GARY IRELAND UPCOMING WEBINARS

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SBC founder Gary Ireland & former Liverpool FC Academy Manager & Asst. Academy  Director & U18/U19 Coach & Doublepass Auditor John Owens discuss the value of Academies purpose they offer to their respective clubs. With so few players 'making it' from within the club itself we look at: 

• Past-Present-Future of Football Academies in UK, USA & globally
• Cost-Benefit-Purpose of Professional & Amateur Football Academies
• Attracting & retaining international talent & impact on home grown talent & club ownership
• Clubs style & approach on Academy player development
• Practical, Regulatory, Legal Issues (Govt, FIFA, EPL-FA) & Recruiting/Retaining Releasing Players
• European/British Clubs recruiting strategies of international youth players

SBC founder Gary Ireland & various guests discuss the proven & time tested value of various formats & aspects of football that sits outside the formal organized game. 

Legendary players played creatively, experimenting in streets, against walls, in schoolyards, backyards where they developed their touch & personality. Self practice & informal small sided games in 'street-labs' found outside organized academies are essential piece of a special players' development 

In 2003 Man Utd, Bayern, Ajax, Barcelona decided that lack of street football was hurting youth development. A space where games are self refereed managed & where impromptu games full of spontaneity  & creativity are often arranged by children without the presence of adults. Many 'talented' 'flair' players developed themselves in their own space & time away from selectors & scouts. Some of the world best players claim street football to be the key & core ingredient to their technical development & skill acquisition. However changing lifestyle & social patterns has resulted in the opinion that it is a public nuisance & the disappearance of street football & appearance of large grass fields has somehow taken away from childhood football development

Technical acquisition & application Phases are not lessons. There are no shortcuts to technical excellence & the sooner a player starts the better. Content, quality, frequency & duration all determine how quickly players adopt & achieve each of these phases. We look at the various stages of skill acquisition & application from the INITIAL LEARNING phase where skills are introduced to the AWKWARD USE phase when a player has increased coordination & technique but still feel awkward  & frequently experiences difficulty with technique, to the CONSCIOUS USE stage where the player is able to do the skill or action effectively & easily & though the action looks good the player is conscious of every step & movement. Finally the NATURAL USE stage is when the skill is made spontaneously, seamlessly sequencing actions comfortably & creatively. This final level is only reached when a player has practiced the skill for a significant period of time 

RONDOS: 'A large group players with extensive numerical advantage keeping ball against 1-2 players, using 1-2 touches designed to develop decision creating space, improving balance , stance, body 'shape', awareness. transition, physical conditioning, passing deception & competitiveness'. Ironically, phenomenal dribbler over 30-40 yards & Rondo godfather & Johann Cruyff mentor to Guardiola said of 10 x 10 yard Rondos "Everything that goes on in a match, except shooting, you can do in a Rondo". We discuss why Rondos have trended & are misused & misunderstood by its evangelists & acolytes. Long before 'Messi, Eto, Haaland dependent' Pep Guardiola   & social media popularized Rondos ('Piggy in the Middle', 5v2, Keep Away) it was being played across the world for generations mostly as social activity & pre-warm ups at the beginning of team practice or among teammates. The best players in history in the  schoolyard and street never said "lets play Keep-Away!" We discuss how Rondos, although useful, can be detrimental to young players development & affinity with the ball, & why it can damage players' long term creativity, individual bravery & risk taking & attacking instincts. We draw attention to the fact that 'dribblers' also must possess intelligence. deception & decision making & vision & arguably more than what is needed in Rondos. We discuss why without individual dribbling & shooting ability, the 'toothless tiger' Spanish national team whose domestic club success has historically depended on foreign imports of dribblers, 'passing-dribblers' & goalscorers: Maradona, Puskas, Di Stefano Zidane, Figo, The' Ronaldo, Romario, Cruyff, Laudrup, Messi, propped up by Spain's Rondo based foundation impressively passed their way into circles in the 2022 World Cup through their pass-centric, 'painting by numbers' & 'connect-a-dot' approach 

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We look at the essential ingredient  of player development In modern soccer players-Self practice- Expensive gimmicks & accessories such as cones, flags, mini goals all at some cost have replaced 'natural' obstacles & accessories some of the worlds best players used in their neighborhoods & school such as walls, fences, sidewalks, curbs, trees & poles. Self practice, training alone are hallmarks of the worlds top players. No elite player has ever spent more time practicing with their team than they do on their own. Four team practices a week amounting to 6 hours of team practice wont make any champion. Elite players own their personal development & therefore need to know the art and discipline of self train

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SBC founder Gary Ireland  discusses with various guests 

the importance of coaches demonstrating technical material to young players in order for players to develop a mental picture through 'strong visual' demonstrations. During the skill acquisition phase of development young players imitate & copy movements they see either from their idols, peers or at home but their coaches can make a significant difference through material they show and require players to learn. Football technique & physical movement related to the ball is almost hardwired by mid-teens so its vital that a relationship with & love of ball, ball mastery is hardwired in a player pre-growth phase so that balance, coordination, feeling for the ball, proprioception, upperbody fluidity & feinting & flexibility becomes 'natural'. While its not too late to improve at any age, it becomes harder to adopt technique & young players must enjoy self practice & love of the ball so they can take responsibility for their own development for the duration of their entire career

SBC founder Gary Ireland & Puskas Academy Technical Director & Director of Individual Development Peter Horvath discuss Hungary's history of innovation in football & it's recent renewed success. Hungary won its UEFA EUROS 2024 Qualifying Group with star players Liverpool FC’s Szoboszlai & former Puskas Academy now Freiburg player Sallai, scorer of 2 goals & Puskas Academy player Nagy a goalscorer in Hungary's 4:0 win against England, inflicting it's worst home defeat since 1928 after drawing with England 1:1 with Sallai scoring another goal & beating England 1:0 earlier also to a Szoboszlai goal. Hungary also beat & tied Germany in 2022 

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SBC founder Gary Ireland  presents'First Touch' & why this universal expression is an integral part of  players development & what its benefits are. They discussed ways  to develop first touch as an individual & how first touch  influences movement off the ball & impact on the opposition. They  also discussed what is meant by having a 'feel for the ball' &  how space & time are impacted by a players first touch & how the  less time a player takes to control the ball more time they will have  to take advantage of it/ use it positively 

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The Greatest Soccer Story Never Told: A Story of Inspiration & Determination'

Every player & parents regardless of whether or not they play soccer should see this amazing story and inspirational story of self belief, obsession to achieve the impossible dream & desire to belong to something big & the sacrifice, perseverance, grit, resilience, tenacity & overcoming  failure & adversity, turmoil & setback which allowed Craig to achieve success & enable him to become a legend against all odds. Craig is a former Liverpool FC player; European Cup; FA Cup (winning goal vs. Everton); League Cup winner; 5 x 1st Division/Premier League  Champion. The best player not to have played for Australia, most  famous/successful Australian Soccer player; Inventor of the Adidas Predator boot used by Zidane, Gerrard, Beckham; Founder/Inventor SupaSkills skills measuring platform. Craig inspired his friend SVC founder Gary Ireland in his pursuit of becoming a professional soccer player & as a result Gary & Carine have collaborated with Craig om helping produce a documentary film of Craig's fascinating life story as well as working with Craig to develop his unique skill training-measurement program Supaskills Gary was also approached by the BBC wanting to do a podcast & article on Craig 

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For 25 years SBC College Consulting has trained, coached, advised, guided,  identified, recruited,  evaluated & matched numerous players at colleges. Are you on track  to play college soccer? What level is realistic achievable? Learn about  player assessment tools used by club & college coaches to identify  players strength & weaknesses, how talented players & players  with future potential is identified, assessed, selected & retained,  how college coaches assess performance & how these differ from  national teams, overseas professional academies, clubs &  representative teams as well as the players club soccer coaches. We  discuss technical, tactical, physical & phychosocial qualities as  well as intangible qualities that college coaches ask players youth  coaches & trainers about when seeking player character references.  Learn more about college soccer here 

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For 25 years Soccerbook College Consulting has trained, coached, advised, guided, identified, recruited, evaluated  & matched numerous players at colleges to create the 'best fit' for  each individual. Finding the right college & getting the attention  of a college coach can be challenging, complex & time consuming  process for players & parents. Competition is tough, recruiting  rules are complex & timelines between getting  scouted &  receiving an offer or commitment to a school can be lengthy &  ambiguous. We explain how to find a college with the right academic,  athletic, geographic, financial & social fit- small town rural  campuses versus urban setting or cold versus warm temperatures &  flight versus drive home all factor into making the right decision &  how a targeted college guidance strategy helps identify the right  personal decision. Learn more about college soccer here

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