ABOUT US

Toca Juniors Football Club, Inc. (Toca Jrs or the Club) is an institution that fosters the physical and social development of its members through their participation in organized soccer leagues and sports related events. The Club was formed in 1996 and was incorporated in Maryland in 2007 as a 501(c)(iii) non-profit organization.

Toca Juniors Football Club, Inc. mission is to enhance the soccer development of our players, also creating a lifelong relationship between the club and its members (families and players).

Currently, the club is staffed by a Club President, Club Vice-President, Club Director, Club Secretary, Club Registrar, Managers Coordinator, Coordinator of Youth Divisions, Youth Girls Coordinator, Director of Coaching, Player Development Advisor, Physical Training Coach, and 18 part-time coaches. The club boosts teen youth teams (ages 4 to 18). This accounts for approximately 250 youth players (150 Boys & 100 Girls) and 105+ adult players (35 Women’s & 70 Men’s) that also play soccer on an informal basis.

Athletic Development

A set philosophy that goes beyond a single coach
● Analogy to home schooling
● Defined soccer style (teamwork and technical development)
● Character development, sportsmanship.

Finding the right coaches
● We focus on this aspect
● We recruit coaches that are familiar with the club.

Providing the right level of competition (always!).

Coaches just focus on player development (club management takes care of the rest).

Two teams per age bracket
● Enhances training opportunities
● Facilitates activities during the off-season.

Flexible structure
● You can move among the two teams
● Playing with older players.

Presence of adult teams as role models.

Our Name

TOCA
This word comes from the Spanish verb 'to touch'. If used in the context of a football match it simply means 'to pass' the ball. Taken in a larger context, a 'Tocadita' or 'Toca' represents a style of football. A style that relies equally on skill and team work where the joy for the game is the epicenter.

JUNIORS
Players that come under this structure do so to learn, to develop and absorb from their senior counterparts.

FOOTBALL
The English word is used because we admire and identify with the English professionalism and rectitude towards the sport. The dedication, organization and effort is something we continually look to implement and shadow.

CLUB
It's not just a team, it's a family of people who love to compete, to exercise, and more importantly to share their friends and family by attending games, professional matches, barbeques and all sorts of social events organized by the club.

LITTLE ABOUT US

Our origins, experience and project
Established in 1996, the Club came to life as a simple indoor team organized by a few mates who shared the passion for football and competition. At the time, most of the founding members were involved in other competitive teams but felt that there was something missing. In the search for more than passes and goals, the club quickly built a reputation for its comraderie. As the seasons progressed and the interest grew it moved into 11 aside leagues where it quickly conquered their first championship (we are still awaiting for the trophy thou...!) The team originated from a heavily Hispanic group; thus the Hispanic name. It has since evolved into a club where anyone with a passion for football Costls at home. Currently the Club is represented by more than dozen nationalities.

Our Adult teams
Our adult teams are an intricate part of the club. La Tocadita (as our adult teams are called) provides opportunities for adults to compete and engage in the game and in the club. Many parents of youth players and club directors actively participate in these teams. Likewise, most of our coaches currently sport the club's NAVY BLUE uniform! We encourage youth team players to attend these games as they can see their own coaches play. They will have the opportuntity to absorb the passion for the game as well as learning the technical aspects of adult competition.

Our experience with youth teams
The initiative to create the Club Structure is driven by the great experience we had with our first youth team. We guided a core group of players for 7 years until the "boys" (now turned men) departed for University. This superb trip (numerous championships and sportmanship awards) left us with plenty ideas as to how to repeat the experience on a personal level - where we shared practices, games, college application processes, BBQs and much more - as well as how to improve on the training and athletic development we provide. We invite you to read through our philosophy section.

What we seek
The resulting game plan has been to develop a proper club structure, thus we have integrated our youth teams to our adult divisions. The initiative is well on its way as it can be seen in our website were you can get a Costl of where we are headed and the general atmosphere we provide. The core concept and essence is to train two teams together. We believe that this will give more liberty and alternatives in terms of conducting drills, scrimmages and competitive games during practices. We think that by pooling our efforts and creating a single atmosphere kids will bond more as they will Costl part of something more significant, with more presence.

Coaching Philosophy
To further explain the goal of pooling our coaching efforts, we find that an aspect that can greatly enhance the development of a child is the variation of drills and exercises; repetitiveness can create a stale atmosphere and can also lead to overdeveloping certain aspects of a player while leaving others unattended. We find that when we coach together, the presence of various licensed coaches leads to more variation and a “fresher” more enthusiastic practice. Furthermore, as one coach leads the effort in organizing and setting the tone of the practice, the other coaches can approach players individually to offer one-on-one support making the atmosphere more relaxed and friendly. Often the problem with a one coach approach is that the coach is too busy giving explanations and commands, instead of relaxing and getting to know the players. Lastly, having multiple coaches allows us to avoid the involvement of parents on the practice itself. We find that as helpful as they are, a licensed coach who has extensive experience coaching and playing is a much better alternative as an assistant coach than a parent.

Enhancing our abilities in teaching/coaching young children
Many players from our U19 group will be attending Universities in the area, allowing them to continue their involvement with the club by playing in our adult divisions. They have also expressed their interest in helping out with our youth divisions. This is an invaluable resource, as they know the atmosphere and spirit of the club, making them the perfect ambassadors as we transmit our soccer culture to our newcomers. Kids are normally consciously or unconsciously looking for role models. Superstars and professional athletes can be excellent examples, but on practical terms, a child cannot implement aspects of these figures into their day-to-day activities and personal lives. A coach is a great role model as well, but sometimes due to age difference they can seem a bit distant. Kids often relate-to and are more open to suggestions from young adults as they see them as older brothers and not as “parents”. Under our club structure, the kids have an easy time developing a good a rapport with our alumni as a clear bond exists. This relationship becomes an additional avenue for communication and integration.