Kenya Football .:. Story - Player Grading/evaluation:

PLAYER GRADING/EVALUATION: - kenyafootball.com image

PLAYER GRADING/EVALUATION:

Hassan Juma

What makes one player better than another? Afterall, they all kick, dribble, pass, head and shoot. And yet there are those players, like Cruyff, Pele, Beckenbauer, Zidane, Kadenge, Abbass, Thigo, etc. about whom there is no doubt that they are above the fray and should be in the National team. Their leadership qualities, ball mastery, work ethic, and influence on the game are so outstanding that one does not have to be a professional to know that these are exceptional players.

What about the bulk of players who usually are the "journeymen", the soldiers, so to speak, who make up the team, without whom these "stars" would not shine? Coaches, for the most part, look at the same things in players. In our case, they may not articulate what it is they are looking for, but it comes down to four main areas: technical ability, tactical ability, psychological or mental qualities and physical abilities.

Technical skills simply mean the ability of the player to "play" the game, what we used to refer to as "kusakata". The main areas are:

Passing - Are passes accurate and well weighted over varying distances, i.e. are long passes too strong, too weak, are short passes too short, is the timing right for the speed of the game, does the pass slow down the progression of play or speed it, does the game need slowing down or speeding up at the time of the pass and is it the right type of pass, etc.

Receiving - Are first touches of the ball good and the right type, i.e. away from pressure; into pressure to draw away opponents for a quick one two or a deception; are balls controlled well using varying body surfaces, (chest, thigh, body, feet). Are touches too long, too short, just right depending on the tempo of the game?

Heading - Is all aroung ability good? Does the player make appropriate use of the head? Does he head too much, too little? Is the quality of heading good?

Ball Striking - Are balls struck cleanly and accurately with proper pace? Are the proper strikes being utilized most of the time: power versus placement, float versus lob, etc.
1 vs 1 Duels - Are attackers able to beat defenders on the dribble; are defenders challenges well timed and sensible? Do the attackers make the right decision on their dribble? Do they play in a way that create numbers for attack? Do they dribble when passing would have been more reasonable most of the time?

Tactical is how they play the game. How they put their technical skills into practice and how they use their natural craftiness, strategies or inborn craftiness. This is not to say that these cannot be learnt. I have known players in the past who lacked this ability in the beginning of their careers, but with constant practice, hard work and ridicule from team mates, became legends in their time.

I'm not going to mention any names, but I'm sure some of you may know such players. The main areas are:

Vision/Awareness - Ability to read the game. Real visionary players, usually midfielders, see what others, including spectators, do not see. Others see the opportunity only after the pass or the manouvre has been made. Pele, or our very own Aluko, or others I could easily name, come to mind.

Influence upon the game - Ability to positively influence the game positively. If the player is substituted in, is his influence immediately felt? Is he playing a vital role in the game?

Cleverness/Intelligence - Is the player creative? Deceptive? Does he make opponents fall for his tricks or realize they have been tricked too late?

Leadership Quality - Does the player lead verbally and by action? Does his team mates listen to him without getting antagonized. Is he able to calm things down when the team is under pressure? Does he get the respect of the referee?

Tactically Disciplined - Does the player display the above qualities under all circumstances or only when there is no pressure? Is he as dangerous in the ninetieth minute as he is in the first minute?

Psychological qualities simply put, means what type of player the person is. Is it easy to play or get along with them, are they reliable, can they be depended on to do a good job under adversity, are they good representatives of the team?
The main areas are:

Composure - How does the player cope with pressure or adversity?

Aggression - Is the player determined to fight for every ball in a spirited and determined manner? Is he courageous? Is he willing and enthusiastic to go the "extra mile", to even slide tackle, knowing full well that the field is rough and he is going to scrape the skin of his outer thighs?

Attitude/Honesty - Does the player have respect for the game, other players, coaches, officials? Is he trustworthy? Is his out of the field comportment good? Does the player carry himself with dignity at all times? Can others depend on him? Does the player take responsibility for his actions? Is he an easy camper? Does he adhere to rules?

Concentration/Consistency - Does the player have the ability to remain focused at all times? Is he adversely affected by adversity, like poor refereeing, for example or a hostile home environment? Is he like this most of the time or only at certain times? Does not being paid his allowance or salary on time affect his concentration? Do transfer negotiations or crucialness of a game change his consistency?

Confidence - Does the player believe in himself in all situations. Does he deteriorate into over confidence at times or self doubt? Does a particular game situation affect his confidence or self belief?

Physical qualities are closely tied to psychological. This is an area that involves a lot of discipline. As everyone knows, skilled players have more temptations than the average person and keeping good physical qualities can be quite a challenge.

The main areas are:

Stature - Player's height and build. Is the player maintaining the optimal weight and physicality for his body type? Has he chosen his position based on his physical abilities? Is he afraid of making changes to suit his stature?

Pace - Outstanding speed or deceptive change.

Agility/Balance - Quick reaction, change of direction/pace.

Strength/Power - How does the player deal with physical situations. Is he a "diver"? Is he rattled by physical players? Is he too physical or too weak?

Stamina/Endurance - Does the player compete for the duration of the game? In a tournament, does his stamina decrease as the tournament goes on? On an away game, is his stamina good on the first day and poor on the second?

In the United States, players are given points, from 1 to 5, in each of the embolded areas above. Since there are 20 areas, the total should add up to 100. They are then graded from A to E as follows:

• A = 80 - 100 National
• B = 60 - 79 Regional
• C = 50 - 59 State
• D = 30 - 49 Club
• E = Less than 30 Developmental Stage

This system can easily be adapted to our country as follows:

• A National
• B Provincial
• C District
• D Location
• E Developmental Stage

The National team coach will still have descretion of course, to call up a player who may not have met the minimum National criteria, but who he thinks can be useful to the National team in a specific area.

Other areas more suitable to our situation can be added or modified. A good starting point will be to mandate ALL youth coaches to issue written evaluations to players in their teams at least twice a year. There should also be youth player evaluations at all national competitions/tournaments.

The writer is a registered USSF Class 1 State referee and a certified and registered referee assessor, and currently in the Board of Directors of North Orange County Referee Association where he is in charge of referee assessment and mentoring. He has been involved in both the 1999 and 2003 FIFA Women World Cups. He was a Class 1 referee in Kenya and formerly Branch Secretary of the North Rift Valley area, of Kenya Football Referees Association.