SoccerToday Youth Soccer Coach Interview Series – Part 1
Fort Lauderdale Strikers Partner with Youth Club Fort Lauderdale Select FC – First Part of Interview
Last month, the Fort Lauderdale Strikers took a massive step forward in its youth development efforts by forming a partnership with premier youth soccer program Fort Lauderdale FC. The partnership creates a developmental pyramid and a direct path for Fort Lauderdale FC’s youth players to progress to Fort Lauderdale Strikers U23, and ultimately, the club’s professional team that competes in the North American Soccer League. READ PART 2
Soccer News: The partnership between professional teams and youth programs is a trend that has emerged in recent years. The guidance that professional organizations can provide to youth players and their organizations helps to progress the overall development of soccer in the United States that tends to go beyond the pitch.
SoccerToday’s Chris Rael spoke with CEO of Fort Lauderdale Strikers Sean Guerin as well as Director of Coaching of Fort Lauderdale Select FC and recently appointed U23 Head Coach of the Strikers’ new NPSL team Olaf Henke to discuss the recent partnership between the clubs as well as the Strikers’ preseason trip to China.
Chris Rael: Congratulations on your new partnership with Fort Lauderdale Strikers. What are the advantages?
Sean Guerin: The partnership with the Fort Lauderdale Strikers is something that has been in the works for a while. There are a lot of advantages and a lot of different components — As a professional soccer club looking long-term, we really want to help develop the youth soccer community and the talent in our community.
We have first hand experience with Fort Lauderdale FC, all three of my kids have been with the youth soccer club — and two of them are still currently playing soccer in it.
Rather than the Strikers trying to reinvent the field, we wanted to find a partner to join venture with. The Fort Lauderdale FC have done such an excellent job of developing their club and their players, it made a lot of sense to partner with them.
The long-term strategy is to put together the right group and the right facility to eventually create a true academy for boys and girls who are passionate about soccer.
With the addition of our NPSL team, there is now a natural progression for local kids to get the exposure to develop and get the coaching they need along with experience on the field with really talented players.
Our program will give youth soccer players the opportunity to see what professional soccer looks like and whether or not they got what it takes.
Olaf Henke: I think there is synergy between the two soccer organizations. We are from the same city, we’re using the same facilities and we have partners that we share with the Holy Cross Hospital and a junior college here in Fort Lauderdale.
Our partnership will allow for our youth soccer players to envision the pyramid of soccer within a club where you have a top level and a kid can have a good idea of what to strive to play for. Right now, that’s probably limited to the boys side, but I think there is potential as well for the girls side.
This partnership will allow us to grow our program with the help from a professional organization and help us provide the best environment for the development of the kids.
Chris Rael: Why choose to partner now?
Sean Guerin: It’s really been just over a year since the new ownership took over the Strikers — next month it will be a year since I joined the board. Looking at the different possibilities, one of our owners is Ronaldo and he has his R9 Soccer Academy and we played around with R9 putting an academy here and when it fell down, we thought it would make the most sense to partner with a local established club.
It’s just a natural progression for us as a professional club. The sooner, the better because it’s going to take a while to develop and progress along. Fort Lauderdale FC Director of Coaching, Olaf Henke is now the head coach of our NPSL team — so you can see this partnership is moving very nicely and fits well for everyone.
Olaf Henke: I agree. I think now was just the time that we noticed that with the new ownership of the Strikers and the direction that they were going works for us as a youth club as well. We have all worked together for years already. The vast majority of members in our club are Fort Lauderdale people and we’ve been supporting the club for years.
Chris Rael: Many youth players dream of going pro, what does it take?
Sean Guerin: I’m not really a soccer guy, so to speak, but obviously you have to start with some raw talent. You have to start developing it early on with the right methodologies, the right development, the right coaches, the right encouragement and the right environment.
Fortunately, in South Florida, you can play year around. From what I’ve seen, we haven’t done a great job of developing talent in South Florida — we do generate a lot of great athletes in other sports — now it is time to focus on soccer.
Olaf Henke: What does it need? For a youth soccer player to become a professional soccer player? The #1 out important trait is obviously a deep love, passion and desire for the sport. And then it is perseverance, commitment and sacrifice for how to develop that passion.
If a player wants to become professional these days with competing against players from all around the world, it takes a lot to sacrifice.
To get a healthy lifestyle and stay away from things that wouldn’t be productive takes a lot of commitment to the sport as far as time commitment goes because players need to train, need to find the right environment and develop within it.
The dream is fine, the dream should start very early. To become in the total reality really becomes a path that sometimes go by. I think we need to give kids the time to fall in love with the sport and be in it. Sometimes it takes a little bit longer, some other kids are very committed and programmed already with what they want to be when they’re 8 or 9 years old.
I think the right environment plays a role — the focus of the players and of the people who work with them needs to be right as well.
Younger kids are burnt out very early because the main emphasis is on winning when the focus should really be player development.
Chris Rael: What do you look for in a player?
Olaf Henke: At our competitive youth club, we are obviously interested in working with players that are committed to the sport. There are a lot of opportunities for a kid to do multiple sports. In some cases for other sports that works out well, for soccer it is a little bit more difficult.
Stay tuned for the second part of our interview with Sean Guerin and Olaf Henke.
