U-10 girls 5 v 5?

Discussion in 'Coach' started by john rod, Aug 16, 2015.

  1. john rod

    john rod Member

    Jan 8, 2005
    kingman,az
    Nat'l Team:
    United States
    now in our 30th year we just changed several things. we split genders and went from 7 on 7 to 5 on 5 for U-10. I have coached a number of years, however this is new with only 4 field players. our field, which I think is going to be way to big...is 100' x 165'. with a goal keeper [goal is 6 x 18] and 4 field players...I have several choices for alignment. 2 forwards [one on each side, as much as possible] 1 midfielder playing behind the forwards and 1 defender playing where needed and the keeper/sweeper combo. or 2 forwards and 2 defenders and the keeper/sweeper. a suggestion which I got was to play in a diamond, 1 forward 2 mids and 1 defender. personally I don't think 1 forward can work against 2 defenders and a keeper, but...
    your thoughts please. first game on 22 August.
    Thanks Rod in AZ
     
  2. rca2

    rca2 Member+

    Nov 25, 2005
    #2 rca2, Aug 16, 2015
    Last edited: Aug 16, 2015
    I recommend that you use futsal as a model for a system. You can watch some play on line, if you are unfamiliar with futsal. In essence the four field players are designated as a 2-2, but there are 5 spots in the key attacking shape (2-1-2). This requires the players to rotate through the CM position leaving only 1 spot filled in the back to guard against the counter. I think of it as fast break basketball or ice hockey like I played in the 60's and 70's. Three channels across, the first three attackers fill the empty channels.

    For defense there are a lot of ways you could organize them. If it were me, I would probably organize the defense like 6v6 indoor if you are familiar with that. The key is to have the two backs guarding the flank of the keeper (i.e., the posts) to try to narrow the goal area needed to be defended by the keeper. I would use the other 2 players as a 2-man line in front, working fairly close together (5-10 yards). There job is to pressure the ball. The key difference between indoor and this is that I would not press into the corner flags areas, just defend the danger area in front of the goal. The weak side back would step up to cover the space to the weak side of the 2-man line if the attackers attempt to change the direction of the attack to the weak post. Since there is no wall and the goal is not small like indoor, the back does not need to stay pinned to the post on defense. He should step up to pressure the ball early when he is the nearest defender. Just don't chase it to the touch line.

    Even if the field were 100 yards wide, doesn't matter. You only need to defend the danger area in front of the goal. A big field helps you teach the kids to stay compact. Compare the tactics to the keepers arch across the goal mouth. The 4 defenders are responsible for defending a much bigger arch beyond the keeper's arch. Much bigger, but they have greater numbers, can use a zone, and have the advantage of interior lines compared to the attackers.

    In the middle third, I would defend with the classic 4-man zone ("swoosh") but the emphasis on depth and compactness over width. Cover before balance. Keeper sweeps up balls over the top. On a huge field, the players are going to have to learn to stay within supporting distance on attack. So compared to other fields, your attacking shape is pretty compact. For comparison, a youth futsal field would be the size of a basketball court. You won't be using the flanks (area wide of the penalty areas).
     
  3. rca2

    rca2 Member+

    Nov 25, 2005
    Bump. I am very surprised other people have not responded yet.
     
  4. Beau Dure

    Beau Dure Member+

    May 31, 2000
    Vienna, VA
    I've heard of some leagues going 5v5 at U9/U10. Seems like overkill to me. By all means, have small-sided scrimmages in practice and play a bit of futsal in the winter. But you've got to start learning a bit of team play at SOME point.

    And 100v65 for 5v5 is just crazy. The only skill you're teaching there is running. A "good" player will just blast the ball into acres of empty space and outrun an opponent, and it's going to be tough for a coach to discourage that style of play.

    Time for a frank talk with your club and league.
     
  5. elessar78

    elessar78 Moderator
    Staff Member

    May 12, 2010
    Club:
    Arsenal FC
    It's not the formation. Give your players the skills they need (they do not come pre-packaged with those) and a basic understanding of how to play the game and they can play in any formation, especially at this age.

    A formation-first approach makes them static, which is not what you want.

    Teach them how to be excellent 1v1 players, once they have that teach them how to work with one other teammate. A good 1v1 player will stop an attacker and get by a defender.

    Probably, most importantly (and going back to non-static players), instill in them a desire to get to every loose ball and claim it. From there it's 1v1 (and later the use of one teammate): I can beat you myself or use a teammate to beat you.

    Agree with Beau, it's too big. You can cut that into fourths and it'd still work well.
     
    rca2 and Beau Dure repped this.
  6. rca2

    rca2 Member+

    Nov 25, 2005
    How did you fare playing on the huge field this weekend?
     
  7. Dan Roberts

    Dan Roberts New Member

    Mar 6, 2015
    Club:
    Arsenal FC
    Also, just to throw it out there, what are your thoughts of U11 playing full size field and more full size goals?

    Most goals scored at that level are just kicked outside of the 1 meter radius a 10 yr old GK can just about cover. I like the idea of 11v11 at that age, as they need to learn about shape and formations, but at least have it on a smaller field. One big kick, and one fast striker can make a very successful team at that age which in my opinion is not good for player development.
     
  8. rca2

    rca2 Member+

    Nov 25, 2005
    Overall my response is that the problem is the lack of youth coaches who both understand soccer and understand how to coach youth. None of these things make a difference, because a competent coach will teach the kids how to play regardless, and coaches that either don't know how to coach youth or don't understand soccer will fail to teach the kids how to play regardless. At this age level matches are much less important to development than the training sessions.

    Responses by the inserted numbers:

    1. When I coached U10s to U12s about 20 years ago, we did play 11 v 11, but on youth size fields (65-80 yards long) with youth goals (6 x 18 feet). This was before the switch to small sized games. My thoughts the first time I coached was that it was very difficult for me to teach the kids how to play soccer with the small amount of contact time I had (2 weeks pre-season and 2 practices a week during the season). But I did it.

    My view about the switch to small sided games was that the policy was stupid. SSGs were for training. A SSG was not a soccer match. I am not saying you needed a full 11, but you need three lines and a large field for the adult game. My thinking now has changed. Going with a SSG for youth simplifies things for the coach. Basically the coach doesn't have to teach the whole game to the kids. Topics eliminated are team tactics and having to teach an 11-a-side system of play. So you can spend more of the contact time on fundamentals and small group tactics.

    This change solved an important coaching problem but created another. I was coaching for a big club, there were 30 other U10g coaches and none that I saw were teaching kids team tactics or even fundamentals like how to support off the ball. Instead they were deliberately teaching 235 kick and run bunch ball where the lines played in designated areas on the field and players expected to chase the ball whenever it was in their line's area. The club view was that U10 kids were too stupid to learn fundamental tactics, so they taught a generation of kids this horrible kick and run system as playing "soccer."

    The switch to SSGs merely lead to youth coaches developing "formations" and assigning areas of the field by individuals instead of by lines. Still horrible. To solve this new coaching problem, the next move was to use SSGs exclusively during training and matches and "let the game be the teacher." This last ploy was hoping to keep coaches from teaching bad techniques and tactics to improve match results. I don't think it works, because parents and coaches value winning meaningless youth games over player development. There is simply too much coaching and structure getting in the way of learning.

    2. Keeping is about athletic skills and mentality. On my teams the U10 keepers came off their lines like adults and knew how to narrow the angle. With proper training the typical U10 player is capable of learning how to be an effective keeper. Except for distribution, which are going to be shorter than you would like, the weakness with the kids is the same weaknesses you see in the play of short adult keepers (which is why you don't see many short professional keepers).

    3. You start teaching shape in small groups of 3 and 4 a side (equivalent to a line). Then you go to 6v6 and teach how to play two lines together. Adult soccer teams, even rec teams, usually are capable of playing several "formations" and adjusting their systems for particular matches to win. So there are no standard "formations" to teach kids. (442 is a class of systems, not one fixed universally applied system.) Unless an adult player has played competitively, they usually are not experienced in more than 1 system or working with game plan adjustments to systems.

    4. Kick and run soccer is very easy to defend against in 11 a side. You have 3 lines. Defend in depth using a high pressure zone. The distance between lines is determined by how far the opponents can kick the ball. Will it be successful 100% of the time--probably not every game, but usually.
     
  9. dcole

    dcole Member+

    May 27, 2005
    #9 dcole, Aug 29, 2015
    Last edited: Aug 29, 2015
    Are people misreading the opening post? He said his field is 100 feet by 165 feet (not yards), so that's 33x55 yards. That's maybe a tad too long for 5v5 soccer at U10 but it's in the ball park. I think ideal for 5v5 at that age is about 40x30 yards.
     
    Beau Dure repped this.
  10. dcole

    dcole Member+

    May 27, 2005
    Playing 5v5 on a 55x33 yard field, I would play with two backs and two attacking players. Each player would be assigned nominally to a particular side of the field, with freedom to roam as appropriate. I'd want my defense pushing up high to support the attack and lots of back passing to the defenders in order to switch the field. As you alluded to, 55 yards is too long for 4v4. There will be a lot of fast breaks in that format.
     
  11. Beau Dure

    Beau Dure Member+

    May 31, 2000
    Vienna, VA


    "Nigel gave me a drawing that said 18 inches. Whether he knows the difference between feet and inches is not my problem."
     

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