Soccer Drills
All players from a single file lines approximately 30 - 40 yds away from the goal. Each player has their own ball at their feet, standing one player in front of the next. The first player (we will call him player 1) jogs to the top of the penalty box (18 yd line) leaving his ball behind. He then turns back, away from the goal and faces the line that he just left. The next player in line (player 2) takes one or two dribbles with their ball and then passes it to Player 1’s feet. Player 1 first traps the ball, and then lightly passes it off to his/her right (or left) side. While Player 1 is trapping the ball and preparing the pass, Player 2 is timing his run (following the pass and running towards the goal) so that they are ready to shoot at the exact moment the ball crosses their path. After Player 2 takes the shot he/she takes the place of Player 1 at the 18 yd line and the drills starts over with the next person in line passing the ball in to Player 2. NOTE: The shooter always takes the place of the person at the 18 yd line, and the player at the 18 yd line, when done with their duties, goes to the back of the line.
COACHES EMPHASIS: For the drill to be a success, constant movement is a must. Once a player takes their shot they should immediately get into the position to receive the next shooters pass. This drill is a staple for teaching and increasing the skill of shooting. Shooters should be getting the ball on target and hitting it as firmly as possible. To increase this drills difficulty level, simply disallow the passer (player 1 in the example above) to first trap the ball. Make the passer one time the little pass to his shooting friend. Another way to increase the difficulty level is to have the passer (Player 1) flick the ball slightly into the air, so that the shooters are hitting bouncing balls rather than balls that are flat on the grass. With younger athletes this increase may involve having the coach actually taking the role of “all time” Player 1.
Any number of players can be used. The player stands over the ball and gently "passes" the ball from one foot to the other in quick succession. The player must shift from one foot to the other to do this, which usually makes the lower body look like a bell.
Once the players are good at this drill, have them move around during the exercise.
Even numbers are needed. Set up the players in couples. Put out 4 cones in a straight line with a normal passing distance between the middle two, and place the other two on either side of the others about 10 feet away. The players stand on the two inside cones and pass the ball to each other. In receiving a pass, the player uses the outside of one foot to direct the ball behind them and they dribble the ball around the outside cone and back to the inside cone, where they pass the ball.
Two players per gate. The gates are approximately two steps apart. One ball per group. First player must play the ball on the ground through the gate to second player. Second player must receive and play back through the gate within two touches. The game continues until players cannot get the ball back through the gate on the ground within two touches.
Coaching Points:
Player receiving the ball should get in path of ball before it arrives.
First touch should help player to get a good kick back through the gate.
Keep score and rotate stations.
Vary the serve to start the game: Long balls, short balls, inside of foot, instep, outside of foot, weak foot only, etc.
Players should receive with one foot, play back with the other.
All players stand or sit in a line and are assigned a number. The coach calls out the number of two players then throws or kicks the ball away from the players. The players try to gain control of the ball and dribble it back to the coach. Make sure to alternate the players so that different ones were playing against each other.
Any number of players can be used. All players line up, with a ball, on one end line. The players try to dribble to the other end line without the coach, who stands in the middle, stealing their ball. The players who do lose their balls to the person in the middle must join that person. The game is over when only one person still has a ball.
The game is played in a grid that varies depending on the needs of the players. Make the grid smaller to make it more difficult for the players. Make it larger if the players are finding it difficult to achieve success. The coach must experiment with the size and find what works best for his or her team. Divide players into groups of three or four. Have them stand in line, forming a "snake." The middle player starts with the ball. The middle player (Player B) must try to follow the first person, or "head" of the snake (Player A) while dribbling. The third player (Player C) follows the second player and so on. From front-to-back, the players should be arranged as follows: Player A (head of snake), Player B (Dribbles ball), Player C (follows dribbler). On command, the middle player becomes the new head of the snake, while the old head of the snake goes to the end of the line and player C now has ball in middle. Now the players will be arranged as follows:
Player B (head of snake), Player C (Dribbles ball), Player A (follows dribbler). Play continues as long as players are benefiting from the activity. It is best to use this activity as a warm up. No score is kept as players are concentrating solely on their technique.
Coaching points:
1. Head of snake should move at different speeds, including stopping.
2. Encourage moving in many different directions.
3. Middle player must keep eyes up to see the head of the snake.
4. Encourage use of many different surfaces of feet in contact with ball.
TEAM DRIBBLING:
1. A regular even sided scrimmage. However, since the object of the game is to encourage and increase the amount of dribbling going on, six, small 'cone goals' have been set up around the field.
2. Each time a player dribbles through one of the goals, it counts as a point.
3. Goals scored on the big goals count as well.
4. Play with two or three balls to increase the amount of repetitions even further.
COACHING POINTS:
1. Here, players now have to make a decision when to dribble. At first they will dribble all of the time, even if it means going into pressure. So, helping them to see where the open field is helps their development.
2. Use the outside of the foot, or the laces for 'speed' dribbling.
3. Change of pace, change of direction to keep the defenders unbalanced.
2 players or more needed. All players stand at a cone about 20 feet from a group of balls. There is one less ball than the number of players. On the coaches command, the players run to the balls, get one and begin dribbling. The player who didn't get a ball tries to steal one from the others. The coach keeps time and after a preset period has passed, the coach stops the game. The player who, at that time does not have a ball, is out. Remove one ball from the group and repeat until there is only one person with a ball.
Using your entire team, create a circle. You can have your athletes link arms and then spread out, or simply have them stand around the center circle. Once your group is circled up give one player a ball. This player must pass it to another member of the circle and then follow their pass taking the “receivers” place. The “receiver” then passes the ball to another member of the circle and follows his/her pass taking the place of that “receiver.” When the team gets comfortable with using one ball, throw in a second. Now the concentration level must increase and your athletes must avoid each other as they run through the circle as well as avoiding balls. Make sure that your athletes are calling out the names of the teammates that they are passing to. This is a crucial part of the drill because it develops the all-important skill of communication. What to look for Coaches: Coaches should make sure that their athletes are making solid passes to the appropriate teammates. These passes should not be in-between two players. Calling out the “receivers” name as the ball makes it way through the circle should also clear up any in-between problems if they do occur. The communication in this drill is essential. This drill is great for younger teams just learning the importance of passing and moving. It is also a great game to help your players get to know each other.
Each player starts with an activity as shown, facing his or her partner. Players on Line X each have a ball. Each player starts the activity with their partner and advances down the line, repeating the activity at each successive player. Line Y players receive the ball and return it to the player in Line X that gave it to them. When a player gets to position A, they recycle and start again at the top of the line.
Try These Activities:
· One touch back with either foot. (Make sure players go in both directions, up and down.)
· Two touch returns, receiving with inside and outside of foot.
· Pass back with inside or outside of feet.
· Receive with thigh, pass back with instep.
· Chest - instep
· Chest - thigh - inside of foot.
· Outside of foot volley.
· Preparation touch with the head, back with head ("double header").
· Chest - head.
· The possibilities are endless.
Place about 10 cone goals randomly on the field. The goals are about 3 feet wide or so. Players partner up and pass through the cone goals. The rules being that they are not allowed to pass through the same goal twice in a row. We practice this a few times and then add the pressure of completing a certain number of passes in some sort of time frame. I try to make it go like this. Player A passes thru cones to Player B, player A then runs to another cone goal to receive a pass from player B (player A must call for the pass), player B dribbles to the goal where player A has made his run and passes the ball thru. The pattern repeats itself. The kids like the competitive nature of working against time. Have fun.