Always playing to the exception and not the rule.The point still stands. There are good soccer players who don't head the ball much. Messi would be the obvious example on the men's side.
Or is there some reason he doesn't count?
Always playing to the exception and not the rule.The point still stands. There are good soccer players who don't head the ball much. Messi would be the obvious example on the men's side.
Or is there some reason he doesn't count?
All interactions with Grace T are:The point still stands. There are good soccer players who don't head the ball much. Messi would be the obvious example on the men's side.
Or is there some reason he doesn't count?
I don't think Messi is the exception. He may be at one end of the spectrum, but certain positions and styles of play don't head as much. The CTE case cited is a defender. Defenders head the ball way more than anyone else on the field.Always playing to the exception and not the rule.
The point under discussion was the defensive line in the boys game. Of course the mids head less than front back or keepers but they do it too. Why are you citing an exception to the rule?The point still stands. There are good soccer players who don't head the ball much. Messi would be the obvious example on the men's side.
Or is there some reason he doesn't count?
Only boys and only defense?The point under discussion was the defensive line in the boys game. Of course the mids head less than front back or keepers but they do it too. Why are you citing an exception to the rule?
the girls may or may not be the same. I don’t know. I haven’t seen enough games to tell so I have no opinion
As usual you always seek to refrain the discussion in the way it suits you. The post you replied to specifically talked about the boys game. I don’t know whether it’s true or not of the girls game so I can’t take a position.Only boys and only defense?
The original post had neither of those restrictions.
It was a broad claim about heading in youth soccer, in general. Now you're trying to limit that discussion to only one gender and only 2-4 positions.
Enough with the revisionism. You don't get to limit the discussion to some small subset where you think your argument is stronger.
OP was not restricted by gender or position:As usual you always seek to refrain the discussion in the way it suits you. The post you replied to specifically talked about the boys game. I don’t know whether it’s true or not of the girls game so I can’t take a position.
the points I raised in the boys games was practice was critical because headers are integral to scoring on crosses and headers, the defensive line (which you took issue with and cited a female defender) and dfks. You haven’t rebutted any of those assertions other than to say Messi is a midfielder…he heads less…even though he still heads and all you have to do is search “Messi header” on YouTube and you’ll pull up a bunch. You’ve pointed out one female exception and one lesser occurrence to argue heading somehow heading isn’t important to the game.
you always seek to bend reality to justify the world you want to see instead of world like it is. Heading is critical to the boys game under current rules and must be practiced as a result. You’ve said nothing that rebuts that.
This discussion sounds very similar to the football CTE discussions 10-20yrs ago. Until we see more MLS guys killing themselves like Junior Seau and Aaron Hernandez, the majority will not believe that their beloved sport of soccer causes brain trauma. My original point is fairly simple...if you have a coach that likes to practice headers from corner kicks etc. once a week or every other week for 20-30 minutes, I would seriously question his/her judgment, suggest a different approach, and take a hike if they refuse to change. I don't want to wait 30 years to see if my kid can't function due to CTE from weekly headers at 14yrs old. But I guess I'm soft.
OP was not restricted by gender or position:
"If your youth coach wants to practice headers...
....change teams/clubs."
The only reference to boys or defense was a link to the tragic story of a young man who died at 44 from complications of CTE.
Ok. So let's talk about the consequences from that link.
In effect, you are saying- " yeah, you might get brain damage and permanent migraines so bad you overdose on painkillers, but we need you to head the ball so we can win a youth soccer game."
Storelli headbands fit better.Speaking of heading, whatever happened to the Full90 headband?
I played 8 years AYSO and I could never master it and I gave up. I got a headache every time I tried and is probably why I got GK job. I told my little one not get into jump balls and NOT try and head and jump with the big girls. She only will use her head to score a goal and the game better have something on the line or she is not going in with her head. Using your head to score makes the game fun to watch and cause GK to get frozen.I dispute the validity of comparing headers to the helmet-to-helmet hits made by American football players like Junior Seau and Aaron Hernandez. Those guys weigh over 200 pounds, are running at speed at the time of the impact, and are intentionally trying to deliver hard hits to the other guy. They will have body and head impacts 30 times in a game or more. By comparison, a properly-inflated soccer ball is a softer body in motion, weighing slightly less than a pound, and flying at a predictable trajectory. In a professional game, a typical soccer player may only head the ball 2 or 3 times, and most of those balls are not moving very fast. Obviously, free kicks, punts and hard driven balls like crosses have greater energy.
While I respect your concern about the potential for CTE in soccer, I think you greatly overstate the risk insofar as headers are concerned. Again, most soccer-related concussions are caused by other types of contact with the head. Personally, I have never seen a concussion arise from an intentional header, though I don't doubt that it could happen. And while I agree that too much practicing of headers is unnecessary and unwise, I have never personally met the coach who spends the amount of time practicing headers as you describe.
If you are concerned about headers, then your child is already 12 years old or above. If the science catches up and says that headers cause CTE, that won't happen for a decade at least. Your son or daughter will have aged out before then. If you act according to your beliefs, then you must tell your child not to do headers in practices or games. This will have consequences. Your child will not be able to play competitive soccer during his or her youth unless he or she is willing to head the ball. Others will take your child's spot in the line-up.
Wouldn’t my child already have suffered the damage by that time?If you are concerned about headers, then your child is already 12 years old or above. If the science catches up and says that headers cause CTE, that won't happen for a decade at least.
Then don’t have them play…..simple as that.Wouldn’t my child already have suffered the damage by that time?
Very well said. I would just add the concussion awareness has improved significantly in soccer the last few years. For the DA and the MLS Next they had/have concussion baseline testing of each player at the beginning of the season and are supposed to follow strict concussion protocols. Even in a 30 minute crossing drill there aren't not that many headers. While an integral part of the game, headers aren't practiced much or actually done much in a game. To repeat to the OP if your worried about CTE from soccer, headers aren't the significant issue.I dispute the validity of comparing headers to the helmet-to-helmet hits made by American football players like Junior Seau and Aaron Hernandez. Those guys weigh over 200 pounds, are running at speed at the time of the impact, and are intentionally trying to deliver hard hits to the other guy. They will have body and head impacts 30 times in a game or more. By comparison, a properly-inflated soccer ball is a softer body in motion, weighing slightly less than a pound, and flying at a predictable trajectory. In a professional game, a typical soccer player may only head the ball 2 or 3 times, and most of those balls are not moving very fast. Obviously, free kicks, punts and hard driven balls like crosses have greater energy.
While I respect your concern about the potential for CTE in soccer, I think you greatly overstate the risk insofar as headers are concerned. Again, most soccer-related concussions are caused by other types of contact with the head. Personally, I have never seen a concussion arise from an intentional header, though I don't doubt that it could happen. And while I agree that too much practicing of headers is unnecessary and unwise, I have never personally met the coach who spends the amount of time practicing headers as you describe.
If you are concerned about headers, then your child is already 12 years old or above. If the science catches up and says that headers cause CTE, that won't happen for a decade at least. Your son or daughter will have aged out before then. If you act according to your beliefs, then you must tell your child not to do headers in practices or games. This will have consequences. Your child will not be able to play competitive soccer during his or her youth unless he or she is willing to head the ball. Others will take your child's spot in the line-up.
Or teach them foot skills. That works too.Then don’t have them play…..simple as that.
Heading is a part of the game. Would you like to get rid of punts, set pieces and corners to further reduce the potential for injury?Or teach them foot skills. That works too.
Not sure where you get the idea that every coach insists on heading clearance balls. The coaches I have met are far more reasonable than that.
Women have much greater things to worry about than headers in soccer, likely those deadly hair beads that fracture skulls.
I believe the same can be said for knee injuries particularly ACL which I've heard may be a function of anatomy. Difference in concussions?In all seriousness, I read this a ways back:
.Head-injury risk higher for female soccer players, massive survey finds
Data on the rates and causes of concussion in US high-school athletes reveal striking differences between the sexes.www.nature.com