Home page – Page 67

Three heading games and drills

Throw-Head-Catch (U8 and U10)

Players get into groups of 3. One ball is needed. They get into a triangular shape. One person tosses the ball to another person who then heads it to the third person to catch. Every time someone is successful, they get a point.

2v2 Battles (U8 and U10)

In this game, pairs work together to had the ball marked into the goal (cones). Each pair works together to advance the ball to the other team’s goal by heading the ball back and forth or by tossing and heading. The pair who is not advancing the ball must go back to the coned goal and have to stay on the line until the attacking pair have attempted a goal with their head or the ball dropped. Once a ball drops the pair that was attacking must immediately run back to their goal and the pair that was defending can start from where the ball dropped and try and score. FUN GAME! Play for time or points.

Frog Races (U8 and U10)

Players pair up and share one ball. Teammates face each other. One player has a ball in their hands, the other is facing them, but in a frog position. When the coach says, “Go” The person with the ball tosses to their teammate who has to head it back into their hands from a frog position. Go to a certain point in the area and then players switch roles.

Three way soccer

Minutes: 10-20 Players: 9-18 Ages: 5-99

Objectives: develops team work, communication skills and tactical development (especially transition from defence to attack)

Description: Using cones, set up three goals, 3-4 yds across each on the corner of an equilateral triangle (I put one across each side of the penalty area and one near the centre circle). Divide into three teams, using bibs or shirt colour to distinguish.
soccer coaching drill – three way soccer index

Teams can score on either of the other two goals from the front side or the back side. After a score, the scored upon team dribbles back out from near their goal area.

After just a couple minutes the coach will notice players talking much more. They will also see players start to switch the point of attack from one goal to the other as it opens up, forcing the new target goal team to quickly transition from offence to defence.

3v1 keepaway

Three players try to keep the football away from one defender in a clearly defined grid. If an offensive player makes a mistake and loses the ball to the defender or if the ball goes out of the grid, he/she switches roles with the defender.

COACHING POINTS

“Get open”–don’t stand there and look at the backside of the defender.

“Keep the ball moving”–pass away from the defender.

“Support the pass”–are you in or moving into a position of support.

VARIATIONS

Easier (for offensive players)

Make the grid larger.
Require defender to gain possession of the ball.
Add another offensive player (4v1). This variation also focuses more on passing technique than movement off the ball.

Harder

Require one or two touches.
Make the grid smaller

Triangle goal shooting game

The Game

Set up a triangular goal in the middle of a 50 x 50 grid.

Play an even sided game with both teams having their own keeper.

Both teams try to score through any one of the three sides of the triangular goal.

It is best to place the goal in the centre of a 20 yard in diameter circle, with only the keepers allowed inside the circle.

If the keeper catches the ball, his or her team must take the ball outside of the grid before they may attack again.

Play with 2 balls for real excitement.

Goalkeepers may become attacking players when their team has possession.

Coaching Points
Attacking and defending principles of play.
Shooting
Finishing
Possession
Goalkeeper positioning, shot saving and distribution.

Triangle drill

Set up

A three-goal triangle of normal full-size goal dimensions is set up on a good diving area.

Three cones are positioned about 15-20 yards away facing the centre of the goals.

One player stands at each cone, with at least two balls, while three retrievers stand around the area to get the balls back quickly to those at the cones.

Organisation of the Triangle Drill

The drill starts with each player firing a shot at goal in strict rotation. The goalkeeper moves quickly from goal to goal to reposition himself for each shot.

The coach should signal to players when they should shoot so that the goalkeeper is kept working hard to save shots. A reasonable time period for the goalkeeper is about 30-60 seconds, which the coach should monitor since the work is very strenuous.

Progression of the Triangle Drill

Create a competition among the goalkeepers to see who can lose the least number of goals in given time periods.

Some of the players shooting the ball can be asked to play a certain type of shot, to give the goalkeeper practice in that situation, e.g. a player may attempt to chip the ball over the goalkeeper’s head.

The coach can increase the tempo of the practice whereby each player shoots just as the goalkeeper recovers from the last shot, thus putting him under greater pressure.

Add a cone at the centre of the triangle. The keeper has to make his save, run around the cone and make another save at the next “window”.

The 1-0 game

“We didn’t need a referee; we accepted the rules of the game and stuck by them. For us not to have done so would have spoilt the game for everyone. It taught us that you can’t go about doing what you want because there are others to think of and if you don’t stick to the rules, you spoil it for everyone else. Of course, that was not a conscious thought at the time, but looking back those kick about games on the waste ground did prepare us for life.” Stanley Matthews

“For me, the ball is a diamond. If you have something that precious you don’t get rid of it, you offer it.” Glenn Hoddle

“Keeping possession is a way for a team to get a breather.” Gordon Taylor PFA

Basically this is keepaway by another name and with a real purpose. It’s my favourite small sided game.

The 1-0 game is a possession game, played like a standard 4v4 game but with a twist.

Because of the nature of the game I limit each match to 5 minutes, but may play 2 or 3 games one after the other.

Age Group – U11s to adults
Pitch Size 40 x 20 – or at the discretion of the coach, but basically a standard 4 v 4 pitch
Number of teams – 2
Team sizes – 4-6 players
Bibs optional
Goals – 5 a side or mini soccer goals

The basic rule of the game is that you can only win by one goal.

The game begins as a normal 4 v 4 game with the usual rules.

When a goal is scored, the team that scored must just try and keep possession and can’t score into the goal. If they do, the goal is disallowed and a goal kick ensues.

If the other team then equalise and make it 1-1, either team can then score to make it 2-1. The team leading then just has to keep possession.

This is an excellent possession game and also allows a team to play out time by keeping possession, which is why I limit the game to just 5 minutes.

As well as possession, teams also have to attack with speed when needing to score and the game also focuses on transition.

The Liverpool game

“Liverpool FC was encapsulated in just three words: ‘Pass and Move.’”

Alan Hansen

“A lot of coaches in their fifties and sixties will tell you that with virtually all of the great players of their generation, their success was founded in the hours they spent playing football in the streets. It was an important part of the culture of working – class lads.”

Alan Hansen

In the 1970s and 1980s when Liverpool where at their peak and most clubs idea of training was a lot of running and physical work without the ball, at Liverpool they played 5 a-side games with the emphasis on simple quick passing.

Liverpool was renowned as the ‘pass and move’ team and Shankly made sure that everything was kept simple.

Players were encouraged to make their own decisions and solve problems.

Ronnie Moran, one of the legendary coaches at the club and very much part of the famous bootroom culture at Liverpool football club said of Shankly, “If he looked at a couple of kids juggling a ball, it wouldn’t matter to him which one was better. He would want to see how they played in a game situation. His argument would be that you don’t get opportunities to juggle the ball in a match so it was irrelevant.”

Moran also thinks that today there is a lack of game intelligence. “Players today don’t seem to have that ‘nouse’. I think all over the country now too much is being put in footballer’s brains about what they must and must not do.”

In Alan Hansen’s excellent autobiography ‘A Matter of Opinion’, he talks about a game they used to play at Liverpool. “Every player concentrated on giving the sort of passes that a team-mate wanted to receive, rather than the ones he wanted to play; and every player repeatedly made good runs off the ball to give the man in possession plenty of options.”

Hansen adds, “Liverpool FC was encapsulated in just three words: ‘Pass and Move.’ Liverpool occasionally had a training match rule that a player had to move two yards forwards, backwards or to either side immediately he passed the ball; if he didn’t, his team would be penalized and the ball given to the other team.”

Age Group U12s to adults
Pitch sizes 40 x 20 or at the discretion of the coach
Number of teams – 2
Team sizes 4-6 players
Bibs optional
Goals – 5 a side or mini soccer goals

This game is not suited for younger children and I think should not be tried with ages less than 12. It is very tiring and should only be used in small bursts as perhaps part of a normal 4v4 game.

As soon as a player in possession passes the ball he must move either back, sideways or forward to support the player with the ball. If he fails to do this, possession is immediately given to the other team.

The crossing game

The players should organize themselves into groups of four to play 4v4. The training grid is 40 yards long by 30 yards wide. Corner flags or tall cones should be used for goals and disc cones to mark the corners of the grid. The goals are set up diagonally from one another and ten yards in from the goal line.

Players can score from either side of the goal and the game doesn’t stop after a goal is scored. Play a normal 4v4 match except for goals being scored from either side of the goal. Because of the angled goals there will be more crosses into areas in front of the goalmouth. Many goals can be scored under match conditions in a short time period. Teamwork in preparation of attack and defence will improve

This activity promotes group movement (tactic) and involves transition. The techniques of dribbling, passing, receiving, shooting, heading, tackling and crossing will have the chance to emerge. As a bonus fitness will also improve in a fun and competitive fashion.