AYSO Region 104 Training and Clinics

This page provides general training and clinic descriptions. See the training schedule for training and clinic dates. All courses are offered by reservation. Please make reservation as early as possible so appropriate material is available. You can find the appropriate course to attend and register on-line on the training schedule.

Player Clinics

PowerSkills is the player clinic program offered by Region 104. Offered on four weekends in the fall and four weekends in the spring. Every AYSO player has to opportunity to work on skills under the guidance of an advance certified coach.

• Opportunity for players to perfect skills
• Sessions provide necessary repetition of skills in fun format
• Provides dedicated time for training Goal Keepers
• Dribbling & Ball Control
• Passing & Receiving
• Shooting & Finishing
• Goal Keeping

See the PowerSkills page for more information.

Volunteer Training

Safe Haven Training is mandatory every year for all volunteers in contact with children. Coaches, assistant coaches and referees must all complete Safe Haven training before interacting with children. Safe Haven refresher training is available at the annual meeting in early August for returning volunteers.

Throughout the month after the annual meeting and again in the spring, a series of Safe Haven classes is offered. These classes include both the full class for new volunteers and the refresher course for returning volunteers. See the training schedule page for date of the next scheduled classes.

When you attend Safe Haven Training, you will need your driver's license or other photo ID and names, addresses and telephone numbers of three people who can vouch for your character. (Preferably, these references will include one professional reference, one personal reference, and one reference from prior volunteer work.)

Coaching Clinics

In addition to annual Safe Haven training, coaches need to attend a coaching clinic every other year. The coaching clinics are available at all levels to help you develop and improve your coaching skills. If you are interested in a course and don't see it on the training schedule, please e-mail the Chief Coach with your request.

This is a new course designed to provide assistant coaches with the information they need to support their coach effectively. No prior soccer experience is required.

The U5/U6 Coaching Course is for new coaches who will be coaching in the U5 and U6 divisions, this five hour course focuses on setting up and running a practice. Brief discussion of the physical and emotional abilities of 5 and 6 year olds. Discussion of what roles (other than coach) are necessary for a successful team and how to fill those positions. The course also covers the abbreviated set of laws for U5/U6, and the basic skill set that all U5/U6 coaches should teach the players.

For all new coaches, especially new coaches for U7 through U8, this eight-hour course teaches AYSO philosophy, theory topics. Majority of time is spent on the field showing new coaches how to teach basic skills, conduct a practice session and prepare for the game. The course is organized in two class sessions (generally one Tuesday and one Thursday) and one field session Saturday).

The Intermediate Coaching Course is for any coach who has completed the Youth Coaching Course, coached for one or more years, or will be coaching U9 through U12. This is a fifteen-hour course that stresses the AYSO philosophy, teaching and improving basic skills, improving group play, strategy and tactics. This is the basic credential for anyone coaching eleven-a-side soccer. The course is organized in two class sessions (generally one Tuesday and one Thursday) and one field session (Saturday).

The Advanced Coaching Course is for any coach who has completed the Intermediate Coaching Course, coached for two or more years, or will be coaching U11 through U14. The Advanced Coaching Certificate is required to coach U19 teams, ACT teams and Challenge teams. This is a fifteen-hour course that stresses coaching techniques of observation and evaluation, tactical decision making, and dealing with the more experienced player. The course utilizes small group play to create match pressure situations to work on advanced topics like combination passing, functional training, and set plays.

In addition to being great player clinics, PowerSkills provides coaches the opportunity to improve their coaching skills by working with an Advanced Certified Coach who will be in charge of each age group. See the PowerSkills page for more information.

This clinic a 16 hour intensive clinic to train Advanced Coaches to become Coach Instructors. Please contact the Region 104 Coach Administrator for access to these clinics.

Referee Clinics

In addition to annual Safe Haven training, referees at the Regional level and above should consider attending an upgrade clinic to help them develop and improve their skills. Referees at the U5/U8 level that have children playing in U9 or above, should attend the Regional referee clinic to be properly training and certified for that level of play.  See the Referee Certification page for the specifics regarding what required for level upgrades. If you are interested in a course and don't see it on the training schedule, please e-mail the Chief Referee with your request.

This clinic is for people who would like to help with their child's game. It is a 2-hour clinic, which covers ball in and out of play, flag signals, and offside. This training is offered at PowerSkills which takes place from 2-4 PM on the last two Saturdays before the first game of the season and the first two Sundays after the first game of the season.  See the PowerSkills page for details.

This clinic is for people who would like to referee their child's game in the U5 through U8 age groups. No previous refereeing experience is required for the U5/U8 Referee Clinic. U5 through U8 players play small sided games for which the Laws of the Game are modified. This is a 4-hour clinic, which covers all of The Laws of the Game, except for offside, which is not used in these age groups including the modifications for small sided play. Emphasis is also placed on age-appropriate refereeing. At the successful completion of this clinic you will be given a tee shirt and the necessary equipment to referee these games.

This clinic is for people who are interested in refereeing games starting in the U9 and U10 age groups. No previous refereeing experience is required for the Regional Referee Clinic. This is a 10 to 12 hour class, and it covers all of The Laws of the Game, plus some instruction on starting and stopping games, quarter breaks, and dealing with coaches and spectators. Uniforms will be provided to the Region 104 referees when they successfully complete the course.

This clinic is for Regional Referees who would like additional training for games at the U11 and U12 levels. This is a 10 to 12 hour class, with emphasis on foul recognition, offside, and the diagonal system of control (DSC). To qualify for the Intermediate badge the Regional Referee must:

• Take the Intermediate Clinic.
• Pass the Intermediate test with at least a 90% passing grade.
• Have done at least 25 games (5 in the U11/U12 age group)
• Be mentored or assessed.
• Perform 3 service units.

This clinic is for Intermediat Referees who would like additional training for games at the U14 levels. This is a 10 to 12 hour class, with emphasis on foul recognition, offside, the diagonal system of control(DSC), as well as elements of fitness, procedures, knowledge and management. To qualify for the Advanced badge the Intermediate Referee must:

• Take the Advanced Clinic.
• Pass the Advanced test with at least a 90% passing grade.
• Have done at least 50 games (5 in the U14 age group).
• Be assessed in the center and on the line.
• Pass the physical test.
• Perform 5 service units.

Please contact the Region 104 Referee Administrator for access to the National Clinic.

This clinic a 16 hour intensive clinic to train Advanced Referees to become Referee Instructors. Please contact the Region 104 Referee Administrator for access to these clinics.