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Having explored coaching education
in part one of our Five-Part series, part two discusses five
tools and tricks that can help a coach deliver an enjoyable and
effective session that facilitates learning for players of all
ages and abilities.
Join our "Sideline" mailing list to be notified when
part three is posted.
PART 2 of 5
INDEX -
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2 -
3 - 4 - 5 |
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1. PREPARATION
For a session to remain productive and engaging, it is essential
that coaches prepare appropriately. It may seem obvious but this
includes gaining knowledge of details such as the number of
players expected to attend practice, weather conditions, how
much space and what equipment you will have to work with. This
information is essential and can be viewed as pre-requisites to
formulating a session plan.
When preparing a session plan, be sure to design the session to
be fun for both players and coaches. If your players see that
you are immersed in the activities and are enjoying them, it is
highly likely that they will follow suit and become active in
the session. Online coaching resources, such as
soccer interactive, are available and provide easy-to-use
session and activity building tools.
 While it is important to become familiar with the activities prior to the session starting, having a copy of the session
outline to refer to during practice can be of great help. Having
a hard copy at practice can help maintain the flow of the
session, be a reminder
of coaching points, as well as serving as
a safety net or a source of comfort for less experienced
coaches. Despite the importance and obvious benefits of being well
prepared, one must always anticipate that their plans may have
to change. Adaptability is a trait that all coaches should
strive to develop. For one reason or another (lack of equipment,
less than anticipated numbers etc) you may not be able to perform the activities you
had planned. It may be that your players simply don’t grasp the
activities you intended to do. Whatever the case, being prepared
to alter your session according to the environment is crucial.
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2. APPROPRIATE SESSION CONTENT AND STRUCTURE
It goes without saying that the session content for U16 elite
level players will differ greatly to that of a U6 recreational
player. However, there are some fundamental
activities that can be incorporated into sessions for players of all ages and
abilities with the specific activities and delivery being the
variable.
a) Ball mastery activities that help develop a player’s touch and
control of the ball can be included in any training session,
irrespective of the ability level or age of your players. It
should be a coaches aim to improve their players’ level of
comfort with the ball at their feet and to promote the use of
every surface of both feet to manipulate the ball’s movement. No
player is beyond improvement and, if possible, every training
session should possess an element of ball mastery – whether it
is five or ten minutes at the start and end of a professional
session, or a game of traffic lights with a group of kindergarteners.
B) Small sided games are relevant and highly beneficial at all
levels of the game. There are countless variations that will
help emphasize a multitude of coaching points to beginner or
elite level players. The most common small sided game for young
players is a simple 3v3 or 4v4 match to pop-up goals. The low
numbers involved presents each player the opportunity to have
many more touches on the ball than they would in an 8v8 or 11v11
game. At the younger age groups, increasing the number of
touches each player gets per session should be a priority. Small
sided games also introduce the basic concepts of special
awareness, directional play, boundaries and restarts.
In older
and more elite players, small sided games can be a great tool to
highlight positional play in both attack and defense, for
example quick transition from defense to attack or the the
principles of pressure, cover and balance. Many professional
teams will use small sided games in practices to improve
players’ physical and mental skills as they are fast paced and
require quick thinking and good technical ability a tight area
to succeed.
 C)
The use of fun games to implement soccer skills and themes is
paramount when working with young recreational players.
Delivering fun games that grasp the imagination of young players will
preserve their interest in the activity and keep their feet in
contact with the ball. You are in essence, disguising ball
mastery activities as fun, imaginative and challenging games. If
the players can be a part of the games inception, naming each
boundary or answering
questions for example, they will be involved and invested in the
activity. Elite and professional players also benefit from fun
games. Games such as soccer tennis can serve to build team
chemistry as well as improve touch and focus.
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3. LOOK THE PART.
Regardless of coaching ability or level of qualification,
dressing appropriately enhances your credibility among peers and
parents and can help your players relate to you as a soccer
coach.
Dressing appropriately will also help you deliver effective
demonstrations. Inspiring and motivating players through doing
is a very powerful tool that can promote learning at any age or
ability level. Aim to be a role model for the young athletes in
your groups.
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4. KEEP IT SHORT AND SIMPLE (K.I.S.S.)
Children (and many adults) are not blessed with long
attention spans. Each time a coach stops a session and spends 2-3
minutes making a coaching point they have more than likely
lost their audience.
Aim to keep your instructions short. As a general rule of thumb
with young players, a 20-30 second delivery of instructions or
explanation of a coaching point is sufficient. Beyond this time
frame, young players will deviate from paying attention to you
to now being engrossed in something else in their immediate
environment.
Keeping explanations short forces you to deliver them in a
simple manner. Similarly, the coach should seek to deliver
appealing activities with simple goals, while aiming to
challenge each player within the group. A short, sweet and
to-the-point delivery is key to getting and maintaining a
player’s attention and ultimately facilitates learning.
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5. ENGAGING YOUR PLAYERS
In order to get a message across to your players and ensure that
it sticks, a coach must be cognizant of
the fact that their players all learn in different ways. The coach must seek to
appeal to all senses to ensure that their message is affecting
all members of the group. A portion of the group may learn best
from seeing a demonstration; others may need to be a part of the
demonstration; and some are able to listen to instruction and
carry them out effectively.
In order to ensure a players engagement during a demonstration
or explanation:
a) Require that all soccer balls are on the ground and under
control before you begin to explain.
b) Turn your group so that they are facing away from any other
stimuli in the nearby environment. This may include practices
taking place on another field, the sun, or a man walking his
dog.
c) Ask every player that is listening to hold up their hand.
d) Start talking only when you have the attention of every
player.
e) Use questions and answers to check the level of understanding
and learning – this will also give players a sense that they are
contributing to the activity.
While some players aspire to be the next Christiano Ronaldo or
Marta, others don’t recognize these names at all. Regardless of
the level of play or soccer knowledge, all players share the
common desire to have fun while playing. To make this possible,
the most important contribution a coach can bring to practice is
enthusiasm. After all, it is the responsibility of the coach to
give each player an equal opportunity to learn in a fun
environment.
We hope that
these tips and tricks can help make your sessions more effective
and rewarding for yourself and your players.
INDEX -
1 -
2 -
3 - 4 - 5
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This was the second installment in a Five-Part series.
To be notified when subsequent sections are published,
join our "Sideline" mailing list. Please feel free
to contact us at
info@soccerplus.org if you have any questions. |
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