Skill Centre @Westhills

WIA is a Full Lower Island Soccer Association member and participates in the weekly LISA development league against other LISA member clubs.

Selected Players (U9-U10)

• Players are invited to join the Skill Centre Foundation Training Program
• Players may register with other LISA Clubs to participate in their House League
• Those players who choose to register with WIA only will participate in the Active Start Festival under WIA
• WIA does not offer an in-club house league for this age group
• This Program is co-ed.

Selected Players (U10/U11-U12)

• Players invited to join the Skill Centre, will register with WIA, be placed into training groups.
• Players will be combined and rostered weekly for LISA games together with players from the Skill Centre @UVIC.
• WIA Rangers teams play in the LISA U11 & U12 Developmental League, Girls and Boys, which aligns with Canada Soccer requirements for Skill Centres
• WIA does not have set teams, but fluid rosters that are created weekly according to the competition and individual player’s development

Spring Session

• The Skill Centre Spring program is open to all players in the district
• There are limited spots available. Players must apply and be assessed
• Selected players will join the WIA Rangers and train from April to June
• Priority registration is given to players wishing to join the Skill Centre for the next season

2024/2025 season

• Start date -September 2024
• End date – June 2025

Training Block 1: September 8 –  December 11, 2024

• 2 Training sessions per week (Technical and SSG incorporated)
  • 60-75 mins training sessions
• 1 session per week (Whitecaps: Vancouver Island Prospects Academy)
  • Sunday: October 20 – December 8
  • 75 min session
• Participation in a LISA Active Start Festival

Training Block 2: January 6 – March 13, 2025

• 2 Training sessions per week (Technical and SSG incorporated)
  • 60-75 mins training sessions
• 1 session per week (Whitecaps: Vancouver Island Prospects Academy)
  • Sunday:  January 12 – March 9 (No session Feb 16)
  • 75 min session

Training Block 3: April 7 – June 18, 2025

• 2 Training sessions per week (Technical and SSG incorporated)
  • 60-75 mins training sessions
• 1 session per week (Whitecaps: Vancouver Island Prospects Academy)
  • Sunday. April 6 – June 8 (no sessions April 20 / May 18)
  • 75 min session

PROGRAM FEES

• $1,600 (September to June – 2 sessions per week)
• Additional Fees
  • $660 – Whitecaps: Vancouver Island Prospects Academy (highly recommended)
    • $220 – October 20 – December 8
    • $220 – January 12 – March 9 (No session Feb 16)
    • $220 – Sunday. April 6 – June 8 (no sessions April 20 / May 18)
  • $100 LISA League Fee (U9-U10) – Foundations Players registering with WIA
  • $180 LISA League Fee (U10-U12) – WIA Rangers
  • $80 Base Kit (2 training jerseys, shorts, 2 pairs of socks)
  • $75 Training Jacket
• All players receive
  • Standards-based curriculum
  • LISA Development League games (U11-U13)
  • Professional coaching
  • Low player-to-coach ratios

PHYSICAL LITERACY:

Our program delivers physical literacy training in agility, balance & coordination, basic motor skills, flexibility & mobility, perception & awareness, reaction time, and speed.

PSYCHOSOCIAL DEVELOPMENT:

The Psychosocial development program will be delivered in partnership with the University of Victoria, Centre for Outreach Education (CORE). The program focuses on psychosocial development in 2-4-week cycles with age-appropriate activities in areas such as

• individual motivation
• self-confidence, respect & discipline
• concentration, cooperation, teamwork
• competition, sportsmanship and team spirit building

TECHNICAL TRAINING:

With the understanding of age-appropriate levels of intensity and workload, technical training will focus on

• passing and receiving
• dribbling
• ball control
• turning
• running with the ball
• shielding the ball
• shooting
• finishing on goal

TACTICAL TRAINING:

With the understanding of age-appropriate levels of intensity and workload, tactical training will focus on:

• combination plays
• 1v1 attacking
• receiving on turn
• crossing and finishing
• positional play
• finishing on goal
• movement off the ball
• 1v1 defending

The Tactical emphasis is on possession, passing accuracy, and fluid movement between the orthodox delineations of midfield and attacking principles.

The Skill Centre is a standards-based program, therefore all players applying to the Skill Centre must attend an ID camp for evaluation.

Players will be evaluated along all 4 aspects of player development; mental, physical, technical and tactical skill.

Once ID camps are completed, selected players will be invited to join WIA’s Skill Centres.

Please visit our ID camps page for ID Camp Dates: PLAYER IDENTIFICATION CAMP

The placement of players is based on a variety of variables:

• “Soccer Age” (player’s maturity, physical age, technical ability and overall understanding of soccer)
• Stage of physical development and literacy (fluid and ever-changing)
• Team dynamic
• Biological age

Some players may play in their biological age group, while others are placed on teams based on their soccer age. WIA technical coaches decide a player’s placement on an individual basis.

Parents and players must understand the following as it relates to the Skill Centre and WIA Teams. WIA:

• Cannot enroll more players than the player-to-coach ratio allows
  • Priority registration will be given to players selected for WIA Teams
  • Should space allow, additional spots will be given to players seeking supplementary training from other clubs
• Cannot turn away players who show promise just because they are inexperienced at the present moment
• Cannot accurately predict the potential or future performance of a player
• Cannot guarantee that your player will make the BCSPL team at U13 because the characteristics of young players are not the same as those of mature elite athletes
• Can develop and support players who are ready and willing to train, follow our standards-based training methods and trust our judgement as it relates to their development

Technical – understanding of what a technical player is – willing to receive technical training, perceptive to developing technique (quality of the touch of the ball).

Playing games and taking part in tournaments does not equate to the technical development of a player.

Intelligence – understanding the game, understanding instructions and ability to apply those instructions to play and game… following through the instructions (Game understanding – tactical understanding)

Personality – attitude, attention, coachability, decision-making, creative thinking, motivation, concentration, communication (psychosocial)

Speed – physical development, speed of thought and speed of action, problem-solving, the intensity of training