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Offline royal

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Re: Dion La Foucade appointed Director of Coaching Education at FC Boulder
« Reply #150 on: November 02, 2015, 12:22:13 PM »

8 questions with Dion La Foucade, a past coach of U15 and U17 National Teams as well as Premier League Academies

Dion La Foucade is a 20+ year veteran coach who simply loves to spread the game. The18 caught up with the Trinidad and Tobago native who has traveled the world and is a true ambassador for the sport. He has coached youth programs at Liverpool F.C., Manchester United, Newcastle F.C. and F.C. Victoria-Brazil. He also has served as head coach of the U15 and U17 National Teams in his native homeland.

    Where are you from?
    I am originally from Trinidad and Tobago, in the Caribbean.

    How old are you?
    I am forty-four years of age.

    What teams have you coached?
    In the past, I've coached with youth programs at Liverpool F.C., Manchester United, Newcastle F.C. and F.C. Victoria-Brazil. I was also head coach of the U15 and U17 National Teams in Trinidad and Tobago. I also has the opportunity to serve as part of a technical study group during the 1994 World Cup.

    How did you start playing?
    I started to play soccer from the age of 4-years old all the way up until 17. I was player of the year for my high school. And then right afterwards, I tore my ACL and I couldn’t afford at that time to do a surgery, but I still wanted to stay involved in the game and somebody suggested coaching. And I said why not try some coaching and I have been coaching since I was 17.

    What’s your signature move when you played?
    I was actually really known for my defending, although I did a little bit of goalkeeping. I played a little bit as a forward, but I was really really difficult to pass as a defender. I was really good at reading forwards and all their fancy moves, and a lot of times I was anticipating what move they were going to do. And I got in and won the ball quite a few times.

    What’s one skill you think any player needs to cultivate?
     I wouldn’t just say one skill or one technique. The game is made up of different tools so it has do with receiving the ball, passing the ball, dribbling the ball, turning the ball, heading the ball. These are things that you have to do in terms of the ball manipulation. I am a firm believer in that if you can’t make the ball do what you want, then the game is much more difficult. So you have to be able to master the ball on the ground, the ball in the air, even striking the ball and shooting the ball. You’ve got to make the ball do exactly what you want.

    Who are your soccer heroes?
    Well there are many players at the higher level today who have again, as we just talked about, mastered the ball. Who have a very high level of technique. If you want to call the techniques tools, it is a matter of when to use what tool, actually having that tool in your repertoire. And also in terms of coaches, I look at the best coaches in the world: Sir Alex Furgeson, Arsen Wegner, Louis Van Gaal, the guys that have been there. One of the things that I have picked up from them that is a little bit different from some of the lesser experienced coaches is that they leave no stone unturned. The things that the average coach would not look at, they look at and make sure is also covered.

    What was your favorite moment of World Cup 2014?
    Actually for me, it had to do with the game between Holland and Argentina. I was just so impressed with the pure tactics, both tacticians there, and in terms of how to defend properly as a team. A lot of the World Cup was based on counter attacking. So it was really about defending well and hitting teams on the break.

    What’s your greatest moment as a coach?
    For me, to be honest, the greatest moment for me as a coach is when a player comes back to me and says, 'Coach, it’s not only the things that you taught me about the game that I am grateful for, but the things that you have taught me about life.’ So I think that when the player is on our charge, can we still teach them about the things of life? They are only going to play for a relatively short period of time if you look at a lifespan and it’s about the things that we can help them learn about life when they come on the soccer field.

    What’s your worst moment on the pitch?
    Oh, your worst moment as a coach is always losing. And you’re getting the blame. Sometimes you have no control of what the players are doing on the field, so sometimes when the fans come down on you and the team has lost, you have to take that as the coach, and sometimes it’s not your full responsibility.

    How do you get past bad moments like this?
    Well you just have to know that what you’re doing is the right thing as the coach and believe in your philosophy. Coaches must have a philosophy. If you don’t have a philosophy you can’t show what it is that you are going after. Once you have a sound philosophy that is tried, proven, and scientific you just have to believe in it.

    What’s the “ultimate soccer experience” you’d like to have?
    One of the best experiences that I had was at the 1994 World Cup. I was a guest with the technical study group and watching the best coaches in the world, analyzing the best players in the world, and it really opened my eyes up to what really happens on the field. So you are not really looking at the game as a fan, but looking at the game as a technician and looking into the game and seeing the things that make the game so varied in terms of different styles, different philosophies and watching top coaches using their strategy against each other and seeing what works.

    What music do you listen to before a big game?
    For me, because of my belief in God, I like gospel music. To me it is very inspiring and stuff so I like my gospel music.

    What soccer or coaching talent would you most like to have?
    The ability to look and to identify extremely quickly how to correct a player's particular weakness. Because when a bunch of players come to us they are going to have different strengths and weaknesses. We can’t give everyone the same medicine so to speak. So we have to do a proper diagnosis and say ‘this is what this player needs,’ whether it’s confidence, whether it’s technique, whether it’s to be a better tactician or whether it’s to work with him mentally. To diagnose who needs what.

    What do you most value in your teammates?
     Well, there’s a saying that I use, ‘the less that you think in terms of me, it should be about we. Not me.’ So the players that come and it’s about them, that tends not to work well. When you come and try to make the player next to you the best that you can, that is one of the best qualities to have. Try to make the player next to you look as good as you can. It’s not about you, it’s for the team.

    What advice would you give to someone new to soccer?
    When you are completely new to soccer you have to be very careful. That could be for parents or a player who is making the decision. Be very careful of what environment you put yourself under. You don’t want to put yourself under a coach or an organization that has winning before development. Then it is going to become very frustrating. So look for the environment where you are able to develop technique, you are allowed to develop creativity and then know how to apply that within a game.

    What sports and activities do you enjoy off the pitch?
     I like to hike a little bit sometimes. I like to play table tennis, and just hanging out with friends. Because there are times, to be honest, that I do not want to see a soccer ball because I am so engrossed in it. But just enjoying life, listening to music, and watching different television shows. Just things that take your mind off of the game but still keeps you lively and enjoying life at the same time. And actually traveling and seeing many different places.

    Where will we see you in 5 years?
    I am hoping, as a young coach, to be at the highest level possible. So if it is not with a World Cup team, a top club team, and really being around top players and top coaches where you are constantly being challenged to improve and become better.

The18.com | 2014
« Last Edit: November 02, 2015, 12:25:43 PM by royal »

Offline Tallman

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Re: Dion La Foucade
« Reply #151 on: January 16, 2020, 02:17:37 PM »
La Foucade ready to serve local football as new Technical Director
TTFA Media


Newly appointed Technical Director of the Trinidad and Tobago Football Association Dion La Foucade has described it as an “honor and privilege” to be able to serve local football his new capacity, adding that talent by itself is not enough to see this country successfully compete with the rest of the confederation.

Among La Foucade’s responsibilities will be to lead and manage the TTFA’s Technical Department.

“Firstly, I would like to thank Almighty God for the opportunity to serve my country,” La Foucade told TTFA Media on Wednesday night.

“Secondly, I also would like to thank the Technical Committee and Board of TTFA for giving me this opportunity. It’s always an honor and a privilege to be able to contribute in a positive way towards the development of sport in one’s home country.

“Thirdly, even though I have been abroad for the last 7 years, I have keenly followed, (from a distance), what has been transpiring with our nations football at all the various levels.

“In my humble opinion, our players, both male and female, at all age levels, are very talented, but as we have found out, time and time again, talent by itself will never be enough to consistently and successfully compete at the CFU, CONCACAF and highest levels in the game, without having a scientific and methodological approach, along with the finances that are definitely needed for the significant development of our game.”

La Foucaude who has been a national under 17 head coach in the past, added, “I know that there are folks in Trinidad and Tobago, and even abroad, who have, and those who continuously, tirelessly and positively contributed to the development of our football, and I hope  they continue  to contribute in a meaningful way.

“Lastly, I am excited to work alongside the TTFA, all our coaches, and by extension players, in this vain, as we must continue to unite and work together, as we are stronger as a people when we work towards a common goal.”

Among his other responsibilities as TD, La Foucade will be expected to prepare a budget for the technical department; to supervise the performance of all technical staff within the said department; to manage the daily operations of the TTFA academy; to manage the TTFA development programmes; to report directly to the TTFA Technical committee and to perform other non-coaching technical tasks as directed by the TTFA Technical committee.
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Offline Tallman

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Re: Dion La Foucade Thread
« Reply #152 on: January 25, 2020, 06:34:17 PM »
WATCH: Recently appointed Technical Director Dion La Foucade gives early impressions on the job

<a href="https://www.youtube.com/v/TMPVwT0l2Qo" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" class="bbc_link bbc_flash_disabled new_win">https://www.youtube.com/v/TMPVwT0l2Qo</a>
The Conquering Lion of Judah shall break every chain.

Offline Tallman

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La Foucade wants to see common language among national teams
« Reply #153 on: January 27, 2020, 03:09:30 PM »
La Foucade wants to see common language among national teams
TTFA Media


Recently appointed Trinidad and Tobago Football Association technical director Dion La Foucade believes there must be a common language throughout all the National teams.

La Foucade attended last Friday’s Meeting of all National Teams technical staffs where outlines were presented and discussed relating to the structure of the various programmes and operations of national teams.

“It’s very important that we must know what the senior national coach wants and he alluded very much today (Friday) on how he wants the game to play so when we are training the younger players we have to know what type of players for instance a centre-back, what type of attributes he wants a centre-back to have, what attributes he wants the goalkeeper to have, the midfielder and forwards and so on,” La Foucade told TTFA Media.

“In other words, an under 15 player going into an under 17 team should not go there and say ‘I’ve never heard this before or this is totally new.’

“There must be a common language throughout all our teams. There might be a change day to day in terms of the game, in terms of strategy as that always changes based on your opposition. But there must be a common thought .. this is what we want from a Trinidad and Tobago player.”

The former National Under 17 head coach says among his immediate objectives is to have a forensic look at what needs to be addressed at the lower levels from grassroots to national youth teams and related programmes.

“I want to take a forensic look at what has been happening with all the coaching schools the youth teams. Things are taken cared of at the senior team level coming down and I want to see if I can take care of what’s happening at the bottom, what’s happening at the Primary schools football, the secondary schools football, the coaching schools. I want to have a real look at what are our needs, what are we doing well and what do we need to improve,” he said

“One of the objectives I’ve set my self is trying to get the coaches association going again. I would love to do coach education and share my experiences with coaches. I would also love to see our national teams working towards a common goal, that there’s transparency, camaraderie between the coaches and I love the idea of what we have now where the head coach of one team is also the assistant coach of another team and it goes all the way up so there’s some continuity throughout the system, and this is towards the senior team.”

La Foucade is eager to get the ball rolling.

“It is an honour and a privilege to come back and serve in one’s country. Not often you get a chance to serve in this capacity. I applied and I said, ‘you know what I’ve been reading about what’s happening in Trinidad football and I said i can make a contribution. I had things going well for me back in the US but I wanted to come back and give because to see our football get so low was very disappointing for me.”
The Conquering Lion of Judah shall break every chain.

Offline Tallman

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Re: Dion La Foucade Thread
« Reply #154 on: June 07, 2021, 08:36:40 PM »
WATCH: TTFA Technical Director Dion La Foucade talks about Trinidad and Tobago's elimination from World Cup Qualifying

<a href="https://www.youtube.com/v/pS7Pz7kAOmw" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" class="bbc_link bbc_flash_disabled new_win">https://www.youtube.com/v/pS7Pz7kAOmw</a>
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Offline asylumseeker

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Re: Dion La Foucade Thread
« Reply #155 on: June 07, 2021, 09:35:00 PM »
Wrong tone and wrong message.

Offline Flex

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Re: Dion La Foucade Thread
« Reply #156 on: June 11, 2021, 12:29:37 AM »
Dion La Foucade: Trinidad and Tobago will become CFU, Concacaf powerhouse again.
By Andrew Gioannetti (T&T Newsday).


TT FOOTBALL Association (TTFA) technical director Dion La Foucade says the FIFA-appointed normalisation committee is engaged in programmes that bode well for the future of the sport locally.

La Foucade was interviewed on Sportsmax following T&T's anticlimactic exit from World Cup qualifying with a goalless draw against the Bahamas on Saturday. That result meant T&T would be unable to finish top of the group to earn a spot in the next qualification round. The team played its final group match against St Kitts and Nevis on Tuesday evening.

During the interview, one of the hosts asked La Foucade if he felt off-field problems in the local sport made it onto the pitch. He replied, "We could say many things caused that problem (draw against the Bahamas) but it would be unfair of me to say that."

In terms of form, the Bahamas lost their opening three matches while conceding 15 unanswered goals. T&T started strongly against Guyana, winning 3-0 on March 25, before being held to a disappointing 1-1 draw against Puerto Rico. A win against the Bahamas was compulsory for T&T to stand a chance of progressing since underdogs St Kitts/Nevis won their opening three matches.

When pressed in the interview, La Foucade admitted the result was not one he saw coming.

"The whole country was obviously surprised but these things do happen," he said.

However, he spoke confidently about the association's plan to improve the structure of the organisation at all levels.

"I have been meeting with FIFA with regards to their Echo Analytics forensic study that they did on Trinidad and Tobago, along with other countries, and that report is due out in a few weeks. So they're going to give us some guidance," he said.

"We're really going to start looking at, properly, from grassroots to the elite ... talent identification, how do we get players (selected), the science side of it... So it's really a holistic approach that we have to use. To say one reason or the other as to why T&T football is so low, it really encompasses many factors but from where I sit, the future, maybe not right now, we are going to come out of this hole because T&T was a powerhouse in the Caribbean and in Concacaf and we will get back there. I am sure for that.

La Foucade has been instrumental in securing top coaches, managers and other experts in all areas of the sport, to share presentations for the TTFA's two ongoing series of virtual conferences titled Everybody In, designed for coaches, and There is Hope, for athletes in any sport between the ages of 10 and 19.

Saturday's Everybody In seminar will feature a coach from German club Hoffenheim's academy, and a day later, T&T Olympic-bound sailor Andrew Lewis will feature for the There is Hope Programme.

"I can tell you from the meetings I've been in that we have been looking at the overall programme," La Foucade said, adding that the focus will be on creating a sustainable structure.

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Offline Tiresais

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Re: Dion La Foucade Thread
« Reply #157 on: June 11, 2021, 03:18:31 AM »
What programme you starting? You paying out of your own pocket? Is the TTFA even paying you? I'm a massive proponent of a more professional approach to players health, but what's the point of sports scientists when players aren't being paid? Get a sustainable league up before you bother with this.

Offline Tallman

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Re: Dion La Foucade Thread
« Reply #158 on: June 19, 2023, 04:02:52 PM »
Dion La Foucade appointed Head Coach of Cayman Islands Women’s National Football Teams
caymanislandsfa.com


The former Technical Director of Trinidad and Tobago Football, Dion La Foucade has been appointed Head Coach of the Cayman Football Association Women’s National Football Teams. The Trinidad native comes to the post that has been without a dedicated coach with years of experience in women’s football and talent development.

La Foucade is pursuing a Post Graduate Diploma in Sports Management and has completed several coaching certifications at the FIFA and Concacaf levels.  He has worked as coaching Director at F.C Boulder (USA), technical director of La Foucade Soccer Clinc, (Trinidad and Tobago), and Head of Trinidad and Tobago National U17 Male team.

Coach La Foucade will be responsible for the day-to-day running of the CIFA Women’s National Team programs which involve training and preparing teams for international competitions. Mr La Foucade will also be charged with creating a sustainable women’s football development program which will encompass women’s football at all levels.

With the recent success and growth of women’s football in the Cayman Islands, the association strongly believes the time has come for women’s football to be appointed a designated coach. The association is pleased to announce the appointment of Coach Dion La Foucade as the person who will be responsible for Women’s National Football in the Cayman Islands.

CIFA welcomed coach Dion La Foucade at a press conference held at the CIFA Centre of Excellence on June 07, 2023.
The Conquering Lion of Judah shall break every chain.

 

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