Creative Friday will teach you what you do not learn at the club or recreational level, as they put more focus on winning than the elements of good coaching.

Creative Friday Location: Hauke Park

• Hours: 3:45 PM - 5:30 PM

Sunday Small Side Game Location: Hauke Park

• Hours: 8:00 AM - 9:15 AM

Registration

• Drop off price:$65.00 (includes Friday Practice and Sunday Game)

For more information and registration, contact: 2brothersoccer@gmail.com

Creative Friday brings competitive players from multiple teams together for a unique curriculum specifically designed to maximize the individual growth and development of competitive players.

Training includes a sense of speed, intensity, and excitement for players looking to improve their game outside of team training, and in a friendly, well-coached, competitive environment with “the best kids in the neighborhood.”

Being a more creative soccer player is a common goal shared by many players across all age groups, genders, and levels of competition. Many soccer players struggle with this skill and want to know how to be more creative in soccer.

How to be more creative in soccer has much to do with decision-making and problem-solving. Soccer coaches can design a style of play and teach their players how to execute tactics, but once players are on the field in a live game environment, a player’s ability to make decisions, adjust, and solve problems is what makes a great, creative soccer player. 

While coaches can impart tactical knowledge and foster a particular style of play, it's a player's capacity to adapt, make split-second decisions, and solve on-field challenges that distinguishes them as truly creative players. Players are faced with an endless series of problem-solving micro-moments during games. These micro-moments could last anywhere from a split-second, for example, controlling the ball in very tight spaces or a goalkeeper reacting to a sudden shot on goal, to a handful of seconds, for example, a midfielder moving with the ball looking for passing options.

Creative soccer players embody several key traits that contribute to their ingenuity:

• Soccer IQ. They possess game intelligence and acute situational awareness.

• Ability to make things happen in tight spaces (not losing the ball)

• Control with the ball (passing skills)

• Good field vision

Young players are not necessarily able to dribble around lots of people, although this is great, but they can make creative passes and open up the playing field once they know how. In the older age groups of youth soccer, you see much more of these skills becoming prominent including creative movement off the ball, meaning players who do not have the ball. For example, when an attacking player gets behind defenders once the ball goes wide, the defender can't see you and the ball. This is called "movement off the ball". Some players know how to be in the right places at the right time, do you know any players like this?

ADOLESCENTS TRAINING NEEDS

• Ages 8-10: You see that there is individual creativity with some players handling the ball, but you usually don't see this age being creative off the ball.

• Ages 11-13: This age group still needs much 1v1 and 2v1-2 work. Yes, and of course ball control skills.

• Ages 14+: This is a critical divide in skill level. Most 14-year-old athletes are freshmen. At this point, we begin to see division into JV and Varsity levels of play. We also see changes in social expectations of play.

• Ages 15+: Athletes need to be solid with their chipping and long balls. One major weakness in this age group is vision and decision-making. Instead of 1v1 training, these athletes need 4v2, 7v4, and 7V7 experience; higher levels of decision-making should be demonstrated.

The key to creative soccer is having fun, but you have to put in the extra work to excel. We invite you to bring out your creative play with Two Brothers Soccer.