Academy/Select Soccer

Academy - U8-U12

The UFA South Georgia academy program provides talented young players an opportunity to progress beyond recreational play into more competitive select soccer.

UFA South Georgia currently has four sites across the region: Albany; Thomasville; Tifton; Valdosta. Potential academy players are identified during the summer tryout and winter assessment process. Any player that misses tryouts may be given the opportunity of a two week trial during the season with the appropriate program. Interested players should contact the Academy Director. Academy Tryouts are usually held in mid to late May.

Players in this program are exposed to a more intensive and competitive level of training. The focus is on developing the proper technical and tactical foundation that is crucial for the Select program. Young players with commitment, skills and an appropriate attitude, will find academy soccer to be an excellent introduction to the select level of play.

Highlights:

• Ages 8-11 (U9-U12)
• Teams are gender-based; Pool training is coed
• Selected through annual tryouts/assessments
• Professional training and coaching
• Academy Player will learn every position
• All teams will play a Fall and Spring schedule
• Players get at least half of a game of playing time
• Additional tournaments may be attended
• Two 90 minute practices per week
• Additional team training sessions will be held centrally during each season.

All academy players will train locally twice a week at an Academy Center of Excellence using the pool concept; additional centralized team training dates will be set throughout the season. The Pool concept allows each player the opportunity to progress at the appropriate level. Players will be able to improve at their own speed while developing an appreciation of the game, while keeping winning and losing in proper perspective. Teams will be formed for playdates and players will be rotated through different positions to encourage a better understanding of the game. Each season consideration will be taken into forming tournament teams. This decision will be made by the Coaching Directors.

Academy Pool training groups will all receive similar training each session across all locations. A seasonal curriculum will be implemented so each session will mirror each other at each location. Groups at each location will be formed based on technical ability, taking into consideration the physical demands of the training and each player’s ability to meet those demands. Coaching Directors will review pool groupings throughout the season to ensure player development is optimized.

Select - U13-U19

The Athena (girls U13 & up) and Classic (boys U13 & up) programs are for players interested in a highly competitive level of soccer. The goal of the Select Program is to develop competitive youth soccer players by providing a quality learning environment.  Identified players will train on a year-round basis, emphasizing advanced technical development leading into small group/team tactics.  Players must be able to demonstrate basic techniques before progressing on to advanced techniques and tactics. Athena and Classic team participation requires a one-year commitment including a Fall and Spring season.

Select program players are chosen by the tryout process. Any player that misses summer tryouts may be given the opportunity of a two week trial with the appropriate team. Interested players should contact the age group coach or the Director of Coaching. Teams are limited to a maximum roster of twenty-two players. Tryouts are held in late May/early June following the Memorial Day holiday.

Boys and Girls ages U13-U14 (Middle School Ages)

Highlights:

• Ages 12-13 (U13-U14)
• Gender-based
• Selected through annual tryouts
• Professional training and coaching
• All teams will play a Fall and Spring state league schedule
• Additional tournaments may be attended
• Two 90 minute practices per week; one central, one local or both in a central location
• Additional position-specific/high performance (Fall season only)
• Inter-league games scheduled by Georgia Soccer
• At least half of the games will be played at home in South Georgia

Boys and Girls ages U15-U19 (High School Ages)

Highlights:

• Ages 14-18 (U15-U19)
• Gender-based
• Selected through annual tryouts
• Professional training and coaching
• All teams will play a Fall state league schedule
• Additional college showcase events will be attended (Fall & Spring)
• Two 90 minute practices per week
• Additional position-specific/high performance (Fall season only)
• Inter-league games scheduled by Georgia Soccer
• At least half of the games will be played at home in South Georgia
• Spring training will continue around the HS schedule so that each team will be able to compete in the appropriate end of year Georgia Soccer State Championship Tournament.

For more information contact the following:

Academy Director, Ricky Zambrano ricky@unitedfa.org

Program Director, Nick Jenkins nick@unitedfa.org

Director of Coaching/Select Girls Director, Aly Joslin aly@unitedfa.org

Director of Select Boys, Robbie Peterson robbie@unitedfa.org