POFTB - Playing out from the back. When the keeper has the ball they distribute or goal-kick short instead of punting or driving it long. It starts the attack in a controlled way vs hoping your team wins the 50/50 ball somewhere near midfield after the keeper drives it long. Drops out of pressure - passes backwards to relieve defensive pressure Part of the player development initiatives introduced a build out line halfway between the top of the penalty area and midfield at u9/u10. When the keeper has the ball, the opponents must retreat behind that line. The keeper then gets to distribute unpressured until one of their teammates touches the ball. It was supposed to aid POFTB by keeping the defenders from pressuring the goal kicks. The author documented what many feared - nobody was really going to pay attention and they'd continue to punt or play long from the goal-kicks.
Ok, the POFTB seems to be something I have seen utilized pretty much ever for my girls that play. In U12 we see mostly drop kicks; for our U9 and younger it's usually a throw, sometimes to the wings, but often just a girl outrunning her defense to chuck the ball, often ending up with the opposing team. This is a thing?!? Just kidding, though I almost never see it. I think when I see it, maybe it's more of a panic thing, rather than some sort of strategy. I do seem to recall a player or two do it on my daughter's U12 select team. I am guessing this is followed, but it sure doesn't feel that way. The U9 for sure usually ends up being a kick that seems to just go past the box and is quickly pounced on my the opposing team who are better positioned to receive it. Frustrating for sure.
Very insightful and just what I was looking for. I keep thinking that the less fundamental team will be found wanting, but it is, admittedly hard for me to tell which team fits that description. I find myself lost in the game and not casting a more analytic eye to it, with some exceptions. I don't consider thing like the # or method of passing. It seems like even on my daughter's U12 team there is a tendency to feel every ATTEMPT to pass is praiseworthy, because it doesn't feel like it happens that often. We have one girl that will play midfield and often just try to take the ball from one end to the other if she can (though that is much harder than it used to be), My own daughter is often a winger, who essentially tries to dribble to the outside and as far as she can until attempting a cross that nobody will be there to meet. Dribbling into a tackle seems to be a fair assessment of what most of them tend to do. I just don't think they know any better. Even the teams we played that looked good, often played a relatively limited passing attack. One team was essentially feed to this girl or that, she would make someone miss and just send it towards the net. My oldest soccer playing daughter is on a U12 rec team and a U12 select team. I think the rec team has had 7-8 games and maybe 5 practices or less. Her select team worked hard in the mid to late summer, but we often spent a lot of time scrimmaging the older girls or same-aged boys. Of course we usually got beat handily. Once the season started, we had one tournament and our regular league games, which we lost all but one (draw) so far. Its girls playing together and at this level for the first time, but its hard to build a lot of continuity within the team. (Looking forward to more touches and team bullding with her first Futsal experience coming soon, which will hopefully lead into a good spring). The article you posted was very interesting. Is that your blog?
Not my blog, its from another volunteer club admin/coach in a neighboring state that's in my soccer twitter circle.