Calling all soccer fans (including soccer moms and dads)! We recently teamed up with our friends at Ontario Soccer and Toronto FC to surprise some soccer protégés from the Oakville Soccer Club with a visit from the pros. Watch as Liam Fraser, Alex Bono, Justin Morrow and Drew Moor help young players sharpen their soccer skills.
[On-screen image: We open on an image of four TFC soccer stars standing shoulder to shoulder…]
[On-screen text: 4 STARS: Alex Bono, Liam Fraser, Justin Morrow, Drew Moor]
[On-screen image: four kids standing shoulder to shoulder…]
[On-screen text: 4 KIDS: Austin, Audrey, Jasleen, Sumail]
[On-screen image: four moms standing shoulder to shoulder…]
[On-screen text: 4 MOMS: Annie, Natasha, Raj, Myriam]
[On-screen image: split screen of 4 kids playing soccer with blue overlay]
[On-screen text: SOCCER SKILLS 4 LESSONS, Sonnet & TFC logos]
[Four kids on soccer field walking towards their coach, moms are sitting in the sidelines]
>>Coach: Now we are going to talk about building the wall.
[On-screen image: coach pointing at soccer net with four full-sized cardboard cutouts of players in front of soccer net]
>>Coach: Drew Moor on the right, Liam Fraser in the middle, Justin Morrow on the left and Alex Bono in net.
[On-screen image: camera zooms in on cardboard cutouts of players and soccer net]
>>Coach: You ready to talk about the video?
[On-screen image: coach gestures for kids to follow him]
>>Coach: Alright, let’s go talk about the video.
[On-screen image: coach gestures for moms to follow him]
>>Coach: Moms!
[On-screen image: moms walk towards coach]
[On-screen image: coach pointing to instructional image of players in net, inside of a tent]
>>Coach: Alright, we have three players. How much are they covering of the wall?
[On-screen image: kids listening to coach inside tent]
>>Kids: Half!
[On-screen image: crew walks into soccer stadium and begins to remove cardboard cutouts of soccer players]
>>Coach: Half. The goalkeeper always sets up the wall.
[On-screen image: coach instructing kids inside of tent]
>>Coach: And what he will do is set them up, moving the tallest to the shortest.
[On-screen image: soccer stars sneaking into stadium, as crew removes cutouts]
>>Coach: And he’ll line them up and that will allow him to cover the other side.
[On-screen image: soccer stars take the place of cardboard cutouts]
>>Coach: So now we’ll get ready and we’ll go practice this on our own.
[On-screen image: coach walks out of tent with kids as players stand lined up in front of the net on the field, in place of the cardboard cutouts]
>>Coach: Take a look! Now we’re going to do it with some real players!
[On-screen image: kids exit the tent, surprised & happy to see the star soccer players]
>>Kids: Holy!
>>Players: What’s up guys! What’s going on?
[On-screen image: kids with hands over their mouths in surprise, go to greet the players. They shake hands with the players as they continue to look on in shock]
>>Kids: Hi Bono!
[On-screen image: We see one of the young players doing a drill over cones, he skips over each move and the ball expertly]
[On-screen image: Close up of Alex Bono: TFC Soccer Star]
[On-screen text: BULDING THE WALL with Alex Bono]
[On-screen image: Alex Bono instructs kids on the soccer field with coach and players standing in the background]
>>Alex Bono: Alright guys, come on in!
[On-screen image: Alex Bono positions kids into a wall against the soccer net]
aUsually when we’re setting up the wall, we go from tallest to shortest. So we are going to have you come over on the end over here, all the way on the end, and we are all going to get really tight together. Really tight! Really tight!
[On-screen image: kids stand in wall formation]
>>Alex Bono: Keep your hands in front of you. Up on your toes. Up on your toes and just stand there…
[On-screen image: kids practicing the wall]
>>Alex Bono: and hopefully the ball hits you so I don’t even have to make a save!
[On-screen image: Close up of Justin Morrow: TFC Soccer Star]
[On-screen text: STEPOVERS with Justin Morrow]
[On-screen image: Justin Morrow speaking to kids]
>> Justin Morrow: Alright guys, a stepover is a move you can do to get by somebody where you fake one way and go the other way.
[On-screen image: Justin Morrow demonstrating the Stepover move with kids, moms & players watching]
>> Justin Morrow: It looks like this.
[On-screen image: close up of Justin Morrow demonstrating the Stepover with one of the young players trying to get the ball. Justin Morrow gets past the young player without a problem]
>> Justin Morrow (off screen): Now you try!
[On-screen image: 4 kids running with the ball practicing the Stepover]
>> Justin Morrow (off screen): A little speed! A little speed!
[On-screen image: one of the girls practicing the Stepover]
>> Justin Morrow (off screen): Good control! That’s it! Well done, well done!
>> Players: Oh, good touch! Keep it up!
[On-screen image: girl kicks the ball to the players]
>> Players: Good job!
[On-screen image: Close up of Liam Fraser: TFC Soccer Star]
[On-screen text: TRIANGLES with Liam Fraser]
[On-screen image: Liam Fraser describing Triangle skill as kids look on]
>> Liam Fraser: When you have two attackers and one defender, the best way to get by them is using a triangle pass.
[On-screen image: Liam Fraser demonstrates the Triangle Pass with two young players. He passes the ball to Justin Morrow, who gets past the young player to pass back to Liam Fraser]
[Additional On-screen image: lines appear on the screen to illustrate triangle]
[On-screen image: Close up of Drew Moor: TFC Soccer Star]
[On-screen text: Chipping with Drew Moor]
[On-screen image: Drew Moor explaining Chipping to the young players who are paying close attention]
>> Drew Moor: When passing the ball in a game, you can either kick it along the ground or chip it to a teammate in the air, by kicking slightly under the ball. Kind of like this.
[On-screen image: Drew Moor kicks the ball in the air towards the kids. The ball lands perfectly into a hoop in front of the kids]
[On-screen image: Drew Moor smiles and looks at the camera and points with satisfaction]
>> Drew Moor: Alright, now you guys should come give it a try.
[On-screen image: the kids practice Chipping the ball to each other as players and moms look on]
>> Player: Alright kids, it’s time for you to teach your moms this skill.
[On-screen image: moms practicing soccer through cones as coach watches on]
[On-screen image: close up of Alex Bono]
>> Alex Bono: Ohhhh, moms got talent!
[On-screen image: moms, kids and players all practicing together and kicking the ball into the net]
[On-screen image: close up of mom smiling after she scores goal]
[On-screen image: 4 moms and coach standing shoulder to shoulder]
[On-screen image: TFC stars giving high fives to young players and moms]
[On-screen image: Group shot of TFC players, kids & moms. Ball comes flying in and is caught by one of the young players standing in the middle.]
[On-screen text: THE NEXT GENERATION IS HERE]
[On-screen text: TFC, Sonnet Home + Auto & Ontario Soccer Association logos]
[Legal Disclaimer: “Toronto FC”, and associated word marks and logos are trademarks, designs and other forms of intellectual property of Major League Soccer, L.L.C., Used by permission © TFC 2019. MLS All rights reserved. Sonnet Insurance is a registered trademark. Sonnet Insurance Company is a federally regulated insurance company.]
Seeing the moms just as excited as the kids reminded us how big of a role parents play in their kid’s success as athletes. We felt it was only right to ask Drew, Alex, Liam and Justin how their parents kept them motivated from youth soccer to playing with the pros.
How did your parents play a role in your success?
Alex: They’ve been a huge part of my success. From driving me to practices and games, to supporting me and just being real role models to me growing up.
Drew: They missed a bunch of holidays to take me to soccer tournaments; every Thanksgiving or Easter – whatever it was – they were always travelling and supporting me in my soccer career. They still do today as a 35-year-old.
Justin: I definitely would not be here if it weren’t for my parents. They were the driving force for my success. Especially at a young age, they’d drive me across the city early in the morning so I could get to my games. I couldn’t have done it without them!
Liam: They were massive. I think them sacrificing their time to drive me and come watch me play, was huge.
Do you have kids of your own? Do they play soccer?
Drew: I do, yeah. I have two little boys. They’re in Little Kickers, and I take them to practice together. Their practices are usually on Sunday mornings, so as long as we don’t have a game that day, I’m able to take them.
Justin: I do, I have two daughters. And of course! I will definitely be putting them in soccer when they’re old enough.
What kind of soccer dad will you be?
Justin: I’m so excited to be a soccer dad! I’m going to have the big car and drive all of their friends to practice.
What’s something memorable your parents have said to you before, during or after a game?
Alex: Too many things, honestly. But one big thing that I remember was when I was playing in college. They’d come to all my games – every single one. Right before the game started, I would look over at where they were sitting and give them a little hand motion. Kind of like a “thank you for being here”, and I see you in the crowd.
Justin: My parents still come to games and it’s nice still having them there. I always come by and share a moment with them in the stands. They’ve seen the whole progression, from youth soccer all the way up to professional.
Liam: Just seeing them after the game, knowing they were in the stands. Regardless if I play or not, it’s nice knowing they were there.
What advice would you give young kids who are getting into soccer? What advice would you give their parents?
Alex: Find a love for the game. Become a fan of it. To the parents, I would say just have patience. Soccer is a lot of travel and a lot of dedication. Try and stick with it for as long as they decide to play and be as supportive as possible.
Drew: I would say to just enjoy it and don’t put too much pressure on yourself. Go out and have fun with your friends. Work as hard as you can but have fun. We still have fun every day in soccer. For parents, I’d say let your kid do what they want to do. If your kid loves soccer, you’ll know it. My parents always let me play other sports and do other things that I was interested in. Allowing kids do what they love is the most important thing.
Justin: Work hard, practice a lot and watch a lot of professional soccer. They can learn a lot from just watching the game.
Liam: Just enjoy it, have fun with it. At that age, you can’t take it too seriously. Find a love for it more than anything. For the parents I’d say just let them play. You don’t want to be too involved at a young age. If it gets more serious as they get older, then you can get more involved.
With all this scheduling talk, we thought it’d be a good reminder to schedule in some family time with a family trip to BMO Field! Sports bring people and families together, so here’s the 2019 schedule for Toronto FC.
Saturday, July 27th – 8pm
FC Cincinnati @ BMO Field
Saturday, August 3rd – 6pm
New York Red Bulls @ Red Bull Arena
Saturday, August 10th – 7:30pm
Orlando City SC @ BMO Field
Saturday, August 17th – 7:30pm
Columbus Crew SC @ MAPFRE Stadium
Saturday, August 24th – 7:30pm
Montreal Impact @ BMO Field
Saturday, August 31st – 7:30pm
New England Revolution @ Gillette Stadium
Saturday, September 7th – 7:30pm
FC Cincinnati @ Nippert Stadium
Wednesday, September 11th – 7pm
New York City FC @ Yankee Stadium
Sunday, September 15th – 5pm
Colorado Rapids @ BMO Field
Saturday, September 21st – 10:30pm
Los Angeles FC @ Banc of California Stadium
Sunday, September 29th – 5pm
Chicago Fire @ Seatgeek Stadium
Sunday, October 6th – 4pm
Columbus Crew SC @ BMO Field
"Toronto FC”, and associated word marks and logos are trademarks, designs and other forms of intellectual property of Major League Soccer, L.L.C., Used by permission © TFC 2019. MLS All rights reserved.