Volunteer Coach: To develop, don’t cheat the offseason grind

Berkshire midfielder Ugochukwu Achara gets serious air vs. Worcester Academy. (Mike Gridley/New England Soccer Journal)

Editor's note: This story appeared in our Winter 2019 magazine as part of our "offseason training" issue.

The Massachusetts fall high school season comes and goes in a fast and furious way each year.

Tryouts are held in late August, and the first competitive matches commence in early September. The final regular-season game has to be completed by the end of October with playoffs kicking off in early November. Those requirements squeeze an 18-game game regular season over the course of two months with postseason play extending a team’s season for as long as they can continue to win games.

I have been lucky to have made some runs in the MIAA Division 2 playoffs, but I am coming off a year in which we did not qualify for tournament play. Two months of non-stop soccer ends with disappointment and reflection.