New coach, practice advice needed

Discussion in 'Coach' started by leftback3, Jan 30, 2014.

  1. leftback3

    leftback3 New Member

    Sep 4, 2011
    Club:
    Chelsea FC
    Nat'l Team:
    United States
    I have been thinking about getting into coaching soccer for awhile, so this year I decided to coach a coed 9 to 11 year old indoor rec team. The league is 6 v. 6 and plays in high school gymnasiums. Having reffed for this league a few times in the past, I know that it is VERY much a recreational league. There are some talented players, but the majority have little understanding of soccer. Most of the coaches are parents who have no clue about soccer. I am coaching because I want to help kids improve as players while having fun and developing a love for the game.

    We will have a weekly 1.5 hour practice slot. We will have only one practice before our first game. I want to make sure I maximize our practice time so that the kids can get the most out of it. I want to convey to them the basics of playing soccer as a team. I want them to learn positioning, marking, passing, making runs, etc. throughout the season. Specifically I want them to understand the importance of possession. Most of these kids think that blasting the ball down the court as hard as possible is a good play, because that's what makes their parents cheer. I want them to look to pass to their teammates and to not be afraid to dribble. I realize that this will lead to a lot of difficulties and turnovers in our own end at first, but I'm okay with that. Winning is way down the list of priorities here.

    My question is what types of drills and techniques can I use during practices that will teach them these basic principles but still keep things fun? Like I said, I have no coaching experience, so any advice will help. Thanks.
     
  2. elessar78

    elessar78 Moderator
    Staff Member

    May 12, 2010
    Club:
    Arsenal FC
    Get them a thousand touches at the beginning of practice (about 10-20 minutes, takes longer at the beginning) via various ball mastery exercises. Serves as a warm-up as well.

    Middle section 2: you'll use "drills" with that emphasize dribbling/passing/shooting/receiving/defending

    End with 4v4 (go through your "how to play soccer" stuff here)

    this is a hyper generalized layout of a practice. I'm sure other posters will fill in the gaps.
     
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  3. rca2

    rca2 Member+

    Nov 25, 2005
    At that age they need fundamentals. Novices are fun to coach because its easy to see their progress.

    So spend as little time as possible on their system of play. Just enough to get them organized for the matches. Make it as simple as possible. I would use a half-court zone defense and the classic 212 shape. As an introduction do a little unopposed shadow (aka pattern) play to run them through the tactical alternatives for attack and defense. If you have the numbers then run 5 attackers against 4 defenders (no forwards, you could drop the keeper too for 5v3) a bit to give them a feel for how it works. The next practice, devote the same time to the system but this time address the zone defense, how it adjusts as the ball moves around. But don't spend too much time on the team tactics. 15 minutes should be enough.

    And I try to always end practice with a "scrimmage," unrestricted play with goals. I never met a player who didn't look forward to playing a "scrimmage" at the end of practice. 90 minutes is a bit long for that age, so the lower intensity shadow play works well placed between higher intensity drill and scrimmage periods.
     
  4. elessar78

    elessar78 Moderator
    Staff Member

    May 12, 2010
    Club:
    Arsenal FC
    Don't fixate on the drill(s). As you progress, you'll find that you probably have about a dozen drills for the various techniques/skills. Over time you'll be able to tweak drills you find to fit something specific about your team. Or even design your own.

    IMO, it's more useful, post some drills you like here and I'll help you define, identify and hit coaching moments within. Most drills have a receiving, dribbling, passing, shooting, defending component so it's really about you making the most of teaching moments in whatever drill it is.

    Never forget that the internet is your best friend as a new coach. Query: 1v1 drill soccer and you'll get a ton of hits. Watch a couple and find one you're comfortable with the setup. One school of thought, and I think it serves the new coach well, is to stick with a core group of drills—you'll learn how to coach within them, it'll speed up practice because you won't always have to spend time explaining new things to players, and the players will learn the rules and can focus on playing within the drill.

    For a 5'8" tall person, 10 yards is approximately 12 steps.

    Warm-up (4 cones): create a 2oy x 20y area and do the following movements, don't have to do all 24 in one warm-up. The idea is to get them 1,000 touches. The foot has several surfaces, ball work like this exposes the newbie to using all surfaces and develops their "touch".

    24 Stations
    1. Foundations
    2. Foundations forward and back
    3. Toe Taps
    4. Toe Taps forward and back
    5. Monster walk
    6. Triangle touch
    7. Small V
    8. Large V
    9. Roll touch
    10. In and Out of a line of cones
    11. Rhythm roll
    12. Push Pull
    13. Push Pull forward and back
    14. Inside only through line of cones
    15. Outside only through line of cones
    16. L-behind
    17. foundations through a tight grid of cones
    18. roll touch through a tight grid of cones
    19. In a large triangle: V cut at each cone
    20. In a large triangle: cruyff at each cone
    21. 4-6 cones in a zig-zag pattern: inside cut at each station
    21. Same set up as 21 but perform a double cut (inside cut and forward touch in rapid succession)
    23. Inside outside same foot
    24. Inside of L to outside R (vice versa)

    (4 cones)1v1 line soccer, area: 5y x 10y. divide team into two groups and one team on each end of the rectangle. One end has all the balls. Player A passes across to Player B and tries to dribble across A's line. A tries to stop him. Simple drill that focuses on dribbling but also has passing and receiving and defending.

    (12 cones) 2v2/3v3/4v4 to 4 goals in a 10y x 20y area, set-up 4 cone goals (1 yard wide near the corners of the playing area. In a normal game, there's one goal, here each team can attack two goals. Increases the chances of scoring, will encourage play to move side to side instead of just north/south.

    So . . . that's the most basic, functional practice, I can set up for you. It should take about 75 minutes. Once you get the hang of things months down the road for your players, add a section for keepaway/monkey in the middle (but that's a personal preference).
     
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  5. rca2

    rca2 Member+

    Nov 25, 2005
    The only additional point I would make is that the number of SSGs I run depends on the number of players I had at practice and their fitness level. I usually had large teams (18) so I would run 2-3 SSGs (e.g., 1v1) at the same time. If I wanted a 1 to 2 work/rest ratio, I would assign 6 players to a 1v1 game. If your numbers don't fall perfect like my example (6 players per game), you can add a low intensity task to keep players waiting a turn more active or insert rest breaks to keep the players from overworking (depending on if you have too few or too many players per game to get your planned work/rest ratio in continuous play).
     
  6. elessar78

    elessar78 Moderator
    Staff Member

    May 12, 2010
    Club:
    Arsenal FC
    rca2 has a good point, but since you're starting out I wouldn't worry about work to rest ratios just yet. :D

    It's easy to get overwhelmed so apply the KISS principle at the outset. Find your state association website and see if they're offering any "youth modules"—they are a huge help.
     
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  7. rca2

    rca2 Member+

    Nov 25, 2005
    He is right. Having a plan is important but what I generally found was that I was constantly simplifing my practice plans through adjustments during the sessions after I saw how things actually were working.

    Elessar78 is offering to help you plan your practices. ("... post some drills you like here and I'll help you define, identify and hit coaching moments within.") That is an awesome opportunity that I wish I had when I was coaching U-Littles. Being able to play is one thing, being able to articulate how to play is something else.
     
  8. elessar78

    elessar78 Moderator
    Staff Member

    May 12, 2010
    Club:
    Arsenal FC
    I found this the other day. It's actually a nice series of coaching vids on YouTube:


    In 5 minutes of so, the coach goes over the general philosophy (why), technique (how), video of drills (going from simple to complex) to do on the topic all the way to a 4v4 scrimmage.

    The short version of when to insert yourself as a coach is watch the videos of the drills he uses. If your kids aren't doing it as proficiently, identify why, show them the fix, have them do it with you standing there.
     
  9. leftback3

    leftback3 New Member

    Sep 4, 2011
    Club:
    Chelsea FC
    Nat'l Team:
    United States
    Thanks for all the input guys. All the info posted here will be really helpful. Our first practice is next Thursday. I'll be using the information here and other online resources over the next few days to come up with a practice plan. Once I come up with a plan I'll let you guys know what I'm thinking of doing.
     
  10. Jazlizard

    Jazlizard New Member

    Jan 5, 2011
    They have to learn how to control the ball, before they can move on to the more complex parts of the game. Without the control it doesn't matter how well their positioning is, or runs are. Defensive shape and proper tackling takes time to learn and for 9-11 year old rec players, I'd much prefer to focus on their overall technique. If you want them to be able to play possession, they have to be comfortable w/ the ball at their feet.

    That being said, you should utilize part of your first practice to get them ready for their first game. Since you only have 1 practice before your game, if you have enough players to do so, I'd run part - perhaps half - of your first practice as a scrimmage so you can observe and point out some things to them as they play. Keep in mind that at this age, the adults are often more embarrassed about the kids making a mistake about the rules, than the kids actually are.

    Outside of that, I would encourage the players to work on ball skills outside of practice as well. Communicate to the parents how important it is to their development and give them little homework assignments they can work on. Not all will do it, most may not, but those that do will improve more than those that don't (generally).

    Here are a couple videos of simple exercises that can be used as part of a warm-up or practice, as well as something the kids can do at home.





    Hope it helps.
     
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  11. zohee

    zohee Member+

    May 28, 2011
    Club:
    Real Madrid
    Nat'l Team:
    Slovenia
    Hello,

    I am a student of the Faculty of sports in Slovenia. The direction that I've choosen to pursue is coaching. Now I don't know, if this is the right thread, but I'll ask anyway.

    A thing that I've noticed in the last 4-5 years is the drastic drop of quality in all the minor leagues. Now I figure there are multiple things to consider in this discussion, but what would be the first thing you would do, if you would take over a team, which plays in the Sunday league, to improve the qualities of that team in general?
     
  12. dcole

    dcole Member+

    May 27, 2005
    The first thing I would do is install a possession-based style of play, and the first step in that is to impose two requirements: (1) keeper only punts as a last-resort, (2) defenders only clear the ball as a last resort. This will immediately improve the quality of soccer and allow the higher skilled players to stand out, as opposed to allowing the better athletes to stand out. Valuing skills over athleticism has a trickle-down effect into youth and other feeder leagues as well.
     
  13. zohee

    zohee Member+

    May 28, 2011
    Club:
    Real Madrid
    Nat'l Team:
    Slovenia
    That's a good idea. And if the players can't play possession based play, do you stick with it or try something else?
     
  14. dcole

    dcole Member+

    May 27, 2005
    That depends on what your goal is. Are you trying to win games or raise the standard of play? If trying to raise the standard of play, then stick with it.
     
  15. rca2

    rca2 Member+

    Nov 25, 2005
    Is this an 11v11 adult men's league? What are the substitution rules?
     
  16. zohee

    zohee Member+

    May 28, 2011
    Club:
    Real Madrid
    Nat'l Team:
    Slovenia
    I was thinking about the league as a whole. The quality has dropped drastically in the last 5 years.

    To be more specific, there's a team here, U-19, in which the players more or less, train when they want and all the rest that comes playing recreational football. The league allows 5 substitutions per team.
    Any idea how to get the players motivated so they would attend training regularly?
     
  17. rca2

    rca2 Member+

    Nov 25, 2005
    #17 rca2, Feb 6, 2014
    Last edited: Feb 6, 2014
    1. I wouldn't decide what to do first until after I saw them play. Before actually seeing them, what I expect is a lack of fitness. At that age you will see significant improvement in 30 days of fitness training. So there is potentially a big return for training time invested. Improving their technical skills is slower for adults and at U19 they are almost, but not quite, out of the youth window where improvement is faster.

    Now it could be that the players are skilled and fit, just tactically unorganized. That is rare, but in that case the first thing I would do is pick a suitable system of play and teach it to them.

    2. Make training fun and those that can come, will come.

    Keeping the above in mind, at practice I would most of the time in multiple small sided games. Make it competitive. Keep score. Have rewards and forfeits. The small sided games gives them multiple touches and is good endurance training. And its fun. By adjusting the games, you can work on tactics too.

    Don't skimp on a good warmup and cool down. Emphasize it. Use the warm up period for techical training while they are fresh. Ball skills and speed, agility and quickness training. Plan the warmup exercises for individuals and small groups and you won't be hampered by the players' irregular arrivals and departures. The FIFA 11 Plus program has a warmup and a strength part. Look at the warmup portion for ideas. Look at Dennis Mueller's 1000 touches work out for ball skills exercises. (I mentioned these because they are available on the internet.)
    http://www.ucs.mun.ca/~dgraham/daily_drill.html

    There are other ways to motivate. Generally use positive reinforcement with corrections. Play music during training. Reward training effort with playing time. Recongize effort in matches. Have team social events. Different people require different motivation.
     
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  18. OnlineSoccerCoaching

    Jan 13, 2014
    Club:
    Manchester City FC
    Best of luck with it Leftback3,I immediately appreciated your post from the moment I read winning isn't a priority. For recreational leagues I have always followed a similar pattern in my sessions.

    Warm up, ball familiarization-every player with a ball
    Skill or topic under passive pressure
    Topic Under real pressure
    SSG/Conditioned game

    I just posted this session in another thread but I think it could be a useful one for you since you want the players to feel comfortable with the ball at their feet.

    onlinesoccercoaching.com/dribbling-to-targets-1v1.html

    Good luck!

    Mark
     
  19. nicklaino

    nicklaino Member+

    Feb 14, 2012
    Brooklyn, NY
    Club:
    Manchester United FC
    Glad RCA asked the question how old are they.

    Under 19 and they come when they want to? If you cant change that kind of thinking nothing you will do will make them better. Are you a player coach for them?

    I bet they argue over playing time as well :)

    You probably have guys who can only give you a decent 60 minutes and after that they are spent. But they still want to be on the field.

    I dont know how many players you have on the team. But with guys like this you need a full 18. If tour allowed to have 23 on the team but can only suit up 18 get 23.

    Judge who get playing time by who shows up for practice and how hard they work in practice.

    How many practices do you schedule a week and how many players attend these practices.

    Dont make practices early in the morning. They will be late from whatever they are doing the night before and we all know what guys do :)

    Another problem is they are working or going to school. Paying for a car and the dreaded women haha want to dominate their time.

    I guess they are playing long ball and not a possession game right?

    So turn long ball into a possession game.
     
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  20. nicklaino

    nicklaino Member+

    Feb 14, 2012
    Brooklyn, NY
    Club:
    Manchester United FC
    Why not turn your direct game into a more possession direct game?

    Pass long into space instead right to a waiting player. Use up top player movement, and movement from the flank player to an up top inside the field position.

    Pass long from the back to the far side mid on the far side up top space. Instead of near the keeper. So your pass possession would be in your favor instead of the opponents defense favor.

    Play back to your support players after a long pass. You don't always have to try and beat the opponents backs over the top.

    Try to hit the second, and the third diagonal run instead of the first diagonal run. Most passes off diagonal runs are to the first option. Not the trigered 2nd or third option options after that. The back support player of the dribbler is the guy who should get the ball first in order to hit that third triggered option not the dribbler.

    In every long direct pass you need 2 back options not one. Also those two back options should be further back then the back option would be in a possession game.

    Do all that with practice direct would be a more possession game
     
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  21. bendm

    bendm New Member

    Jul 4, 2013
    Richmond, Virginia
    Club:
    Arsenal FC
    Nat'l Team:
    United States
    I'm in a coaching situation pretty similar to leftback3's: It's a recreational YMCA league team with 9-10 year old girls. We just have one hour-long practice a week, and our season is 10 weeks long.

    For the ball control drills such as the ones mentioned above, do these need to be practiced a few times a week for the kids to get much value out of them? I would think so but wonder what others have experienced in using them in practice. I'm thinking I'd probably need to demonstrate in practice and give the parents a link to the video(s) and offer that they have their kids watch and practice them (and if they don't ... that's fine, too). Thanks.

    elessar78 - Nice avatar ... recognize it from arseblog. Just got my tickets to the game against the Red Bulls in July.
     
  22. rca2

    rca2 Member+

    Nov 25, 2005
    #22 rca2, Apr 12, 2014
    Last edited: Apr 12, 2014
    You are correct. This approach has been well established for U-littles for a long time. You introduce variations and progressions based on individual skill to keep the exercises challenging. The idea is to motivate the kids to practice the ball mastery exercises daily (and play pickup). (Drill is considered a negative word. I still use it, but its not PC anymore.) You incorporate it into the warm up for two reasons: 1) its a good warmup, and 2) it teaches them how to practice on their own.

    Here is a link to Dennis Mueller's 7 Minute (a/k/a 1000 Touches) Drill: http://www.ucs.mun.ca/~dgraham/daily_drill.html

    You probably won't have to demonstrate all the exercises on your own. It is better motivation to use your players or an older player to demonstrate than an adult, if you have a choice. Spoon feed them the drill a little at a time over a number of practices. There is no rush. Each week during the warmup exercises recongize those who practiced on their own. Measure progress based on individual improvement. Positive reinforcement only. Make the exercises fun rather than a punishment. You can make rewards as simple as getting to wear a certain color pennie that day.

    Take the long term view of development. Instill a love of the game, let them play, and teach them proper technique and how and what to practice on their own. They have a lifetime to enjoy the game. If by the end of the season they each have performed the 7-minute drill on their own time, you have accomplished a great deal.
     
  23. bendm

    bendm New Member

    Jul 4, 2013
    Richmond, Virginia
    Club:
    Arsenal FC
    Nat'l Team:
    United States
    rca2 - Thanks much for your insight! Very helpful.
     
  24. J'can

    J'can Member+

    Jul 3, 2007
    Club:
    Manchester United FC
    I am sticking this on here because i dont want to start a new thread.

    Heading the ball

    My son is 6 (7 in November) and is okay at the game. Learns well, enjoys the game when he is out there. No Messi by any means. But he shies away from heading the ball. How do I address this? What age should I expect he will want to try it without ducking away.

    He has been hit with the ball before, last season while being a GK. the ball hit him in the face. up until yesterday he was hit again and today while he was at camp they had heading drills and he wouldnt head the ball. any advice as to how to approach will be greatly appreciated.
     
  25. elessar78

    elessar78 Moderator
    Staff Member

    May 12, 2010
    Club:
    Arsenal FC
    I don't emphasize it too much at that age, particularly since there's a lot of unknowns with concussions. There are many other ways to bring the ball down.

    Tactically, I've rarely seen a useful execution of a header at that age.

    Technically, you can introduce it with light balls (size 3) by playing fun games like head it/catch it. (They love this game)
     

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