I would be interested to know as coaches what your thought processes are behind creating a session in terms of set up, flow and progressions with your end objective in mind? The method I try and use looks at working backwards, starting with a phase of play that occurs in game and then gradually, through changing the rules and set up I will filter down to my technical part of the session. I have written about my method here: https://soccersourcecoaching.com/create-soccer-session-plan/ It would be great to hear your own thought processes as to how you create sessions as coaches with a particular session objective in mind!
I did U10 to U12 so I was focused on fundamentals. This was 25 years ago, and the club had no DOC. I had to develop my own curriculum from scratch. It was mostly developing ball skills and learning about space. For each topic I had to decide what was appropriate for the age. For instance I covered striking, volley, half volley, and on the ground, passing to foot or space, bending, chipping, but not crossing. On bending I covered it when I initially addressed striking, but didn't in later sessions specifically drill it or require it. I didn't cover keeper skills except individually as needed for the players wanting to play there. For the season I listed each topic I wanted to cover. The end objective was simple combination play ("1-2"). When I did U12 half the players were novices so I covered the same topics. For session plans I followed the tradition session plan working from specific to general, from individual to large groups, and from no pressure to full pressure. I generally had unpressured individual or paired exercises during warm up followed by relay races. Then small groups involving line v line with restrictions. Then larger groups involving 4-5 players a side with restrictions, and ending with a large sided scrimmage without restrictions. For specific topics I would sometimes use shadow play such as to introduce aspects of the system of play. For season planning, I put the topics in a logical progression, except that I briefly covered the Laws and restarts in the four sessions I had prior to their first match. I used a simplified 433 system of play built around zonal marking and a high press and a similar approach to attacking. I didn't teach about lines of confrontation. My next step would have been to teach about lines of confrontation and delayed high pressure pressing. I used 3 lines of 3 backed by a sweeper. So in essence Keeper was the only unique position. Cover is a fundamental, so in theory everyone could have been the sweeper, but I was careful to place players in positions that they were successful at. I figured position interchange between lines was an intermediate topic so I rotated the players to different lines when planning substitutions. That was how I simulated interchange between lines. I did teach position interchange within lines, i.e., what happens when the first defender is beaten. For session planning I started with the particular skill or concept that I wanted to focus on. Passing I paired with receiving and finishing with either dribbling or first touch. Then I built a progression focusing on the skill from isolated performance to unrestricted performance in the context of the game. Most of my group tactics sessions (principles of play) started with unbalanced keep-away games progressing to even sides and then adding goals. For the system of play, I started with individual play (1v1), then play within a line, then I put it all together the whole team--usually running mids and forwards attacking and mids, backs, and keeper defending in half a field, filling in other positions if I had more players available. The sessions always had a secondary purpose of reinforcing prior topics, but this was handled by the reliance on small- and large-sided games, in that all players were using all skills under game-like conditions for most of the session. The warmup sessions secondary purpose was to provide a match's worth of touches in a short period of time. Hope that answered your question.
That sounds to me like tactical periodization. It a relatively recent concept and I haven't used it myself. I think focusing on transitions is a good coaching approach for intermediate players, but I don't like the concept for teaching fundamentals. While it also would be equally valid for senior players, I think senior players probably focus on the phases of play for the next match, meaning in the context of playing against the next opponent. My pet peeve is that I think coaches focus too much on teaching team tactics and positions during the fundamental stage at the expense of mastering the principles of play and ball skills. IMO it is inefficient to teach team tactics and positions before principles of play. Players that understand the principles of play will not need to be instructed on playing particular positions. They just need functional training to improve their play at a particular position, but specialization should not occur until the later teens.
Thank you , that was a great insight on a short term basis as well as long term plan too! We all have our coaching styles but its important to stay opened minded and pick the brains of others. Transitions is definitely something I always try and include in the majority of sessions but it doesn't take centre stage, I include it to try instill a 'proactive' rather than a 'reactive' mentality, which they can take into matches. I'm not really focusing on the tactical side of things, Ill give my players cue's and questions to help guide them so they can identify good positions to be in in certain scenarios which will help give them a deeper understanding of the principles of play as you're saying. I believe when coaching at the fundamental stages its important to get lots of unpressurised repetition but its also important to gradually increase the pressure so they're able to start to learn when and how to apply the skills learnt during the fundamental stages in pressured scenarios. Still giving them lots of opportunities for success but also opportunities to learn from their mistakes. I believe
An interesting point on learning. Performing in isolation is more effective for short term learning. Performing in a context is more effective for long term learning. So performing a skill correctly in isolation at the start of the session helps the player repeat performance of the skill correctly later in the session during the games. Performance of the skill in combination with other skills, such as in playing a small sided game promotes long term learning, so isolated repetitions before the start of the games is both an efficient and effective session plan.
I normally focus a session on the theme of either possession, shooting, control, dribbling. Also, we sometime work around SSGs either focusing on attacking or defensive principles. Warm-up/dynamic stretch: 15min (been using the FIFA 11+ before matches) SAQ: 5-10min Theme related drill (unopposed): 15min Game related practice on theme (opposed): 20min (sometimes swap this out for a pattern of play). Conditioned Game (condition that is relevant to coaching points of theme): 20min Free Play: 15min Each drill or game related practice should be put in the context of the game with emphasis on coaching points relating to theme.
I want to see dribblers & showboaters being allowed to develop by coaches(nowhere more so than in the United States..where there aren't any to begin with anyway), they(coaches) need to stop stifling a kid's joy & creativity, let the opponent decide (if they can) how much he or she will be allowed to get away with. I just enjoy highly skilled footballers...that can dribble through a defense..sometimes...rather than a meaningless lateral pass...players can hide th all game long...with endless passing and passing.