In the best interest of player development, LMVSC endorses futsal as a supplement to soccer itself. Futsal has a proven track record for player development and many professional players and coaches credit futsal during their developmental stages of soccer.
During the winter months, we encourage our teams to compete in futsal. The St James is offering each of our registered teams to have ten (10) matches played at their facility in Springfield, VA. There are many reasons we believe futsal aids in player development, several of the many benefits are:
- Improves player decision making skills and processing speed with a smaller playing area
- Provides players with more touches on the ball – with reports of over 6 times as many as soccer
- Provides more 1v1 and 2v1 opportunities for players
- Improves players’ mobility, coordination and agility, due to the speed of the game and multiple change in direction
- Allows creativity in solving problems in the flow of the game
- Resembles soccer with field shape, out of bounds and on-field decision making
In 2018-2019, LMVSC began a pilot program called “Futsal ID”. Following a “tryout” or seletion process, players were placed on “teams” that trained from late November – early January. These teams also participated in various tournaments, ranging from Germantown, MD to Richmond, VA. Based on feedback from those who participated, many felt the program did not provide any “down time” for families and, more importantly, the environment was tailored toward the select few..
In an effort to maximize player development in a team/age appropriate setting, LMVSC has been diligently looking to secure indoor space for teams to utilize during the winter months. We hope to have an update by Monday, November 4th with the site location(s) we have been able to secure for use.
In addition to offering teams the opportunity to secure gym space for technical/futsal training, LMVSC will be launching our Futsal Academy. Unlike Futsal ID, the Futsal Academy will be provided to each player that is interested in additional training. The training will be facilitated by a professional staff and will be tailored toward skill development through age appropriate exercises and futsal. Currently, we are prepared to offer the Program to U9 – U12 players but may open to older groups, should there be a demand for the older age groups.
We are excited to provide the innovative program and look forward to providing additional information in the very near future.
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