Recipe for Success:

  • Add: 1 experienced soccer coach (+wife) to 60 teenaged Costa Rican Kids
  • + 12 soccer balls= 1 unforgettable season!

Geronimo Whitaker and wife Vickie shared their soccer enthusiasm with their neighborhood in San Roque, Costa Rica in 2009. Whitaker is an American Youth Soccer Organization (AYSO) “B” Nationally Certified coach since 1988.

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When Team USA and Costa Rica made it through to the quarter finals of the World Cup, I , as a coach and ex-patriate who lived in Costa Rica, felt a great sense of pride in that accomplishment. In 2005, my wife and I had relocated to Costa Rica to retire, selecting the centrally city of Grecia, renowned for its drinking water, climate and its famous Metal Church. In my third year there, after watching a match on the soccer field near my house, I mentioned to a local shopkeeper that I had experience coaching kids in the United States through the American Youth Soccer Organization (AYSO).

The following day a grey haired gentleman, “Uncle Ben”, showed up at my gate, asking if I were interested in coaching a team of the local community kids. He explained to me that there were several households of youngsters, spread around the pueblo who wanted to train. He knew them well and said that he would serve as my assistant if I accepted. He gave me a list of about 16 kids and told me that I could meet them at the “cancha” (soccer field) the next day.

Anyone who has been to Costa Rica knows that soccer, or “futbol” is an integral part of their culture. Every town has at least one soccer field, if not more. I recalled seeing from the bus window kids kicking a well-worn ball on a dirt field with bamboo poles for the goal posts. People wearing the colors of the local regional teams paint the community into red and black “Ligistas” or purple and yellow “Saprisitas” or jerseys from international professional teams as well.

I accepted and my wife and our dog walked over to the field to meet them. They were waiting in the shade of the community bingo hall/ soccer field with Uncle Ben. The group of sixteen boys were aged from 9 to 16 and all eyes were anticipating a real “Director Technico” to coach them right where they lived, especially a “gringo” with dreadlocks. Thus began one of the most exciting seasons I have ever had in my 25 years of coaching.

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I felt competent to share what I had learned from being certified through the AYSO National Coaches Training, although as I watched a few of the players ball skills, I wondered if I could realistically teach them anything. One of my first questions to them as a group was to ask if they wanted to play by the perhaps the most important of the AYSO-concepts: Everyone plays. Unanimously, they said “Si!” and so began the unforgettable season.

In order to learn their names, I made a “player information” sheet on each of them, along with their picture taken with a ball under one arm. Also a few history and safety questions, so that we had current phone numbers and parents’ names for all, years of experience, and favorite position, which we kept in a notebook. I also snapped photos of practices with my digital camera and would print a few of them each time and put them in the notebook.

This became a focal point before each practice as the kids gathered around to see who was featured. Uncle Ben led the kids in a “clean-up” day, where they pulled piles of sticker-laden weeds and picked up broken glass and all the trash that was near the field. He also got permission from the local community development board for me to paint the team name on the side of the little building, giving it a make-over and proudly proclaiming our new team.

Word spread quickly through the town of what was happening. Within two weeks, the roster in the notebook went from 16 to 54, adding another tier of younger kids as well, from six to twelve year olds, who wanted a piece of the action. Uncle Ben arranged for several of the local shop-owners to make donations for equipment and soon I was downtown buying soccer goalie gloves, balls and cones for practice.

Another neighbor, a young man trained as a nutritionalist (as well as a former player), volunteered to talk to the kids about what kind of foods would help their bodies develop and help me doing drills on the field. My wife devised a beverage for the players made from natural red hibiscus tea and honey, which became a favorite on the sidelines, as well as the dozens of oranges she quartered for snacks. She visited the local used clothing stores until we had a full complement of red tee shirts to use as penny’s during scrimmages. We even attracted a few players from neighboring communities who were curious about the new “DT” in San Roque. My wife and I soon realized that we were coming out of our retirement to be full time coach and soccer mom.

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With the influx of new kids, I knew that I had to become better organized. I asked a number of the older players if they would like to learn how to coach the younger players under my direction. About a half dozen stepped forward and so began the expanded phase of our training program: big kids coaching the little “mosquito” team. My AYSO training served me well, as I selected skill-drills that taught basic and higher level tactical and strategic ideas, that the older kids could appreciate as they trained their younger cohorts.

Meanwhile, Uncle Ben had been active, drumming up support in the form of uniforms for both teams as well as a transport van so that we could play “away” games. In a short time, we were travelling to play other youth football clubs. Our weekends began with the older team players arriving at our house to help load up the equipment, snacks and balls followed by a ride through the serpentine hills amidst the banter and chatter of the kids. I vividly recall my wife asking me, “How did we get here?” although her smiling energy never faltered.

Our first game brought a validation. Matched against a nearby community, we donned our uniforms and went through our warm-ups. The host team was duly impressed but that didn’t change their intention to send us home as losers. But goals were not forthcoming for either team. In the final quarter of the game, it was time to substitute our youngest player, nicknamed “Chuleta”, as a mid-fielder. Immediately, the opposition tested the young player, sending the ball his way on the feet of their best winger.

Each time, the attack was turned by the young player, playing really big time and showing well when he finally stole the ball and started a counter-attack. When regular time expired, we went to the shoot-out. Although our goalkeeper let one get by, all the players were grinning ear-to-ear as we wound our way back down the mountain, reliving all the exciting action of the game. One of the players led a cheer for “Chuleta”, saluting his grit and determination, to not let the team down. He beamed with pride. It is a moment that I cherish even now.

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The experience of coaching a Costa Rica team of youngsters will always be a highlight to our living outside of the U.S.A. The season passed when the rains came, but the memories we made, playing in the sun, will never fade.

Recently we received a newspaper clipping with a team photo of our local middle school, winners in the Costa Rican 2012 National Tournament of Schools, featuring Ariel G., one of the “mosquitos” as the team’s highest scorer. Perhaps a spot on a future World Cup national selection team is awaiting that young player, and with that, my dream as a coach will be complete.

The allegiance to our own family called us back finally, and now the garden house has a caretaker. The plan for next season, is being assistant coach to my grandson’s soccer team, here in Seattle, Washington. Looking back, I know that I made the right choices.

The World Cup performances of Costa Rica showed a high level of play and camaraderie. It was clear that they loved being together on the field. My wife and I feel warmed by having had our own opportunities to experience some of the special “pura vida” of the Ticos first hand.

It brought all who watched the games to a higher level of appreciation.

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Written by VIP MemberJ. Geronimo Whitaker and his wife, Vickie, who live in Edmonds, Washington where he writes, paints and coaches soccer..

The Unforgettable Season. Soccer in San Roque, Costa Rica 2009.

Article/Property ID Number 4846

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