Jen Slivka and her Neshaminy teammates got a taste of life on the other side of the ball at a recent soccer clinic sponsored by the Redskins.
The players served as coaches for the approximately 50-55 youngsters ages five to 11 years old who were in attendance at last Saturday’s clinic at the high school.“When you would get a message across to them and you can see how excited they are to actually accomplish it, it makes it worthwhile,” Slivka said. “At times it can be frustrating when you can’t find the right words to make them understand, but in the end, it’s great.
“Besides the team bonding, this is a way for us to give back to the younger kids. I know that they look up to us, and lot of the kids that go to the Neshaminy (School District) elementary schools – they want to play soccer in high school. To them, it’s like they’re playing with their heroes almost.”
The clinic included five stations that focused on everything from passing to shooting and even playing some 2v2. “My assistant coach, Rachel Clemens, does a lot of training with the youth in the area, so I gave that responsibility to her,” Redskin coach Rich Reice said. “She gave the girls some drills, and they worked with the youngsters at each station for 20-25 minutes at a time, working at the beginning basic stuff to the more advanced depending on the skill level of the group.
“We just gave them suggestions on drills, but it’s more hands-on for the girls, and they get to see a different side of things.”
Slivka recounted the story of one six-year-old boy who shed some tears because his teammates weren’t passing the ball to him, and when he finally got his first touch, he scored immediately.
It was a day for happy endings as the clinic culminated with an Easter Egg Hunt that saw the youngsters gather the approximately 400 candy-filled eggs that had been prepared by the booster parents.
“It wasn’t real scientific,” Reice said of the hunt. “We have a practice football field next to the soccer field, and they spread the eggs all over the place.
“That was probably the fastest they ran all morning. It was neat.”
The experience was equally positive for the Redskin players.
“The kids do a lot of learning, a lot of tactical stuff, but probably the most important thing they look forward to is the scavenger hunt because they get the candy, but I know they have a good time with us too,” Slivka said. “It’s a lot of fun.”
This was the second year the Redskins held a soccer clinic in conjunction with an Easter Egg Hunt for the youngsters of the community.
- Log in to post comments
0
