CFJ ELITE FEMALE PLAYER ID CAMP Jul 09 2013 - STAFF
Florida Fire Juniors (FFJ) players recently returned from Lake Forest Academy located in Lake Forest, Illinois, where they took part in the 2013 Chicago Fire Juniors Female Identification Camp.
This camp consisted of training, games, classroom sessions and a trip to Toyota Park to see the Chicago Fire reserves play versus the Charlotte Eagles. Five age groups were at camp ranging from U13-U17.
All of the players were selected based on the quality of their play this year at their respective Chicago Fire Juniors clubs. The players who participated represent many of the top female soccer players in the Chicago Fire Juniors program. The selection was based on observation in games and training and from input from the Technical staff here at FFJ. Congratulations to all of the girls that were selected and were able to participate in this outstanding event. A special Thank You also goes out to the FFJ coaching staff for helping the players reach this elite status this year. Your contribution to their development is one of the reasons they have achieved this accomplishment.
The coaching staff for the 2013 Chicago Fire Jrs. Girls Elite ID Camp consisted of all top-level coaches from many of our Chicago Fire Juniors clubs, including Illinois, Michigan, Florida, and Kentucky. Chris Cashion, 3rd year coach with the Florida Fire Juniors was selected to participate this year at the ID camp on the behalf of the club. "You couldn't ask for a better environment to bring these girls together. The professionalism of the staff, facilities and weather all contributed to an excellent experience. I was happy to be selected to take part in such a unique event for female youth soccer athletes." - Chris Cashion
College coaches were invited to this camp and were able to see our players in both training and game situations. They were impressed by the level of talent we have in the Chicago Fire Juniors program.
The players from FFJ did an outstanding job all camp and consistently impressed the Technical staff by their talent on the field. They were also very well behaved off the field, which is also important when being invited to an elite training/identification camp.
Thank you players for a job well done and congratulations on being selected to the camp for elite level players. We look forward to assisting you with your continued development as a soccer player and as a young adult.
Photos from this year's ID Camp:
The girls selected on behalf of the Florida Fire Juniors to attend the Female Player ID Camp in June 2013 are a part of the Chicago Fire Juniors network of youth players.
CHICAGO FIRE JUNIORS LAUNCH ‘FEMALE INITIATIVE’ PLAYER DEVELOPMENT PROGRAM
Hold first-ever Elite Female Player ID Program
With more than 1,600 girls participating in Fire Juniors programs across the United States, the club recognized a need to provide a pathway for success for the female players that make up 35 percent of all Fire Juniors participants.
One week after the 40th Anniversary of Title XI, 128 Fire Juniors players ages 12-years-old through 17-years-old took part in the first-ever Elite Female Player ID Program at Lake Forest Academy in Lake Forest, Ill. The camp was designed to identify the top talent in the Juniors programs across the country. Coaching staffs from the nine Fire Juniors clubs selected the top three players in each age group U-13 to U-17 to participate in the camp.
With players coming in from all of the different Juniors affiliates, Kentucky Fire Juniors Technical Director Mike Dickey said he was pleasantly surprised by the quality and skill levels of camp participants.“ Going in, we had no idea what the quality of everyone’s players would be,” said Dickey. “Obviously I knew the players from Kentucky but I felt like the girls invited from all the affiliates were of good quality.”
For four days, the young ladies went through a series of intensive practice sessions led by members of the Chicago Fire first team staff and the U.S. Soccer coaching staff. Off the field, the players attended workshops on a variety of topics, including a Game Understanding workshop lead by Atletico Madrid U-16 Academy Coach Rafa Carmona and a Strength and Conditioning workshop lead by Chicago Fire Strength & Conditioning Coach Tony Jouaux.
“The workshops were really well received. All of the girls are athletes; they understand about the importance of nutrition and hydration, but the information that was presented gave them good ideas,” said Dickey. “The workshops gave the girls better ideas on what they should do before and after training. Especially helpful were the speed and agility exercises that were specific for soccer; a lot of these drills can be don on their own, don’t require money but do require time and creativity. The program overall was really good. All of the girls got a lot out of it.”
In the coming weeks, the Chicago Fire technical staff will evaluate each players’ performance and select the top 18-20 players in each age group to participate in a number of signature tournaments and showcases throughout the country. “This new initiatives gives our female players another possible means of gaining additional training, outside of just playing and competing locally, it will put our players on the national map,” said Dickey. “The elite team will provide players with the opportunity to surround themselves with other great players, and help push them and help them if they chose to play in college.”
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Tactical Workshop with Athletico Madrids Rafa Carmona
