The Portland Timbers Discovery Juniors Program
About
Discovery Juniors is a development focused supplemental training program that serves as an introduction for players to the Portland Timbers Player Pathway and strives to give every young player the best holistic training experience.
Who is it for?
Local soccer players in the U9, U10, U11 & U12 age groups. Ideally players should already be playing local competitive soccer and who aspire to continue to grow and develop within the game of soccer. Discovery Juniors is not a rec program.
Goals
o Player Development: Explore player potential
o Competitive learning environment
o Identify players for the Discovery Seniors (U13 & U14)
Environment
The Discovery Juniors environment, is heavily focused on promoting the development of individual player technique. Players will gain insights into the Portland Timbers methodology with training sessions provided by and created by Portland Timbers Academy and first team coaching staff.
Training sessions will be heavily focused on individual player technique and the players relationship with the ball. Players can also expect to gain insight into Game Model situations and learn about our principles of play. The coaching staff aim to enhance the players' capabilities and knowledge across our 4 corner youth development pillars.
| TECHNICAL | TACTICAL | PHYSICAL | PSYCHOLOGICAL |
| Passing | Speed of Play | Speed | Coachability |
| Dribbling | Decision Making | Fitness | Confidence |
| Shooting | 1v1 Defending | Strength | Concentration & Focus |
| Ball Control | 1v1 Attacking | Reactions | Teamwork |
These 4 corner pillars are also used for player evaluation purposes that are given to players once per year within the Discovery Juniors program.
Program Details
Discovery Juniors has player placement opportunities at the U9, U10, U11 & U12 age-groups across 4 locations:
- North: North Portland & Vancouver
- East: Gresham
- South: Lake Oswego & Tigard
- West: Beaverton & Hillsboro
During tryouts Discovery Junior Directors will select up to a maximum of 20 players total per age-group.
o Tryouts: August
o Age Groups: Players Born: 2013, 2014, 2015, 2016 (U9-U12)
o Training Block 1: Fall - 6 training sessions and 1 ID event. August-November (Friday or Sunday nights)
o Training Block 2: Spring - 6 training sessions and 1 ID event. January-March (Friday or Sunday nights)
o Tryouts Fee: $30 per player for 2 tryout sessions
o Training Fee: $345 per player for 12 training sessions, and 2 ID Events
o Training Kit: $130 purchased at Tursis soccer store. (Players who participated in RTC in 23-24 do NOT have to purchase the training kit)
Scholarships: Financial aid, and payment plans are available. Contact [email protected] for more information