The very first thing our players have to learn is how to be effective, how to fend for themselves, and to be confident enough to take part in the game.  Mistakes will be forgiven and poor decisions will be excused, but we want our players to be brazen, bold, and audacious enough to get out there and try things.  Be assertive and play, let the chips fall where they may.  Meanwhile, the most fundamental skill in soccer is individual mastery of the ball and the creativity that comes with it.  Our sessions are built around facilitating the development of the skills necessary to move and control the ball well.  As the individual skills and the creativity to make them come alive in the game are developed to a level of competence, the finer points, like passing and team organization, can be taught. The most common phrases used with our U7 & U8’s are, “Go! Go! Go!” “Dribble!” & “Control the ball.”

Academy soccer at U9 is where we see the most significant jump in our players’ abilities and general understanding of the game.  With this in mind, we want to try to encourage comfort with the ball and the confidence to use this skill creatively.  Our teams at this age should be full of "little dribblers,” so we can start to slowly introduce and organize the art of finding space, moving without the ball, and combining with your teammates.  The most common phrase used with our U9’s is, “Find Space!” & “Go and support!”

We want our U10’s to be able to recognize and understand how the skills learned in U7, U8, & U9 are connected to solving problems during play.  The goal is to develop players who are clever, and able to quickly and effectively make “soccer decisions.”  The most common phrases used with our U10’s are, “Play when you don’t have the ball” and “Was that a good decision?”