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Dear {sForename},
Games are great fun but you need to make sure you're playing the right ones if you want your players to get some good coaching points out of them too.
In today's issue of BSC there is a great game which coaches players in the art of defending by watching and intercepting the ball. It's also a useful game to get players passing accurately by trying to beat the defender and knock a ball off a cone the defender is protecting.
Also look out for ways to get three defenders to communicate and something to do with tennis balls!
Yours in Soccer, David Clarke, Editor
Corporate Member of the
National Soccer Coaches Association of America |
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ALSO IN THIS ISSUE
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Blog: How Barcelona coach players to control a high ball then shoot
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Reader feedback: "Better Soccer Coaching came along and has transformed how I go about working with the players"
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Inspirational quotation: Frank Rijkaard
Coconut shy
I've become obsessive. I try to make everything I see in everyday life into a game for my training sessions. I was watching track racing the other day and thought how good it would be to have boys racing in tram lines controlling the ball around a 400 metre track. Mad.
But then I think Michael Beale is the same.
He's obviously been to one or two fair grounds in his time to think up this clever exercise. It's a great defending game that pits the accuracy of the passer against the reactions of the defender.
I use it a lot with my young teams because it not only has some excellent coaching points but has an element of competition and plenty of fun.
This game improves reactions and the reading of your opponent in order to intercept the pass. The defender must be light on their toes if they are to intercept the pass and help their team to win the game.
Set up an area split into two which is 20 x 10 yards, and use four cones in each half with a ball on each cone.
The steps
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Players are divided into two teams and each team has four cones and four balls to defend as shown in the diagram.
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The teams take it in turns to dribble and make a grounded pass towards the opponent’s cones aiming to knock one of the balls off.
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After passing, the player must react quickly and try to block the opponent’s pass.
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Play for one minute and the team with the most balls still on cones wins.
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* Editor's choice *
Perfect Defending
Michael Beale's latest manual was launched in this year and contains 67 easy to coach drills for marking, tackling and blocking.
The manual is divided into sections covering:
- Individual Defending.
- Defending In Twos.
- Defending In Small Groups.
- Team Defending.
- Fun Defending Games.
Click here to read more, download a free sample drill, and order your copy today. |
* Soccer coach blog *
How Barcelona coach players to control a high ball then shoot
By David Clarke
I’ve been focusing my young players on controlling high balls this weekend. It’s a skill that players need to set themselves up for a shot at goal.
I can remember Eric Cantona of Manchester Utd and Leeds fame commenting that every night he threw balls high into the air and controlled them as they hit the ground.
I've been using a drill used by the coaches at Barcelona, which advances that simple exercise and covers these points:
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Bringing down high balls
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Close control
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Setting up the shot
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Accurate shooting
The only equipment you need is four cones, a ball and a goal with target areas marked out. Put a couple of cones a few yards in from the posts on either side of the goal and call these the target areas. Put four cones in a 10 yard square around the penalty spot so the penalty spot is in the middle.
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Players must start with their back or side to goal
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Juggle the ball three or four times then kick high
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Keep the ball inside the zone around the penalty spot
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Finish in the target areas either side of the goal
Go to my blog and watch a clip of how the Barcelona coaches set it up.
Click here to go to my blog.
* The winning difference *
Defending in threes
By Tony Carr
Building a good understanding between defenders is important to the success of your team. What this session aims to do is to develop their appreciation of the positions they must take up relative to each other, the attacker and the ball.
When defending as a unit it is important that players are aware not just of the different roles, but also of how their role changes when the ball is moved from side to side by the attacking team. A chain is only as strong as its weakest link so the players must work to improve together.
Set this up in a 30 x 20 yard area. Where mannequins are required you can use poles, markers or other players.
When you call out a number the players must take up the correct defensive positioning on the mannequins (nearest pressures, next covers and furthest provides depth). The positions the defenders should be taking are shown relative to the number highlighted.
How to advance it
When the coach calls “go” the defenders must run past the mannequins and defend their goal in a live 3v3 game. Look at how the team defend, does the nearest player pressure the attacker and what do the other players do to support? This development can be run with a goalkeeper.
Tony Carr is the Academy Director of West Ham United in the English Premier League and the editor of the Smart Sessions soccer coaching plans - they come in advanced and core versions. You can get these sessions dropping into your inbox every week by clicking here.
* Wise up *
Tennis balls help players use both feet
By David Clarke
Tennis balls make a welcome alternative from the usual passing drills and also teach good technique. I've been using tennis balls in small-sided games and gettin players using them at home to practice with.
Passing drills, juggling and skills can all be done using a tennis ball. Take a load with you to your next coaching session and get the boys using them in warm-ups and drills.
Because they are lighter and smaller, tennis balls emphasise where technical problems could be arising. If you can kick a tennis ball exactly where you want it to go, then a soccer ball should not pose too many problems.
Inspired by the story of Craig Johnston (the former Liverpool FC soccer player) who practiced kicking with a tennis ball against his wall when he was younger, I found that it helped improve high kicks and long kicks from both feet.
Any slight variation in technique from perfection sent the ball flying off at awkward angles.
A tennis ball is also great for solo drills because it isn't going to go too far from a kick.
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* Editor's choice *
Fun Soccer Games for 5 to 8 Year Olds is specifically written for coaches of young players.
The author, Keith Boanas, is Head Coach for Surrey County Football Association and has been coaching for 29 years.
You can get a free game from Fun Soccer Games for 5 to 8 Year Olds, see Keith's impressive coaching CV and learn more about how his book can help you and your players here. |
* Reader Feedback *
"Better Soccer Coaching came along and has transformed how I go about working with the players"
Says Dave Flanagan, coach,
Widnes Town FC U13's, Widnes, Cheshire, England
I am a club coach (level 2) with The Widnes Dragons FC. I have been coaching for three years and also work with Widnes Town FC Youth Team. The club has 17 teams of all ages, pictured is the U13s squad.
Working with youth players is great fun but I often found it hard to keep the players interested and the training sessions varied.
Then Better Soccer Coaching came along this summer and has transformed how I go about working with the players.
The sessions are simple to understand, cover a variety of topics and are full of masses of useful information.
It means I can plan well in advance, introduce new ideas, games and make our sessions so much more soccer orientated.
Thank you Better Soccer Coaching!
* Inspirational quotation *
"I remember watching him as a kid when he was playing for Ajax, I admired him a lot. Then he came in to coach me at Ajax, that was a great moment for me and I learned so much under him. He had so much knowledge and respect for the game"
Former Barcelona manager Frank Rijkaard about Johan Cruyff
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Telephone: +44 (0)1483 892894 Fax: +44 (0)1483 894148
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Website: Better Soccer Coaching
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