By Jay Livingston
When many of us were growing up, soccer probably wasn’t the main sport in town. Most of us who were involved in sports were playing football, basketball, baseball or even hockey. We loved sports. We loved being out there with our friends, getting sweaty, dirty and tired. It was great as long as we were playing something.
Unfortunately, soccer wasn’t something that many of us grew up with and, as a result, many kids miss out on the opportunity to get involved. Not because they wouldn’t enjoy it, but because a lot of dads don’t sign their kids up. It’s not something they played, so their kids aren’t going to play. Well, I’m here to tell all of the Monday Morning Quarterbacks, all the die-hard baseball folks, all the Hardwood Hardheads, that if you aren’t encouraging your little kid to play soccer, you’re making a huge mistake… And you, as a parent, are missing out. Soccer is a lot of fun, and it’s an easy sport for kids to learn. Kids play it from a very early age. And so did you…remember “kickball”? You’d always be picked first. Hmmm, I could have been a GREAT soccer player!
Soccer is a fantastic way for players to stay in shape for other sports, with all of the running, conditioning and timing. Soccer utilizes many of the same skills and components as a lot of other sports. The passing of basketball and hockey, the timing of getting a ball like in baseball and football, and the physical play of any other contact sport…including the same grit and determination needed to succeed in anything. It’s not just the game that us old-timers didn’t play as kids, the sport played in other countries, or the program that wasn’t offered when we grew up. Soccer is a great game that, as an athlete, can be a tremendous tool to get better in everything else.
So Dad, remember, as soccer sign ups come around, if you have visions of your kid being the next Tom Brady, Dwayne Wade or Cristiano Ronaldo, get him on the field running for an hour straight. You’ll be glad you did.
By the way, here’s the link to the newest league in town www.CSFUTSAL.ORG
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