online coaching course.

[AABestor]

hello all, I believe i will be putting of more coaching courses for atleast another 4 months due to tournament schedules. I was wondering if any of you guys knew anything about online coaching course like these.
http://falearning.thefa.com/docent/bin/docentisapi.dll/lms,thunder,2151/?CMD=LOGIN&file=frameset.jsm

does anyone have an experience with or recomend them?

[Val1]

I wouldn't recommend the FA courses based just on the one I took, How to Analyze a Game. If you want to analyze a game, according to the FA, just look at how many shots you took, and how many goals you scored. That's it, pretty basic, and while correct to a degree, not worth the time it took. Plus, it was very cheesey, and to get the most out of the course, you have to keep clicking on one of three lion icons (the 3 Lions, get it?) and it was tedious. The course was only 14 pounds, but I think you'd be better off getting one of Wayne Harrison's books before spending any money on this course.

[tonyinGA]

I think you'd be better off getting one of Wayne Harrison's books before spending any money on this course.

Hi everyone, first post by a new coach. Past fall was my first "real" season coaching U12 rec girls. I looked up Wayne Harrison and see that he has a book called "Full Season training Program U12 (8v8)" It is described as for competitve U12's. Would any of his other books be helpful for me as a girls rec coach or will they be too advanced for my rec girls (and maybe even me as a new coach)?

Does anyone know of anymore sources for tips on teaching tactics to rec speed girls most of whom will be moving to U14 11v11 next fall?

I found plenty of drills and info online regarding fundamentals. I understand the great importance of developing fundamentals and I think I have a pretty good handle on that aspect of teaching soccer. However, tactics still remain a mystery to me. I do my best with what I think makes sense, but I probably have that football coach mentality (as described in another thread) and I want to develop the soccer coach mentality.


Thanks for any help!

Tony

[Val1]

Welcome to the wonderful world of coaching. Glad to have you aboard and working with the kids.

My favorite Harrison book is called Anticipating the Moment of Play, and that is going to be the blueprint for my new U11 girls' travel team this spring.

Moving up to 11v11, I would continue to work on ball skills more than worrying about tactical systems, especially if you are weaker on tactical systems. I find at the U12-U14 level that this is when you have to start working on set pieces and defending set pieces, which means you'll have plenty of practices where you'll have a lot of standing around.

As far as tactics: go vanilla. Play a 3-4-3. Teach your goalkeeper to be a sweeper-keeper (I can go into more depth if you need), you have three defenders and three forwards, all of whom have fairly simple tactical responsibilities, and a strong, 4 deep midfield. One of your two central midfielders should shade toward defense and one can shade offensively aggressive.

Another fine starting out book for a new coach is Tony Carr's How to Coach a Soccer Team.

[rca2]

There are team tactics and individual tactics. concentrate on Individual tactics first and team tactics later. Individual tactics is how the player accomplishes something with or without the ball. Skills are the tools the player uses. The small sided games young kids play allow them to practice their skills and learn individual tactics. 1v1, 3v3, etc. Even sides or unbalanced. I really like using keep-away in a defined space without goals as a starting point. It teaches the kids about playing off the ball and how to use space. As the kids learn you can add goals, and then more players. Once you add goals then the kids learn how to tie the movement into penetration toward the goal (through passes), and learn about cover and depth. These are all important points to establish before building up to team tactics.

With any age group, it doesn't hurt to spend some time with basics first. It give you a good chance to see how advanced the players are. The big difference between novice and advanced players is how much pressure they can perform successfully under. The basic tasks are the same.

[tonyinGA]

My favorite Harrison book is called Anticipating the Moment of Play, and that is going to be the blueprint for my new U11 girls' travel team this spring.




Thanks very much for your advice. I'm going to buy "Anticipating the moment of play" and either the Tony Carr book, or the other Harrison book for U12's.

[tonyinGA]

Teach your goalkeeper to be a sweeper-keeper (I can go into more depth if you need), .


Our formation this fall morphed from a 2-3-2 to a 1-2-2-2 to a 1-2-1-3.

In the 2-3-2 we gave up way too many shots on goal because the 2 backs kept finding themselves 2 vs 3 or 4 when the 3 mids wouldn't help on D once the ball entered our defensive third.

Added a sweeper in game #2.

I told the sweeper that she should always consider herself the 2nd defender and in the back of the triangle formed by the 1-2 part of the formation. Also told her to try to clear thru balls and basically be "the last line of defense" before the GK.


How would you describe the role of the sweeper-keeper ? Also, if I keep a sweeper in our formation, how would you change my instructions to the sweeper?


Tony

[tonyinGA]

There are team tactics and individual tactics. concentrate on Individual tactics first and team tactics later. Individual tactics is how the player accomplishes something with or without the ball. Skills are the tools the player uses. The small sided games young kids play allow them to practice their skills and learn individual tactics. 1v1, 3v3, etc. Even sides or unbalanced. I really like using keep-away in a defined space without goals as a starting point. It teaches the kids about playing off the ball and how to use space. As the kids learn you can add goals, and then more players. Once you add goals then the kids learn how to tie the movement into penetration toward the goal (through passes), and learn about cover and depth. These are all important points to establish before building up to team tactics.

With any age group, it doesn't hurt to spend some time with basics first. It give you a good chance to see how advanced the players are. The big difference between novice and advanced players is how much pressure they can perform successfully under. The basic tasks are the same.


This is all good advice. I do plan on spending time with the fundamentals at all practices and preaching ball control during the games.

Thanks for reminding me that we need to develop individual tactics before diving head first into team tactics. I sometimes try to jump ahead of myself and try to teach "game situations" in practice. I understand in my head that small sided games and drills will help the girls teach themselves individual tactics on a trial and error basis. I just need to remember that in my heart and focus more on individual tactics and less on team tactics in practices. It's the player's game, right? I need to let them learn to think for themselves on the field. I like the keep-away idea with progressions.

Tony