Training - Thursday, Feb 8

6:00PM - 6:30PM Ball Masters - Individual Technical Development

Fast Feet

• Taps
• Speed Taps
• Zig Zag Taps
• Step On Taps
• 1/4 Turn Taps
• Cut Behind Taps
• "U" Taps
• Triangle Taps

6:30PM - 7:30PM Field Training

I. 5v5 + 1 Possession

Set Up

• Two teams of 5 (blue and green) and one neutral player (red)
• 30x50 yard grid with the players' soccer balls surrounding the playing area

Procedure

• Teams play possession soccer
• Neutral player plays with the team in possession, effectively making it 6v5

Make It Competitive

• +1 point for 5 consecutive passes in a row without the defending team touching the ball
• Scoring doubles from that point on; 10 passes in a row is an additional +2 points, 15 passes is an additional +4 points, etc.

Coaching Points

• Move for your teammates
• Play simple and quick when in possession
• Draw defenders in with short passes, then look to find a longer outlet pass to break pressure
• Everyone on the team communicating and giving teammates good information
• "Read" the player on the ball to know what kind of pass she can make - a dribbler with time and space can maybe look to play a longer, more difficult pass, players under pressure probably need shorter, simpler options the way they are facing

Progressions

• Three-touch or less
• Mandatory two-touch

II. Four Corners Shooting Repetition

Set Up

• Two teams, blue and green
• Four disks, two at the corners of the six yard box, two about 10 yards apart 25 yards from goal
• Split team so that half the girls are at disk at the top of the six yard box and the other half of the team is at the disk 25 yards out (see illustration below)
• All the team's soccer balls with the players at the top of the six

Procedure

• (1) First green team player at the top of the six yard box passes a ball out to their teammate (the shooter) at the disk 25 yards out from goal and then runs to wait their turn in the shooting line
• (2) the shooter takes a prep (preparation) touch and then a shot on goal
• (3) the shooter retrieves the ball and then ends up at the back of the passing line
• (4) as soon as the green shooter take a shot, blue begins their turn
• Play for a set amount of time, then have the teams switch sides

Make It Competitive

• +3 points for a goal
• +6 points for a goal from outside the 18
• +1 point for a finished rebound

Coaching Points

• Focus on a good prep touch, away from your feet and at a good angle in order to help set up a good shot
• Shooters should take a peek at the goal after their prep touch and while moving toward the ball in order to visualize their shot before taking it
• Follow in for rebounds

Progression #2 (see illustration below)

• (5) Passer now plays a softer ball out in front of their teammate
• (6) Shooter gets to the ball quickly and finishes first time (without controlling the ball first)

Progression #3 (see illustration below)

• (7) Passer plays a long ball in the air to their shooting teammate who can take two touches to finish

Progression #4 (see illustration above)

• (8) Passer plays a "junk" ball (a ball that bounces) to their shooting teammate who can take two touches to finish

Progression #5 (see illustration below)

• (9) Passer plays a high ball out in front of their shooting teammate who gets to the ball quickly and tries to finish first time (without controlling the ball first)

III. 5v5 Small Sided Scrimmage

Training - Tuesday, Feb 6

With a full half field to ourselves tonight, I wanted to try and make the most out of the space provided. 

The girls began arriving around 7PM for a 7:15PM start.  For the first 30 minutes we worked on different Ball Masters Program skills; Set Up Touches, Diagonal Touches, Sole Roles, Scissors, Step Overs, Double Moves, and Cuts.

At 7:15PM we took the field and played 6v6+2 possession, focusing on speed of play and breaking pressure with long outlet passes. 

We then spent a good deal of time on crossing and finishing, moving from no pressure to limited pressure both on the wide players and the runners in the box.

We finished the session with a 7v7 scrimmage. 

Accepted Into Jefferson Cup

We got official word that we were accepted into the Jefferson Cup Tournament (Richmond, VA) the weekend of March 24th and 25th.  The field looks solid and it should be a very challenging event for us.

My hope is still that we get placed in the top flight.  Though I believe the second flight would be competitive for us, I would rather make the trip and have the girls come up against the most talented, toughest opposition possible.  If I had a choice about traveling and winning a second flight or going 0-3 in the most competitive flight, I would choose the latter.  Honest.  I often think about what the parents would prefer to see happen as traveling to events like this are not cheap.  Do they think going 0-3 is a waste of money, or do they really understand why we look to take part in tournaments like this?  I'd like to think that I've done a good job of explaining the reasons for participating in this type of event, as well as made clear the benefits of the experience as a whole... I'd like to believe that the great majority of the parent group sees things my way. 

		Rankings *
Girls U13	State	State	R I	R II	R III	Nation
HOCKESSIN HOTSPUR	DE	1	43
SCORPIONS SOCCER U13 ELITE	MA	1	8			36
FC GREATER BOSTON BOLTS	MA
BETHESDA SC FREEDOM 93	MD	1	12			46
MONTGOMERY SC MUSTANGS	MD	3
SEVERNA PARK DYNAMITES	MD	2
PSC HEAT	MD	5
BANGU TSUNAMI FC 93/94 BLUE	MN	1		15
CHARLOTTE SC 93 BLUE G	NC	1			1	12
NORTH MECK 93 STORM RED GIRLS	NC	4			28
CASL 93 SPARTAN ELITE	NC	2			5	19
SOUTH CHARLOTTE 93 SCSA GOLD G	NC	3			26
TOMS RIVER BLAST	NJ	14
MT. LAUREL UNITED POWER	NJ	1	2			7
FREEHOLD SHOOTING STARS	NJ	6	13			49
HIGHLAND DYNAMITES	NJ	4	9			38
ROCHESTER JR. RHINOS U13 YELLOW	NY
SMITHTOWN ATTACK	NY-E	9
MASSAPEQUA FORCE	NY-E	1	10			43
YMS 93/94 PREMIER	PA-E		39
LOWER DAUPHIN LDC UNITED	PA-E	3	19
WEST CHESTER UNITED PREDATORS 93	PA-E	4	15
FC PENNSYLVANIA STRIKERS	PA-E	1	1			3
FC BUCKS XTREME	PA-E	2	5			21
HEMPFIELD POWER	PA-E	6	23
CENTURY UNITED U-13 GIRLS	PA-W
CAROLINA ELITE 93 GIRLS PREMIER	SC	1			2	9
BEACH FC 94 PIRANHAS	VA	15
MCLEAN MPS STRIKERS	VA	2	7
RICHMOND KICKERS ELITE U13 GIRLS	VA	7
MCLEAN FUSION	VA		41			35
RICHMOND STRIKERS U13 ELITE	VA	8
CHANTILLY BURN	VA	1	3			10
SYA FREEDOM	VA	4	18
BRADDOCK ROAD SANTOS	VA	3	14
* National Soccer Rankings, 2/6/07

Back to West Des Moines Premier Games

With 16 out of 17 families responding with a "yes" (one family has not yet responded), I will be sending in the application for the West Des Moines Premier Games this week.  I'm looking forward to a fun weekend full of soccer as our U11 team will also be down there at the same time.  I hope the weather is the same as the last two years.

I'm glad the parent group showed interest in attending this event again.  Though we are looking at a very busy spring, I believe that the lessons learned from this early-season competition will help put us in the best possible position to succeed through State Cup and, hopefully, into Regioanls.