the defense.
It is very annoying for your team and coaches when you force the
ball into the pasta and we lose the much sought after coconut.
- Make simple
passes at the right moment and with proper pace, you do not have
to dissect five defenders with your surgical passing techniques
to impress coaches. Most coaches at the Try Outs level are impressed
with your capacity to maintain possession, if you can dribble
the opposite way you want to pass the ball than your beginning
to approach regional level play. Far be it from me if you can
light up the field with your flashy passing skills, but for most
be content to demonstrate you can make the safe possessive pass
under pressure and penetrate.
- Look downfield
for your first pass option, than square or back if the penetrating
downfield pass is off. This is possible if you have thought ahead
of what you intend to do with the coconut prior to receiving the
pass, that's reading the game not reacting to it!
- Play one
and two touch when it is necessary.
- If you have
space to carry the ball never pump it down field, show the staff
your ability to carry the coconut with speed and proper touch
to penetrate with the dribble.
- When you
overlap do it hyper-space-speed, the worst scenario is you hesitating
or jogging into space. This shows lack of confidence in your decision
by your body language and speed of movement, your conviction to
overlap must be obvious to all. So don't be a slacker, like Nike
says, "Go for it!"
- When you
tackle, tackle without hesitation, tackle hard and be relentless.
If someone beats you one v one, be back on them like white on
rice. Relentless pressure and pursuit is mandatory at the Try Outs
level, there is no room for slackers or coasters.
- Take the
ball out of the air quickly, never show any fear of heading a
ball. Make sure you head the ball and the ball does not head you.
ATTACK THE BALL with your head, eyes wide open and leaping off
the ground. Show us you love to head the ball.
- Not only
challenge every head ball win every head ball. That is your attitude
for 99' Try Outs
- Never, Never,
Never pass up the opportunity to shoot around the defensive third.
- If you believe
you can smoke someone 1v1 do it, so fast they don't have time
to think and you don't have time to panic.
- Remember,
on time is early, no excuses for poor punctuality at an Try Outs tryout!!!!!
- Warm-up
on your own for five minutes with some ball touch skills and maneuvers,
get your thoughts and head together. Commit to yourself this is
your day and no one is going to ruin it for you. Then join some
buddies and small talk, but no back stabbing. Do not lower yourself
to negative conversation, be the leader, be upbeat, be yourself.
- Make every
effort to attend every tryout date to give yourself many opportunities
to demonstrate to all the staff your capabilities and commitment
to excellence.
|
