This Week

I've been a little laidback this week because I've been seeing friends and keep getting distracted by girls, which by the way take up a lot of time, I've also been in France the last three days holidaying with my Family. So I've completed 17 out of the 23 hours I was suppose to do this week. To be honest, of course I could of completed those hours if I didn't go out with friends or anything and didn't spend as much time with family, however I think it really is more important that I spend time with the people that are important as much as I can because once I become a professional footballer, I don't think I'll have as much time and freedom, so I don't want to be regretting when I look back.

Next Week

So I'll have to do 20 + 6×3 hours next week which is 38 hours! But I won't do those next week because I want to be with my family more. I will also reduce the number of hours I do to 15. So I'll do 38 + 5 = 43 hours the week after next. That's more hours than a full-time job, I think it will be a little hectic, but I'll try manage it so I play football from 10 – 4pm every day and that way I still have time to be with friends in evenings. World cup final in 7 days!

Tuesday:

• More determination to do better in long fitness exercise in training

Wednesday:

• Long passing accuracy can be improved
• Left foot finishing needs improvement
• Short touches with the ball again needs more improvement

Thursday:

• Running at high pace needs to have more smaller touches for more control

Looking at what i’ve wrote the last few weeks, working on having smaller touches looks like the biggest concern. So next week i’ll focus on keeping smaller touches! I wish I could work on this stuff at the oval near my house, but it’s snowed down like crazy the last few days.

So I Couldn’t train on Saturday or today because I slightly sprained my toe, hopefully it gets better by tomorrow.

It’s probably because i’ve kicked my mini ball all around the house alot this past week before school and after trainings. What Will Smith said about “working when the other dude is sleeping” has made me think and realise that to go where I want to go I gotta “work on my football skills while the other dudes are sleeping” .

Fresh new week from Monday, I got a game on Saturday to top it off. Lovin it.

So last night after watching Will Smith’s video on wisdom, I became really motivated. I have this red, mini football I got from my club’s Christmas party.  I set a unreasonable target for myself that I would get 100 juggles with this mini ball by the end of the night. I could barley do 10 or 15 kick ups to start, my record was probably about 20, but I never stopped believing that I wouldn’t get 100 and eventually I got closer and closer until around two hours later YES! I got over 100 juggles.

So basically what seemed like an impossible task to start wasn’t actually impossible at all, it was just a state of mind.

I have also just come back home from a pretty hard fitness training, I hate them so much but I have realised that in order for me to become one of the best players that ever lived I need to have tough mental challenges for myself and so things like that is good for me and now I am enjoying it, that while i’m going through physical exhaustion that the exhaustion is just a state of mind, by body telling me that I can’t keep going. But in truth I can and like Will Smith says “I’m not afraid to die on the treadmill” ha ha

Two favourite quotes I found:
“You might have more talent than me, you might be smarter than me but if we get on the treadmill together i’m gonna die! It’s that simple.”

“I hate being scared of something.. the only fear you have of fear, is fear itself”.

I was kind of scared going into the next two weeks of fitness in training. Now I know there is nothing to fear and that i’m willing to go all out and die to be noticed as the hardest working footballer there is.

Starting off with the game which is the freshest in my mind at the moment, I think I played good. We won 8-0 against a pretty average team. I first assisted a goal from taking a corner kick and then scored a one on one, I had just one other shot on goal. My goal came from the determination to score as I made a run through the middle of defence and received a through ball which paid off when I nutmegged the keeper. What I did well was making runs with the ball, tackling and touch was good.

If we look at my main focuses for improvement:

1. ONE ON ONE FINISHING
2. PLAYING PACE
3. DECISION MAKING
4. FIRST TOUCH

I think all of these things were done ok – good in the game which this game I guess shows i’ve done a little improvement in those areas.

On the negative side, there wasn’t too much. Positioning could of been a a little quicker in some cases, I think I should of made more runs and received passes through the middle of the pitch, too one sided. I also didn’t feel as though I was really, really important like if I was Rooney when he scored those 4 goals. I want to mean much more to my coach and in my football so I think I just got to take my game to the next level as if I were just untouchable on and off the ball.

But going back earlier in the week here is what I reflected on in trainings, the fitness side of things is postponed until this coming week:

Tuesday:

• Improving my playing intelligence of the game
• Knowing when to run, sprint and pass
• My confidence really lacked in drills and didn’t think things through.
• Balance and co-ordination needs improvement
• Finishing needs improvement.

Thursday:

• CONFIDENCE, It wasn’t there!

Saturday:

• Two touch passing could have some more perfection

So as you can see, the confidence side of things wasn’t so great. When I stuff up in training or get shouted at by my coach I tend to put my head down. I am learning that these things will only make me stronger so it’s not worth putting my head down for anything, it shows that I lack confidence in myself to others and that’s something I can’t do.

Anyway that’s all for this week, it’s a month to go now before I go off to AFC Wimbledon and see how I go with my one week trial there, can’t wait!

I think the first week has gotten off to a good start. We’ve started our two months of mostly fitness trainings this week. Although I thought I was going to struggle in training because I didn’t really follow my coaches training plan over my one month break, the running session we had really wasn’t so bad and I was keeping up with the best;  so it was kind of surprising but I probably keep my fitness because i’m young. I reflected after each session I had with my club, these are the things I learnt and need to improve on:

Wednesday:

• Although i’ve heard this before I heard it again and that is to use your body to shield the defender from a pass, don’t be scared if you get kicked because it’s and foul anyway + it will make you a stronger player.
• Need to work on having smaller touches for better control, especially smaller touches with left foot as it feels a bit uncoordinated.

Thursday:

• Improve on first touch a little
• One on one finishing still a big problem
• One on one with an opponent.

Saturday:

• Look up first then pass
• On the positive: One touch passing has definently improved, mostly from passing ball against wall.

I think I am being really self critical, but I also need to properly identify my strengths so i’ll do a little reflection on that too next week.

Also, I worked a little on my free kick technique using the side of my foot to strike the ball. I got it off Drogba’s free kick 3-0 goal against Arsenal last year. I’ve worked on my style heaps and heaps over the years, but I think this way is definently working for me and the ball seems to go where I want it too when I strike the ball. I have to post a video of myself doing it, but here is that Drogba goal.

Anyway, there’s four trainings and a game to cap it off next week so can’t wait for that.

Anyway, this weekend we played an annual friendly game against an Austrian schools team all about 16,17 and 18 years old. We played a game of two legs. Our team lost the first leg 1 – 0.. but it’s the second leg where I shined. I assisted the first goal by a cross converted into a header and the second goal I scored from a lobbed through ball and one-on-one finish with the keeper. It was the first time our team won against this team for five years and i’m proud to say that I played a big part in getting the win. I guess working hard in training pays off… Anyway this Thursday i’ll be heading off to Zurich, Switzerland to play in a schools tornuament with teams around europe.. i’ll tell you how it goes!

In another development I am now getting up a hour early in the mornings, three times a week to train. I thought.. if proffessional players train two times a day then why don’t I? That means I have..
Monday: new solo training (1 hour) in the mornings and afternoons (1 1/2 hours)
Tuesday: 1x Academy training (2 hours)
Wednesday: new solo training (1 hour) in morning and afternoon Academy traning (1 1/2 hours
Thursday: Academy training (2 hours)
Friday: schools training (1 1/2 hours)
Saturday: Academy training (1 1/12 hours)
Sunday: REST

looks more like a pro schedule.

Hallo my name a borat.

No. Anyway today in training we played against some random group of orphans (gypsy kids) from the countryside  who randomly came to play our team. They were shit, but anyway we won a 8 vs 8 game like 3-1. I scored one (it was kinda like rooney’s goal against Tottenham if you saw it), but I lost the ball a couple of times and this really pisses me off as my aim is not to lose a ball at all in a game, yet I lost a few against crappy 13-14 year old kids who are not even a proper team. Fuck. My aim to be pro, when I do crap like this it has a hit on my confidence.

What pisses me off more is that we had a shooting drill where we dribble the ball from about 25m out and we take a shot from about 20m from goal. Now shooting from long range is like my best skill asset, i’ve practiced it for years and I can pull off some good powerful, accurate goals. Now when i’m by myself at the oval and I practice this it makes me pissed even when I score down the middle of the goal because a keeper can easily save it, now you can imagine when I keep missing the goal in this drill, the coach gets pissed and other people score more than me how guttered you can be… maybe it’s the shit hard, field, ditchy , hole we play on and the hard, fully pumped up balls we play with is why my true skill doesn’t show but still.. fuck!

I guess all I can do is use today as motivation to do better.

]]> http://www.nickhumph.com/2009/09/16/i-played-a-game-against-borats-kids/feed/ 0 http://www.nickhumph.com/2009/09/14/i-can-make-it/ http://www.nickhumph.com/2009/09/14/i-can-make-it/#comments Mon, 14 Sep 2009 08:30:33 +0000 Nicky http://www.chasingthedream.footballcity.com.au/?p=3
Just lately i’ve realised that I can make it, I just need to believe that I will succeed. I need to dream big to acheive my goal of football pro. I know I will need to work hard in order to reach my dream and when the time comes that I walk out the tunnel to see my eyes open to tens of thousands of people only then will I know that I have reached the dream. But there’s a long way to go before that. I’m not even playing for a rep team or a proper youth academy. I can’t let myself fail, I know I can be better than those around me that have made pro. Practice, motivation and concentration will be my keys to success.