Simple Tactics For Throw-Ins

I find that when young players pick up the ball for a throw-in and are faced by one of their team mates very close to them they usually end up doing a foul throw because they aren’t throwing the ball very far.

The way to stop them doing this is to give them tactics that both the thrower and receiver have practised before the match.

A player too close to the thrower is not in a good position anyway. What you are looking for is a player on the move who can take the ball in their stride and use it to advance your team up the pitch.

Throw-ins are good attacking weapons but you also need to be able to make the most of them when you are defending as well.

I use these four throw-in tactics to give all my teams good basic ideas so they know what to do when they pick the ball up. You should try them too.

• In diagram 1, player A throws to player B who gives the ball back to player A with the inside of the right foot on the volley.
• Once your players have done it a few times with their right foot, player B does the same this time using the left foot like diagram 2 – again playing the ball from the throw-in before it touches the ground.

Concentrate on the quality of the throw-in

Player A should always make sure his throw makes it easy for player B to move to the ball and volley back. The throw should put the ball at the right height, in the right spot and at the right pace.

Make sure your throwers concentrate on this, aiming the ball in the general direction of player B is not good enough.

Players shouldn’t be put under pressure

A ball thrown at chest or head height will put player B under pressure, as defenders will have a chance of intercepting as player B tries to control the ball.

How to progress

• You can progress the throw-in practice, as we have done in diagram 3, by adding a defender and another team mate.
• Player A must then disguise his throw, so the defender runs to the wrong player.

Support and move from the throw-in

• Add another defender, as in diagram 4. This time the thrower and his attackers must support each other once the initial throw has been made.
• Player B receives the ball, passes to player C then supports the pass so player C can pass back to him. Or player C can pass long to player A who has run into an attacking position down the wing.
• Alternatively, player B can either play the ball back to player A and set up an attack, or retain possession, and still set up a 3v2 situation.

How to Win When You Have Just Lost

Going into our game last weekend, my Under-11s were playing on the back of a seven-match winning streak. That run has been built on a good passing game and the idea that every single player is involved as the ball is moved up the pitch. In the match, we were up against a physically big side… not that my players were put off by that challenge.
And it was the best game of passing football I had ever seen us play, even if our winning sequence came to an abrupt and unexpected end.
Essentially, all our training, practice and repetition of movement has started to pay off. Yet we lost 4-0. But who cares? Some of the one-twos and link-up play were mouth-watering… I counted five back-heels that beat a player and put one of my players into a great position to create a goal.
And yes, we created a lot of chances, but the opposition were very strong at the back and the goalkeeper showed excellent awareness coming off his line to sweep up any through-balls. The opposition themselves played some great football and the match was an excellent advertisement for grass roots soccer.
We gave away a goal on the stroke of half-time, but that didn’t change my team-talk at the interval. I told them they were playing superbly. Sure, they were more concerned about leaking a goal, but even they admitted that the manner of the performance had been very encouraging.
The second period followed much the same pattern – both teams created chances. They took theirs, but we didn’t. That is sometimes how it goes in a match. I was buzzing afterwards because we had performed so well, and so much of what I had coached them had come through.
Sometimes that’s enough in soccer, because while things didn’t come off on Saturday, I know that if the players continue to play like that, they’ll win many more than they lose. And that’s the point – if they go out thinking they have a chance of winning, we have won together as a team – coach and players learning from each other.
The result should never be the main thing. It’s much more important that your team plays to the best of its ability – remind them that for as long as they do that they’re developing and growing, and you’ll find they’ll keep responding, no matter what the scoreline is.

Creative Attacking Through Tight Defenses

By David Clarke

 Modern day football formations make it essential that midfielders and attackers become accustomed to playing in congested areas. If they can display the skills needed to produce short, sharp interchanges of play, the rewards in the final third can be impressive.

This session replicates the free-flowing passing football of Arsenal and Barcelona.

It will provide a platform to help your team find a way through opponents with flooded backlines, as well as those who attempt to break up play by deploying one or two holding midfield players.

Why this works

The session requires speedy and decisive passing over short distances. Opposition defenders are used as solid obstacles meaning attackers are encouraged to sidestep their man so as to find an angle for a pass.

The move should prove that the fewer touches each player takes, the quicker and more accurate the pass is likely to be, and with two attacking outlets, the last two defenders will need to make quick decisions as to which player to track.

Try to repeat this move until the attacking players can produce the quick interchanges using only one touch each.

Starting with an attacking triangle, you can adapt the attacking elements of this move to show the freedom of space that players can move into.

How to set it up

• Four attackers and four defenders are required for the session to work – in the picture above, the attackers are labelled A, B, C and D.
• The activity is carried out in the final third of the field using the goal and a goalkeeper in position.
• Players A, B, C and D form a triangular shape.
• The four defenders are positioned in the shape of an upside-down letter "Y", spread apart from each other but close to attacking players. They must hold shape and allow the attackers to work the angles.

Getting started

• Player A starts with the ball. He must make an angle to evade the first defender and pass to player B, before making a run towards goal.
• Player B lays a similar ball to player C, who after laying a pass to player D makes his own forward run.
• Player D controls the ball and look for runs from A and C, then he lays a pass off to his chosen man.
• In this instance, player A receives the pass. Making sure to stay onside, he fires at goal with a first-time shot.
• Player C must continue his run in order to take advantage of any loose balls or rebounds.
• Vary passing shapes but always ensure a centralised midfield move breaks out into a double-headed attack.

Four Corners Passing Game

Four Corners Passing Game

Setup

Create four grids that are about 5x5 yard grids and set them about 40X40 yards apart on all sides. Split the group into two teams and put one team in an alternate color.

InstructionsInstruct the teams to pass among their team to keep possession while attempting to score a point by passing the ball to a teammate that is inside one of the smaller grids. The teams can score in any of the corners, however, they cannot score in the same corner twice in a row.

Variations

• Do not allow players to stand inside the grids waiting for a pass. Instead, instruct the players to work on timing of the runs and timing of the pass to connect inside the grid.
• Change the scoring rule to where the goal is scored only when a give and go is performed with the player that is in the grid.

Coaching Points

• Focus on the weight and accuracy of the passing
• Make sure players without the ball are supporting the player with the ball at all times
• Make sure the timing of the runs and timing of the pass are in sync.
• Make sure players change the point of attack and are not forcing passes into congested areas

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Returning Players and Discipline

An email popped into my inbox this week which filled me with dread. The title alone was enough to have me put my head in my hands… ‘Harry wants to come back’, it read. Everyone had breathed a sigh of relief halfway through last season when Harry had decided to leave the team to go on to “better things”.
His parents were quite adamant that this was his decision and that he was going to “a team that won every week”, even though we were on a strong winning streak ourselves. (That said, we’ve never preached that winning is vital to our success.) Harry and his parents caused a lot of trouble – not at matches but at training. The lad rarely attended, and when he did, was one of the most disruptive boys I’ve ever coached.
But during matches he was the model player – very skilful, strong and never gave up. Even if I substituted him he was fine with the decision. But the trouble was getting him to matches in the first place. He once turned up 10 minutes after kick-off and was surprised that I made him sit on the bench for the majority of the game.
Harry’s problem was that his parents were too busy to get him to matches on time and too preoccupied with other things to ensure he attended training. But no matter how often I spoke to his mum and dad, they never reacted in the way I hoped. And Harry’s reasoning was that he couldn’t be blamed for his parents failing to get him to places on time. But punctuality is the first example of player discipline at any football club, and the team will suffer if players don’t turn up for training. It is vital in any squad that all of the players are singing from the same song sheet.
What was wrong with Harry was that – good player though he was – he wasn’t a team player. He missed out on key coaching sessions and the development of my other lads was being hindered by him not realising what he was supposed to do on the pitch. So if Harry wants to come back he does so on a two-month trial. If he sticks to the team rules on match days and at training he will win himself a place in the side.
If not he has to leave.
I’ve put the ball firmly in his and his parents’ court. They have to make it work or Harry will be finding himself another team.

Coach the Supporting Defender

By David Clarke
If you’re facing a team where the attackers are getting good support from the wings, you need your defenders to support each other in dealing with the threat. The supporting defender in this situation is vital for cutting off attacking options.
In this session players learn how to improve the understanding of covering and support between team mates.

How to play it

Set up a 30 yards by 20 yards area and add a 5 yards end zone at one end. Split the playing area down the middle with a row of cones so you can run two drills at the same time and allow more players to participate.
To begin, the defender near the end zone passes to the attacker at the other end. He must then stop the attacker from dribbling back towards him and into the end zone. The supporting defender, standing behind the playing defender, must give verbal support such as, “get tight”, “stand up” or “force wide”.

How to develop it

Remove the cones to create one pitch. Now two defenders work together in a 2v1 situation against the attacker. The first defender must put pressure on the attacker while the team mate covers and supports.
After the ball has been played, a second attacker enters the pitch from the other side and the defensive roles are switched. The defender creating pressure now covers and supports while the covering defender has a turn at putting pressure on the new attacker.

Turn it into a game

Play as above, but with the addition of a goalkeeper and goal. Now the attackers can shoot from distance so there is extra pressure on the defenders to move across quickly. The goalkeeper can provide additional support, communicating with both defenders.

U-11 two-touch football FAI Take Note! - Eddie Darcy

I am a firm believer in passing football and try to instill that in all of my players from an early age. I am passionate about my sport and look to other countries and coaches for inspiration in how to improve my coaching ability and also more importantly how to improve my players. It has been discussed for years and finally the FA in England are doing something about it with their investment in St. Georges centre of excellence. England are pushing to close the gap at youth level with Spain and Germany. Doing that should boost the future England team…(food for thought FAI)

Well England may be finally putting things in place to do it but I was surprised by how advanced some teams are across the pond in America. They sure are building for the future. Please take a look at this in the FAI!

An U11 team in California has created its own little area of Spain taking their inspiration from the masters of tiki taka,Barcelona. They’ve called their team Barcelona-USA, and play in the same strips as the Catalan giants.

The video that got everyone purring was Barcelona-USA’s U11 Cal South State Cup semi-final against Arsenal FC – no slouches themselves at this level.

But in an epic 13 minutes of football, these young players executed some of the greatest one-touch, two-touch passing moves that you’ll see anywhere, anytime.

According to their coach: “These performances are no accident. It takes meticulous training, studying, and artistry — a craftsman. You can not just throw 11 players on the field and ‘talk’ about possession. That’s just talking. And anybody can do that… you should be asking yourself: ‘Do I really care, or am I just a talker?’”
Are you watching Trappatoni and John Delaney?

See the video everyone’s talking about below:

Hope you enjoy the quality of football as much as I did - Eddie