Tools, Tips & Techniques
19 May, 2010 issue 160
Under 4s - Under 16s
The great wall Didier Drogba won the FA Cup for Chelsea with a free-kick that demolished a poor Portsmouth wall and beat a goalkeeper out of position – use this guide so your players know how to build a strong wall, says David Clarke Before the match Make sure everyone knows their role. All players are reminded that if they give away a free-kick in a dangerous area their first job is to stand in front of the ball. Four players are each given a number, starting with the tallest.
Building a wall 1
LEFT!
The player nearest the ball When a free-kick is conceded, the player nearest the ball – usually the player that committed the foul – stands in front of the ball, stopping the opposition from taking the kick quickly.
The goalkeeper Once the goalkeeper is sure the free-kick cannot be taken quickly, he needs to assess the position of the ball and call for players to create a wall – this is normally between 2 and 4 players. The goalkeeper will then communicate with the first player in the wall to position it correctly. To do this the goalkeeper should stand at the goalpost nearest the ball (or choose either post if the ball is positioned centrally). Once he has positioned the wall the goalkeeper should position himself in the unprotected part of the goal. Make sure he knows which part of the goal he is defending and where he should stand when the kick is taken. When Drogba took his free-kick, David James the Portsmouth goalkeeper had moved from the area he should have been defending.
A player stands over the ball to stop quick free-kicks, and one player in the wall faces the goalkeeper to get instructions to where the wall should position itself.
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The shaded area shows which part of the goal the wall should protect. The goalkeeper covers the rest 3
The wall The first player in the wall should position themselves about 8 paces from the ball in a direct line between it and the near post, facing the goal. The remaining players build a wall towards the opposite post. The players follow the first player’s lead as he is repositioned by the goalkeeper. The goalkeeper might position this player up to a yard outside of the post to stop the free-kick being curled around the wall.
Important reminders If the player standing over the ball is supposed to be in the wall they should call for a replacement. However, by now the referee
From the free-kick taker’s view the goal is well covered and they have a hard shot. The wall is doing its job.
should have informed everyone that the taker must wait for the whistle allowing the player to take up their position in the wall. If a player that forms part of the wall is substituted they must tell their replacement what number they are to take in the wall should a free-kick be conceded.
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Player development
weekly
Under 4s - Under 16s
Skills The artSchool of coaching children Skill 15: The best way to practice heading Heading with confidence JUMP!
Hold ball in your hands jump as high as possible...
...as your feet go back down, quickly bring ball to your head with your hands...
...try to kick your backside with your heels...
...head ball forward keep tight hold of it in the hands.
they have time and height for a good header. It also develops their timing. l Line your players up, tell them to hold the ball in front of them and get them to shout “JUMP”, l They should bring their heels up to their backside and bring the ball upwards towards their foreheads in their hands and attempt to head it at the same time.
How the practice works l This simple technique helps your players to head the ball properly and powerfully. l Your players must head the ball while holding it in their hands. l It helps to develop the all important hanging effect so
David Clarke’s touchline tales When the opposition gets a free-kick near goal do your players build a wall? I was refereeing an U14s game last week and the opposition had a very tricky player who was a good dribbler. At one point he burst through on goal and was sandwiched by two of my players and down he went. I gave the free-kick just outside the area. My players made a very poor attempt at a wall. Rather than jump when the ball was kicked they shied away and the ball went past them and into the net. Great goal, poor defending. Even though I regularly practice setting up walls it seems I needed to remind them before the match. In this instance the goalkeeper forgot he was supposed to organise the wall and the players couldn’t decide who should go in it.
All the preparation that went into working out how to build a wall was forgotten in the panic to defend the free-kick – “Oh yeah a wall!” my players exclaimed at half time. Without thinking my goalkeeper had just got himself ready for the free-kick and totally forgotten how much better it would be for him if he had a wall to protect him and the goal. This is something you have to talk to your players about. Often a goalkeeper will think they can make an easy save. But the wall is the goalkeeper’s protection so they should be using it to put the pressure on the kick taker. On page three of this issue is my blueprint to making a wall. It may be that you want to remind your players in the warm up before a game of their role in the wall. Free-kicks around goal might happen only once or twice in a youth game, but if the players are not prepared that could be enough to lose you the game.
By the time they had all tried to organise it, the “wall” had two players who didn’t want to be there. They were afraid the ball would hit them so got out of the way, giving the free-kick taker an easy route to the goal. 2
19 May 2010
Player development
weekly
Under 4s - Under 16s
Tactics
Young guns Young guns were the sharp shooters of the wild west, the ones with the most deadly shots. That’s what you need for your team, a sharp shooter with a deadly aim to put the ball in the net, says David Clarke
In matches there are all sorts of situations that face a player – 1v1, 2v2, 3v3 and so on. You need your young guns to take advantage of these situations to win the ball and fire a shot at goal. I use the exercise in the diagram because it gets my young guns going head to head in a shoot out.
Shooting duels 4 3 2 1
1 2 3 4
How it works l Use half the pitch for this exercise. l Set up a goal at each end. For the first part you only need one goal but for the development phases you need two. l Four players either side of the goal from opposite teams, numbered 1 to 4 on each side. l Stand at the side in the middle of the pitch with some balls. l You call a number and the players called must run out to challenge for a ball you have served into the middle of the pitch. l You can call just one number for 1v1 or a combination of numbers to make 2v2 or 3v3. l You can make other combinations like 2v1 or 3v1 by calling numbers and colours – thus “grey 2, 1/white 1”. l Depending on where you serve the ball, you can favour one player or one part of the pitch. l The player who reaches the ball first must try to score, the other player must try to win possession then attack the goal themselves. l When the ball has gone out of play or into the goal the players go back to their positions and you call another number or combination of numbers and colours. l You can then add another goalkeeper and tell players the first player to the ball can choose to attack either goal, both goals are in play until the ball goes dead. They can lose their opponents with quick turns and feints, or if there is more than one player they can use skills like one-twos.
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Call the number and players go against each other. 4 3
1
2 1
2
3 4
1, 2
Add a goal and change the direction of play. player movement run with ball
pass shot
l Turn this into a small-sided game by calling out ALL numbers. The aim of this game is for teams to score in either of the goals so they defend and attack at both ends of the pitch.
“Scoring in front of the Stretford End is what every young boy from Manchester dreams of. I loved it. I’ve thought about it every day of my life ever since I started playing football” Danny Welbeck Manchester United 3
19 May 2010
Games workshop
weekly
Under 4s - Under 16s
Small-sided game
Volley and catch
KEY BALL MOVEMENT
This game is a cross between basketball, soccer and rugby. It is designed to coach players in the art of volleying and directing the volley pass.
SHOT ON GOAL
PLAYER MOVEMENT
1. The player in possession can bounce the ball basketball-style.
Set up l Pitch size: 30 x 20 yards up to 40 x 25 yards. l Two teams of four players. l Six mini goals (can be made using cones). l If the ball leaves play, the game is re-started with a volley pass.
Rules l The player in possession is allowed to make a one bounce. movement (using the hands basketball style). l To pass the ball your players must make a volley pass out of their hands to one of their team-mates. l To score a goal, the players must make a first-time volley shot out of their hands into one of the opponent’s goals. l No offside. l The game is played for a set time period.
THE MATCH DAY PLANNER IS AVAILABLE TO DOWNLOAD AT: www.bettersoccercoaching.com/MDP.pdf
2. The players must volley “out of their hands” to pass.
3. To score, the players must volley the ball into an open goal.
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 © Green Star Media Ltd. All rights reserved.
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19 May 2010