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RE: 7-a-Side Formations

soccerjoe — Fri, 18 Nov 2011 18:01:38 GMT

I've played on a lot of 7on7 teams. Last year we were highest ranked team in our division (of 87 teams), and this year, we our in the quarterfinals (tournament of 66 teams) and hope to win the whole tourney.

I am 23 years old and I play as defender (and occasionally as forward of mid) but still manage to get the most goals on my team. It's hard to play just with 7 players on the team because if you take away too many players from a position, you lose a lot of depth. I like having depth in the midfield, so I usually plan my formations around that. Here are a couple formations that I like.

2-3-1. You have two fullbacks with a stopper that acts like a defensive mid. You can then have two mids that can act as wings or central mids - whatever you need. Pros: You have great defense and still have great depth in the midfield. Cons: You have to get used to this formation, and know your team very well.

3-2-1. You have one central defender and one left and one right. The left and right defenders can go up the wings if needed. Make sure you have 2 defenders back though. Pros: Again, added depth to the midfield while still having a strong defense. Cons: Same as the one listed above.

2-2-2. This is probably the most simple and most used formation for 7 on 7. What I would suggest for this is to have one forward farther up field than the other forward. The other forward should act as a forward/attacking midfielder. Pros: Depth to the midfield. Cons: Usually a weak defense.

RE: 7-a-Side Formations

alicechen — Thu, 04 Aug 2011 09:27:02 GMT

I absolutely agree that basing it on your group's strengths and weaknesses is the way to go.
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RE: 7-a-Side Formations

seancoach1 — Sat, 16 Apr 2011 11:33:04 GMT

try 1-4-1

fastest defender at back, engourge boys to get forward, remind players in midfield to get back you will suprised they will, you can set midfield up in terms pace and left footed and right footed.

give it a go think about goals not the result

RE: 7-a-Side Formations

mark007 — Wed, 30 Mar 2011 18:31:42 GMT

Hi everyone,
I've just started coaching this year and have signed up for 7 a side ( U13/14 girls ).I meet my team for the first time on Saturday with our first game next Wed. Most of my girls seem to be 'established' skill wise - always room for improvement. Few questions come to mind...should I play their positions at this age? I've also been tinkering with line formations. I know about the 3-1-2 and the 2-1-3...what about using a higher risk option of maybe 2-0-4 or a 4-0-2?

RE: 7-a-Side Formations

Geoff Brand — Tue, 01 Mar 2011 12:44:39 GMT

Hi all,

I have just taken over the running of an under 8 team and am struggling to get them to understand about holding their position so we invariably have 4 or 5 of our players around the ball and players exhausting themselves by trying to be everywhere. Now don't get me wrong I am not looking for them to be rigid and want them to enjoy it but I wsa wondering if anyone has any training drills that might help with this!

RE: 7-a-Side Formations

new coach 2011 — Wed, 12 Jan 2011 11:16:31 GMT

hi guys

just to say this year will be my first year coaching/managing a kids football team, all the kids at the moment are year one in school so cant start playing properly until sept and really can wait, im so excited by it

obviously my son is involved in this and thats the main reason i agreed to take this on, a friend of mine is also going to give me hand doing it as his son is also in the same age group

we really do have some tremendous players for their age and three of the team are currently in a premier league academy so as you can imagine both myself and the club are very excited about the prospects of watching these lads develop over the years but that wont take it away from the fact that i want it to be fun for the lads wether we win lose or draw the results for me at this age are not important

i found this site looking for what formations to play as i had come up with 2-3-1 myself and thats seems to fit in well with the players we have and their different abilitys, but we will try all the lads in different positions throughout the season as a lad we think could be a good defender could also become a good striker given the chance to play there

i look at the 2-3-1 formation more of a 1-3-2 when we are attacking with one of the defenders pushing forward when we have the ball and the centre midfield pushing right up the park and then obviously falling back to the 2-3-1 when we lose the ball

like i say its all new to me as i have never known 7 aside before just 11 a side when i was younger so any advice from you guys would be fantastic

at the end of the day i want the kids to enjoy it and come of that pitch with big smiles on their faces

RE: 7-a-Side Formations

sainathbhagwat — Sun, 12 Dec 2010 00:01:42 GMT

Hey, I am not a coach but I stumbled upon this topic while reading some stuff.
The team I played tried different formations every game. However, we stuck to 1-2-2-1 a lot of times. I know it gets really crowded considering the size of the field and everything. But, since these were basically practice games, we were trying to improve short passes and quick thinking amongst the players.
The first half of the 1-2 in 1-2-2-1 plays defense thereby giving the fullback/last man more responsibility. This was usually me and it helped me a lot in the full 11 a side games because I didn't panic as much, if a player from the opposite side ran past everyone and I was in a one-on-one situation. It trained me not only to stay calm, but also predict player/ball/game movement in the future. The two players in front of me played on my calls so they could run up to support the midfielders or run back.
This formation was specifically to work on strengthening the defense and improve passing/movement.
Hope this helps.

RE: 7-a-Side Formations

jps — Fri, 12 Nov 2010 13:37:16 GMT

I think the formation really depends on your team and how you coach. I coached a U10 AYSO team this year and used a 2 - 1 -2- 1 formation. The 2 CB's are supported by a stopper. the stopper is in a central position on the field and moves up and down the field but always trying to be behind the beehive that still exists at this level. This is generally your best all around player. The 2 midfielders need to be able to cover both ends of the field on their side and the striker stays always up top. It allows for some nice diagonal passes when it works and we certainly scored many goals this season.

RE: 7-a-Side Formations

Gray — Thu, 05 Aug 2010 13:16:07 GMT

U8

1 - 1 - 3 - 1

1 sweeper - insurance - covers holding midfield side to side
1 holding midfield - play maker - becomes midfield for corners, and should/mark last man when defending, covers sweeper
1 midfield attacker - play maker , tackler
2 wingers - supporting both attack , and midfield distribution, and defense
1 forward - holding up and poaching, outlet for midfield / wings

My kids team have played this formation and same positions for 2 years. Let in only 4 goals all season. All are fast, and have good success playing U9 through to Group stages.

What do you think chaps, interesting discussion so far - kids development vs winning and team readiness for U11
Cheers,

RE: 7-a-Side Formations

MJ — Thu, 11 Mar 2010 14:40:48 GMT

I've tried a variety of formations over the past few years and while clearly you need to adapt to the skills of the kids on the team, I've found a 2-3-1 is most flexible and adaptable no matter how a game is going. The nice thing is you have the central midfielder that is instantly a centre-half or another forward as the game changes, so as long as you can put a smart enough and good enough kid in that spot, you have cover at the back, help moving the ball up-field, and a partner for the forward. Depending on how the game is going, I also have the central midfielder generally play more defensively, inline, or attacking behind or in front of the other 2 midfielders. The other consideration - to do this you need 3 energetic midfielders that can do the running needed.

RE: 7-a-Side Formations

swift1 — Tue, 26 Jan 2010 12:47:13 GMT

I totally agree. Formations provide organisation and understanding of their roles on the pitch, within in a match and playing as part of a team.

If in training you play "practice matches" where players are free to roam etc then fine but within a structered match at any age group then the players need to get organisation into their football as early as possible so that it teaches good habits from the start.

Street football is all well and good and has played a huge part in the heritage of our game and i agree not enough kids do this anymore but in any country of the word at any point in the games history then once you join a club then the unorganised football you play at home with your mates rightly goes out of the window and your taught a more organised and disciplined version, street football is for your own time but if coaches emphasise too much on that "carefree" style for too long the development of players going into higher age groups and standards will not have the tactical and organisation skills needed.

All i can go back too with everyones attitude that our game is well behind europe and the world in how we coach as we do not emphasise enough with the ball and skills is in Ian Rushs book he clearly states that even in the early 80's they worked on more small sided and skill based drills at Liverpool than they ever did at juventus when he was there as tehy were much less with the ball and more tactical.

The secret is getting the balance and as a nation we dont do it any worse or develop and less youngsters than anyone else its just the grass always looks greener!

RE: 7-a-Side Formations

simon Fryer — Mon, 25 Jan 2010 21:45:00 GMT

GTQ

Formations are important yes I agree rotate the players round the positions but you still have to have formations, I think you are missing the point. a basic formation is imperitive so you can teach the players how differant positions operate. in my training games i play attackers as defenders and rotate the keepers all the time as well.BY playing an attacker as a defender, they can learn new ways of beating the defender by playing as one. but unless you have a formation for the kids to learn the basics, then they are always just going to chase the ball and not improve on their team skills. I am currently teaching passing in a match, so they can pass the ball away from the oposition to free players, making their awareness skills of space and other players greater. but without those positions you cant teach space awareness.

I have found that 2.3.1 is a great formation as it allows you to keep supply to the forwards and encourages less ball hogging and gives you the all important space to pass.

RE: 7-a-Side Formations

GTQ — Wed, 30 Dec 2009 19:38:46 GMT

Hi Gav,

Sometimes I despair when I hear of tactical formations for 8 yr-olds! Will we ever learn in this country??????

Kids of tender years should experience playing in ALL areas of the field (including GK) and NOT specific positions.

How can we develop personal ability on the ball unless we aim to ensure our young charges are comfortable everywhere on the park? 7-a-side football should equate to the Street Soccer of years ago - EVERYONE gets a chance to shoot, tackle, dribble, pass and head the ball.

By allowing your young charges to operate in different areas of the pitch you may uncover the next Ronaldo, Terry, Gerrard or, dare I say it, Torres, Iniesta, Raul etc, etc,

Come on guys - give the kids a chance!

GTQ

RE: 7-a-Side Formations

Blue Lion — Fri, 30 Oct 2009 17:27:49 GMT

well I'm a player/coach for my team Nice Vibes and Blue Lions. Nice Vibes is 24 man Squad and Blue lions are a 10 man squad, for the blue lions we're using a 2-1-3 formation where u have a central defenders a play making midfielder a central striker and to wingers this has been our formation for at least 3yrs now. At first trying to adjust to new was hard, lost our first 10 games but we got some positives from those games......we saw our problems and corrected them. We used more off a 2-3-1 formation having an extra midfielder playing as a supporting striker wasn't ideal for us so switched to the formation mentioned earlier....and since that change we have a record of 87 games unbeaten since the Christmas of 06 and we are looking to carry over our record into the new yr

RE: 7-a-Side Formations

dufeu58 — Mon, 07 Sep 2009 05:00:08 GMT

I like that line up. I think we need to teach players and teams to attack not defend all the time. I also like 1-3-2 and even 1-2-3. I think if you have a midfielder that is so good that you can play him there by himself then why not a defender the same way. Still waiting to hear why Bobby disagrees???? Stop the defensive play please coaches!

RE: 7-a-Side Formations

Sheppy — Sat, 29 Aug 2009 21:18:18 GMT

Hi Gav

I've had my lads since they were U6s, and they are U10s now (starting this new season). We have done tremendously well in our 2 competitive seasons (U8s and U9s) winning our league twice, and only losing once in all matches. I have experimented with formations, but we have gone with a 2-1-3, and it has worked for us. In reality i suppose it works like a 2-1-1-2. My 1 in midfield is my captain, nothing gets past him, has great vision and is a superb passer of the ball (scouts asked him to trial for two local football league sides, and he turned them down to stay with my team - how lucky am I!!!). We play with 3 up front with one of them dropping back to help the captain if needs be. This formation allows two up front to get out wide, with one in the middle. It works well, but we do have the players who naturally fit those positions. We score a lot of goals, and concede very few.

Cheers

RE: 7-a-Side Formations

dufeu58 — Sat, 22 Aug 2009 15:30:10 GMT

So why coach Bobby do you disagree. Please explain. I am always interested and willing to learn.

RE: 7-a-Side Formations

CoachBobby — Fri, 14 Aug 2009 22:01:03 GMT

[quote][b]dufeu58 (12/08/2009)[/b][hr]I will keep this brief, because it is very easy to go on and on with such a topic.

My recommendation having coached for over 30 years at various levels is to play a 2-2-2 or even a 1-3-2. remember soccer is about attacking and scoring goals and not about playing defense. there is too much defense and lack of attack in today's soccer which has made it boring. I believe that by playing a more offensive formation you also stop the other team attacking as often. Is you pressure the other team as soon as they get the ball especially in their own defensive third, you create more turnovers and hence more chances to attack their goal. Play offensive soccer, don't play defensive. players prefer it, fans prefer it, and as a coach you'll prefer it. Today especially in 11 on 11 there is too little pressure on the ooposition prefering to play defensive formation and to avoid conceeding goals rather than scoring them. too many teams play not to lose or to draw rather than to win. Don't be influenced by the pro or other coaches. If you attack you will be successful! Play an offensive formation. On 7 on 7 one strong defender can work, and then you can control the midfield and attack with strength in numbers. Good luck in your season. I would love to hear how you do. dufeu58@yahoo.com.[/quote]

Disagree

RE: 7-a-Side Formations

dufeu58 — Wed, 12 Aug 2009 02:27:27 GMT

I will keep this brief, because it is very easy to go on and on with such a topic.

My recommendation having coached for over 30 years at various levels is to play a 2-2-2 or even a 1-3-2. remember soccer is about attacking and scoring goals and not about playing defense. there is too much defense and lack of attack in today's soccer which has made it boring. I believe that by playing a more offensive formation you also stop the other team attacking as often. Is you pressure the other team as soon as they get the ball especially in their own defensive third, you create more turnovers and hence more chances to attack their goal. Play offensive soccer, don't play defensive. players prefer it, fans prefer it, and as a coach you'll prefer it. Today especially in 11 on 11 there is too little pressure on the ooposition prefering to play defensive formation and to avoid conceeding goals rather than scoring them. too many teams play not to lose or to draw rather than to win. Don't be influenced by the pro or other coaches. If you attack you will be successful! Play an offensive formation. On 7 on 7 one strong defender can work, and then you can control the midfield and attack with strength in numbers. Good luck in your season. I would love to hear how you do. dufeu58@yahoo.com.

RE: 7-a-Side Formations

CoachMark — Tue, 11 Aug 2009 15:46:16 GMT

Rob,

That's awesome! Congratulations.

We all soon learn, as coaches, that the midfielders are the players that make or break most of these formations. If they are disciplined enough to play with one defender, then your way ahead of the game on offense.

I tell my midfielders, that they are defenders first, attackers second. Always think like a defender, but attack when you can. It works out well with the right players.

Coach Mark

RE: 7-a-Side Formations

rob35311 — Tue, 11 Aug 2009 13:36:30 GMT

hi guys - this is my first post so be gentle ;)

I've been coaching an U7's team for the past 12 months and have a very strong team.

In the beginning, I tended to stick to the 2-3-1 formation. However, in a warm up game during training, I tried the 1-3-2 formation with one of my toughest tacklers in defence and it has worked a treat because all of the midfielders now know that they have to get back and help out defending as well as attacking.

So basically, when I'm attacking, I've always got at least 4 players pushing forward and the same for when I'm defending.

We've just had a few tournaments and we've done incredibly well using this formation with players of varying ability and I never have a problem with getting the midfielders to get back and help defend.

RE: 7-a-Side Formations

Gav — Thu, 16 Jul 2009 21:33:42 GMT

Just re-read this from when I originally posted it at the beginning of the season.

It's been a very successful year for my group. We've played really well, the kids have progressed (most of them anyway) and results wise they've exceeded my own expectations.

With just 5 games left in our season, we are one point out of first and play the league leaders in the second last game of the season. We've lost once and drawn once... won the rest. We made it to the Final of a tournament and lost in extra time as well.

So... what I've learned on formations with U8s is that if you have a group that has worked hard together for a time and the majority of them have well above "game sense", you can do almost anything. Based on my team's main strengths of speed and attack, I've played 2-2-2 in most games. But I have had huge success against better teams by playing 3-2-1 and leaving my fastest top scorer up top. He leads the league in goals so far.

In this 3-2-1, I have also sometimes tried something uncoventional in that I have played my centre back attacking up the middle and not staying back which is what you'd normally do. This has also worked and he's scored 2 goals on long range outside the box rockets! He's new to playing back there as I had swapped him and a very skillful other player I was playing at the back at the start... he's now a midfielder and has also scored twice since I made the switch. Coach is happy! Kids are thrilled and the parents are pleased! I was feeling a bit like a coaching genius for a while!

In short, I don't think it's a bad thing to experiment not just with the formation itself but also with playing certain kids in different places because you may find some magical combination that works for your team. It could, of course, all change next season when the kids grow physically/mentally and mature and another spot may be more suitable. It's interesting to me and I have just switched another boy to the back to fill in while kids are on holiday and he's been terrific so far. I've tried one of my strikers in midfield and he wouldn't track back... In a game where we were up by 6 goals, I played one of my defenders as a striker for the second half and he was lost! Played my goalie up there too in the same game and he was hysterical just running around aimlessly. So it can work both ways at this age - depending on the kid!

RE: 7-a-Side Formations

CoachBobby — Thu, 16 Jul 2009 00:38:05 GMT

I play a 3-1-2 in 7v7

RE: 7-a-Side Formations

swift1 — Tue, 14 Jul 2009 14:38:12 GMT

Although not relevant to small sided football (7 a side)

In eleven a - side over a course of 6 seasons i used three main formations 4 - 2 - 3 - 1

4 - 1 - 3 - 2 and finally 3 - 4 - 1 - 2. I agree with the previous post though about sticking to a single formation for ease of understanding for the team and to keep tabs on development. Over a number of seasons though due to the same three formations only being used then they get used to the repetition although 70% of the time we did only play 4 - 2 - 3 - 1 but when we did ever change we prepared properly and they adapted fine.

I did find though that if i used the last 20 minutes of the previous days training session to practice and get used to each formation then their understanding on matchday was excellent.

I am a believer that a teams shape does have an effect although on some coaching forums and certain books they do make this out to be unimportant in comparison to player development but i believe its all part of their development and understanding of a position as they can be technically capable but clueless when it comes to their involvement within a team and their overall understanding of the game of football.

It reminds me of those people you see who can do keepy ups on their face, while they balance one legged with their arms tied behind their back (exagerated but you know the type) and everyone thinks "wow" yet put them on a pitch in a game situation and they are clueless and poor!

Not so much advice just a bit of input!

RE: 7-a-Side Formations

Lee S — Tue, 14 Jul 2009 10:32:29 GMT

Hi Gav,

This is never an easy one, however I've found that sticking to a formation and working and developing it will give the kids a better understanding of playing the game. I personally coach 14 year olds, who now play 11 a side, however I have been fortunate to have been coaching many of these kids since they were 7.

I found when these kids were younger, trying different formations, confused them during the game, as they were doing something different to what they did last week. Also as a coach, it was harder to see any consist improvements within the team.

It seemed everyone on the team wanted to score goals and by putting out different formations the kids couldn't seem to keep it.

So I worked with a formation of 3-2-1. This gave the team a more defensive understanding of the game plus by encouraging playing from back to front, improved their passing, dribbling, defending and positioning skills.

This was far easier for the kids to understand and for me as a coach to see what areas needed improving, but I'm glad I stuck with it, even through training sessions. It worked well for me as I had a clear objective of how I wanted the team to play and the kids started to realise that the game was more than just scoring goals.

This is just from my experience but its your team so whatever you finally do I wish you all the best of luck!

Keep it up as coaching kids is a rewarding experience!

RE: 7-a-Side Formations

Gav — Wed, 29 Apr 2009 03:53:31 GMT

Thanks again for the ideas and replies.

I absolutely agree that basing it on your group's strengths and weaknesses is the way to go. I have a very very fast team. I knew that from the day I had selected them. In fact 5 of the 13 in the squad have all won awards in city run track competitions (I found this out a few months ago). They're like little 8 yr old whippets!

So after several training sessions and many SSG's, we've gone with a 2-3-1 which is really 2-2-2. That central MF is really a second striker and the 2 players I play there both have the best shot (hard and high) on the team and are in the top 5 skill wise. I have 2 kids who are not as skilled as the others but have a lot of heart and dig dig dig a la Gatusso. I play them on the wings.

The other revealtion I had after looking at them was I've moved one of my best players back to defence... I tend to have a very skilled defence for all 4 I would play there but it's not by design! I have given my new star defender licence to attack and bomb down the wing - his partner is good at seeng this and stays back. We've worked up some set plays and corners where he arrives late on the edge of the box and lets fly. It's working quite well but at 8 they need to be better at disguising these plays!

We have our first friendly next week - we'll see how all this works out!

RE: 7-a-Side Formations

CoachMark — Tue, 28 Apr 2009 16:56:14 GMT

Gav,

I believe your choice of formations should be based on the strengths and weaknesses of your players.

For example, one of my teams has lightning fast defenders, quick midfielders, and mostly slower forwards. I go with a 2-3-2 formation because my defenders can cover ground, my midfielders can get back to help the defenders out when needed, and I need the two forwards to 1) stay at the other end of the field to be able to quickly get in position to take passes from the midfielder and 2) not have to cover much ground before being ready to execute a scoring threat.

Whereas, a team with slower defenders might need a 3-2-2 formation to make up for a lack of overall speed on defense, and not rely on quick midfielders to help the defense out.

Hope that helps!

Mark

RE: 7-a-Side Formations

Andrewnm — Mon, 06 Apr 2009 21:03:47 GMT

Seems like a 2 - 2 - 2 would work best, maintaining a 2 3 1 shape.

RE: 7-a-Side Formations

moanywish4justice — Sun, 05 Apr 2009 09:21:04 GMT

hi gav n swift, im new on coaching guys.but at nearly 50, ive been there seen it done it lol.

seriously tho, great reading you guys.my wee danny boy is now 7 -8 in october,and for past 1yr and half ,played 7 a side at under 9`s.

hence why this year im stepping in and taking him and 4 of his team mates (all 8 yrs) adding another 5 from their school and bingo we have the foundation of a gr8 team.

amazingly as ive watched up till now ,the present coaches seem heel bent on each kid being a certain positional player,im so glad to read your comments and experience.all our kids should learn all positions but more importantly learn the art of control movement and passing.

i now take our 5 boys to a street soccer coaching where my pals boy(24 year old) semi pro loves passing on his experience to not only my guys but kids of all ages,they are improving so fast.this is on top of their normal training nights. my point here is getting the young ones to respect some one they recognise as still playing at high level,and listening to good advice.

my dad died when i was 7 and mum had to work hard for me and 3 brothers 2 sisters,

my own story is the norm for our area in central scotland,schoolboy sensation then girls,drink,smoke all before 16..........you know the area.....sad. but hey at least ive turned life round and by grace of god have 2 cracking boys, the wee one a special talent.so as i said earlier gr8 reading and ill definately be back 4 more .cheers guys.

RE: 7-a-Side Formations

Gav — Fri, 03 Apr 2009 17:52:25 GMT

I follow you, Swift...

Some of that may be too complex for them right now though. I get the idea though and will start working on all this soon. We're still in the gym. Outside this Sunday. Some friendlies arranged for late April and May and then league play starts last week of May.

I know this much; it's a different world playing now at 8 than when I was in Essex in the early 70s! It was big muddy pitches, heavy sodden leather ball and you played one position forever. I've said in other posts, I regret in some ways being pigeon-holed a left-winger (#11) because it's all I ever knew. I would like to have learned midfield and even defence and even today I struggle to explain clearly as coach what to do in those roles.

Thanks for your comments... it would be good if more people responded to threads here! I have a few where I just chat with myslef it seems!

RE: 7-a-Side Formations

swift1 — Fri, 03 Apr 2009 12:35:23 GMT

Hi Gav,

What i would do is if i push the central midfielder up to support the forward then i would push one defender in to the midfielders vacated space then just have one holding and maybe push the goalkeeper forward slightly to almost act as a sweeper beyond the last defender, not actually to defend as such but just to minimise the space beween the last defender and the goal incase anything is launched long over the last defenders head.

Alternatively what you could do is for instance if you are attacking wide for example down the right then you could push the far side wide player (left) inside level with the forward to cover the far post area then your centre mid can either sit in the space beyond the attackers or be a possible option for a pass inside from the wide player if a cross isnt possible, then the two defenders if they hold halfway one could sit centrally then the other level with him but in a wide position on the side the attack is, then if the wide player needs to he could always have his support down the line if the cross isnt possible then although you are playing backwards you are keeping possession.

I wrote this out much clearer before Gav and i accidentaly deleted it so apologies if this is a bit rushed or confusing to follow.

RE: 7-a-Side Formations

swift1 — Fri, 03 Apr 2009 12:27:47 GMT

RE: 7-a-Side Formations

Gav — Fri, 03 Apr 2009 11:57:54 GMT

Thanks Swift...

I've been trying different combos on paper and seeing who may fit best and where. I was wavering between 2-2-2 and 2-3-1. I try to give them experience at different positions but generally, most of them play the majority of their time in one spot. I tend to give them a run of games at one position so they adapt to it. I have some kids that are quite adaptable and others not so much. I have a squad of 13 (incl. the keeper) so that's basically 2 units of 6 players. My mandate is to play everyone equally. Our games are 2X30 so they more or less play half the game if everyone turns up.

Things certainly operate differently here as opposed to when I grew up in the UK! This U8 team is about to compete in their first year of *real* or competitive league play as opposed to rec level (or house as it's called in Canada). We now have well planned training sessions and everything is more focussed whereas in house league, there really are no practices and it's a mix of good skilled players and daisy-pickers. Last season, I basically took the better players from our clubs' 12 U7 house league teams and entered them in tournaments through the season and ran some sessions too. I still have most of those kids with me and it's now training 2 to 3 times a week and is going very very well. So far!

On that 2-3-1 formation... when I was drawing it up and making 2 units from my squad trying to balance out the good and weak aspects of each player, I had in mind playing my most skilled player as that central midfielder and he was to play in behind the lone striker. So he'd be a goalscorer too. Thoughts on that? Secondly, I noticed that oddly enough my real speedsters are my defenders (on many teams I notice they are the slower less fit types) so I had been debating giving one out of each defender pairing the free license to bomb up the wing *as long as* they can get back. I haven't really tried this yet and I guess it's failing could be leaving you well exposed at the back. Opinion on that?

Obviously, they are 8 yrs old and I can't muddle their heads with complex systems and sit them in a classroom so I have to keep it simple. I have a great group of kids and an excellent (all-Brit!!!) coaching staff who have all played at a high level. I want the kids to be the best they can be and love the game enough that they can't wait to come to the next training session. And the next. If they 'get that' then they'll have some success on the pitch - and that's as much as I'm aiming for this year. It's a building process and at U8 we're still on the ground floor!

RE: 7-a-Side Formations

swift1 — Fri, 03 Apr 2009 09:04:45 GMT

2 - 3 - 1.

This gives you two central defenders, two wing backs / wide midfielders, a central midfielder and a forward so i believe this shape gives you the nearest representation to a full 11 a side formation as the sahpe and postions are practically the same and the development this shape gives helps the players adapt easier to 11 a side especially if the players can be rotated to different positions to get used to operating in certain areas of the field e.g as a wing back they get used to pushing forward and dropping while being in a wide position so when they do go up to full sided the principles of their play will be the same whetehr they are full backs or wide fielders.

The same principal works for the centre halves and the central midfielder. I coached an under 10 side for a few weeks and this shape worked really well but as with anything else in football there isnt generally a right and wrong its opinion and whatever works for your particular players.

7-a-Side Formations

Gav — Thu, 02 Apr 2009 15:08:10 GMT

Just wondering if anyone has had success with different formations at 7-a-side football? My side is just in pre-season training now so this is one thing to start thinking of...

My group are U8's. We play 7-a-side here until they reach U11 where they go to 11-a-side on a full field. Our fields for U8 are typically 60X40 yards - sometimes bigger.

I'm hearing different things from coaches... some like 2-2-2. Others like 3-2-1. And some play 2-3-1. At U8, I feel we're just trying to get them to learn the basics of positioning and so forth and it's not wise in my opinion to complicate it too much.

However, as I look at my team, I see a very very very fast team and I wonder if that factor should play into how I set them up? They can recover and get back very quickly and also move up to attack quickly. The trick for me is to work hard on getting them doing that *with* the ball at their feet and not lose control.

Any thoughts, experiences to share, suggestions?