My first year coaching thread

[JohnW]

I knew I forgot something.

Keep a copy of everything you do as coach, including practice plans, team rules, useful drills, etc. When you change teams/get your own team, you will have a good resource to draw from.

During the season, I keep a folder of basically everything. Then during the off-season, I go through it.

The really good stuff makes it into a soccer binder that has sections ranging from offensive/defensive principles, drills, set plays, etc. (I even have a miscellaneous file that contains a few comments posted on bigsoccer that I've found useful.)

jgw

[soccernutter]

pething101 - I like some of the suggestion above, specially about recruting other players. But it occured to me that you have been saying "I don't know" about some of what the head coach is doing. Have the two of you discussed the direction and philosophy of the team? Are you able to bring to the table your concerns or suggestions?

And a side note, how do the players seem to relate to you versus the head coach?

[pething101]

Originally posted by Richie
pething101

How many players exactly do you have on your team?

Tell them don't work hard in practice and I will not worry about your playing time so remember that. "it is up to you, on how much time you get or if you get any time so work hard in practice".

Want to light a fire under them? I am sure you have a hard worker who does not start because of ability. Start him, and play him the whole game. Sit the lazy player or no show with the most ability the whole game.

The other lazy players my get the hint. See what happens in the next practice. They are still lazy sit the next best lazy player the whole game, etc, etc.

Then see how the rest of the lazys practice.

Maybe you will push one or two lazy players to push themselves. Then you have more options.

If you practice in stations and you should. Push them, you move from station to station to push them.

Have a lazy player at a station pull him out of the station. Then start a lazy station for lazy players. Spend more time pushing them call it the lazy station. Maybe, peer pressure will work who wants to be singled out in a lazy station?

Can you recruit from the track team? If you can add a player to the team do it even if there is not much skill there. Turn him into a player eventually. Look for freshman who can help you if not this year next year a project player and a hard worker. Then play him rather then the lazy player.

Practice playing short handed it will come in handy when a player is carded or you just want to play a man short to show them that you mean what you say. Just play without one extra striker. if your striker is not a lazy play him in the midfield.

So take out a lazy and play short 10 players. Say I am not playing lazy players who don't work hard in practice.

I know suppose a player with ability leaves? If you can turn other lazys into worksers in practice and in games who cares let him leave. Your team will be better eventually without him.

Lazy is a cancer do nothing it spreads to other players.

Richie

As far as numbers go, the most we have had is 14, for a game day. For practice, i think we had 12 once or twice.

I like the station idea. We need to use stations. We have not really done anything of that sort.

This is my first year at this school. I will ask the coach about recruiting players off the track team but most of those I would guess are football players who are of course playing now.

Agreed, about lazy being contagious. I can see it when one or two players show up and it rubs off very quickly on some of the others.

[pething101]

Originally posted by Elroy


Everyone is suggesting punishment/negative motivation. That has its place, but in these circumstances it could have a negative effect on the program. Let me offer some suggestions.

1. Think beyond your current season. It is important that you build your program or, next year, you'll face this all over again.
a. Build the good players that you have. Make practice fun and productive. Strongly encourage good performances with rewards.
b. Do some team building. Have some team dinners at volunteer parent's homes. Girls will come for the fellowship, boys for the food. Have your practice right before the dinner. You can't do this every night, but it will build espirit. Have some appropriate non soccer events as well. I have a family picnic every year with either a parent practice or a parent/player match. Try to develop some parent support.
c. Ask your hard working players to recruit their friends, even if they haven't played. You need players!! You can train them later.

2. Meet individually with your problem players. Have an outside person such as your athletic director, counselor, and/or parent at the meeting. Make the tone adult and concensus building. Air out the problems and ask the offending player to help work out the solution. See if you can come to an agreement. Follow up and keep the tone adult. You want the player to recognize his responsibilities.

3. Meet as a group and convince everyone that they all have a hand in the success or failure of the team. Tell your players that the past must be forgotten, but that those mistakes must not be repeated. Do not have a general gripe session - you must remain in charge. I'm not suggesting that you make concessions, I want you to find solutions. Never surrender your leadership role.

This is a good start. I've learned these things through hard experience. Good luck.

I mentioned to the coach, today about just using freshman and sophmores on the varsity for the next 3 or 4 years. We may suck now but in 3 years we would be tough. Doubt it would ever happen though.

Team spirit is something we are sorely lacking in. It is embarassing when we practice next to the football team and see them doing thier drills with some pep and spirit and we run through the motions. Some of the suggestions you provided are top notch. We need to have a Saturday morning b-fast somewhere here in the ville.

I plan on meeting privately with all my jv kids and staying in better contact with parents.

[pething101]

Originally posted by soccernutter
pething101 - I like some of the suggestion above, specially about recruting other players. But it occured to me that you have been saying "I don't know" about some of what the head coach is doing. Have the two of you discussed the direction and philosophy of the team? Are you able to bring to the table your concerns or suggestions?

And a side note, how do the players seem to relate to you versus the head coach?

We have not really discussed too many things. It is frustrating but every time I ask if there is anything I need to be doing or could be doing to help, he says no.

on the side note, I think that we have a positive relationship. They know that if they mess up, I will correct them and then give them some encouragement and not go too Woody Hayes overboard.

[pething101]

As far as stations go ... what sort of things do ya'll do at these stations.

[pething101]

Students are coming back today.

Three ninety minute blocks, one twenty minute lunch duty and then practice till about 6 pm. Fun day.

[Richie]

Pething "As far as stations go ... what sort of things do ya'll do at these stations."

Stations can be used for anything. From fitness to skill work.

Examples of fitness

one station- Player does abdominal crunches with feet held up off the ground.

second station - Single Big Dutch Gate about 24 inches high. Player does high knee jumps side to side over the gate.

third station - Use small dutch gates 14 hurdles about 9 - 12 inches off ground, placed close together. Player runs over and back lifting feet high to clear the hurdle.

fourth station - Two cones 15 yards apart. Player does shuttle run from cone to cone.

Fifth station - for quickness You can do figure 8's Put up two cones and your players run around and throw and around them making a a figure 8. Have them go in both directions. Then gradually bring the cones closer together to make the 8's in a smaller space.

-------------------------------------

Skill work


First station - 6 flag poles placed 2 yards apart, player does dribbling weave through cones and back.

Second station -using three players and two balls. Receiver is the middle player. One player one touch passes on the ground to the middle player with his back to the the third player. Then the middle player passes back to the first player, then the middle player immediately after the pass faces the third player. The third player tosses the ball in the air to the middle player. The middle player heads back to the third player. Then turns to meet the push pass of the first player then immediately turns to meet the header of the third player he heads back and immediately turns to return the push pass of the first player. It takes timing and skill. Then after some repetitions one of the other two end players goes to the middle.

Third station using pairs one player one touches the ball in the air to the other player alternatiing feet. ball never hits the ground.

----------------------------

You can even throw both things mixed depending on what station you are in at the time. You can have 2 to seven stations or more if you have a lot of players. You can have as little as one or two players in a station or as many as 4.

You can have all your players spend a few minutes in every station then move on to the next. You can have 3 turns in every station.

You can limit players in a station according to their weekness in a skill. They stay in that skill station longer and avoid other stations where they can perform the skill.

You oversee spend some time pushing the players in every station. If you have hard workers in a station you can put someone already good at a skill in a station, and let him work and push the others who are not as good in that skill.

What you want is to see hard workers in each station. Remove the lazy players from the stations and put them in the "Lazy Station" you work more, spend more time with, and push these guys more then the rest.
---------------------------
I must ask you. You are the coaches assistant coach right? How much freedom and power does he allow you to have over the team?

What we tell you that you might like to use means nothing, if you don't have the freedom from the coach to use this stuff.

Richie

[Elroy]

Stations are great when you have adequate supervision. They allow one coach to work intensively on one subject while the other coaches work on their subjects. Compare this with a lead coach giving the entire team instruction while assistants work with individuals. Everyone hears the same message but the individual help is filtered by each assistant's knowledge and vision.

I like both methods. With beginners, I prefer stations b/c they can be very intense and work well on reducing boredom. Without supervision, however, stations do not give players proper feedback. In those circumstances, they must be kept simple.

Corrections made at stations will not be heard by the entire group, unless by pre-agreement, the coaches work out a list of points to be made. Even so, situations will come up that can't be anticipated. If the whole group is playing a small sided game in groups, a demonstration group may be used to illustrate important points for the entire team.

I think that stations are best used for fitness, skills, and small sided games. They may work for you.

[Coryattheplex]

John W, Blech, and anyone else who contributed to the discussion about the defensive secrets of the 3-5-2.......THANK YOU! We opened the season last night with a 5-1 victory! Defensively my boys did their jobs, but our keeper did drop one corner kick, (I think it was their only one), and gave them an easy scramble in front of the net. All things considered, the boys did a marvelous job staying focused and diciplined in the back, and our mids and forwards ran their butts off pressuring up the field. The pressure they put on the oppositions' build up caused the type of desperation passes that our back line was able to deal with comfortably, and then distribute with precise passes.

I am smiling today!

[uniteo]

Originally posted by pething101

This is my first year at this school. I will ask the coach about recruiting players off the track team but most of those I would guess are football players who are of course playing now.

Agreed, about lazy being contagious. I can see it when one or two players show up and it rubs off very quickly on some of the others.

You may also want to think about recruiting off the wrestling team, they'll be attracted at first because of the fitness requirements (wrestlers always want to be in shape, and not too far from wrestling weight) and will bring an intensity and "bite" that many soccer players haven't run into before...they're used to paying attention to technique, and many wrestlers start the sport because they're not 'big enough' for football (sound familiar?). Plus you'll have no seasonal conflicts as you would with, say, cross country and middle or long distance runners.

Imagine a sport where everybody want to be Roy Keane.

[Coryattheplex]

Originally posted by uniteo

Imagine a sport where everybody want to be Roy Keane.

Are you silly?!!!! I AM Roy Keane!

[pething101]

Busy last couple of days.

Had 21 kids at practice today. And missing several kids, so we, according to the coach, will have a jv squad on Monday. So, I guess I am on my own starting Monday ... which is nice.

Coach wants us to have a jv match for Wednesday. Seems to be a bit quick after two days of practice.

Practice was in 100 plus heat today. Did not enjoy it. Coach put all the the experienced varsity players on one team and the rest on my team. We got a 2-0 lead but eventually lost 6-2. I did not really understand the point of having that but that was what the coach wanted to do today.

[pething101]

Ok. Time to start compiling a list of what I would like to dao daily in my soccer practice since I start on Monday.

First, I would like to keep my training sessions to 2 hours. I believe starting week after next we will have two games a week so that means 2 maybe 3 training sessions a week.

This is my timetable for my 2 hours.

10 -15 minutes stretching and loosening up.

Two 15 minute sessions of conditioning with a 4 minute water break in between. Concentrating mosty on wind sprints with the ball, some lateral movement drills, some beckpedaling drills, etc.

Perhaps 20 minutes of working at stations. Juggling, passing and trapping, heading, chesting the ball, etc. I think I will be working with a lot of kids that really have never touched a ball so the basic fundementals are going to be key.

Twenty minutes of 4v2 and 3v1 drills to focus on passing, moving and spacing.

Last bit of practice we will scrimage, problably short side, maybe 6 v 6.

Then about 5 minutes of cool down.

Feel free to add or to be critical.

[pething101]

Originally posted by Richie

I must ask you. You are the coaches assistant coach right? How much freedom and power does he allow you to have over the team?

What we tell you that you might like to use means nothing, if you don't have the freedom from the coach to use this stuff.

Richie

I will coach the JV team, and I am pretty much going to do what I feel like doing unless the head coach tells me otherwise.

A lot of the station drills are going down in the notebook.

I appreciate all the stuff ya'll have offered to me and to Vicar. I feel much better prepared now than when I started this thread.

[soccernutter]

Is there a JV schedule w/in your league? I ask from the idea of players moving up or down and also wondering on which team the players that missed practice will be playing.

[pething101]

JV games start at 5:30 or so on days the varsity plays.

Looks like we will have a jv game on Wed. Of course, if we do that, we have to leave school at 2 pm since it will be a two hour road trip.

[JohnW]

Originally posted by pething101
Ok. Time to start compiling a list of what I would like to dao daily in my soccer practice since I start on Monday.

First, I would like to keep my training sessions to 2 hours. I believe starting week after next we will have two games a week so that means 2 maybe 3 training sessions a week...

...Then about 5 minutes of cool down.


Sounds good.

A few things to consider...

1. One of the positive things about stations is that you can get a number of players working on different things at the same time. It sounds like you will only have 12-14 players to work with. You might consider doing a progression of technique drills with the entire team together in pairs (only six or seven).

The benefit there is that you can watch all of the players working on the skill; as opposed to having to watch all of the stations at once.

2. I always try to add introduce a competitive element to any drill as quickly as possible. (You might need to give your players time to master new skills without pressure.)

For example, even with something as simple as dribbling, I will have the pairs compete for pushups.

Of course, you want to make sure that the players are executing the skill properly while competing (as opposed to pushing the ball 10-15 yards in front of them so they can get done quicker).

3. You are combining conditioning with touches on the ball--good. I always remind my players that anyone can trap, pass, shoot, etc. after a light warmup but that the good players are the ones who can do this the last 10 minutes of the half and the game.

So I will often either add in a running element to a drill.

4. Along that same line, I like to break up conditioning and intersperse throughout the practice. So you might consider doing a conditioning element followed by a technical skill, water, conditioning element, tactical skill. Or something like that.

Also, I like to end practice with a technical skill. Usually we will work toward a game situation/scrimmage. Then before a cool-down run and stretching, I might have them air dribble X number of times. ("Pair up and air dribble 50 touches with no more than five consecutive touches per person. Then get a drink. Then captains lead stretching.")

Once again, they are improving their touch but training themselves to make good touches when they are tired.

Good luck Monday. Sounds like you're ready.

jgw

[pething101]

Originally posted by JohnW



Good luck Monday. Sounds like you're ready.

jgw

Lets not go that far. :D

[Reality_Al]

How many of these comments apply to a Ladies team in High School. I've tried some of the conventional stuff, but these young ladies have different attitudes. HELP!