AFC instructor holds coaching course

The Northern Mariana Islands Football Association is leaving no stones unturned as far as ensuring that coaches are equipped with sufficient knowledge and training about the sport is concerned.

Three weeks after having former Chelsea goalkeeper John Whittle on Saipan to share his expertise on grassroots and youth football development, NMIFA has brought an Asia Football Confederation instructor on the island to conduct an introductory course.

Jose Ariston Padre Caslib, who coached various age group national teams in the Philippines, started the eight-day course yesterday at the NMIFA Office located at the third floor of the TSL Plaza in Garapan.

The coaching course will conclude on Oct. 16 and will cover theoretical and practical sessions.

The theoretical sessions will discuss planning a coaching session, coaching method and learning process through video skills training, age group training 1 and 2, nutrition and hydration, laws of the game, and course review.

The practical part will have coaches learning about warming up and cooling down exercises, coordination/ball feeling/dribbling, passing 1 and 2, ball control, shooting, defending play, attacking play, and basic goalkeeping.

Coaches from various schools on Saipan attended the first day of the clinic. The list includes Gregorio T. Camacho Elementary School’s Lindsay Davis, Thin Thin Concon, and Tawny Barcinas, San Antonio’s Cenon Ayuman II, Cha Cha Junior High School’s Melody Matson, Hopwood’s Timothy Williams, Frankie Angel, Joseph Ferrari, and Natalie Hill, Kagman’s Francisco Arurang and Ma. Hellena Jebeh, Southern’s Ben Wood and Glenn Smith, and San Vicente’s Temary Gramlich.

Other coaches who joined the clinic were Gregory Borja, Kati Peters, Amanda Allen, Steven McKagan, Jan Ravell, Maryana Nora Gramlick, John Lee, A.J. Taitano, Charles McEntee, and Patricia Coleman.

Caslib said the course aimed to teach local coaches the proper and effective way of coaching, particularly mentoring for youth teams.

He said through the course, coaches will learn their roles on key areas of the game, such as technique, tactical, physical, psychological, and the social aspect of the sport.

“Coaches must have the knowledge of the mechanics of the game, individual technique and skill development, and specific and detailed coaching and demonstrating,” said Caslib, an AFC A Licence coach.

The Filipino coach who has been coaching teams in various tournaments in Asia added without a knowledgeable coach, players’ development will be hampered.

“If the coach doesn’t even know the basic of the sport, such as dribbling, passing, and goal defending, and he just decides to coach to be with a team, players efforts in every game will be wasted,” Caslib added.

The member of the Technical Development Committee of the Philippine Football Federation said he is happy to learn more parents and teachers on island are involved in coaching, as this will create more potential licensed coaches for the CNMI.

“All they need is proper training and knowledge through various courses to get the kids working in right direction,” said Caslib, who was in Qingdao, China last year to conduct an AFC B license course.

NMIFA technical director and CNMI head coach Nick Swaim welcomed Caslib’s presence on the island saying this will give local coaches an opportunity to get AFC certification without having to go off-island.

“Also local coaches can share what they will learn to friends or fellow teachers who are interested to coach and in the end we will have more coaches willing to teach our kids the proper way of playing football,” Swain said.