FA Buggering up junior football
Discussion
Hi dojo,
ive offered to do the training in the summer so he can have a rest,
i do alot of the fund raising picking up and ferrying other kids to training and games
i could get more involved if i wanted to, but i cant commit that much because i dont know what time im finishing at work, plus home is a bit hectic at the moment.
my wife has a couple of jobs and we've both lost a parent each in the last six months.
the Manager has the club support and also has the parents support to his face but probably three or four dads arent happy with the results.
thats whywe offered to run them ragged in the summer so that theyll be a bit fitter and be more able to compete.
we are under no illusions it wont happen over night and none of them will get snapped up,
they do enjoy it but im sure theyll enjoy winning alot more thank turning up and getting tonked week in week out
ive offered to do the training in the summer so he can have a rest,
i do alot of the fund raising picking up and ferrying other kids to training and games
i could get more involved if i wanted to, but i cant commit that much because i dont know what time im finishing at work, plus home is a bit hectic at the moment.
my wife has a couple of jobs and we've both lost a parent each in the last six months.
the Manager has the club support and also has the parents support to his face but probably three or four dads arent happy with the results.
thats whywe offered to run them ragged in the summer so that theyll be a bit fitter and be more able to compete.
we are under no illusions it wont happen over night and none of them will get snapped up,
they do enjoy it but im sure theyll enjoy winning alot more thank turning up and getting tonked week in week out
j4ckos mate said:
Hi dojo,
ive offered to do the training in the summer so he can have a rest,
i do alot of the fund raising picking up and ferrying other kids to training and games
i could get more involved if i wanted to, but i cant commit that much because i dont know what time im finishing at work, plus home is a bit hectic at the moment.
my wife has a couple of jobs and we've both lost a parent each in the last six months.
the Manager has the club support and also has the parents support to his face but probably three or four dads arent happy with the results.
thats whywe offered to run them ragged in the summer so that theyll be a bit fitter and be more able to compete.
we are under no illusions it wont happen over night and none of them will get snapped up,
they do enjoy it but im sure theyll enjoy winning alot more thank turning up and getting tonked week in week out
Everyone is an expert but if you won't get involved then you shouldn't offer opinion from the sidelines - talking is easy.ive offered to do the training in the summer so he can have a rest,
i do alot of the fund raising picking up and ferrying other kids to training and games
i could get more involved if i wanted to, but i cant commit that much because i dont know what time im finishing at work, plus home is a bit hectic at the moment.
my wife has a couple of jobs and we've both lost a parent each in the last six months.
the Manager has the club support and also has the parents support to his face but probably three or four dads arent happy with the results.
thats whywe offered to run them ragged in the summer so that theyll be a bit fitter and be more able to compete.
we are under no illusions it wont happen over night and none of them will get snapped up,
they do enjoy it but im sure theyll enjoy winning alot more thank turning up and getting tonked week in week out
To address your points, IMHO, You will not be able to get them fit by training a bit a week. You could discuss with them geenal fitness and ask them to change their personal routines.
Do not have dads v lads matches, this is a terrible idea, it will be counter productive and potentially dangerous.
Most teams are simply massively disorganised.
Small sided games 4 v 4 is probably best, get them working as units on the pitch.
Holding positions and working for each other to create or close space. Realising where they are going wrong and correcting themselves.
If you are being thumped 20-0 then this is barmy. Drop down a few leagues if you can before the season starts.
As for poor goalkeeping...a good team will not let the shots come in the first place. Look at who lost the ball, why and where was defensive cover.
southendpier said:
j4ckos mate said:
Hi dojo,
ive offered to do the training in the summer so he can have a rest,
i do alot of the fund raising picking up and ferrying other kids to training and games
i could get more involved if i wanted to, but i cant commit that much because i dont know what time im finishing at work, plus home is a bit hectic at the moment.
my wife has a couple of jobs and we've both lost a parent each in the last six months.
the Manager has the club support and also has the parents support to his face but probably three or four dads arent happy with the results.
thats whywe offered to run them ragged in the summer so that theyll be a bit fitter and be more able to compete.
we are under no illusions it wont happen over night and none of them will get snapped up,
they do enjoy it but im sure theyll enjoy winning alot more thank turning up and getting tonked week in week out
Everyone is an expert but if you won't get involved then you shouldn't offer opinion from the sidelines - talking is easy.ive offered to do the training in the summer so he can have a rest,
i do alot of the fund raising picking up and ferrying other kids to training and games
i could get more involved if i wanted to, but i cant commit that much because i dont know what time im finishing at work, plus home is a bit hectic at the moment.
my wife has a couple of jobs and we've both lost a parent each in the last six months.
the Manager has the club support and also has the parents support to his face but probably three or four dads arent happy with the results.
thats whywe offered to run them ragged in the summer so that theyll be a bit fitter and be more able to compete.
we are under no illusions it wont happen over night and none of them will get snapped up,
they do enjoy it but im sure theyll enjoy winning alot more thank turning up and getting tonked week in week out
To address your points, IMHO, You will not be able to get them fit by training a bit a week. You could discuss with them geenal fitness and ask them to change their personal routines.
Do not have dads v lads matches, this is a terrible idea, it will be counter productive and potentially dangerous.
Most teams are simply massively disorganised.
Small sided games 4 v 4 is probably best, get them working as units on the pitch.
Holding positions and working for each other to create or close space. Realising where they are going wrong and correcting themselves.
If you are being thumped 20-0 then this is barmy. Drop down a few leagues if you can before the season starts.
As for poor goalkeeping...a good team will not let the shots come in the first place. Look at who lost the ball, why and where was defensive cover.
And if you want to get them fit with fun, with any training drill games you play, set them a challenge to win the ball back within 3 passes.
Hi all,
i was only thinking of lads vs dads just to coax them back into training, rather than hitting them hard,and nobody being there the following week.
We are right at the bottom of the bottom league, and we do have a second choice keeper hes about a foot taller, fearless, whatever the weather is.
the manager still insists on his son.
to give you an idea, my lad went in net for one game let in 11,
never been in net before, but volunteered when nobody else would.
it was against a middle of the league team, 35 minutes each way, full size nets size four ball
we had a dad behind him telling him when to rush and when to stay, be fearless dont come to far out the usual stuff.
the next week we played the same team but at home, our goalkeeper of four seasons let in ten goals
to be fair in both circumstances three or four were excellent well worked out goals.
he cant kick it past the penalty spot semi circle.
I never shout and ball at them at the touchline its not what its about for me.
All i want is when he leaves school, hes not hanging around or putting weight on, plus if he plays for a team when hes older its about mates/contacts for me.
the only advice ive given him is the old salt and pepper pots on the table for offside,
and we watch alot of footy together. if something stupid happens we freeze it and talk about why,
oh and dont argue with each other and shake hands at the end regardless
We dont moan on at the manager after the game i leave it till mid week and we have a chat at work over email.
myself and three or four other dads have offered to do the training for it, and that was due to start a fortnight ago.
I guess what im looking for is ways to inject some more ability and desire in all of them,
it wont be a quick fix, no doubt about it. but he needs to open his ears because whatever we are doing now is demoralising them.
i was only thinking of lads vs dads just to coax them back into training, rather than hitting them hard,and nobody being there the following week.
We are right at the bottom of the bottom league, and we do have a second choice keeper hes about a foot taller, fearless, whatever the weather is.
the manager still insists on his son.
to give you an idea, my lad went in net for one game let in 11,
never been in net before, but volunteered when nobody else would.
it was against a middle of the league team, 35 minutes each way, full size nets size four ball
we had a dad behind him telling him when to rush and when to stay, be fearless dont come to far out the usual stuff.
the next week we played the same team but at home, our goalkeeper of four seasons let in ten goals
to be fair in both circumstances three or four were excellent well worked out goals.
he cant kick it past the penalty spot semi circle.
I never shout and ball at them at the touchline its not what its about for me.
All i want is when he leaves school, hes not hanging around or putting weight on, plus if he plays for a team when hes older its about mates/contacts for me.
the only advice ive given him is the old salt and pepper pots on the table for offside,
and we watch alot of footy together. if something stupid happens we freeze it and talk about why,
oh and dont argue with each other and shake hands at the end regardless
We dont moan on at the manager after the game i leave it till mid week and we have a chat at work over email.
myself and three or four other dads have offered to do the training for it, and that was due to start a fortnight ago.
I guess what im looking for is ways to inject some more ability and desire in all of them,
it wont be a quick fix, no doubt about it. but he needs to open his ears because whatever we are doing now is demoralising them.
He needs to bench his own son, tricky but if it's competitive then it should be the strongest team, would he say otherwise if asked? Is there an assistant coach that can help change the starting line up?I have come across many issues over the years with junior football. I have and always will look at it in a different way having played the game as a professional for 8 years.
When watching junior football the last 4 years I have stood away from the crowd as I just cannot stand to listen to some of the things being shouted. A classic one that springs to mind was a dad shouting at his son to "get onside' at a throw in.
Whilst encouraging passing from the back, there is a thin line between ability, understanding of space, achieving the goal of retaining possession and causing pressure, loss of possession or conceding a goal. Simply saying "pass out from the back" without a proper coaching session to back up the theory and implement ideas is pointless.
Whilst I don't agree with all the fundamentals, Futsal is superb for developing close control, encouraging flair and encouraging passing in tight areas. You can really see development over weeks/months due to the structure of the coaching.
I looked into doing my badges. As am ex-pro I can skip level 1. I was told however I would have to do a children's first aid course before doing the level 2. I am a registered Paramedic but apparently that doesn't matter for the sake of a certificate. Ludicrous that there aren't exemptions in place to cut time and cost for coaches.
When watching junior football the last 4 years I have stood away from the crowd as I just cannot stand to listen to some of the things being shouted. A classic one that springs to mind was a dad shouting at his son to "get onside' at a throw in.
Whilst encouraging passing from the back, there is a thin line between ability, understanding of space, achieving the goal of retaining possession and causing pressure, loss of possession or conceding a goal. Simply saying "pass out from the back" without a proper coaching session to back up the theory and implement ideas is pointless.
Whilst I don't agree with all the fundamentals, Futsal is superb for developing close control, encouraging flair and encouraging passing in tight areas. You can really see development over weeks/months due to the structure of the coaching.
I looked into doing my badges. As am ex-pro I can skip level 1. I was told however I would have to do a children's first aid course before doing the level 2. I am a registered Paramedic but apparently that doesn't matter for the sake of a certificate. Ludicrous that there aren't exemptions in place to cut time and cost for coaches.
Ruskie said:
I looked into doing my badges. As am ex-pro I can skip level 1. I was told however I would have to do a children's first aid course before doing the level 2. I am a registered Paramedic but apparently that doesn't matter for the sake of a certificate. Ludicrous that there aren't exemptions in place to cut time and cost for coaches.
There are now, valid certificates gained elsewhere are now accepted by the FA.Another thing we haven't done is practice set pieces, ever
when and if we make a wall, i find that odd,
my lad can take throw ins at least ten feet further than his friends but the manager wont use him because he likes the defenders to take them,
anyway he wants to stay there for this season, but he wants to go to a properly run training school until the manager decides he wants them back in for pre season.
so thats what we will do and i will keep you updated!
when and if we make a wall, i find that odd,
my lad can take throw ins at least ten feet further than his friends but the manager wont use him because he likes the defenders to take them,
anyway he wants to stay there for this season, but he wants to go to a properly run training school until the manager decides he wants them back in for pre season.
so thats what we will do and i will keep you updated!
Well we went to a properly run training academy last night
he wasn't that bothered when we went, but within a couple of minutes you could see how different it as to ours,
no messing around, no lazy kids, nobody late, not one greedy player amongst them, the one in the best position got the pass.
quite good to watch, to be honest it was a breath of fresh air.
Alot of kids were signed on with premiership clubs or championship clubs, the rest were at local teams in the area, perhaps a divn or two in front of where hes at currently
The standard of the others kids was excellent, although they were miles in front of him in pretty much every area, because it was a small sided pitch it narrowed the ability gap between them.
and he managed to score as well which i was pleased for him.
we still haven't heard of the pre season plans of his current team, despite me asking him a couiple of times a week, yet the other teams are back at it, and his other sons team is as well so for now, he can continue to go there until his season starts, and mixing and playing/observing better players will only improve where hes at.
There are lots of teams train there, so if he ends up getting asked to go somewhere else, then he will have to think of what he wants to do.
he wasn't that bothered when we went, but within a couple of minutes you could see how different it as to ours,
no messing around, no lazy kids, nobody late, not one greedy player amongst them, the one in the best position got the pass.
quite good to watch, to be honest it was a breath of fresh air.
Alot of kids were signed on with premiership clubs or championship clubs, the rest were at local teams in the area, perhaps a divn or two in front of where hes at currently
The standard of the others kids was excellent, although they were miles in front of him in pretty much every area, because it was a small sided pitch it narrowed the ability gap between them.
and he managed to score as well which i was pleased for him.
we still haven't heard of the pre season plans of his current team, despite me asking him a couiple of times a week, yet the other teams are back at it, and his other sons team is as well so for now, he can continue to go there until his season starts, and mixing and playing/observing better players will only improve where hes at.
There are lots of teams train there, so if he ends up getting asked to go somewhere else, then he will have to think of what he wants to do.
j4ckos mate said:
Well we went to a properly run training academy last night
he wasn't that bothered when we went, but within a couple of minutes you could see how different it as to ours,
no messing around, no lazy kids, nobody late, not one greedy player amongst them, the one in the best position got the pass.
quite good to watch, to be honest it was a breath of fresh air.
Alot of kids were signed on with premiership clubs or championship clubs, the rest were at local teams in the area, perhaps a divn or two in front of where hes at currently
The standard of the others kids was excellent, although they were miles in front of him in pretty much every area, because it was a small sided pitch it narrowed the ability gap between them.
and he managed to score as well which i was pleased for him.
we still haven't heard of the pre season plans of his current team, despite me asking him a couiple of times a week, yet the other teams are back at it, and his other sons team is as well so for now, he can continue to go there until his season starts, and mixing and playing/observing better players will only improve where hes at.
There are lots of teams train there, so if he ends up getting asked to go somewhere else, then he will have to think of what he wants to do.
Possibly because the guys doing the coaching are being paid, means he whole thing is more professional.he wasn't that bothered when we went, but within a couple of minutes you could see how different it as to ours,
no messing around, no lazy kids, nobody late, not one greedy player amongst them, the one in the best position got the pass.
quite good to watch, to be honest it was a breath of fresh air.
Alot of kids were signed on with premiership clubs or championship clubs, the rest were at local teams in the area, perhaps a divn or two in front of where hes at currently
The standard of the others kids was excellent, although they were miles in front of him in pretty much every area, because it was a small sided pitch it narrowed the ability gap between them.
and he managed to score as well which i was pleased for him.
we still haven't heard of the pre season plans of his current team, despite me asking him a couiple of times a week, yet the other teams are back at it, and his other sons team is as well so for now, he can continue to go there until his season starts, and mixing and playing/observing better players will only improve where hes at.
There are lots of teams train there, so if he ends up getting asked to go somewhere else, then he will have to think of what he wants to do.
It is good that you are supporting your son but, without wanting to be harsh, you come across like you are pushing him quite hard, describing him as so-so, describing other kids as being much better than him. Apologies if this is not the case.
In my experience (FA level 2 coach and run a youth team) this can go two ways; if your son is very good and is the top of team then he may be ok, however, the chances are he will come up against boys who are much, much better, bigger stronger quicker and have been coached at a high level for several seasons, the gulf between good and excellent youth football is vast and you should be careful of not putting too much pressure on the lad or he may give up playing - I have seen this happen so many times and the Dad's can never understand why.
What training is it where you have kids that are signed to Premiership clubs joining in? They may be members of a club's community soccer school ie paying to be trained each week but I would've thought to be signed up would mean they would have dedicated training and would not be 'allowed' to train with normal players.
I do the admin for the team and I would not want a parent phoning me twice a week to find out when pre season starts. However I also realise that it is crucial to communicate effectively with parents and players. As for the current team, it is not unusual to have a break in the summer, kids play cricket, go on holiday or simply the coach wants - and probably deserves - a break for a few weeks.
I doubt the league your son's team for next has been formed yet while player registrations come in. I think most leagues are set up around early August. I asked a few days ago about the team dropping a few divisions to become more competitive - did you look into this? That is after all why we run leagues.
You are doing the right thing by supporting him in, I admire your passion and wanting the best for him. I would suggest, at 14, it is your son's choice over what training and club he plays for. If he really, really enjoys the game he will develop and improve naturally. This does not necessarily mean playing for the best team in the best league.
southendpier said:
j4ckos mate said:
Well we went to a properly run training academy last night
he wasn't that bothered when we went, but within a couple of minutes you could see how different it as to ours,
no messing around, no lazy kids, nobody late, not one greedy player amongst them, the one in the best position got the pass.
quite good to watch, to be honest it was a breath of fresh air.
Alot of kids were signed on with premiership clubs or championship clubs, the rest were at local teams in the area, perhaps a divn or two in front of where hes at currently
The standard of the others kids was excellent, although they were miles in front of him in pretty much every area, because it was a small sided pitch it narrowed the ability gap between them.
and he managed to score as well which i was pleased for him.
we still haven't heard of the pre season plans of his current team, despite me asking him a couiple of times a week, yet the other teams are back at it, and his other sons team is as well so for now, he can continue to go there until his season starts, and mixing and playing/observing better players will only improve where hes at.
There are lots of teams train there, so if he ends up getting asked to go somewhere else, then he will have to think of what he wants to do.
What training is it where you have kids that are signed to Premiership clubs joining in? They may be members of a club's community soccer school ie paying to be trained each week but I would've thought to be signed up would mean they would have dedicated training and would not be 'allowed' to train with normal players.he wasn't that bothered when we went, but within a couple of minutes you could see how different it as to ours,
no messing around, no lazy kids, nobody late, not one greedy player amongst them, the one in the best position got the pass.
quite good to watch, to be honest it was a breath of fresh air.
Alot of kids were signed on with premiership clubs or championship clubs, the rest were at local teams in the area, perhaps a divn or two in front of where hes at currently
The standard of the others kids was excellent, although they were miles in front of him in pretty much every area, because it was a small sided pitch it narrowed the ability gap between them.
and he managed to score as well which i was pleased for him.
we still haven't heard of the pre season plans of his current team, despite me asking him a couiple of times a week, yet the other teams are back at it, and his other sons team is as well so for now, he can continue to go there until his season starts, and mixing and playing/observing better players will only improve where hes at.
There are lots of teams train there, so if he ends up getting asked to go somewhere else, then he will have to think of what he wants to do.
It's a misconception that I hear constantly,( no doubt by just about anyone seemingly being able to call something an "academy") along with "so and so's" son has been signed by XYZ... and yet is still playing for his Sunday team. Simply doesn't happen.
The shadow squad system at some pro clubs is a similar misconception,although you have to be selected for it, you actually have to pay for the training,and can still play Sunday football.
If you actually saw a Premier league team academy kids train/play ( lets say under 11's/12's for instance) you'd be absolutely gob smacked by their ability,the pace of the game,the touch and awareness and the most eye opening of all..the intensity. Even after 5 seasons, it still takes me some time each game to get my head round it.
As for your lad, just let him play with a smile on his face.
Agree completely with pretty much all of the last two posts.
I'm a Level 1 coach but principally our under-15 team secretary, taking the strain off the two coaches that are better than me at what they do. I'm on the phone and text to parents each week arranging subs, friendlies, league matches, lifts etc.
We played in our final summer tournament on Sunday and now have a month off before returning to training on 5th August. No point going back earlier as a lot of parents go away on holiday in the first two weeks of the summer break. To be honest, there seems little point going back till the end of August but we have 2-3 friendlies in the last ten days so we want to hit the ground running.
A lot of the leagues have already done their constitutions by now. Our team got promoted last season and went from Div 3 to Div 2. But three years ago, we took a double relegation from Div 2 to Div 4 and it was the best thing we could have done. Is that an option... drop down to see if you find your level? If you are capable of playing at the level you are at, you should have a good season at a lower level. I'm no trophy hunter but when we took the double drop, we have won two promotions in three seasons since then and our kids are playing with a smile on their faces. This season, we are back in Div 2 but with three good seasons behind us and maybe a 60% win rate in that time, so confident as well.
If you can drop down, might be a good idea. Approach the league but maybe chat to a few local teams to see if anyone fancies taking your place. Our local league in Bristol will shuffle around teams that feel they're in the wrong division but you can make it easy for them by breaking the ground first.
Good luck though. I admire a parent that is keen and wants to help out.
I'm a Level 1 coach but principally our under-15 team secretary, taking the strain off the two coaches that are better than me at what they do. I'm on the phone and text to parents each week arranging subs, friendlies, league matches, lifts etc.
We played in our final summer tournament on Sunday and now have a month off before returning to training on 5th August. No point going back earlier as a lot of parents go away on holiday in the first two weeks of the summer break. To be honest, there seems little point going back till the end of August but we have 2-3 friendlies in the last ten days so we want to hit the ground running.
A lot of the leagues have already done their constitutions by now. Our team got promoted last season and went from Div 3 to Div 2. But three years ago, we took a double relegation from Div 2 to Div 4 and it was the best thing we could have done. Is that an option... drop down to see if you find your level? If you are capable of playing at the level you are at, you should have a good season at a lower level. I'm no trophy hunter but when we took the double drop, we have won two promotions in three seasons since then and our kids are playing with a smile on their faces. This season, we are back in Div 2 but with three good seasons behind us and maybe a 60% win rate in that time, so confident as well.
If you can drop down, might be a good idea. Approach the league but maybe chat to a few local teams to see if anyone fancies taking your place. Our local league in Bristol will shuffle around teams that feel they're in the wrong division but you can make it easy for them by breaking the ground first.
Good luck though. I admire a parent that is keen and wants to help out.
Hi, all
my gripe is that he cant seem to make his mind up whether its a play for fun team or play to win,
my own personal feeling is that if the scores being kept its play to win,
Ive told him if my lad plays less or somewhere else im happy with it, and more importantly so is my son.
Its fifteen disappointed faces that get my goat,
it was the managers idea to have a month off, not mine, we finished in May but hes not got them back yet, and with summer holidays coming for everyone itll be the last week in august and they start in Sept.
Then they'll all get pulled up for not trying hard enough. it wouldn't be fair to post a link to their league but trust me, over the season we've let in 230 goals and that's more than the next three teams above them put together, weve not scored ten yet, and we havent won all season
Some of the kids are ok some less able, personally id like to see them win three or four, that's all, just to the point that putting a shift in against a lower ability team might result in a win.
and we arent bottom, not bothered about cup runs, or winning the league,
just enough so that team doesnt embarrass him compared to his other mates teams at school.
i take an active role, helping with lifts, marking out, flags respect barrier,collecting all the training balls, fund raising etc, so i do get involved,
some of the parents don't even turn up to watch their own child
my gripe is that he cant seem to make his mind up whether its a play for fun team or play to win,
my own personal feeling is that if the scores being kept its play to win,
Ive told him if my lad plays less or somewhere else im happy with it, and more importantly so is my son.
Its fifteen disappointed faces that get my goat,
it was the managers idea to have a month off, not mine, we finished in May but hes not got them back yet, and with summer holidays coming for everyone itll be the last week in august and they start in Sept.
Then they'll all get pulled up for not trying hard enough. it wouldn't be fair to post a link to their league but trust me, over the season we've let in 230 goals and that's more than the next three teams above them put together, weve not scored ten yet, and we havent won all season
Some of the kids are ok some less able, personally id like to see them win three or four, that's all, just to the point that putting a shift in against a lower ability team might result in a win.
and we arent bottom, not bothered about cup runs, or winning the league,
just enough so that team doesnt embarrass him compared to his other mates teams at school.
i take an active role, helping with lifts, marking out, flags respect barrier,collecting all the training balls, fund raising etc, so i do get involved,
some of the parents don't even turn up to watch their own child
So
With the season finished we've given them a month off, and myself and another dad have been running informal training a couple of times a week for the last Three weeks or so
Numbers have dwindled with the holidays, but we've had between five and ten turning up out 16.
Which is totally understandable with the summer hols etc
We've had them doing some light jogging and then practicing some free kicks and set pieces, and ended up the
Last 30 mins doing a small sided game
Limiting it to three or four touches and greater importance made to positioning and being stronger with the tacklles
Generally speaking threy seem to have enjoyed it but have larked around a bit, we let them get away with it for ten mins then expect them to knuckle down.
All in all I'm sure it's been useful for them , it's kept them together and we will continue to help out until the season starts in September. And probably beyond
We've had a couple of extra lads come who are quite good and we expect a couple will drift off by the end of the summer
With regard to the additional pro training my lad has been doing. He's been enjoying it and I believe it's made him a little sharper and more willing to move around and get involved so he can continue with thst of he wants to do so
(Doing a weekly course there as well late August)
One question I didn't answer was that there aren't any lower leagues than ours, were the bottom of the pile in the last
So fingers crossed with a bit of positivity and tails up.
Plus another keeper playing more often we should be able to get a couple of wins and get off the bottom
With the season finished we've given them a month off, and myself and another dad have been running informal training a couple of times a week for the last Three weeks or so
Numbers have dwindled with the holidays, but we've had between five and ten turning up out 16.
Which is totally understandable with the summer hols etc
We've had them doing some light jogging and then practicing some free kicks and set pieces, and ended up the
Last 30 mins doing a small sided game
Limiting it to three or four touches and greater importance made to positioning and being stronger with the tacklles
Generally speaking threy seem to have enjoyed it but have larked around a bit, we let them get away with it for ten mins then expect them to knuckle down.
All in all I'm sure it's been useful for them , it's kept them together and we will continue to help out until the season starts in September. And probably beyond
We've had a couple of extra lads come who are quite good and we expect a couple will drift off by the end of the summer
With regard to the additional pro training my lad has been doing. He's been enjoying it and I believe it's made him a little sharper and more willing to move around and get involved so he can continue with thst of he wants to do so
(Doing a weekly course there as well late August)
One question I didn't answer was that there aren't any lower leagues than ours, were the bottom of the pile in the last
So fingers crossed with a bit of positivity and tails up.
Plus another keeper playing more often we should be able to get a couple of wins and get off the bottom
Well after me taking training over the summer
Not a lot turned up, sometimes we had 5 out of 17. But me and another parent pressed on for twice a week for six weeks
We went into a game today against another lower ability team played ok and got beat 13-0
It did flatter them to be fair
We passed it around on the floor they hoofed it over our midfield , but fair dos they deserved it
Not a lot turned up, sometimes we had 5 out of 17. But me and another parent pressed on for twice a week for six weeks
We went into a game today against another lower ability team played ok and got beat 13-0
It did flatter them to be fair
We passed it around on the floor they hoofed it over our midfield , but fair dos they deserved it
if they were hoofing it over your midfield work on the positioning of the back four to utilise the off-side and use the keeper as a 5th man. Did you ask the players afterwards what they would do differently, are they learning as a unit, can they see what is going wrong from the pitch? (their view of a game may be different to yours)
IMHO I would drop practising set pieces and corners and work on small sided games. 3v3 and 4v4. Let them have as many touches as they need to feel comfortable on the ball. Limiting touches isn't realistic to a game scenario and creates unnecessary pressure on weaker players. Sometimes you can bring it if say in a training game one team is 4-0 up, but you could also make 4v3 to create additional pressure on one team rather than limiting touches.
You may find that if you have a game with a pitch of the right size and players working and covering that they will naturally start playing 1 and 2 touch as they see fit.
IMHO I would drop practising set pieces and corners and work on small sided games. 3v3 and 4v4. Let them have as many touches as they need to feel comfortable on the ball. Limiting touches isn't realistic to a game scenario and creates unnecessary pressure on weaker players. Sometimes you can bring it if say in a training game one team is 4-0 up, but you could also make 4v3 to create additional pressure on one team rather than limiting touches.
You may find that if you have a game with a pitch of the right size and players working and covering that they will naturally start playing 1 and 2 touch as they see fit.
If i can drop into this topic and ask a question that is related. How on earth does the scouting system work. I've been on the periphery of mini soccer/youth football now for the last 4 years and in that time I have seen two scouts at matches. And yet, I know of lots of kids that have been (and gone) from various NW football academies.
I suspect that these kids parents are touting their kids around themselves, can anyone confirm if this is the normal way of things?
I suspect that these kids parents are touting their kids around themselves, can anyone confirm if this is the normal way of things?
- Scouts attend more school football than they do grassroots football.
- Summer tournaments at mini football level usually have alot of scouts milling around.
- ALOT of parents ring clubs themselves and ask for a trial.
Scouts hoover up as many youngsters as they can regardless of actual ability, once the kid attends training sessions with the club, the coaching staff then sort through what they've got.
From talking to a few scouts and more than a few academy coaches, two things stand clear. If a kid can run properly (you'd be surprised how many can't) and shows a good attitude to learn an the appropriate determination then they have a better chance staying in an academy setup. Academies usually have an Academy team> Elite team> Development team and finally some kids on the periphery who just keep turning up.
- Summer tournaments at mini football level usually have alot of scouts milling around.
- ALOT of parents ring clubs themselves and ask for a trial.
Scouts hoover up as many youngsters as they can regardless of actual ability, once the kid attends training sessions with the club, the coaching staff then sort through what they've got.
From talking to a few scouts and more than a few academy coaches, two things stand clear. If a kid can run properly (you'd be surprised how many can't) and shows a good attitude to learn an the appropriate determination then they have a better chance staying in an academy setup. Academies usually have an Academy team> Elite team> Development team and finally some kids on the periphery who just keep turning up.
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