When Coaching Youth Soccer and as with any profession, there is a list of things that a soccer coach should always follow. You’re probably thinking to yourself that some of these may be common sense, but are you following it?
1. Don’t make speeches. If you’re a youth soccer coach and your teaching young kids, it’s especially important that you don’t bore them with long speeches and lectures. The age of your players is nor important. What is important is that you keep your speeches short, sweet and right to the point.
2. Don’t complicate things. If you’re demonstrating an exercise, try to break it down to its basics. Complicated things never work and this is not different. It’s really easy for the kids to lose interest and attention when a coach tries to implement and demonstrate drills with lots of diagrams and instructions.
3. Don’t be a ball boy- it’s not the coach’s job to run after runaway balls during soccer practice. Make your players go run and get the balls that they shoot out of the field. You can even make it a rule that if they score they don’t have to catch it anymore for that day.
4. Do you have kids helping with getting the balls? If that’s the case, don’t let them join the training session. This simply signals a laxity in discipline- ball boys are just there to get the ball. If they want to join in the practice, they have to join the team like everyone else.
5. Never, ever criticize the player. One of your players missed a goal? or a decisive pass? Don’t blame them. Point out the flaws in their technique or skill and do that calmly. Screaming at a player for being ‘stupid’ is a great way to make them want to leave your team.
6. While Coaching Youth Soccer, explain it clearly and as briefly as possible. Then demonstrate it- your players will pick it up quickly if they see how it’s done. Conversely, don’t try and demonstrate something that you can’t do.
7. Health and safety should always be foremost in a coach’s mind. This means making sure that the ground and the equipment are in good shape before your soccer training session starts. Remember that if a kid sprains his ankle because the ground was slippery, then it’s technically your fault.
8. Don’t leave the parents out in the dark. Make sure you hold meetings from time to time with parents and keep them informed about future events and the team’s concerns. Parents are a powerful ally when it comes to keep your coaching activities running smoothly.
When Coaching Youth Soccer, these are important aspects that every coach should consider. If you want to dramatically improve the skills of the kids and keep their interest and focus during practice sessions, you can learn that and much more at SoccerDrillsTips . com.
About The Author:
Andre Botelho is a recognized authority in youth soccer coaching. If you want to learn how to explode your players’ skills and make practice more fun and interesting, get your free Soccer Coaching guide at http://www.soccerdrillstips.com – Coaching Youth Soccer Drills.
