Jill Ellis was the featured speaker at theWashington Youth Soccer’s 50th Anniversary Gala. Although born in England she came to America during her formative years, when the first youth soccer boom was well underway. At that time, the U.S. Women’s National Team was in its infancy. Fortunately, one of the team’s early stars was in her midst and guided her development.
Who are the early women’s players you wanted to emulate?
Media wasn’t huge back then, so initially it was people within my inner circle. I had only played with boys in England. Here, my teammates–Megan McCarthy who was with the national team, and Julie Cunningham–were players I had tremendous respect for. You didn’t see (the top players) enough to try to emulate, but you held them in high esteem. There was real quality to see. In northern Virginia, Marcia McDermott was an exceptional player and very skillful. The player who was most influential as far as me wanting to get better was April Heinrichs. She was our assistant coach at William & Mary. April came in and was this uber-competitive person, and I loved it. Here was a woman where competition just seethed out of her. It was tremendous. She had great feet and quickness. I remember working on my footwork with her in training. I didn’t see her play for the national team; you didn’t have that kind of access. But in terms of players I respected and admired, April is at the top.
What’s your advice to all youth coaches, whatever the competitive level?
First, let’s make sure we have appropriate behavior on the sidelines. Anybody will do something if they enjoy it. Nobody likes being berated or being humiliated, and you sometimes still see that on the sideline. That’s got to end. The way you reach Millennials is not by putting them down, it’s challenging them with things and helping them see it will be a good result for them in the end. We must encourage coaches to grow and develop so they understand the player they’re working with. If I was the same coach today that I was five years ago, I’ve failed. It doesn’t matter if I won five championships. You’ve got to connect to your growth, that’s how our program consistently stays at the forefront.
Gala proceeds from will be directed to the new Washington Youth Soccer Foundation, which aims to make the game more accessible. What are the key issues in getting more kids access to the game?
It’s people being willing to go into areas where perhaps there is not a field or resources. Making the game more accessible means you have to look at the financial piece in terms of how much does a player have to pay to play. There has to be access to everyone. That’s a hindrance right now. It’s become economic and that’s a major hurdle that we must address and change. They are making strides and scholarshipping players, but it remains a major hurdle. Every little kid has played on a 5v5 side when they were 5 or 6. Kids are exposed to the game and now it’s about having a good experience. But you’ve got to make sure the game is accessible, and there are a lot of good people working hard and trying to take soccer to areas where there are these hurdles. It’s going to take a lot of effort on the ground.
How has your life changed since becoming coach of the USWNT?
In many ways it has changed and in many ways it has not. On a professional level, you can actually spend more time with the game, if that makes sense. You’re constantly watching international soccer, female or males. I’ve become even more of a student of the game because I’m constantly looking at the international game. When you’re in college you’re absorbed in recruiting. Some of my roles have been administrative or you’re coaching coaches. In this role I’ve gone back to my passion, which is my love for the game. I love the tactics, the chess pieces, and studying the trends. That’s the cerebral part of the game. On the human element side, it takes me a way from my family, but they understand and are very supportive. I feel very fortunate to do what I do with this team. It’s a fantastic group to work with. You’re able to do things with these players in terms of tactics and training that’s fairly advanced, so that makes it fun as well. I never lose sight of the fact that, if I take everything away, what this game has given is given me unbelievable friendships and memories and experiences. I feel very fortunate to have met these people. It’s been a great experience. I’m constantly trying to be a better version of your self, and I aspire to do that daily. It’s really important that you continue to not look where you are, but where you want to be.
What do you see as the keys for U.S. women’s soccer in the next 15 years? What do today’s young girls need to be doing, and the coaches for that matter, to keep U.S. women at the forefront of the global game?
When a kid graduates college, somewhere along the line an elementary, middle school or high school teacher has contributed to that person’s pathway, and that’s how I see the youth system. There are people in there that inspire or encourage or hold accountable; there are special people that have impacted a player’s pathway. The message is not just to continue to do that, but let’s continue to do it even better. The home run, for us at our level, is a technical thinker. It’s a player that has a high tactical acumen, and it’s about how do we accomplish that (through development). We saw it (in the Olympics) against Sweden; teams are going to limit your space. Athleticism becomes a little less of an advantage when there’s no space to run into. It’s really about a thought process and a technical proficiency, and that’s got to hammered home continually to our coaches and our young players. That almost is the key to a successful pathway now, and I see us continuing an upward trend.