A virtual tool to train the budding young player or teach the parent coach in real time and harness the formidable powers of social networking and portable devices to disseminate that knowledge?
iSoccer is the brainchild of former Stanford University NCAA standout Scott Leber. Portability and flexibility are the two keys.
Players can download training sessions onto their iPod or iTouch, take it to the pitch, watch the skill demonstrations and then practice and record the results. iSoccer will give an estimated 20 million kids and their parents free access to tools needed to assess skill levels, evaluate improvement over time, and design player specific training programs.
Pilot programs underway in Northern California, Arizona and Michigan have proven to be successes and coaches have embraced the new technology. Leber is clear that iSoccer is not going to supplant coaching per se.
Leber says “Knowing what to teach and how to teach it has always been a real challenge for youth soccer coaches, many of whom are well-meaning parent volunteers who lack formal training,” he explains. iSoccer will help clubs and coaches fill that gap.”
I think what this training program does best is lay a valuable foundation and ensure uniformity in skill level. It is a closed chain method. However for a sense of how much real improvement one makes, actual match play with peers is indispensable. Beyond that for the serious player looking at a professional career there is conventional coaching, that means a trained man in shorts, barking at you, doing drills, and talking strategery.
Well, I’ll look for groups of kids at every street corner juggling and doing scissors.
The iSoccer website >>