As we reach the midpoint of the fall season here in the Midwest my training sessions are becoming more focused on small-sided games. Early in the year I spend a lot of time on technical training and individual skill development. This provides a foundation of understanding for dribbling, fakes, passing, receiving and shooting. The players have heard the coaching points from me over and over so we have a kind of short-hand that makes it easy for me to help them … [Read more...]
#026 Developing Players in Full Sided Games
An email came out from US Youth Soccer on Monday, August 24. It was to announce changes that most people had heard something about already. The first is that they are mandating small-sided soccer for players below the age of 12. They are also standardizing the formats for each age group. The U8’s will play 4 v 4 without goalkeepers, U9-U10's will play 7 v 7 and U11 and U12 teams will play 9 v 9. This is a change from the 6 v 6 and 8 v 8 formats that many of … [Read more...]
#025 Systems of Play for U11 and U12
Last weekend was our first tournament weekend. There is always a lot of discussion about whether playing multiple games over a weekend is good for players. I think it depends on the age and level of the players. For high school age and above I think more harm than good comes from playing more than a game a day and no more than three days in a row. These are players that are playing close to if not full 90 minute games and often with limited … [Read more...]
#024 Formations for Small-Sided Soccer
The questions and suggestions keep coming in each week and one that I received today gave me an idea. Michael K said, ‘I am really enjoying your podcasts and am finding them very informative and educational. Would it be possible to include sessions that focus on set plays and restarts? This is a topic that I have on my list but it’s one that I’ve avoided because it’s not one of my strengths. I have a couple of corners and free kicks that I use with my teams … [Read more...]
#018 Creating a Technical Training Plan
We've had a number of coaches ask if we could create printable show notes. Earlier this week I started working on doing that. I've put together a template using the first episode and posted that to the site. Now that I’ve worked out the technical side I'll start adding them to each episode. I’ll also go back and add them to the previous episodes. So far I've completed five episodes going back to Episode 12 on the Transitional Possession Game. I'll get the … [Read more...]
#017 Formations and Adjustments
A few weeks ago I mentioned what a crazy time of year this is. The last tournaments of the year lead into State Cup and President’s Cup competitions. That’s immediately followed by tryouts. Now’s the time to look back and review. Last week I gave you an overview of our tryout process. This week I look at how I arrived at a formation and style of play for one of my teams as well as how it evolved and changed over the course of the year as well as how it might … [Read more...]
#011 Four Favorite Fun Warm-Ups
In this Episode I look at the warm-up phase of your training session. This is what sets the tone for your entire session to follow. Having the warm-up relate to the session is important. But maybe more importantly it must engage your players and get them as ready psychologically and emotionally just as much as it does physically and technically. I know your team will enjoy these warm-up activities and you'll find that when you start your sessions the way I … [Read more...]
#005 Tactics and Trends Effect on Youth Development
I'm really excited about the reaction we are receiving to the podcast! We've had some great emails and Tweets and Facebook mentions from coaches that are enjoying the interviews and training sessions. I especially appreciate the 'Five Star' iTunes reviews and comments: Grant77 said ‘A quality coaching education podcast’ – Thanks Grant! Briarwood said ‘ Really enjoying the practical examples of coaching sessions to work on various techniques and … [Read more...]
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