Creative ... but cautious
Southeast Soccer Club coaches are finding creative ways to stay engaged with players during shutdown while cautious on return
T om Butler starts his day off by connecting with members of his Southeast Soccer Club family.
His morning email message to players usually includes anything from a social media challenge of the day to an online workout.
"It is something different every day," said Butler, who coaches at Southeast and was recently elevated to director of operations for the club. "It could be something mental or physical." Or it just could be something fun. His most popular task involved asking players to pick out their favorite soccer cleats.
Butler and his fellow Southeast coaches are finding creative ways to keep their players active, motivated and engaged during the coronavirus crisis shutdown that ended the spring season. They regularly reach out by text, phone or talk over Zoom.
Southeast offers a variety of online workouts on its website, including coach Matt Forde's SSC Push Up Challenge, coach Analisse Rios' bodyweight workouts and coach Colin Delaney's 10-week training program. The club features 18 teams, split evenly between boys and girls. Participation in workouts is optional. "Kids are under so much pressure at school where it is mandatory, so the last thing that we want is to put added pressure on them," Butler said. "We want soccer to almost be a release from all that. The participation has been phenomenal throughout all of the age groups. It's also key that, as coaches, we don't push it because we don't want to turn kids off.
"We understand the emotional toll that this is taking and the psychological toll . ... We try and keep it fresh and enjoyable so they want to do it."
Last week, Butler offered a challenge to his team that had nothing to do with soccer.
He asked them to cook a family meal. It basically served a team bonding activity from a distance.
Players posted pictures on social media of their culinary creations.
"It was great and no kitchens burned down, so that was good," said Butler with a laugh, "We succeeded."
It's been a major adjustment for coaches, too.
They're creatures of habit, holding practice the same days at the same times every week throughout the spring.
League games and tournament weekends were wiped out. The club's competitive teams lost out on a chance to travel to Virginia and compete in the Jefferson Cup in late March.
"That's been all tossed out the window," said Southeast director of coaching Norm
Riker, who also runs the Connecticut College women's program. "You just miss that energy that you have, the build-up to the weekend and even the practice before the tournament. (Missing) the Jeff Cup was tough because we had three of our teams all going down. It's a great tournament and great trip.
"My 2002 girls were really excited. That's a bummer we missed those opportunities."
Perhaps what the coaches miss the most is their regular personal interactions with players during practice as well the overtime sessions talking with their fellow coaches in the parking lot after a game or team workout.
"That's our second home, the field," Butler said. "And we're so regimented in our schedule . ... Initially, for the first month for me personally, it was really hard from five o'clock to eight o'clock. I didn't know what to do with myself. That's when I actually started just doing personal Zoom calls or texting the kids or at least texting the family and at least having some sort of interaction during those hours.
"And the more it's gone on, the more we got used to it."
Coaches have found other ways to stay close as a staff.
They've engaged in healthy discussions on Zoom about tactics after watching videos of games. They've formed a relationship with the Tranmere Rovers, a First Division club in England, and had interesting conversations with their coaches.
"We've become closer as a staff and as a club even though we've been apart," Riker said.
Thankfully, there's finally some soccer to watch on television.
The German Bundesliga has started again. The English Premier League is preparing to restart its season next week.
"We're all massive of German soccer, all of a sudden," Butler said. "We're all picking German teams and all the kids know all the German players. Instead of being Ronaldo, they all want to be Robert Lewandowski."
But what they really want is to be together as a Southeast Soccer Club family again. It still might be awhile. Club officials are not in a rush to resume workouts. No tryouts will be held for next season's teams. All of the current players will be welcomed back.
The club has offered families some options for financial relief.
Keeping their coaches, players and families safe is the club's No. 1 priority.
"We would rather take extra precautions and take an extra few weeks before getting back to the field rather than rushing it," Butler said. "We've had a plan from day one to be cautious and that's served us pretty well up until now and our parents have been patient with it. So if we continue down that route instead of knee jerk reactions, then I think we should be OK." g.keefe@theday.com