Summer Youth Soccer Camps: NOGA Camps

“And we’ll have fun, fun, fun

‘till her Daddy takes the T-Bird away”

                In my opinion, the best way to keep our kids from having fun with the T-Bird (or any other thing not in their best interest) is to keep them active and involved.  What better way to keep them involved than a local youth soccer camp offered by one of the oldest and most respected Youth Soccer training programs in the area?  NOGA is a name that has always come up over the years whenever I inquired about quality training for my son. The whole purpose of this blog is to make life easier for most soccer parents and coaches by providing you information and experiences that took me 8 years of asking questions, succeeding and failing in trying different things and dealing with different people.  Today, we get to learn together about NOGA and their Summer Youth Soccer Camps.   This post was one of my favorite ones to write, and it also involved the most research.   

 I have learned that NOGA was, if not the first, one of the first programs to develop the concept of the specialist soccer camp idea.   According to their website, “For over 35 years NOGA has been providing unparalleled camp experience and specialist coaching to thousands of boys and girls.  NOGA provides two substantially different soccer camp experiences. “  So, as I said, I have been very excited to finally get to learn more about a program I have always been interested in, not just for me and my son, but for all of you also.

               NOGA offers youth soccer camps and training across the Northeast coast, but I will just focus on their camps that are offered on Long Island.  Although NOGA’s reputation, at least in my head and with the people I spoke with, is for providing a high level of soccer training for the more serious and skilled soccer player, they have soccer camps for every young soccer player regardless of their skill level.  This summer, NOGA is offering a Micro Camp (players aged 4-6 years, Beginner skill level), Community Camp (players aged 6—14 years, Beginners and Intermediates), Team Camp (teams only with players aged 8-18- All Levels), Academy Day Camp/Academy Residential Camp (players aged 7-17, All Levels), and High School Camp (players aged 15-18, Advanced skill).  Camps are run at different locations across Long Island and cost and benefits are dependent on location and type of camp.  What I found most interesting about NOGA camps is that there seems to be a great amount of opportunities for soccer youth out East in the Hamptons and surrounding areas, central locations such as Smithtown, and Nassau locations including Hofstra University in Uniondale and Long Beach.  The cost of camp runs $105-$750 for week long camps and is dependent upon type of camp and location.  A full listing of all available camps, costs, and amenities can be found at www.nogasoccer.com and additional questions should be referred to Community Camps Manager, Tom Williamson at coachtwilliamson@gmail.com or Academy Camps Manager, Paul Kelshaw at paulkelshaw@yahoo.co.uk .

NOGA provides a very specific description of their camps on their website, www.nogasoccer.com.  The coaching curriculum used by NOGA Camps aims to give the soccer campers a fun and challenging age specific environment, while the trainers and coaches employ proven soccer training methods taken from soccer academies across the world including Holland, England, and Spain.  NOGA states, “Each player is given an equal opportunity to reach their soccer potential by focusing on individual technical development while being introduced to the physical, psychological, and social demands of the game.”  All in all, NOGA appears to have a good handle on the needs of the young soccer players and has created a training program for camps that will help develop your soccer child into a soccer player who has received a well-rounded training experience.

The Community camps run 3 hours each day (with a Micro Camp running 1.5 hours).  As many of these camps are hosted by the local soccer organization, price varies and some are restricted to players from the hosting organization or township.  In addition, some of these camps are designated to specific skill and play levels, including Travel or Recreational.  Any teams of 10 or more that register at 1 Community camp as a group will be guaranteed an individual trainer for the week.  There is a very comprehensive schedule available at the website and registration or inquiries can take place by calling 516-489-3900 ext. 104 or email tom.williamson@nogasoccer.com.

All NOGA Academy (day or residential) youth soccer camps are held at Colleges or Universities around the country.  For Long Island soccer players, the Academy camps are held at Hofstra University in Uniondale.  The day Academies run Mon-Fri 9a-4pm in the summer and campers are required to bring their own lunches and they will have use of the pool, when it is available.  The Residential Academy camps run Mon thru Friday (Sunday arrival allowed for players arriving from far distance) and soccer campers are provided with all meals (breakfast, lunch, and dinner).  Residential soccer campers are also allowed use of the pool when available.  All academy soccer campers (Day and Residential) will receive NOGA t-shirt and Adidas Soccer Ball, and a specialist GOALKEEPER training is available during the camp.  The younger youth spccer players may have an option of attending a Minicamp from 9a—12 noon Mon-Friday, this is for the campers aged 4-6 years old.  Academy camp information and registration is available at www.nogasoccer.com or by calling 516-489-3900 or emailing nogasoccer@gmail.com.

Team Camps are available to any youth soccer team that is interested.  The NOGA training program uses a flexible but age-specific soccer training program to best meet the needs of each individual youth soccer team and their parent coach.  The camp runs a MINIMUM of 15 hours and breaks down in a way that works best for the trainers, team, and coach, while still maintaining the benefits of the training program.  Volunteer coaches are encouraged to interact with the NOGA coach during the week of training in order to encourage a smooth transition of the team back to the Volunteer Coach at the end of the week while allowing the team to maximize the effectiveness of the training received by the NOGA coach.  All inquiries should be directed by phone to 516-489-3900 ext. 104 or by email to tom.williamson@nogasoccer.com.

As you can see, NOGA has the history, experience, and camp availability to meet the needs of any youth soccer player on Long Island.  Please visit their website at www.nogasoccer.com for more specific information.  I wish that I had personal experience with NOGA to share as I did the other highlighted programs, but unfortunately neither of my boys has been fortunate enough to take part in NOGA training or camps as of yet.  I can say that I first mentioned NOGA because they are a name that I have heard for years as a youth soccer coach AND as a soccer mom.  When I think of NOGA, it is always thoughts of a respected program.  I am personally grateful that they reached out to me last week after I mentioned them in the initial Summer Youth Soccer Camp post and that I have had the opportunity to learn more about their program.  I can definitely see myself sending at least one of my sons to their camps in the next few years.

 I think it says quite a bit about these large organizations, who honestly do not need the support of a small and local soccer youth blogger such as myself,  but yet they take the time to not only provide me with information about their programs to share with you coaches and parents, but they also offer and provide support to the blog to help me get my name out to the community.  It is all about our shared love of Soccer AND most importantly of improving, growing, and supporting Youth Soccer on Long Island.

As always, please comment and share below.  I am currently registering my youth soccer team for Fall season, while helping to manage my older boy’s team trip to Regionals this weekend, and having a child go to Prom and graduate.  I will be away for a few days at the Regionals, but I will be posting soon about the Rough Riders Indy Cup last weekend, their Free Goalkeeper Clinic they held this week and last, and also I will share some experiences as Coach, Mom, and Manager from the last 2 weeks in my life of LI Youth Soccer.  And….as promised….SOON “Coachra v. Momzilla” and the SHOCKING confession I must now make.  Please follow us on Twitter at twitter.com/CoachMommyLI and join our Facebook page at facebook.com/CoachMommyLongIsland.  Read it-Like it-Subscribe to it-Share It!! Thanks!