Joining a New Soccer Team? How to Navigate the Changes
You walk into the first training session with a new team, and everyone is looking at you. It feels like they are sizing you up. They’re wondering if you have the skills to help the team, if you are there to take their spot on the team, or if they’ll even get along with you.
Over your career, there will be many times when you’re joining a new team. You go up a level, join a new club, or head off to play in college. It’s a part of the journey. How you handle the moment – and recover from any missteps – goes a long way in determining how the season will go.
If you want to talk it through with someone who’s been there…
Working With a New Coach
It seems obvious, but as every coach is different, what they ask of you will be different. If you are unsure what they expect of you, don’t assume: ASK! Every coach will have different pet peeves or behaviors that get under their skin (like specific tendencies on throw-ins, amount of time spent walking during a match, or otherwise), and asking your new coach what they want to see opens the lines of communication and will make sure the relationship thrives.
If they have a different coaching style than you’re used to, don’t shut down – figure out how you can learn from them. Don’t forget their job is to help you improve as a player.
Working With New Teammates
How you integrate with your new teammates depends on a few factors: if it’s an established team you’re joining you need to approach it differently than if it’s a brand-new team for everyone.
Regardless, asking them questions about themselves is a great way to get to know your new teammates and can serve as the foundation for building a good relationship.
Recovering From Early Missteps
The fact is, we’re all humans and are going to make mistakes. How we respond to those mistakes is the most important aspect. If you get into a heated exchange on the practice field with a teammate, figure out how to smooth things over after tempers cool. If your coach is a yeller and you’ve never experienced that, you have an amazing learning opportunity ahead of you.
And if you don’t know what do to, reach out and set up a mentoring session and we’ll help figure out the best path forward for you. We’ve been through it all and are more than happy to share our experience in getting through every situation imaginable.
At the end of the day, the focus is always on what’s next. Getting off the bench and into the starting lineup. Getting to a higher-level team. Improving as a player and person both on and off the field.
Helping athletes with that next step is what gets us up in the morning. It’s one of the reasons we built BGTVto help with growing your Soccer IQ and why we started mentoring younger athletes in the first place.
If you’re ready to take your game to the next level, get in touch.
--
BGTV is now live! Take your soccer training beyond the pitch with BGTV – an all-access video network that focuses on developing how you view the game – teaching you how to play smarter and take your game to the next level. Learn more and join today!
