Soccercoachw156

Tools, Tips & Techniques

21 April, 2010 issue 156

Under 4s - Under 16s

Pass master Receiving a pass under pressure is hard for young players, they take their eyes off the ball and look at the player coming to tackle them before they have the ball under control. Coach your players how to stay cool under pressure with this small-sided game called No man’s land, says David Clarke When players receive a ball with an opponent closing them down they need to be able to concentrate on control and shielding. In this game the ball must pass across an area with no players in it, giving the defenders crucial time to see where a pass is going and move to the target player quickly.

Anticipating the pass 1

l Using the penalty area mark out an area the same size opposite with a 10 yard No man’s land in between the areas. l Play 5v5 with a goalkeeper, two defenders and two attackers on each team. l Put two attackers from one team and two defenders from the other in each half. l Players must stay in the half they start in. l Toss a coin for kick-off, play starts with the goalkeeper. l Restarts are with the goalkeeper if the ball goes over the end lines, no corners. Take throw-ins as usual. l Play is continuous – when a team wins the ball they look to pass and attack the goal. l Attackers must create space for the defenders to pass to. l Defenders must try and win the ball from the attackers.

NO MAN’S LAND

How to play No man’s land

10 yds Playing a 2v2 in each area the ball must cross No man’s land. Defenders must see the pass and tackle before the attacker gets control.

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l The passing player can follow the ball into the attacking half. l Widen No man’s land to 20 yards to make passing and timing of runs harder – do this by moving the orange area back 10 yards but keep the areas the same size. l By making No man’s land wider you make the pass longer giving the defenders more time to see the ball and close the attackers down. l It also means that it will be harder to make the pass accurate because the player will need to think about power.

NO MAN’S LAND

How to advance it

20 yds A bigger No man’s land makes it easier for the defender to see the pass, giving less time for the attacker to receive the ball and control it.

run

serve/pass

shot

“[Skill] is the result of a love affair between the child and the ball” Roy Keane – ex Manchester United and Irish international – manager, Ipswich Town

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Player development

weekly

Under 4s - Under 16s

Skills The artSchool of coaching children Skill 13: The nutmeg Put the ball through the defender’s legs 1

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Force defender to step up and open legs...

...knock ball between defender's legs...

...step around defender and move on.

How the technique works l This is about spotting the opportunity and taking it. l Wait until the defender gets within two strides. l Push the ball to the outside of either of the defender’s feet to tempt them into trying to make a tackle.

l If the defender moves one of their feet to block your move look for space to open up between their legs. l Tap the ball between the defender’s legs. Step around the defender and collect the ball.

David Clarke’s touchline tales Blindfolding my players made them communicate on the pitch A problem I have had with one of the younger teams this season is getting them to communicate when they are playing matches. In training I am getting them to call their names to let their team mates know where they are on the pitch, and they are shouting and raising their arms and generally having good fun communicating.

I explained to them how team work had been important in knowing where each other was in the LaserQuest game and how it was just the same on the pitch during matches.

Then I ran an exercise in training where I split the squad into pairs. One of the pair was blindfolded. All the blindfold players had to go in a square 15 yards x 15 yards and their partner had to stay out of the square. The idea was to play a game where the blindfold players are told what to do and where to go by their partners. Now that was fun - noisy and very funny. I swapped the partners around so everyone got to feel how hard it is to play when you cannot see the ball, and you have to rely on your partner to tell you where you are on the pitch.

However, this hasn’t been transferred to matches. A couple of months ago we played against a strong, noisy team who were bossing the game. My players were concentrating so much on playing the match and their individual performance that they ‘forgot’ to communicate where they were and so the team was not finding passing easy.

So, in training I have done two things. Firstly, I took them to LaserQuest on a weekend on which we didn’t have a match.

I split the squad in two and let them have a good couple of hours where they were shouting and telling each other where they were or they would be ‘shot’! They had such a lot of fun.

Take a look at the two blindfold exercises I use with my team on page three of this issue, try them with your team.

It has had a positive effect on the team and communication is becoming more natural to the players.

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21 April 2010

Player development

weekly

Under 4s - Under 16s

Communication

Talk sport Communication on the pitch is a popular subject among the coaches I talk too. I tell them that they must think about the context within which communication is occurring and why, says David Clarke During a game communication between players helps them to be better equipped to deal with situations as they happen on the field. That can be a support player letting the person with the ball know where they are, a player moving into space at a throw-in, or a player offering encouragement to a team mate. Good communication can be the difference between taking and wasting opportunities.

Giving verbal clues John, left Jake, forward

In order to get my players to realize what they need to communicate to the player with the ball, I play these two blindfold exercises. If you’re having trouble getting players to communicate why not try them at your next session?

Pete, right

Players give verbal cues to their blindfolded partners.

They must guide them to pass through the small goals.

Score a goal through verbal cues

forward

l Mark out a square within a square. The inside square should be 10x10 yards with a small goal on each side and the outside square 15x15 yards. l You need three pairs of players with one of each pair blindfolded inside the small square. The other player stands outside the bigger square. l Players must use verbal cues to direct their blindfolded partners to pass the ball through one set of cones. l When the ball is passed through one pair of cones the outside player retrieves the ball and sets their partner up again inside the square. They must then put the ball through another set of cones. l When all four sets of cones have been passed through the players swap roles. l Winner is the first pair to both players to pass through the four sets of cones.

When they have completed the first exercise set them up to guide their partners through an obstacle course. player movement

dribble

l Players must call left, right and forward to get their partners through the course. l You can set up two or three of these courses and have races to see who gives the best encouragement. l The players who think ahead and anticipate will usually be the ones who give the best cues. l Advance this exercise so that the blindfolded person cannot stop moving and the guide cannot stop talking, putting both under more pressure.

Guide your partner through a course This will help to develop trust as well as active listening and giving appropriate and relevant information.

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21 April 2010

Games workshop

weekly

Under 4s - Under 16s

Small-sided game

Skinny pitch

KEY BALL MOVEMENT

SHOT ON GOAL

PLAYER MOVEMENT

Using a narrow pitch is good if you need to get your team playing a quick counter-attacking game or if it is not direct enough or has difficulty playing through crowded defences.

Set up

1. The team in possession must pass up the middle of the pitch.

l Pitch size: 30 x 20 yards (minimum) up to 40 x 25 yards (maximum) l Two side zones, 5 yards in from each touchline l Two teams of four players l Two keepers

Rules l No offside l If the ball leaves play, you have a few re-start options: 1. The coach passes a new ball onto the pitch 2. The players take a roll in 3. The players take a throw in 4. The players make a pass in 5. The players dribble in

2. The narrow pitch means they need to pass and shoot quickly.

l The game is played for a set time period.

THE MATCH DAY PLANNER IS AVAILABLE TO DOWNLOAD AT: www.bettersoccercoaching.com/MDP.pdf

3. Each team takes it in turn to mount an attack.

Soccer Coach Weekly is published by Green Star Media Ltd, Meadow View, Tannery Lane, Bramley, Guildford, GU5 0AB, UK. Email: david.clarke@coach-soccer.com Tel: +44 (0)1483 892894 Fax: +44 (0)1483 894148 Editor David Clarke Publisher Kevin Barrow Managing Director Andrew Griffiths Customer Service Representative Duncan Heard Š Green Star Media Ltd. All rights reserved.

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21 April 2010