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Ball control
Treasure hunt
Objectives: To improve dribbling and defending skills.
Age range: U5s to U8s.
Number of players: Twelve (but can be easily adjusted for larger or smaller numbers)
Equipment required: Flat cones, at least 10 to 15 balls.
Set-up: Divide your players into two, uneven teams. For five and six-year-olds, 8v4 or 9v3 are appropriate. If your players are older or more experienced, make the teams more even.
Set up a 20-yard square with a line of six flat cones at one end.
Balance a ball on top of these cones. These balls are the treasure.
The team with the most players are the attackers. They line up at the end of the playing area furthest from the treasure. Each attacker has a ball.
The team with fewest players are defenders. They line up just in front of the treasure, facing the attackers.
How to play:
On your command, the attackers dribble towards the treasure.
Their objective is to get past the defenders, kick their ball at the treasure and knock it off the cones.
If an attacker succeeds she picks her treasure up and carries it back to their end of the playing area while dribbling her ball.
If an attacker is tackled by a defender or allows their ball to go out of the playing area, she must go back to the starting point and try again.
When all the treasure is stolen, change the teams around.
Coaching Points:
Keep the ball close and in control.
Dribble with your head up so you can see where the defenders are.
Push your ball past a defender and explode past them with pace.
If the defenders find the game too easy, make the playing area bigger and/or decrease the number of defenders.
Variation: Allow defenders to put displaced treasure back onto the cones.
For more soccer coaching tips and products visit Soccer Coaching Club.
Earthquake
Age range: U5s to U8s.
Difficulty: Easy.
Equipment: Some flat cones to mark out the playing area, a ball for every player.
Set-up: Create a playing area big enough for all you players to move around in freely. For 10 U6 players, a 20-yard square is a good size.
How to play: All the players dribble around in the playing area.
Ask them to dribble with different parts of both feet, i.e. “dribble with your left sole”, “the inside of your right foot”, etc.
When the players hear the coach shout “Earthquake!” they leave their own ball and have five seconds (that’s how long an earthquake lasts!) to find another ball and stand with their foot on it.
Progression: Remove one ball every time you shout “Earthquake!”. This puts a little pressure on the players to find another ball quickly.
Create two or three four-yard square safe zones in the playing area. Instead of finding another ball, players now have to dribble their ball to a safe zone within the five-second “Earthquake”.
Coaching points: Encourage players to dribble with their heads up and keep the ball close while they are dribbling.
Have you got a drill or game that really works with your players? You have? Well, please don’t keep it to yourself! Send it to steve@footy4kids.co.uk and I’ll feature it in this newsletter.
For more soccer coaching tips and products visit Soccer Coach Weekly.
Back to front
Age range: U6s and upwards.
Number of players: Eight.
Set-up: Create a 30×20 playing area with two goals set in about five yards from each end line.
How to play: Divide your players into two teams of four.
Goalkeepers are optional.
Each team is given one goal to defend and one to attack.
They can score from either side of the goal.
Coaching notes: Encourage players to attack the back of the goal if their path to the front is blocked.
For more soccer coaching tips and products visit Soccer Coach Weekly.
Attack v defence
This game improves defending and attacking skills.
Age group: U6s to U10s.
Number of players: Maximum of eight, minimum of four plus a goalkeeper.
Set-up: Use half a pitch with a goal at one end and two cone goals at the other (see picture below).
Divide your players into two teams – defender and attackers.
How to play: A defender (X), standing beside the goal, kicks the ball out to two attacking players (O), who are standing at the far end of the playing area.
The defender follows the pass and tries to win the ball back and score in either of the two cone goals on the halfway line. The attackers try to score in the normal-sized goal.
The attackers get five attempts to score before team roles are swapped.
The team that scores the most goals with its five attacks wins the game.
If the ball goes out of play, the defender scores or a shot is saved, the attack is over.
Coaching points
The attacker not in possession should be in an open position ready to receive a pass. Tell him not to get in the defender’s shadow.
The defender should close the ball carrier down quickly and try to channel the attacker with the ball towards the sideline, away from the other attacker.
Progression
- Restrict attackers to a set number of passes (or a time limit of, say, 30 seconds) before they must shoot.
- Allow another defender to enter play once the first pass is made.
- Require a one-touch shot from an attacker who receives the ball in front of the goal.
For more soccer coaching tips and products visit Soccer Coach Weekly.
Quick decisions
This is a deceptively simply game. It’s easy to set up and easy for players to understand but it presents many problems to solve and requires good ball control skills. For that reason, it is not suitable for very young players.
Objective: To improve decision making and accuracy of passing.
Age range: U9s to U15s.
Set-up: Divide your players into groups of four.
Create a 10-yard square (marked with a cone in each corner) for each group.
Two balls per group.
How to play: Three players in each group (the attackers) try to keep both of their balls away from the fourth player (the defender) who is identified with a training vest or by holding a cone.
- All players can move anywhere within the playing area.
- The defender wins the game if he can tag a player with a ball. He does not have to tackle.
- The attackers win if they can make 10 passes before being caught in possession.
Coaching notes: If the attackers find the game difficult, increase the size of the playing area. If they find it too easy, make the area smaller.
Encourage attackers to play in a triangle shape and use the full width and length of the playing area.
Progression: Restrict the number of touches the attackers are allowed.
Variation: Place a goal and a goalkeeper about 20 yards from the playing area. If the defender forces the attackers to lose control and allow either ball to leave the playing area, they receive another ball from you and try to score in the goal.
For more soccer coaching tips and products visit Soccer Coach Weekly.
Concentrate!
Objective: to improve concentration and speed of transition.
Experience: any.
Set-up: for U10s, 40 yards long by 30 yards wide is a suitable-sized playing area. Place a goal at each end.
Split your players into four teams of three or four.
How to play: two teams play against each other while the third and fourth teams link arms and stand in opposite goalmouths. Their job is to try to stop goals being scored but they cannot use their hands.
Award one point for a goal and award one point to teams which stop a goal being scored.
When you shout “change”, the teams standing in the goalmouths come out and play each other on the pitch. The teams who were playing on the pitch link arms and go into the goalmouths.
Coaching points:
- Encourage fast transition by deducting a point from any team who plays on after you call “change”.
- To encourage your players to shoot, make the goals big and the pitch shorter.
Targets
This is a small-sided game that will improve your players’ communication and attacking skills as well as their passing and receiving technique.
Age group: U8s to U14s.
Number of players: Ten.
Equipment required: Training vests, cones, two goals and a ball.
Set-up: The goals are set up at each end of a 30×20 yards playing area.
Divide your players into two teams of five – four outfield players plus goalkeepers.
One outfield player from each team waits on the end line next to the goal her team is attacking. These are the target players.
How to play: Before a goal can be scored, the attacking team must play the ball to their target player. He or she plays the ball back and the shot must be taken immediately.
If possession is lost or a shot cannot be taken immediately, another successful pass to the target player is required before the attacking team can score.
Play for five minutes then change the target player and goalkeeper.
Progression:
- Limit the number of touches the target player is allowed.
- The player who passes to a target player swaps places with her.
- The target players come off the end lines and continue their role in the field of play (harder).
- Both teams play 2v2 plus two target players, one on the end line and one in the field of play (easier).
For more soccer coaching tips and products visit Soccer Coach Weekly.