Weeks 5 and 6

We have 3 practices and games left with our teams prior to our party and parents vs kids game! Use your final 3 sessions to focus on review and fun games.

We hope that the kids who play Bayside Recreation soccer would have a great time and would learn a bit about the sport of soccer. Your role as a coach or assistant coach make that possible. Use the final 3 practice sessions to review and play games with the players to end the season with lots of energy, excitement, and encouragement.

REVIEW:

After warm up ask your players some of the following questions or questions you may come up with during the next three practice sessions:

Passing: How do we pass the ball? Why do we pass a soccer ball around to our teammates? What is faster a pass or someone running? What part of the foot do we use to pass the ball? Can we pass in other ways?
Dribbling and Foot-skills: What parts of the foot do we use to dribble a soccer ball? What are some of the tricks we have learned? (i.e. scissors, step-over, squash and drag…). Do we want to dribble right into a defender or dribble away from a defender?
Defending: What is the goal of defending? How do we steal a ball (“tackle”)? Should we get close up to the person with the ball right away or give them a little space? Can anyone demonstrate the defensive stance and shuffle?
Goaltending: What does a goalie do when he or she picks up a ball in a game? How does a goalie dive? What is a goal-kick?
Shooting: What part of the foot do we shoot with? Can we pass the ball into the goal as well? (answer: yes). Should a player know how to shoot with their left and right foot? Where should we aim when we are shooting a ball? (answer: corners).

GAMES:

Playing lots of small-sided games is how I like to end a soccer season. The players love it and they remember the fun they had along with learning new skills. Games like the moose-is-loose and marbles are always favorites. Sharks and minnows, lightning, and doctor, doctor are also games players love to play. During the games I encourage players to try out their new skills and call out some dribbling tricks as a reminder. Here is a list of games that you can play with your team:

Doctor Doctor –

Setup: Mark a rectangle with cones that is 20 x 30 steps. Set up 2 small squares on both ends of your rectangle (see picture). Divide your players into equal teams. Each player has a ball. Team 1 goes to one end of the rectangle and Team 2 goes to the other.
Play: Each team secretly selects a player to be the “Doctor” so that the other team does not know who it is. The doctor’s job is to dribble around like other players and “heal” his teammates who get frozen. Each team dribbles their ball around the rectangle and tries to pass the ball into the shins of the other team. The ball must hit below the knees or it does not count and the player is safe. If a player is hit below the knees by an opponents ball they sit on the ground and call “Doctor! Doctor!”. The doctor, still dribbling, can unfreeze their teammate by touching them. The game ends either on the coaches whistle, or when all players are frozen on one team. The winning team is the one who has the most players still standing.