PART ONE: WHY ARE SOME UNDER-12 YEAR-OLDS GOOD IN SEVERAL SPORTS?
It's not because of coaching. So what are the affects on players without coaching?
In the first part of this three-part series we explain what we think are the affects on players without coaching. The topics covered in these features form an important part of our coaching methods and philosophy at MnM Coaching.
Love, Play, Try.
The mental level is every player's starting point. Imagine a young player falling in love with the beautiful game and starting to enjoy everything related to football.
We all want to feel good, have inner satisfaction, and be happy. Is this not a starting point?
At the very outset, this means even creating some kind of addiction and falling in love with it. Shouldn't training always be just like this? Yes! We all want to experience feelings of joy and success.
Playing the game and trying hard provides the player with an opportunity - to experience a different reality where they feel pure joy. In the best case they will achieve their "flow mode" where time disappears.
Achieving this will require freedom to show their ability and skill and full concentration on something that will bring him happiness. The best form of practice is playing, where you stimulate your desires.
Most importantly, the player feels pure joy while practicing and they are in a fully focused state, enabling versatility.
Versatility arises from the courage to try something new and break your own limits as well as give you the chance to fail. Trying new things and failing before succeeding is a learning experience that needs to be sought after.
By experimenting with new things the player will make a lot of mistakes, but by doing so he will show more progress and become a good player rather than an average one.
Which player is more likely to be better: a player who has always played as a forward or a player who has played in multiple positions? What we are saying is that coaching does not make better players - LOVING, PLAYING AND TRYING is the key to any player's development.