Filed under: Dave Clarke, Soccer Coaching, Soccer Fitness, Soccer News, Soccer Refereeing, Soccer Skills, Soccer Team Management, Soccer Training | Tags: coaching, coaching sessions, decisions, develop, drills, exercises, how to coach, style
Some of my fellow coaches have been labelling me as a stuck record, of late. But if you’ll indulge me in the same way that I ask them to, I’ll explain why I’m so passionate about allowing kids to play the game without them being told what to do – to make their own decisions.
The truth is you should only be coaching your players when you are running sessions, or when they are playing a game in training. Basically, it’s only at a time when you can stop the game and make observations and suggestions. During a match – whether it is a friendly or league game – you should only be reminding players of their responsibilities, because the most important thing in this situation is for players to try out what you have been coaching; it’s the best environment for them in which to make mistakes… and learn from them. That way the experience gets logged in their brains through experience.
This week I observed a coach who constantly told his players what to do. A ball in the air, and he shouted “head it, head it”… a ball coming towards a player, “kick it hard”… a player running with the ball “pass it, PASS IT”. You get the picture. When I asked the coach if he thought this was the best approach, he responded: “I never tell them what to do – I’m just shouting to get them thinking.”
But they don’t need to think because they’re being instructed by the coach at every turn.
Interestingly, when the coach turned his back for a few seconds his players were looking around for him, shrugging their shoulders unsure what to do. He smiled at me and said, “See, if I don’t tell them what they should be doing they’re stuck.”
He’d missed the point completely.
I have told you this little tale because even the best coaches dictate things to their players when they should really just be letting them get on with it – I’m guilty of it myself.
At the end of the day, players who make decisions for themselves are developing every time they have to do it – even when they choose the wrong option. If we continue to instruct our players at every turn they’ll never develop the instinctive elements of play that all good sportsmen have.
Try to hold back this coming weekend and see if your players surprise you – I bet they do.
Filed under: Dave Clarke, Soccer Coaching, Soccer Fitness, Soccer News, Soccer Refereeing, Soccer Skills, Soccer Team Management, Soccer Training | Tags: coaching style, drills, how to coach, player independence, sessions, target
There has been much debate recently about player-centred coaching and the benefits it has for young footballers. Player-centred coaching is about focusing and targeting soccer to the ages and skills of your players.
But in addition, it supports players’ independence by giving them a controlling influence over the session. They feel the session is theirs, which improves communication with the coach, increases motivation and accelerates understanding and appreciation of what’s being taught. From that, a player’s ability to solve tactical problems within the game is enhanced.
This does not mean that the coach has no control – far from it. The role of the coach is to set a challenge that’s centred on their skills, and he’ll still need to guide the players through the process of solving problems. But there is created an environment in which players share responsibility for individual and team performance.
So, for example, I will mark out the playing area, but within that area give the players cones to create boxes or gates that are going to be used. I will guide my players if they make squares or gates too big or small, but they can alter the parameters as the session commences.
I will present them with questions related to what they’ve laid out and might recommend a set challenge, but am looking for them to correct any mistakes made. For instance, the challenge might be to dribble a ball through four gates. If a player misses a gate, I’ll watch him to see if he makes amends for the error without me pointing it out.
The challenge is the same, but the player is in control. For a scenario that is less game-like, I might look to work on technique and skills… such as players having a choice over which channel they go down in 1v1s – a long, thin one, or a short and narrow one. Or I might move to a setting with four coned off parts of an area where players cannot be tackled – wing channels on either side of the pitch, for instance, where a player can run without opposition before putting a cross in. I’m always interested to see what effect player-centred coaching can have – from those 1v1s to 4v4s for general all-round choices, or even 8v8s to offer experience in more specified roles.
Whatever the task in hand is, I will always guide players so they experience every position, but by and large they’re fashioning the challenges themselves. The crucial thing for me is, of course, getting the challenge as relevant as possible to my players. But it’s also about identifying the point at which guiding a player turns into interfering with the process.
Player-centred coaching, and empowering the footballers who play under you, is certainly something that develops gradually, but players love the freedom and, as a coach, I believe I am beginning to see real rewards.
Filed under: Dave Clarke, Soccer Coaching, Soccer Fitness, Soccer News, Soccer Refereeing, Soccer Skills, Soccer Team Management, Soccer Training | Tags: be a coach, feedback, hard work, how to coach, praise, talent, training, where to stand
By David Clarke
Being able to see everyone and everything that is going on means a coach can give feedback more effectively, correct errors or encourage good work. Here is a quick guide to better positioning in training.
- Position yourself far enough back to be able to see all the players working.
- Try to keep to the outer perimeter of practice areas so there are no players behind you at any time.
- Make sure you move to various positions around the practice area to give yourself different perspectives of the action.
- If you need to deliver one-to-one coaching, bring the player to you so you can help them while keeping an eye on the rest of the players.
- When demonstrating or talking to the players, create a half circle so they can all see.
- Always demonstrate with the weather (sun or rain) in your face rather than the faces of the players.
- Ensure there is nothing interesting happening behind you when talking or demonstrating to the players.
When talking to your players use the right words. I find that often a coach will praise the players that can easily do the tasks they set out for them but if you read my blog Praise Talent or Praise Hard Work you may think differently.
Also check out Five Ways To Make New Players Part of the Team.
Filed under: Dave Clarke, Soccer Coaching, Soccer Fitness, Soccer News, Soccer Refereeing, Soccer Skills, Soccer Team Management, Soccer Training | Tags: communication, control, fun, how to coach, skill, understanding
AS a coach you have lot of responsibilities, so how you coach and how you get your points across as a coach are vital to your players’ progression. It is not just on the pitch either – players learn from you how to achieve their goals in life.
What do you think it feels like to be coached by you? When your players turn up for training and matches what goes through their mind when they see you? Do you inspire them? Are they afraid of you?
An inspirational coach will find players respond better to them, and that it is easier to be understood when explaining what you want them to do in a particular exercise. A coach that breathes fire should realise players are just doing what they have to because they are frightened. So a coach needs to thnk about how they coach and what they want to get out of their coaching.
When I think about my coaching I want to base it on best practice rather than just controlling a group of kids. Best practice comes from the exercises I use and how I use them and the enjoyment the group gets from them. At a recent soccer coaching exhibition I went to one of the better coaches moaned that his session didn’t work because the players were not up to the standard he demanded.A coach should recognise the players level is not as expected and quickly change the exercise so the players understand it and can work with it.
So best practice… You need to coach fundamental skills – touch, passing, receiving communication and heading, and you need to coach the game – rules, tactics, sportsmanship. And you have to make it fun! There is a lot there, but if you start with yourself and how you coach and how players receive you, you will build a solid foundation and with that an understanding between you and your players.
Arsene Wenger, manager of Arsenal, has a track record of producing great players. How does he do it? Watch this video and pick up a few tips:
Filed under: Dave Clarke, Soccer Coaching, Soccer Fitness, Soccer News, Soccer Refereeing, Soccer Skills, Soccer Team Management, Soccer Training | Tags: how to coach, roy keane, shielding the ball, visual coaching
Show them how to do it… that is one of the best bits of advise I was given when I first started coaching. Visual coaching is vital to getting across to your players what it is you want them to do.
If you find it difficult to show players yourself get a helper or one of your players to do it for you. You will find if you do too much talking the players will lose concentration and half of them won’t have a clue what you are going on about.
Consider the art of shielding the ball. How do you put it into words? Okay so you can explain that you keep your body between your opponent and the ball and use the foot furthest away from the opponent. But while you can visualise what you are saying young players will have trouble doing it.
Watch the clip below of Roy Keane, former Ipswich Town manager and Manchester Utd and Irish footballer, showing young players how to shield the ball. The players can see exactly what they should be doing so have no problem when it comes to doing it themselves.
The visual art is an excellent tool for the coach.
Filed under: Dave Clarke, Soccer Coaching, Soccer Fitness, Soccer News, Soccer Refereeing, Soccer Skills, Soccer Team Management, Soccer Training | Tags: aberdeen, coaching technique, ferguson, good coach, how to coach, Manchester United
Sir Alex Ferguson, manager of Manchester United, sees four main characteristics that make a good coach.
- Observation
- Perseverance
- Imagination
- Communication
Ferguson says that observation is vital – if you are too involved you miss a lot of things. It is a good idea to stand back sometimes and watch someone else coach while you observe the players.
He says you need perseverance because coaching is not easy and you have to come back after a defeat full of confidence for the next game. “You have to keep the fire in your belly,” confirms Ferguson.
Imagination is important because when you are asked what was your best ever goal as a coach you want to identify a perfect goal that you influenced. This is down to your imagination and how you get things across to the players in your training sessions. As a young coach Ferguson thought up creative ways of coaching to inspire his players. “you create a chain reaction which produces thinking players and this is a wonderful thing to develop” he says.
And simple communication is vital. Ferguson believes making it clear what you are after in a coaching session should be top of a coach’s list. “You see those training sessions where the coach is talking all the time and the message is lost – the words get lost in the wind.”
The players want to get on with it so don’t ramble on. “Talking too much is a big danger for a coach.”
Watch this clip of Sir Alex when he was inspiring Aberdeen in the 80s to winning everything in Scotland against all odds. Listen to what he has to say about being an inspiring manager:
1. Observation
Filed under: Dave Clarke, Soccer Coaching, Soccer Fitness, Soccer Skills, Uncategorized | Tags: Chelsea, how to coach, Manchester United, simple drills, simple warm-ups, soccer drills, warm ups
Sometimes I get really good ideas for my team warm-ups from just watching the professional players warm up at matches I go to. If you get to a game a bit earlier than usual you will often see the professionals warming up before the game.
I just sit there and watch them and take a few notes which give me some great ideas what to do with my own players at our next match.
It doesn’t matter what age you coach, all ages can warm up in the same way. When you go to watch your next game see how simple some of the warm ups are for even the most skilful players.
The superstars of the English Premier League warm up with simple runs, stretches and jumps.
Watch these clips taken before Chelsea and Manchester United games where the players are warming up before their matches.
Filed under: Dave Clarke, Soccer Coaching, Soccer Team Management | Tags: Anderson, cooperation, Cristiano Ronaldo, enthusiasm, friendship, hard work, how to coach, loyalty, nani
1.Energy
The cornerstone to success is not just hard work, it is relevant hard work, not working for the sake of it. Thousands of press-ups or lots of passing drills won’t create a winning team. Each unit of training needs to be focused on moving the player and team forward. A good coach can create a good work ethic which includes players understanding the benefits of their work and why it makes a difference.
2. Loyalty
Are you loyal to your own values and goals? Compromise those and it is difficult to inspire loyalty in others.
3. Cooperation
To have a team that cooperates is to have a leader who listens. Good cooperation starts from the top.
4. Enthusiasm
Energy, enjoyment, drive and dedication. These will stimulate your players and help inspire them.
5.Friendship
The power of friendship is important for binding teams together. You are going to create an environment of mutual respect and comradeship. It is not about affection, but building goodwill where each person will go a little further for another team mate. The way this environment develops come, inevitably, from the way you treat the players. Show them respect and take time to work for each individually.
Even the best teams in the world need to be friends – watch this video of English Premier League Champions Manchester Utd players Cristiano Ronaldo, Nani and Anderson having a laugh together putting off Hargreaves when he is being interviewed.
