Erick Strauss Playing Futsal at Kiahuna Club in Kauai to Prepare for Mexican 1st Division Play
By Tim Sheldon
KAUAI, Hawaii (2-23-10) – Erick Strauss is playing Futsal three hours a day, six days a week at the Kiahuna Swim & Tennis Club in Kauai as he prepares to return to Mexican 1st Division play.
He says the Futsal training has markedly
improved his overall skill level, and he's anxious to show it from his right fullback
position on the outdoor field.
Strauss, who turned 21 two weeks ago, got into Futsal via a circuitous route, from Mexico via Berkeley, Calif., to Kauai. He grew up in Mexico but attended high school in Berkeley and met Kiahuna Club co-owner and Futsal coach Jorge Bordt while playing in pick-up soccer games at U.C. Berkeley.
(Photo: Erick Strauss.)
"He started teaching me everything he knows about Futsal and outdoor, and everything," Strauss said of Bordt. "I was 15 and playing at Berkeley High School and got into the pick-up Futsal games at the University. I tried to impress him, and he said, 'Okay, kid, what do you think you're doing? Keep coming and I'll teach you everything I know.' We've been working together about five years."
Strauss completed high school in Berkeley and entered pro soccer after turning down a partial scholarship to Stanford. After a brief stint with the Hearts reserves in Scotland, he earned himself a contract with Toluca in the Mexican 1st Division, but league rules regarding reserve team players forced him to wait until May to sign with another team, very possibly Chiapas, "if everything goes well."
This turn of events left Strauss time to come to Kauai, train with Bordt and hone his technique. He's been following a tough training regimen that has entailed playing six nights a week.
"It's amazing how playing Futsal improves your outdoor game," Strauss said. "It's faster, and everything is magnified on the smaller court. It's amazing how you can improve your game with that."
Strauss helps out with the youth instruction at the Kiahuna Club, but mostly he's training with Bordt and getting ready to return to Mexico.
Strauss says the Futsal training is helping him in every aspect of his outdoor game.
"You find yourself on defense sometimes, and then you end up rotating all the way up, and you find yourself at forward on the same play. So basically you have to be a complete player. Once you get out on the field, you have to complete many tasks. You can be a defender, you can be a midfielder, you can be a forward."
Strauss says the small area of the Futsal court enables him to work on the precision of his passing.
"You have to be more precise on your passing and more precise on your defense. If you lose the ball you get counter-attacked. So it's basically the intensity of the game, and using the spaces right in a small area. After playing Futsal, you go onto the outdoor field and say to yourself, 'It feels so easy now'".
Strauss will soon be back in the Mexican League, but is looking forward to returning to Kauai for more training as his outdoor career progresses.
"Jorge has about 14 senior players, and our training gets really intense," Strauss said. "None of these guys are pros, but they were taught right how to play by Jorge, and it gets really good out there. They're learning, and in about a year they'll be completing in a national tournament. They're going to be tough.
"I'll be going back to outdoor, but whenever I have the chance I'm going to fly to Kauai and keep training before my pre-season. It's really helpful. You learn a lot."