January Newsletter 2026

Welcome to the Kings Hammer January Newsletter! This edition features our Spring Supplemental Tryouts, Kings Hammer players receive USC Awards, Featured Education: “Technical Development: How Team Training and Individual Work Fit Together”, and more! If you have a player, coach, or team to be highlighted in future newsletters, please send photos and stories to info@kingshammer.com. Each newsletter will be posted on our website as well as our social pages.

Spring Supplemental Tryouts are Happening February 7th!

Tell your friends! We’re looking for players in the Greater Cincinnati area to join our Juniors, Pre-Academy, and Pre-Elite programs this season. Supplemental tryouts are being held Saturday, February 7th at FX Athletic Performance in Blue Ash, OH!

For more information, times, and to register, select from the links below:

Juniors (U7 – U9)

Cincinnati Juniors

Pre-Academy (U10 – U12)

Cincinnati Pre-Academy

Pre-Elite (U10 – U12)

Big Fun at this year’s Winter Camps!

We had a great time learning new skills and laughing with our friends this year at our Kings Hammer Winter Camps! Each day, campers built their skills by running drills, playing games, and finishing out each day with a friendly scrimmage.

Kings Hammer is always excited to help players grow and learn. It was a joy having each of you at camp this year, and we can’t wait to see you on the field this spring!

Kings Hammer players receive USC Awards

USC ALL-AMERICAN HONORS

Congratulations to KH Elite B07/08-N player Karson Lang on earning United Soccer Coaches High School All-American Honors for his 2025 fall season with Archbishop Moeller High School. Karson, along with the other All-American Honors recipients, was also recognized for his accomplishments at the United Soccer Coaches All-America Ceremony on January 17th, 2026 in Philadelphia at the United Soccer Coaches Convention. Congratulations, Karson!

USC ALL-GREAT LAKES OR ALL-CENTRAL REGION HONORS

Congratulations to the following players on receiving USC All-Great Lakes or All-Central Region Honors for their fall season!

Boys – Jack Sweeney

Girls – Sally Altenburg, Josie Hyden, Averie Layman, Meagyn Riffle

USC ALL-SOUTH REGION HONORS

Congratulations to the following players on receiving USC All-South Region Honors for their fall season!

Girls – Izelee Kerns, Reagan Buchert, Kennedy Crowley, Sadie Yapp

The club is so proud of each of you!

Futsal is back at Kings Hammer!

Our Winter Futsal program brought this fast-paced, indoor version of soccer back to Kings Hammer. This program challenged participating players to think quickly, move creatively, and sharpen their technical skills. We finished our last session January 21st, and had a wonderful time getting to know each player, and seeing them develop their futsal knowledge and abilities!

A Noteworthy Performance at Rocky Top

We want to shoutout our KHA Cincy B09-1 team for their noteworthy performance this month at the Boys Southeast College Showcase! The team traveled to Rocky Top Sports World in Tennessee, playing 3 games at the event and going undefeated to win their division. Way to go!

Kings Hammer GK Union: Alum Sam Lang discusses US Men’s Deaf National Team

“To get that opportunity to start meant the world to me.” Sam Lang, US Men’s Deaf National Team player and Kings Hammer alum, sat down with us to share his experience with the USDMNT and how his training with the Kings Hammer GK Union helped prepare him. Check it out now!

Featured Education: “Technical Development: How Team Training and Individual Work Fit Together” By Alex Finy

Technical development is one of the most important foundations in a young player’s growth, but it does not happen in just one environment. Players improve technically through a combination of team training, individual or small-group work, and the habits they build when training on their own. Understanding how these environments complement each other allows players to develop more efficiently and with purpose.

Team training plays a critical role in development, but its primary focus is often the game itself. Coaches must manage larger groups while teaching spacing, movement, communication, and decision-making within a team structure. While technical elements are always present, team training does not always allow for the volume of repetition needed to refine individual technique in detail. This is simply the nature of coaching a team sport.

That is where individual and small-group training become especially valuable. These environments allow players to get more touches, work on specific technical actions, and build comfort controlling the ball with their whole body, not just their feet. Learning to receive with the thigh, chest, or head, and to move naturally after the first touch, helps players feel more confident and balanced when the ball arrives in different ways during a game. However, repetition alone is not enough. The habits created during this type of training matter just as much as the skill being practiced.

One of the most common habits we see when players train alone is staring down at the ball. While this feels natural, it removes awareness, which is essential in the game. Even during solo work, players should practice scanning, checking their shoulder, and imagining pressure. Visualization is a powerful tool here. For example, an outside back can picture the ball swinging across the back line and take a mental snapshot of the field before “receiving” the ball. This helps connect technique to real game situations.

More time on the ball is a good thing, especially when players take ownership of their development. In a country where young players experience a high volume of structured training, unstructured play and intentional individual work become even more important. When players learn how to train on their own, experiment, and solve problems without constant instruction, they build confidence, creativity, and a deeper understanding of the game.

Ultimately, the goal is not simply more training sessions, but more meaningful engagement with the ball. Players who combine team training, individual work, unstructured play, and strong habits are better prepared to apply their technical ability when it matters most.

Parent takeaway: Encourage your player to spend time on the ball away from practice, focusing on good habits, creativity, and confidence, rather than relying solely on structured training environments.

Go Kings Hammer!

– Alex Finy, KH New Albany Pre-Elite Director

Giving Back!

A group of young men from our Elite Boys program took a trip down to Florence, KY to volunteer with GO Pantry this month. Go Pantry is a local non-profit that provides food to kids on days when they won’t have access to their school meals, like weekends and breaks. Awesome work, guys!

GK UNION SAVE OF THE MONTH

Our December GK Union Save of the Month individuals kept their cool & put their skills on display, keeping the opponent out of the goal! Congratulations to Ryder, from Swan City and Sydney, from Cincinnati on being named our December SOTM winners!

Did you make an incredible save or a game-saving block? We want to see them! Post your best saves in the Kings Hammer GK Union Facebook group. Be sure to share throughout the upcoming season and YOU could be selected for our Kings Hammer Save of the Month! GK Save of the Month winners will be announced the Friday of the first full week of the following month.

Monthly winners will be posted on the Kings Hammer social pages and on the GK Union page.

Alumni Highlight: Roberto Burlew signs his first professional contract!

Congratulations to Kings Hammer alum, Roberto Burlew, on signing his first professional contract with Sarasota Paradise! We can’t wait to continue to cheer him on at Sarasota this season. Congrats and good luck, Roberto!