Set pieces are a vital part of your match day experience… often they present your team with a good chance to score a goal, and they are the key link to restarting the game when the ball goes out of play.
Throw-ins, corners and free kicks all give an opportunity to score goals and goal kicks are the launchpad for a possession game that takes the ball up through the thirds and into dangerous areas of the pitch.
You also need to look at set pieces from the defending angle – organisation is key to making sure silly goals are not given away. This can be the winning difference for your team if they can get organised to cover the moves of your opponents.
Here are some ideas and sessions to help you get your team ready in pre-season to use set pieces effectively.
Start by making sure your players know how to take a throw-in.
First of all, every one of your players should be able to take a throw-in – they need to be able to take long throws and short tactical throws. I use How to take long throw-ins which includes technique and a game, and Feet first which explains the best way to take short throw-ins.
For the younger age groups, my AskDave subscription question service is always getting questions about being organized at throw-ins – read my advice to the question “My team are disorganized from throw-ins”.
Goalkeeper kicking is always difficult right through to Under 18, but with the right technique, you can ensure your players don’t give the ball away. Use my EasiCoach Goalkeeper Kicking activity to give your players the correct technique for clearing the ball and try the game Goal Kick, which helps your players to get into the correct positions to receive the ball from the goalkeeper.
For corners, your team must be organized to defend opposition corners and to attack their own corners. The two best sessions are How to set up an attacking corner and How to defend at corners.
For free kicks, you should be experimenting with all sorts of different ways to create goals, but you can start with Unstoppable free kicks and develop your team’s ability to come up with different ideas from there.
Watching France score the only goal in the semi final against Belgium in the World Cup shows how well set up teams can cause problems at corners for the defending team. This set up ensures your team will have a great chance of scoring a goal. MORE
A long throw when teams are in the attacking third of the pitch can be as effective as a corner kick or a free-kick. Use this session to identify a couple of players who can perfect the technique. MORE
This session looks at the roles of defenders and the goalkeeper in corner kick situations. It’s vital that, when setting up to defend a corner, each man knows his exact task, working as an individual and as part of a bigger unit within the penalty area. MORE
Short throw-ins should be viewed as more than simply a way of restarting play – they’re also a means of keeping possession and gaining territory, and the best way to do both is to throw the ball to a team mate’s feet. MORE
Throw-ins can be stressful for youngsters. Not only does the player need to get the ball back into play legally, but he’ll want his team to retain possession too. MORE
The game starts with a kick from one of the goalkeepers. He puts the ball down in front of goal and kicks out as if from the edge of the penalty area. MORE
The ball is usually kicked either using the inner side of the foot that runs along from toe to heel, or using the small area around the inside of the big toe. MORE
A couple of weeks ago I was on a course discussing what got youth players thinking during a game and how they could react to that. If their team has the ball what should they be thinking about and if they have lost the ball how should they react. MORE
It is all well and good if you have a goalkeeper who is confident enough to clear counter attacks or long balls over the defence – but that is a rare quality in the youth game. You have to put in plans to stop this kind of attack. MORE
I was watching a match on TV this week and there was a wonderful example of twin strikers creating space to score a goal. One striker ran towards the near post dragging the defence with him and the other targeted the back post heading into the net unmarked. It works well in youth football MORE
Who doesn’t love to dominate the opposition with a lot of possession by intelligent short passes which in the end opens up the entire opponents defensive line? It is a fantastic tactic to use but remember you also need a plan to win the ball back when your team inevitably loses it! MORE
I'm not bragging when I tell you my Under 9 team scores lots of goals – they do but that's down to their hard work on the training pitch. And that is not to say they are all perfectly formed with a good shot on the player's favoured foot. My players use both feet... sometimes just to guide the ball into the net with their less favoured foot MORE
Scoring last minute goals can be due to the opposition tiring or suddenly becoming less attacking and sitting back hoping for the final whistle – but it can also be because your team is putting in a big effort to score a winner or to rescue a point with clever use of tactics. MORE
“I took a free trial and I was blown away by the drills; it made my training sessions so much easier. ”