Arrival activities are the perfect way to start your coaching sessions.
There are a few things that make arrival activities stand out:
They easily adapt to accomodate constantly changing numbers
Players can generally run them without coach intervention (allowing you to set up subsequent activities)
They stop players standing around at the start of a session or aimlessly banging balls at the goal.
They allow you to maximise your training time and get players focused from the first minute.
If you’ve not been using arrival activities, now’s the time to start. They’re recommended by the FA and many other coaching associations around the world.
It was the first game of the season on Saturday and the local council had decided to close the main road leading to our club's ground. So the phone calls started coming in thick and fast: "Dave we are going to be late." MORE
My go to activities when players have had been on the summer break are Rondos – and with this being one of the longest breaks from playing due to lockdown I am going to be using Rondos over the next few weeks to get players back up to speed. MORE
There are a number of places where the social distancing rules are not the same as here in England, and I've been asked for sessions that are non contact but not just 5 players so this ssession can be used with any number of players. MORE
Great for any age group, getting brains warmed up with gentle running and getting players to concentrate and think about what they have to do. Simple but very effective. MORE
What I love about my U9s team is that when I come out to warm them up before a match they are all ready and sitting there waiting for me... with a cheer they all descend on the bag of training balls and start warming themselves up. MORE
This simple and fun activity is perfect for use on match days, allowing you to warm up your players with a quick burst of movement and a focus on technique MORE
This five minute warm up drill is all about first touch and anticipating the pass. Good for fitness and getting players ready for movement and passing in matches.
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This session sharpens an array of soccer skills at the beginning of a season when players need to get their bodies back into balance and refresh their technique on the ball. This is a great session to use for sharpening awareness and coordination. MORE
This session is set up so that as players arrive they can easily join in without you needing to stop or change the session. The arrival activity shown here is geared towards closing down the opposition in midfield. Set up You need balls, bibs and cones in an area 20×20 yards. Numbers build up as... MORE
When you are planning out your coaching sessions you need to think about how to make arrival activities work for your team. Depending on their ages the needs of the drill that kick starts the session will be different but one thing will be the same, they need to stretch bodies and be good fun. MORE
Straight from the Fulham Academy training ground, this arrival activity will help develop your team’s ability to use both feet and to pass accurately.
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The idea of the session is to work towards possession with a purpose which includes understanding how to exploit space. So players begin by learing dribbling decisions then passing decisions MORE
Arrival activities are an ideal way to kick off training when you are waiting for all your players to turn up – they are set up so you can easily slot players in as they arise without disrupting the session MORE
This arrival activity is great for any age group once players have got into the swing of passing one way and running the other. You can use any number of players and add more as they turn up for training. MORE
As an arrival activity this works because you can add players as they turn up to training. It develops a high level of skill and movement. It is good for technique and uses both feet. MORE
This is a simple 5v2 keep away game made harder by having a triangle in the middle which the two defenders must protect or stay in the middle longer MORE
You can use this fun warm up to teach young players the basics of attacking and defending. Awareness of where players are and the ability to control, pass and stop the ball can all be coached with this drill. MORE
This is a good warm-up drill for your soccer coaching sessions – a circuit that tests your players’ basic technique. It’s a really good circuit because it involves everyone, moves quickly and it’s great fun. You’re testing the basic soccer skills of your players – passing and receiving, heading, one-twos, dribbling, and controlling and shooting.... MORE