The playground game

Add a bit of flair and spontaneity to your coaching sessions by getting your young players to do what they do in the playground.

At my son’s school, the children in the playground are always kicking around a ball. Even when they haven’t got a ball handy, they’ve been known to kick a fir cone around! The fir cone rolling wrongly or getting stuck under someone’s foot adds an extra challenge, which makes the game more exciting.

You don’t need to use a fir cone to vary your soccer coaching sessions, but you could try a small skills ball or a tennis ball.

We have even used a partially flat football at some coaching sessions so the players have to work extra hard to move the ball around.

You can also bring other elements of the playground into your soccer coaching sessions. Try the following tips:

• During the game, adjust the sides, overload a side with good players and play them against a larger group. A cardinal playground rules sin committed by players in game time is being too complacent and comfortable.
• Challenge your soccer players by making them try different and unusual combinations. Ask them to make these decisions. If it is unfair then it must be challenging their soccer skills!

You can find lots of small-sided games on the website, try the ones below to give your players more fun at training.

Develop players with Dutch 4v4

in Blog, Small Sided Games

‘The Dutch 4v4’ is a small-sided game blueprint that has been at the heart of producing a vast array of talented individuals. It is the Dutch way to pick out problems during the match, create similar training models, and use them to develop the players. MORE

Skill and vision

in Ball Control and Footwork, Small Sided Games

The session is all about time on the ball and players making decisions in attack and defence. Puts skills into game context MORE

Hit wide areas

in Attacking, Small Sided Games

This session focuses on hitting wide areas with the use of group attacks and switching. It works on the basic play used to develop attacking moves to get from one third to the next to create goal scoring chances. MORE

Handball overlaps

in Attacking, Small Sided Games

This is a game to be played like basketball or rugby style passing the ball in the hands to show how players make one-twos and third man runs. MORE