This practice is designed to challenge players abilities to control possession of the ball and quickly transition to win back the ball when possession is lost. Quick Navigation About the Video Additional Information Practice Overview Interpreting the Diagrams Diagrams Objectives Organisation Observations & Interventions About the Video In the video below, Dan will talk you through the structure of the practice, various outcomes and how you can adapt it for your players. Do you want to improve your ability to plan and deliver great sessions?…
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Quick Navigation About the Video Interpreting the Diagrams Part 1: Skills Circle Part 2: Random Passing Square Part 3: 3v3 With Target Players Part 4: Small Sided Game – Channels Game Moments of the Game The PDP team believes that in football, there are four moments of the game. They are, controlling possession, defending, transition (attacking or defensive) and creating and scoring. In line with this view of the game, we are producing full 60-90 minute training plans on these four topics that you can…
Helping our players to build a connection with the ball is a crucial part of coaching. But it requires more than simply teaching techniques in isolation. Ball control encompasses a range of skills beyond an individual’s first touch or their ability to dribble past an opponent, and can be exhibited in a variety of ways. Below, we examine these attributes in more detail, and explain how, by coaching skills such as movement, awareness, and retention, we can deliver effective ball mastery sessions. In This Article…
Receiving, retention, and mastery of the ball are critical skills for young players to learn. An individual’s first touch and overall ball control will have a massive impact on both their competence and their confidence when playing the game, and it’s vital that we can effectively help kids develop these skills. Below, we examine why it’s so important to help players improve their ball control, and discuss some of the best ways to help kids build a connection with the ball. In This Article Helping…
PDP Co-Founder Dave Wright & Positive Psychology expert Lara Mossman discussing how to control emotions in sports. We can’t expect youth soccer players to show great emotional control all of the time. It’s sometimes easy to forget, but they’re not mini-adults — they don’t have the same capacity to control their emotions as we do, and we shouldn’t expect them to. But that doesn’t mean we can’t help. We can still teach our young players how to understand and manage their emotions. And this education…
PDP Lead Researcher James Vaughan poses the question to coaches: are we competing or are we collaborating? In this article, James discusses the concept of ‘water’ and its implications on an individual’s approach to coaching. One of the most important questions you can ask as a coach is: Are we competing or are we collaborating? In fact, it’s one of the most important questions you can ask any group of people intending, attempting or pretending to work together. I’ll admit this is a strange statement…
Premature professionalism in youth sport is a growing problem. Environments created to replicate professional sport, ‘elite’ pathways at 8-years-old and coaches removing autonomy from the environment by exerting total control. In this article, PDP Editor, Dave Wright challenges the status quo and asks how we can break the machine that coaching is at risk of becoming. The world of sport is constantly evolving and new technology creeps into all sporting codes. Youth players wear tracking devices and GPS, while data can even now be captured…
Creativity values, culture, systems and control. What does it all mean and how does it impact coaching and sporting environments? In this Masterclass Discussion, PDP Editor, Dave Wright hosts Co-Founder of my fastest mile, Mark Upton alongside PDP Lead Researcher and AIK Academy Coach, James Vaughan. In this wide-ranging conversation, the guys discuss some of James’ Phd research and his recently published paper on creativity, as well as diving down a number of rabbit holes such as: This philosophical discussion will hopefully leave you considering…
In this article, coach, blogger and former Australian International Footballer, Joey Peters shares an article on the challenge for coaches to move from a control and command position to trust, optimising the youth development environment and allowing freedom for young athletes to explore. The Learning Dynamics Let’s move the sporting landscape from the old ‘Command and Control’ management method, which limits human potential in its stifling and restrictive manner, towards a ‘play-based’ facilitative approach. There we can respect and trust the science that clearly acknowledges learners capabilities as…
Freedom, what does it mean in a performance or player development environment and can it overwhelm or confuse your players? Co-founder of myfastestmile and top PDP contributor, Mark Upton shares his excellent blog post on managing this cultural and environmental shift. “You can’t get sustained exceptional performance from a controlling environment – push autonomy down the hierarchy” I’ve recently spent some time on performance cultures and environments, fortunate to be able to share experiences with a handful of exceptional people working in a range of…