CONGRATULATIONS RON EDELE

TG Lions Academy is proud to announce that Ron Edele has been selected as the US Youth Soccer Competitive Girls Coach of the Year for the Midwest Region.  The Competitive Coach of the Year is awarded to a competitive coach for both a boy's team and a girl's team for his or her coaching activities, sportsmanship, player development, personal coaching development and citizenship.

Ron has been a coach with the club for 3 years and has been very instrumental in helping to develop our young players. “I’m always looking for players to give maximum effort, show no fear, and to have a blast playing soccer” says Edele. He is very conscientious about making sure the training sessions are aligned with those goals. “I focus on making sure every training session, and game, has an element of all three areas so that each player can grow a little every time I get the chance to work with them” he adds.

Ron is pictured above in January 2020 with his family when he received the 2019 MYSA Coach of the Year Award 

Although Coach Ron has had many successes with coaching these players, that doesn’t mean he isn’t faced with challenges along the way. “Working with players from 4 to 18 does present many different challenges as no two players are the same,” says Edele. “Many times when they find a new skill to be challenging, or we are not winning every game, or they aren’t particularly having a great game, just helping them understand that it’s just soccer and that there will always be more soccer can put them at ease and allow them to just play” he adds. Ron always does his best to create a motivating environment for these players, which helps to build the foundation for each player.

“There is nothing better than watching a player have that “a ha” moment on the field. I get so excited and know that the time spent in training is worth it.” – Coach Ron

Ron understands the magnitude of the award due to the number of coaches that are involved in the game.  However, he has always been very humble about his personal achievements. “I’ve been involved with soccer since I was 4 years old, thanks to my father, and I’ve loved the game since.  I got into coaching when my daughters wanted to try soccer and it’s become my thing” says Edele. He added, “to be recognized for teaching something I love is something that I couldn’t imagine happening especially now at, both, the State and Regional level.”  In January Coach Ron was also named the Missouri Youth Soccer Associations Competitive Coach of the Year.

Advice for young coaches

“NEVER make it about just winning. For the younger age players, it HAS to be about fun and falling in love with the game. Create a “Fear Free” environment so players are willing to fail but always get up and try again” – Said Edele.

“Encourage creativity and praise the effort and attempts they make to try new things on the field. Stay calm and never get angry at a mistake on the field as no player can succeed without first making mistakes” he added.

Coach Ron is now one of four finalists for the US Youth Soccer National Competitive Girls Coach of the Year. The national Boys and Girls Competitive Coaches of the Year is announced at the US Youth Soccer Awards Gala, as a part of the US Youth Soccer Workshop held January 14, 2021.