Our last U9 girls soccer practice went very well. We were actually missing quite a few players for various reasons, so with 6 girls and 2 coaches, we had a really good ratio.
We started off by breaking the girls into 2 teams. Each coach took 3 players. A team would start with a goal kick and the coach would defend against them. The girls understand the give / go / rotate movements, so emphasis was more on execution such as taking the first touch away from the defender and passing to the space before the pressure arrives. If the coach won the ball away from the girls, his team would leave the field and the other team would give it a try against their coach. The team that was off the field would work on some of those execution items such as keeping the ball on the ground and making a good first touch. Since each round would only last a couple of minutes, the girls didn't get bored with the game or the drills. I saw excellent progress too.
We ended with a 4 v 4 scrimmage with the coaches playing the back positions. Improvement was significant. We still have significant issues with players ball watching rather than moving to the needed position, but the degree of this problem has been significantly reduced.
Our first match is a couple of weeks away. I'm really looking forward to seeing how this goes.
-Bill
Coaching tips for young soccer teams and a few bits of news from Breakaway Fashions. Update: Our new blog is on our new website at: COACHING VERY YOUNG PLAYERS
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