[fidlerre]

okay.

so what do i exactly teach these kids in practice?

at this age i dont think i will be giving them much in the way of set pieces, changing formations on the fly or looking for the cross in from the wing.

my best option is to have them dribble, dribble and dribble some more...using both feet all the time and not allowing them to use their dominant foot for everything.

thoughts? suggestions? ideas? any help would be great!

[uniteo]

dribble, dribble, dribble, first touch/trapping, shooting & passing with both feet.

do you need specific drills? Lot's of small sided play and make the drills into fun contests to keep their interest. No standing around waiting for their teammates to all go before their turn. If you want to do a drill, work with half the team and have the other half playing 4 on 4 or 3 on 3 (or uneven sides are good too). Small sided keep away is good too.

One thing to stay away from, if they are beginners or just moving up to full-field games, be sure to stay away from the urge to have defenders clear the ball any time it is in the box. Now is the best time to develop composure on the ball, so encourage defenders to keep possession...and when a parent yells "just kick it" beat them about the head.

Let us know if you need specific drills.

[BrianCappellieri]

Uniteo makes some good points, definitely make it fun to keep them interested and small-sided games are great for making it realistic.

Another idea is to introduce them to juggling (keepie uppy). As I'm sure you know it does wonders for ball control, dribbling, and even passing. Obviously you rarely use it in a game but if you start young it will help you out a lot as you develope.

Good to see another youth coach!

[boydreilly]

Originally posted by fidlerre
okay.

so what do i exactly teach these kids in practice?

at this age i dont think i will be giving them much in the way of set pieces, changing formations on the fly or looking for the cross in from the wing.

my best option is to have them dribble, dribble and dribble some more...using both feet all the time and not allowing them to use their dominant foot for everything.

thoughts? suggestions? ideas? any help would be great!

Dribbling will definitely win games for you. In fact, to win, you really only need a couple good dribblers. But, remember, winning is not what it is all about. Get a passing game going and you can have a winning team and develop good players.

Dribbling drill - in a box (maybe 10 yards by 10 yards) every player dribbles a ball and tries to knock other opposing player's ball. Once the ball is kicked out, that dribbler is out until you have one left - the winner. This teaches them to dribble with defense and to keep their head up when dribbling.

Passing drill - in the whole penalty box put 7 to 9 offensive players against 3 or 4 defensive players. Offensive team must complete 5 (make it 10 later) for a goal and the defensive team gets a goal for every time they knock it out of the box. This teaches the players to find space, to look for players, to use the whole field and others things. Also, crummy trapping in this drill will kill you.

There are many other drills you could do. The most important measuring stick you can use is how many players come back the next season. Your teaching has to be fun.

One other thing about the game that drives me nuts is that most coaches at this age seem intent on leaving their defenders on top of the penalty box. Even on 7 v 7, they will keep 3 back. Bring them up. Teach them that they are defending the whole half and it is better to stop the other team at the half line than at the goal mouth. Besides, once the other team has beaten the half backs, it is usually clear sailing up to the penalty box.

It is a fun age group to coach. I wouldn't restrict teaching them to just what you think they can handle. Go over their heads a few times and see if some of it sticks. You might be surprised.

[BackOtheNet!]

since it's so structured and you really have very little time with the kids, I prefer to work on playing to space. Teach them some drills to do at home ie juggling and dribbling. Getting them to understand what to do when they get the ball and how to move to space to receive a pass changes the game for them. It also makes it easier for them to move the ball having teamates working for them. It's difficult to teach the young ones this but if you can accomplish this at an early age the rest of their skills fall right into place. Dribbling up the field by one player is great if your really concerned with winning games but it won't help the whole team. And of course if you can get them to talk to each other, you get to see them thinking. Oh and teach their parents how to tie their boots, unless you like to tie 10 pairs before the game.

[fidlerre]

thanks for the suggestions...

any drills you could provide, or possibly a site out there on the web, would be great!

[Alberto]

Originally posted by fidlerre
thanks for the suggestions...

any drills you could provide, or possibly a site out there on the web, would be great!

Try AYSO's site and Jeff Pills drills. Change the name of drills to more exotic ones. Like monster blasters, Hey Arnold, anything to hold their interest. The important thing to remember is to make drills short, varied and fun (they have short attention spans and are easily distracted, so keep it simple and focused). Make sure nobody stands around, as has been mentioned by the previous posters, keep everyone active. Have fun. It's a precious age.

[Alberto]

Originally posted by uniteo
and when a parent yells "just kick it" beat them about the head.

Beat them upside the head with a baseball bat! I can't emphasize how true uniteo's comments are.

[kebzach]

please, please, please remember to stress communication.

have them talking every practice, every time they touch a ball they should be hearing "turn/drop/man on" from everyone else.

everytime they pass they should be telling the receiver what he/she has got.

I can't stress this enough.

[Alberto]

Originally posted by kebzach
please, please, please remember to stress communication.

have them talking every practice, every time they touch a ball they should be hearing "turn/drop/man on" from everyone else.

everytime they pass they should be telling the receiver what he/she has got.

I can't stress this enough.

In theory it's great. But in reality I have yet to see kids 7-8 years of age that can comprehend and execute communications. They have no tactical awareness. They also aren't thinking beyond the ball at their feet. It's a struggle just to get them to play positionally (overcoming the herd/pack mentality) much less making them aware of whether their teammate can turn with the ball into space or should drop. Cognitively they are thinking only of themselves. At this age I am more concerned with getting them to make a pass to a teammate. This awareness of situation and the use of communication doesn't happen until kids get to be 11-12 years of age. You can practice it with some success at U10-11, but results will be mixed given the different rates of development between players.