Technique or skill practices ??

http://playerdevelopment.blogspot.co.uk/2011/01/opposed-or-unopposed-myelination.html

“In England you teach your kids how to win. In Spain and Portugal they teach their kids how to play " " Jose Mourinho

Development first, winning second. How some youth coaches stunt player growth

There are many ways a coach can give themselves a better chance of winning youth football matches, and in my opinion many of those are short-term wins at the expense of long-term player development. In this blog post, I have recognised some of the traits of youth coaches and tried to explain what I believe are the pros and cons of each.
Essentially, I believe we should be encouraging kids to get as many touches of the ball as possible, and supporting them when they make mistakes. Mistakes are a necessary part of learning, and how we respond to those mistakes as a coach will be a huge factor in deciding what type of players we produce. If you want cautious, predictable players than tell them their every move and criticise errors. We need to be giving the kids of today the best chance of developing the skills that they will need when they are older, when winning will become more important.
I don’t believe that winning at the younger age groups is the most important indicator of success. Playing well, developing skills, and staying in love with the game are far more important. Competitive football in this country doesn’t start until the U12 age group, but you wouldn’t know that by watching the coaches and parents of some kids much younger than that at the weekend. It’s a cultural issue, and I believe it is holding us back as a nation.
One of the key reasons for the introduction of playing the 5v5, 7v7 and 9v9 football format in the lead up to the full 11v11 game is to give each player more touches of the ball. The main reason for implementing a retreat line (Requires the opposing players to retreat into their own half when your goalkeeper has a goal-kick) is to encourage playing out from the back. Yet direct play and long goal-kicks still endure because they are ways to win in the short-term. However, if players lump it long to be safe, we are not creating players with the skills they will require in their future. We are, however unwittingly, damaging the long-term development of the players in our care.
I think we should care less about winning at the early age groups, and more about development. When we get to U12 and league tables are introduced, maybe then be in a position to compete. Get into that position based on the years of development-first work you have done with your players up until that point though. Just an opinion of course, and I respect anyone who has a differing opinion.
Here are a few of the coaching traits/ beliefs I have experienced on my travels:
1. Play it direct “don’t mess about with it at the back!
The short-term benefit of not getting tackled when you are a defender, in the defending third, is probably fairly self explanatory.
This teaching of ‘get rid of it’ harks back to the bad old days of English football, when a ‘ball-playing defender’ was an oxymoron. The game has changed, moved on, and defenders have to be comfortable in possession to succeed in todays game. How will players ever develop that comfort on the ball if they are instructed not to practice that skill by coaches screaming ‘get rid’?
2. Don’t dribble or run with the ball if you can safely pass instead. “Pass, pass, PASS!”
The obsession with asking kids to always pass is widespread. Maybe it’s because young kids are naturally greedy, and coaches feel that in order for the group to play as a team the players needs to having passing drummed into them? I can understand that.
Maybe its because if your young players pass as soon as they receive possession they have less chance of being caught in possession? Think of that and then think of the most creative, exciting players in the world today. It’s likely that at least one of Messi, Ronaldo, Suarez, Neymar or Aguero came to mind and what they all have in abundance is the ability to beat a player.
That ability, like all others, is developed through practice and an over-emphasis by coaches on passing robs today’s young players of the chance to express themselves and practice beating a player. I have heard that at Chelsea, they teach and encourage young players to always ‘take him on’ believing that passing and team-play can be added later, when winning actually matters, but at this young age they are developing skills.
If coach is constantly shouting for his players to pass as soon as they get it, they are robbing the young players in their care of the chance to practice decision making, that is, when should they pass and when should they travel with the ball?
3. Pick bigger, older, more developed boys in your team over younger, smaller boys.
The older boys in the younger age group are often at a massive advantage because, for example, a player being exactly 7 years old (84 months) could be playing against a boy who is nearly 8 (95 months), and so the older boy has been alive for 12% more time! He is 12% more developed, had 12% more time to practice and grow. The relative age affect as it’s called, causes many coaches to pick the older boys early, and those older boys as a result get more training, and so they get better still. The younger player doesn’t get picked, gets less training opportunities, and so the chasm between the 7 year old and the boy who is 7 years and 11 months grows. How many potential players are lost to this bias every year?
You also see teams that elect to give the biggest kid, with the hardest shot, a place up front every week and encourage him/her to shoot and take all the free-kicks within range. While this child is developing their shooting skills nicely, what happens to the other kids who don’t get that opportunity to practice and develop as a result? How are they supposed to develop those skills? Again, it’s the winning versus development mindset at work.
Also, in an age that has seen Lionel Messi dazzle a generation of football lovers, it seems abundantly obvious that spending more time developing smaller players could pay dividends. That said, maybe we’ll never learn because Pele and Maradona were short yet this ‘bigger. faster, stronger’ mentality still blights youth football because it gives teams a winning advantage.
I could go on, but the point is this. We should be developing players to have the skills, attributes and decision-making skills to compete when they are older, much older, when it matters, not now.
Mourinho said “In England you teach your kids how to win. In Spain and Portugal they teach their kids how to play”. What a fantastic observation on how other nations develop creative, dangerous players and how England keep churning out robots. Much has changed in this country, and the FA have broadly recognised many of the issues raised in this post. Thousands of coaches are progressive, development-minded and doing the best they can for the future of the players in their care, but there is still so much to be done.
We have to see a massive change in our culture if we want to start producing English players who can dazzle on the world stage. The last truly creative, unpredictable midfielder we produced was Gazza, and most kids today can’t use him as a role model because they won’t even know his name!

If we did, perhaps, the next step would be to let it evolve into 3v3 before going into 5v5, wouldn’t it?

Dribbling Football: How a child-centred approach led Belgian youth football from 11v11 to 2v2.

Friday, 23 June 2017

by Kris van der Haegen

One size doesn’t fit all: not in training sessions, not in matches, and not in the personal profile of coaches. To solve this problem, three years ago the Belgian football association made a brave decision to change to a much more tailor-made approach. In short, it means that we now adapt to who is in front of us, not the other way around!

For more than 10 years we have broken down the 11 v 11 game into smaller formats: 8v8 and 5v5 to start with, and more recently, in 2014, we created even a smaller football format introducing 2v2 games at U6-U7 age.

At the very beginning, a lot of parents didn’t appreciate the innovation because they were still evaluating the project from the point of view of the adult athlete. They didn’t quite like that we changed the regular format of their favourite team sport. So, we had to explain them that we were just focusing on the individual child of 5-6 years old who has just started playing football.

At that age, the only skills that they are ready to develop are dribbling and scoring (shooting) skills. This fits with the psychological and mental capability profile of these young children, who let’s face it, are rather egocentric. They aren’t able to deal with complex decision making required to know when to dribble and when and whom to pass?

This high level of complexity of the full form of the game doesn’t fit with the cognitive capacities of U5-U6 and even some U7 players.

Some parents were really angry and told me that we were crazy at the FA when I presented them the new format in January during the winter break: “Football is a team sport…!” they cried angrily. But, only a few months later, one of these ‘angry’ parents sent me a text message (sms) : “Kris, now I understand the change, my son scored 4 goals today. Last year he didn’t score one in the whole season….”. This father had finally taken off his adult glasses and looked at the game with through the eyes of a child that comes to football just to enjoy it and to, yes, SCORE GOALS!!

The point is, before we start developing in the kids the notion of football as a passing game, we must focus on the development of skills that suit where they are mentally and cognitively, like keeping the ball, running with the ball and scoring.

By thinking about what 5 and 6 year-olds are like, we created a new kind of football: Dribbling Football, play on mini pitches and with an adapted goal format. It looks a lot more like the street football we played back in the day where we could freely express ourselves without a coach and even without a referee. Just playing like we wanted to play… 100% FUN!

Below is a diagram of the format for Dribbling Football

And here is a clip of what it looks like in action:

It reminds me so much of the countless hours we spent playing outside, playing football in the garden or the parking lot, just by playing on your own or with your brother, sister or the next-door neighbour.

It sounds a bit sad, but in a way, what we are doing now is organise and replicate the street football of old in the club environment. No competition, but just football festivals where everybody wins and enjoys football!

It’s not all hunky-dory though. At U7 level, the playing format switches to 5v5 football, and we can see that for some of them, perhaps those less experienced that just started to play or who need more time to get the right skills, the 5v5 format is way too complex. But the regulations at the moment force them play in that format.

My question is: Why shouldn’t we be more flexible and adapt the playing format to the growth and developmental needs of the players?

If we did, perhaps, the next step would be to let it evolve into 3v3 before going into 5v5, wouldn’t it?

So let’s make this intermediate step next season and really adapt our football to the players not the other way around. Let’s demonstrate that we are there to develop the individual player, and that this is the norm!  Children are not miniature adults! They are really who they are: just young children with their own characteristics, needs and wants.

You can follow Kris @KrisVDHaegen

Author:

Kris van der Haegen

Kris van der Haegen is Director of Coach Education for the Royal Belgian Football Association. A former high school teacher who speaks countless languages, and a member of the UEFA Jira Panel, Kris has been one of the main architects of the elevation of Belgian football to unheard-of levels of quality in recent years. Kris enjoys talking about how to make football better, specially for children and young people, yet he has also extensive experience coaching at the top level. he is currently an assistant coach with the Belgian Women's National Team. 

Homework

https://thecoachingmanual.com/Content/6283702277505024




Very good article by the coaching manual, from my experience of coaching you cant just turn up at training once a week and expect to master the ball, be good at passing ,keep ups etc etc, this comes from what the child does in his /her spare time . From a coaches perspective we can easily spot those who have practiced in their spare time and those who haven't, for me the foundation phase 5-11 is crucial, it is called the foundation phase for a reason !  Those who have older siblings will benefit massively having to compete against them . Playing futsal will help, in my opinion  its the tight space , your first touch has to be good , passing precise but most importantly the weather never affects play , the games can be conditioned within the session , IE , playing out from the back, shooting , counter attacking ,defending 1 vs 1,s etc etc . Key points in the article below , main article at the bottom.

As a product of Generation X, I sometimes wonder if I look back at my own childhood through rose-tinted spectacles. Did we really enjoy that much freedom and were summers so much longer then? Unfortunately, research suggests I'm not. A study by JCB in 2013 found that children in the modern era are spending (on average) 10 hours per week less outdoors. It's a genuine problem.

Practice makes perfect

The main thing these unstructured games gave us was practice; hours and hours of it. The beating heart of these games is what the Football Association would now call the social corner. That is, groups of friends, schoolmates and team mates across different age groups who just wanted to play. The games went on and on, perhaps starting with 5-a-side, growing to 15 or 16-a-side and dwindling eventually to a couple of mates taking free kicks at each other until they heard the unmistakable tones of mum calling them home for tea-time.

https://thecoachingmanual.com/Content/6283702277505024

The England DNA Foundation Phase

A cultural change is needed.

There have already been hundreds if not thousands of games cancelled this season because of pitches that are unsuitable to play on. This situation occurs every year around the same time and yet, other than some forward thinking individuals and progressive leagues, we muddle aimlessly on moaning and cursing never seriously looking to change it. I ask the question, why?

 “We have to toughen the players up”

“They have to play on grass in the cold when they are older” 

“it will make men/women of them” 

These are some of the usual responses we hear when asked why an alternative has not been considered. 

With this in mind let me offer the following information:

“We have to toughen the players up” 

Futsal is played in a smaller space, to lines and at a faster speed. This means there are more physical contacts, more 1v1 confrontations and more opportunities to develop techniques, skills and movements that are perfectly appropriate for players of this age. 

This environment will toughen players up and get them used to contact. We do need resilient and resourceful players (and Futsal will challenge the players to get better at this) but we are also crying out for skilful, technical players who make great decisions in the game. 

Toughness alone will not win the World Cup, sorry. Futsal is a game that will challenge the players in all the areas we are deemed to be lacking in; technique, decision making, tactical awareness to name but a few.

“They have to play on grass in the cold when they are older” 

Yes, the players do but the significant part of this response is the bit that says; when they are older!! Young children are not as tolerant to fluctuations in temperature as adults so they are affected more by these extremes. 

When they grow and mature playing outside in the cold will be very appropriate but once again we are forgetting that our children are NOT mini adults. Everyone nods and agrees when this is said but the actions of many coaches do not support this. 

Take the players indoors so that the focus can be upon technique, movement and decision making and not keeping warm.

“It will make men/women of them”

The process of childhood is to allow time and space for the gradual transition from being a child, and all that entails, into a mature and well-balanced adult. There is no need to “make men” of our children. It goes against the natural order of things and may mean that vital learning and development is missed out. 

We always seem to be in a rush to get the players doing what comes NEXT. Why not maximise the development that is possible NOW. Missing weeks and months of the season due to cancellations and poor pitches is not maximising development time.

The England DNA and developing players who are confident in possession.

You must know by now that developing the individual ability of each player is an absolute priority in the Foundation Phase. 

Futsal will help in a number of ways. The smooth, flat surface that increases the speed of the ball will provide different challenges to the players, as will the heavier weighted ball. These different constraints will help refine the skills and techniques of the players. The environment indoors allows for concentrated practice if new ideas are being introduced and the wind, rain and cold cannot affect levels of concentration or the pace of practice if the coach needs to take a little extra time explaining things to the players. 

There will be times when the players are outside in the cold so now players have had a variety of experiences and this is what is needed. Inside allows time for focussed practice and games in a smaller space, to different rules and on a fast, smooth surface. 

Outside, if cold, provides lots of high tempo activity and games on a different surface (grass or 3G) and the players need both.

In this section of Hive there are a number of video clips that will add more information and detail so that you can consider a Futsal alternative for the benefit of your young players. 

I know this has been a bit negative so far but I am very encouraged by the many coaches, teams and leagues that have already established a Futsal winter break into the football calendar. This is growing every year, shows real foresight and must be applauded.

DNA Futsal Take home message

The England DNA in the Foundation Phase is committed to sending out very clear and consistent messages regarding the development of a different kind of England player. The game of Futsal has to become a natural part of our players development and the way their seasons are structured when young. The benefits to development, in line with the DNA, of going indoors and playing Futsal far outweigh the cold and wet experiences our young players might get (if the game is actually on outdoors) in winter. Our players cannot lose months and months of development. Quite rightly they will lose focus and motivation. Futsal is the perfect option for the DNA and to keep the development of our players on full throttle all year round.

How to use constraints in your coaching session

 

•         

Ben Bartlett, FA youth coach developer, asks coaches to consider how a constraints-led approach to practice design can help aid player development.

The production of playbooks - which often include pages of sessions and describe particular plays that players should run in games - can be guilty of seeking to oversimplify the complex nature of coaching football to human beings.  
Complex activities require complex, multi-faceted programmes of learning that embrace variety such as risk and safety, unopposed and opposed practice and telling and discovery coaching approaches.
In issue 10 of The Boot Room, an alternative approach to practice design and supporting players to play the game was proposed. Coaches were encouraged to consider how a constraints-led approach to coaching football could be combined with a flexible structure for practice sessions and games programmes. The purpose of the discussion was to help enable coaches to design varied, responsive football activity to support the perceived individual needs of players and coaches.
The considered approach to practice design functioned at three different levels:

1.Principles of practice design 

 

     

2. Four ingredients coaches can experiment with and combine:

Pitch Type: select from big, small, narrow or wide.
Player Distribution: how we distribute the players to link to the systems or strategies we choose to deploy.
Parameters: determine the pitch markings that can be used to guide or limit the movements that the players can make.
Player constraints: decide how we intend to challenge players’ actions and decisions using the 3 R’: restrict, reward and relate. The image below provides definitions of these (Picture 2)

 

     

3. Examples of Games

The table below provides some examples of how the principles and ingredients can be combined  

 

     

The three levels of thinking afforded by this ‘lighter footprint’ approach, can support coaches to work from more abstract principles to build their own ideas. Similarly, there is also the option to use some example ‘practice recipes’ when time or experience are limited.
There are three additional aspects that we would encourage you to consider:

1. Pursuing Victory

Football is a competitive sport. Supporting the players to think about and learn how to win (and how to behave when we don’t) is a key aspect of development. The table above (and in issue 21 of The Boot Room on Coaching Game Management) includes examples of how we might constrain games to afford players the opportunity to manage the momentum of the game.
The games programme can provide us with opportunities to coach the players (similar to training sessions). We ran a tournament in Spring 2016, which used a ‘must-win’ constraint. The competition offered three points for a win and zero points for a draw or defeat. This afforded players the opportunity to think of the tactics they use to ensure they win the game. Interestingly, all six games (which were fifteen minutes in duration) finished 1-0. This was possibly, in part, due to the way teams played until the first goal was scored and the emotional impact of going behind.

2. Overload Principle in cognition

The idea of the pitch being smaller or narrower than ‘normal’ can sometimes be met with the view that it is unrealistic and removes some of the principles of the game of football. However, consider the value of the overload principle on decision-making (cognition). Overload refers to the amount of load/stress we place on the body/brain than it is normally accustomed to in order to improve its function. If we make decision-making harder (due to limiting space and time) than ‘normal’, does it enable us to improve player’s decision-making ability?

3. Individual/Whole Group Constraints

The value of individual practice is unquestionable. This can often be perceived as needing to be completed individually or in a small group. Tasking or constraining players individually within a squad practice can afford players the opportunity to practise something unique to them within the context of the game.
For example, I recently worked with a number 10 who had a tendency to set back when the ball came to his feet, missing opportunities to receive, turn and threaten the opposition. We constrained him to ‘no one-touch passes backwards’.  This meant if he played backwards it is likely he would slow the game down (which might be the best decision) and led to him receiving on the turn and turning on his first touch, benefitting not only further development of his techniques and decisions but also the physical movements he made.

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Knowing Your Players: Playing Up And Down Age Groups

Written by Steven Crane Oct 3rd, 2017

The traditional model for organising teams is by school year (UK) or by calendar year (USA and RoW). This means that there can be a wide variation in biological age (there could be almost 1 year age difference between your oldest and youngest players). Professional clubs are now identifying late developers and are creating strategies to help individuals develop and reach their full potential.

1. My player is finding it difficult because he/she is too small, what can I do to help him/her develop?
2. My player is not strong enough to compete, what can I do to help him/her develop?
3. My player is finding it too easy at his own age group, what can I do to help him/her develop?

We are asked these questions by users of The Coaching Manual regularly. It’s a big issue in the game and a lot of coaches choose to ignore it which prevents players from developing or, in the worst-case scenario, causes them to leave the game. Encouraging players to play up or down an age group can have a massive impact on a player’s long-term development and enjoyment of the game.
 What are the implications for player development?
There are two possible implications for the development of your players, which are determined by where they are in their individual development pathway.

 Scenario 1: Player is more advanced than his/her team-mates:

1. Has too much success in matches – Don’t enjoy it as much and become frustrated.
2. Games aren’t physically demanding– Develop bad habits/become lazy.
3. Believes they are the best – Become over-confident/arrogant, doesn’t involve team mates and alienates them.
4. Games aren’t technically demanding - Don’t achieve potential.

 Scenario 2: Player is less advanced than his/her team-mates:

1. Has little success in matches – Don’t enjoy it as much and become frustrated.
2. Games are too physically demanding– Risks injury.
3. Believes they are the worst – Loses confidence, gets upset in matches and withdraws from team mates.
4. Games are too technically demanding - Don’t achieve potential.

Why have they not progressed?

It could be due to the physicality (height, weight, strength) of the player, a comparative lack of technical ability to the rest or their social and psychological maturity.
Physicality– Due to various legislation, not everyone will be able to move players up and down age groups to aid their development. So, here is how you, as coaches, can help the player.
1. An under 15 player is not able to meet the physical demands of the game. Encourage them to train with the U14s as well as the under 15s. This will allow the player to play with players of their own physicality and will give them an opportunity to develop.
a) Be careful when you do this. Be truthful with the player and make sure they are fully aware that this is not a punishment, it is more of a challenge to see if they can improve the u14's and challenge them to be a leader in that age group.
b) If the player has to stay with their own age group for games then allow them to play in the less competitive games, and surround them with stronger players. This will help them get some success on the pitch.
c) Use the examples we give in the interview to illustrate how even great players have benefited from this approach.
2. An under 15 player is too strong for their age group. Challenge the player by moving him/her to play up a year. This will allow the player to use their body in a more realistic environment.
Technical Ability - If the players are physically able to compete with their age group but are lacking technical ability then here are a few things you could do.
1. Encourage them to play in the league/team below. Still, allow the players to train with your team as a lot of their friends will be there. However, the league/team below may be best to help his/her development.
a) Set goals and simple challenges they can do away from training that will help them improve their technical ability, for example, passing with a friend or against a wall. Please take a look at our 1 to 1 coaching content.
2) A player is technically better than his team-mates and is at risk of his technical development stagnating.
a) Allow the player to train with an older age group, where their technical ability is put under pressure, forcing them to improve both their technical level and their speed of play.

Psychological Age

1. An under 9 player is enjoying training but getting upset every time it comes to game day.
a) Sit down with the player before a game and discuss all the great things they are going to do in the game ahead which will give them confidence.
b) Consider starting the player as a substitute and allow them to watch the game from the side so they can get a feel for the environment. Also, consider allowing the player to play games with the younger age group to build his/her confidence.
c) Give the player certain roles and responsibilities in the team to motivate them.

Social Age

1. An under 11 player is superior to their peers and they are not passing the ball in training. His friends have started to get frustrated with him/her and alienate him/her from the group.
a) Set the player individual challenges during training sessions, for example, can he/she make 20 passes in a game. He/she can only score with a one-touch finish.
b) Allow the player train with the age group above to challenge the player.