Decentric help

If an U15s state player is instructed to become

Fitter with ball work
&
Faster decision making

How can he improve this on his own and in isolation?

Assuming he is the only state player in his zone and only allowed to train and play with a team that is technically deficient.

Decentric may have a better reply but my view is!! Getting fitter with ball can be achieved to a certain extent in isolation by doing different dribbling drills in a circuit at speed. Decision making can only be achieved in a game situation or game related training drills. If he is only training with players of a lesser skill level it will be very difficult for him to improve in his decision making development.

Edited by spathi: 3/7/2011 11:55:51 PM

lol

You can see why I love this place.

Different day same sh---](*,) ](*,) ](*,)

Wow!..

There is a lot to address in one post, but I'll try. I haven't been able to attend to this question because of a plethora of visitors today, but I'll answer these bit by bit over the next few days.

Some of them are hard enough to develop with other players but by himself makes it more difficult.

The fitter with ball work is easier to develop by oneself than the faster decision making.

Step 1

Xo
*

*

*

*

*

*

*

*

*

X denotes player
o denotes ball
* denotes cones or poles

The player can dribble around the poles from top to bottom of the diagram which can be 25-30 metres. Initially, when fresh. the player can work on dribbling with speed.

When s/he gets to the bottom of the cones, the player can then sprint with the ball back to the top of the poles/cones ., without dribbling around cones - just dribble in a straight line.

When the player takes bigger touches with the dribbling at top pace in a straight line, s/he needs to keep the head up as the ball needs to be dribbled further forwards than if dribbling with close control at low speed.

Repeat dribbling around cones at speed then sprinting back in a straight line with the ball back to to the top of the cones.

This is going to be pretty tiring and a player will run out of gas fairly quickly.

Edited by Decentric: 3/7/2011 08:56:07 PM

Step 2


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SSas8t5I7n4&feature=related

Xo
*

*

*

*

*

*

*

*

*

X denotes player
o denotes ball
* denotes cones or poles

Now ask the player to slow down the cone dribbling, trying to use more difficult techniques around the cones/poles.

When they reach the bottom use the dribbling exercise set out in the video on you tube above.

After this they sprint dribble in a straight line back to the top of the poles again. This is repeated over and over again.

I'll be back after the women's World Cup with step 3.

The reason I said but is that I was expressing my view and in no way putting shit on Decentric as you do.

Dribbling 'round cones.

FFS you couldn't make this shit up if you tried.

BTW krones, I know what your're up to in this thread. ;)

What?

Step 3

Xo
*

*

*

*

*

*

*

*

*

X denotes player
o denotes ball
* denotes cones or poles

When the player dribbles around the cones as they become more fatigued, the player can slow down to almost a walking pace, but they need to then focus on keeping their head up as they dribble.


At the end of the cones instead of the intensive dribbling that the women does in the video in tight spaces, they can do these stationary techniques.

1. Inside of the foot left to right.
2. Brazilian inside sole of foot left to right.
3. Sole of foot pushed right out in front and back, right and left, left and right.
4. Brazilian step overs, stationary.
5. Reverse step overs stationary.


Then the player can dribble back at pace to the starting mark again.

This should make the player a lot fitter. I haven't done it with players to make them much fitter, so I don't know how long one can do step 1, then step 2 and step 3 for depending on the individual's fitness.

Edited by Decentric: 4/7/2011 08:58:28 PM

Fitter with ball work

The objective is to make a player fitter with ball work.

Why not address the content of my mooted programme and delineate what you would do instead, Judy?

There are different approaches to achieve the same end.

Over four years you have never entered any specific programme to impart dribbling techniques on the internet. You've criticised mine, but have never proffered an alterative. How do you structure a dribbling programme from the embryonic stages to the advanced stages?

How do you teach Mathews cuts, body swerves, cuts, Brazilian stepovers, combinations of sole of the foot sideways dribbling and inside and outside stepovers, Cruyff cuts, etc?

You can mock the programme I suggest to Krones, or use at Football For Everyone, but you never, ever proffer any alternative.

Kids I coached in a rep team won a state championship using these methods. My FFE co-coach has coached innumerable teams to state championships.
The other FFE coach likes them too. He played for Egypt and AEK Athens.

The state FFA TD likes them. He was captain of the Young Soceroos.

One of the coaches, a recently qualified FFA Youth Licence coach, bringing other players from his team to FFE considers what we do in imparting dribbling techniques as more challenging than the state FFA TD's sessions with his club.

I don't see coaching as a competition either. It is only in responding to incessant trolls that I feel any need to validate what I do. All you are arguing with, Judy, are European or South American football practices.

I like exchanging information with other coaches. Why don't you for once, suggest something constructive, Judy Free?

](*,) ](*,) ](*,) ](*,) ](*,) ](*,) ](*,) ](*,) ](*,) ](*,) ](*,)





Edited by Decentric: 4/7/2011 11:50:56 PM

The need for quick decision making is conditioned by the speed that the opposition can close you down and the speed that your teammates can get into good positions to receive a pass.

So his challenge is to make quicker decisions than are being imposed on him by either his opponents or his teammates. One answer is to force himself to play one and two touch passes as often as possible. When he’s taking two touches he should minimize the time between the first and second touch. Critically, he should play to his own game not the speed of the players around him. This means he should not wait until he is closed down. If he decides to dribble then he should again do it at speed and as soon as dribbling ceases to be an option look to play the early pass. One way to think about this is to imagine the opponents are always a couple of metres closer than they really are because when he plays at a higher standard that is exactly where the stronger players will be.

Another challenge will be how hard he hits his passes. To be able to quickly fit into a higher level he needs to be well practised in hitting his passes more firmly than his current teammates can comfortably control. If he wants to make the adjustment to a stronger team then he mustn’t slow his passes down with his current team, just because his teammates struggle to control them. Likewise, he must take the chance to play quality through balls - that a better player would anticipate - even though his `current teammates may not anticipate them.

Hitting early passes to feet will not bother his current teammates. Hitting hard passes may well do as it will may cause a loss of possession.

I just hit the wrong key and lost a big post on vision and speed in decision making.

This is a big area to work on.

Krones, was the coach who suggested it DA? This appears to be a suggestion from an archetypical Australian FFA coach. I would be very disappointed if it were a KNVB trained coach.

Has he suggested the player needs to do it in in isolation, or, in a team context?

The coach should have suggested how the player works on it individually and in a team context. To not do it is a cop out.


Distantfan has suggested some useful things in the previous post.


Initially we will work on the player working individually.

We can define the faster decision making as part of a player's Insight which includes; choosing the correct position; decisions to one touch, receive and pass the ball or dribble; when to release the ball; who to pass the ball to; creating passing lanes for one's own team; and remaining responsible for the task of the position.

Here is an individual exercise.

W----*-----*----*-----Wall 1


*

*.....................Xo

*
Wall 2

W to W1 is Wall 1.
W to W2 is Wall 2.
W denotes end of walls.
* denotes marker on wall.
X denotes player
o denotes ball

First of all the player can pass along the ground to a wall so the ball rebounds back to the player.

When the player receives the ball s/he chooses one of the three markers to one or two touch the ball to on the adjacent wall.

When waiting of the ball to return from the first wall the player needs to take a quick look at the options available on the adjacent wall before s/he make a decision to pass to the chosen marker.

The player repeats the exercise from the target wall. This encourages receiving and passing the ball from the opposite side.

As the player becomes more competent, the player can:
1. Pass the ball harder along the ground to the first wall.
2. Make the ball an awkward bouncing ball to receive and pass.
3. Increase the distance from the walls.



Edited by Decentric: 4/7/2011 11:52:46 PM

If the player can work with other players the following may be useful.

Liverpool coaches did a lot of work with this formation to improve passing skills for European Champions' League competition.

The player in the middle worked with the outside players in the diamond to pass in triangular formation. Originally have no pIg ( P). Use cones players can step on to mark the positions for players.

____________________________________________

----------------X



X---------------X-----------------X




-----------------Xo
____________________________________________



This diamond formation is useful for low pressure vision/decision-making work, particularly if the player Krones is talking about can be in the middle.

Edited by Decentric: 5/7/2011 12:05:22 AM

The previous exercise can be increased in intensity and difficulty if one, then two, then three defensive players are incorporated in the drill. These are set out as rondos in the KNVB thread.

It seems a lot of focus for one player to improve speed in decision-making, but if they are in the central position they will be under tremendous pressure to make quick decisions repeatedly.

Have you been watching this player that is perfect?

=d>

Thanks decetric
I will try but politics prevent me from doing this straight after training when he is fatiged.

PS yes it was.

I think I've worked out the scenario.

You observe this player coached by a rep coach.

All the 4v4 games will assist the player too. http://www.bettersoccermorefun.com/dwtext/knvbgmes.htm
If the player is able to do those at other practices it will help.
It will also help the player to play a lot of SSGs in small spaces at school.

DA seemed like a good coach of coaches in terms of communication skills. Probably like any Australian FFA coach of the time compared to KNVB there was a lack of structure and method in his delivery. Nevertheless, he has played in the VPL and he will have useful things to impart.

DA thinks he is right and can be paternalistic and dogmatic. He has been known to overrule rep coaches about where they wanted to play players in specific positions. Having said that I like the bloke, but I'm disappointed he hasn't given specific exercises for the player to help him improve.

DA also strongly believes in playing out from the back, but some time ago he didn't impart the specifics to achieve this.

Edited by Decentric: 5/7/2011 09:59:29 AM

Excellent post.=d>

Some great points made here, Distantfan.

I know of a young player who was going up through the ranks. Player N had better technique than most team-mates in academies and the state team. The player could control aerial balls easily, unlike team-mates and was happy to receive balls in the air. Krones, you might be interested that player N did a lot of juggling work.

Also, the player could receive really hard passes and stop them dead. Unfortunately, team-mates couldn't. It all changed when National Training Centre players joined the state team. They could receive those hard hit passes easily. Previous coaches asked N to under hit passes. They didn't devise intensive programmes to improve teammates' receiving skills. If they had undertaken KNVB training they would've. They thought it wasn't their job to improve technique.

If this player is still a junior, it is one category of player we want to attract to FFE to develop those attributes. They would gain the opportunity to play with senior split state league players in 4v4 SSGs after intensive technical work.

This is why there was only one selected.

I truly wish the Dutch coach had clearly told the kids this was the problem and told the coaches to do it or stand aside for those that will.

What FFA needs to do is have Han Berger, or someone like the Dutch coach you've had up there, visit the far flung places in Australia and provide feedback to the likes of Paul Lonton's coaching practices after evaluating them on the training ground. DA at least believes in playing out from the back as an integral component to teams improving.

Our state TD is aware of this issue, but sees it as a problem to be confronted further down the track. I'm still seeing any number of rep development coaches, senior split state league coaches, etc, do isolated running exercises without the ball in this state.

Nearly every coach I speak too whether rep, senior or state coaches, are obsessed with big, physical players. They perceive almost any player as being unsuccessful, because they deemed not to be strong enough. Every time they are beaten by a VPL senior or state team they claim they consider they were overpowered physically.
They never seem to have an adequate response when I cite South American underage teams performing well on the world stage. They also find it difficult to respond when Barcelona and Spain are cited as being smaller than nearly all their opponents either. These coaches are recent graduates of FFA Advanced coaching courses too.

Edited by Decentric: 12/7/2011 02:16:09 PM

A lot of 3v1 rondos in small areas such as 10m x 10m grids would help faster decision making, even by playing with weaker players.

See if you can get the player to take a lot of first touch passes if he has time, rather than two touches before passing.

Also, passing with the outside of the foot so that the player fakes at the same time as passing is good too and a further challenge. See if the player can use both feet to one touch pass with the inside and outside of the foot. By constantly working in triangles in the tight spaces of 3v1 rondos against pressure is useful.

It would also be useful to try and get the player to think what he is going to do with the ball before he receives it. Sometimes a quick look sideways as the ball is coming is useful for a player to speed up decision making.