More Ideas about How to Score More Soccer Goals Hi SoccerHelp, I am in total agreement with the idea of making the team better. My goal is not to make only my top players better, but make the team better. My definition of a good offensive soccer game is having as many kids score from the team as possible. Throughout the season I rotated forwards depending upon the competition and all but a few of my girls scored a goal this season. The ones that did not were really close. The "best" team that we lost to on the other hand has one girl with a monster leg that scored all three of their goals. Her shots elevate which makes her really tough to defend. Without her they are average. I think what I am struggling with is how to generate more offense from all the girls, and how to help my best player score more. In any given game she has 5, 6 or more shots on goal with sometimes none finding the back of the net. She really struggles with goalies who come out at the ball. I have used all the drills outlined numerous times and they all were very helpful, especially the Shoulder Tackle drill. I saw marked results after only one use! The only one I have not used is the Win the 50/50 Ball. I will try that more this next season. I will also try to work with the girls on the chipping. The kids that elevate the ball in this league are few and far between and definitely have a decided advantage. On the Coaching Rules, the throw ins I have worked on, but I find that on the goal kicks the other team stands right on the line awaiting the ball and the only way for my girls to get in front of them is to go over the penalty box line which results in a whistle. Am I missing something? You have to realize that the good bulk of the girls in this league are struggling to get the ball out of the penalty box on a goal kick (whereas the big legged girl on the "best" team can kick to half field!). Again, thanks for responding. I am just struggling with the offensive side of the ball. Our defense is sound and we have tons of shots from a few players, we just cannot get them in the net! Coach Chris, U8 TX, Premium Member --------------- Hi Chris, I think you are a good coach. When a team exceeds expectations, as your team has, it is usually because the coach is doing a good job. I find that skills, hustle and bravery are needed for a team to play well, but that the coach can help his team by motivating them and choosing a formation and Style of Play that gives the best chance to be successful, and by assigning players to positions where they can be successful. These are the things that define "Good Coaching". About Coaching Rules No. 1, 2 and 3: On Goal Kicks, the rule is that the ball MUST clear the Penalty Box before it is touched by either team.: "The kicked ball may not be touched again by anyone on either team until it clears the Penalty Box and the other team must stay outside the Penalty Box until the ball clears the Penalty Box." You wrote: "the other team stands right on the line awaiting the ball and the only way for my girls to get in front of them is to go over the penalty box line which results in a whistle. Am I missing something?" To teach Coaching Rules No. 1, 2 and 3, you want to teach your players to: Choose an opponent to "Mark up" by standing BEHIND that opponent, NOT in front when the opponent is going to Punt, Goal Kick, or Throw-in. The natural tendency of young players is to get in front of the opponent so they are between the player they are marking and the ball, but that is wrong because they can easily be punted over, kicked over or thrown over. Teach your players to stand behind an opponent and as soon as they see which way the ball is going to EITHER run in front of the opponent and steal the ball OR stand immediately behind the opponent and steal the ball when the opponent tries to turn. Think about this idea: Teach your players to stand behind an opponent (have each of your players "mark" an opponent so all the opponents are covered who are in range of the ball) and when the opponent gets the ball, move VERY close and steal the ball when the opponent tries to turn with it. If you can steal it on the Penalty Box Line you are already in scoring range. If your opponents are standing on the Penalty Box Line they are boxing themselves in because they can't move into the Penalty Box until the ball clears the Box. Practice that tactic of standing close behind and stealing the ball when the opponent tries to turn - you should be able to teach it in about 10 minutes but you will have to remind your girls during games by yelling "Sally, Mark Up" (you need to get the attention of the players you communicating with). Practice "Marking Up" by dividing your team into pairs and giving one in each pair a ball - have the players with the ball face you and the player without the ball "Mark Up" when you yell "Mark Up". Then teach the players without the ball how to move close when they see the ball is coming to their "Mark" and how to steal the ball when the Mark tries to turn. This should be worth 2 or 3 goals per game to you. Standing behind the opponents has several advantages: 1. Every opponent can be Marked 2. You will have a player BETWEEN the opponents and your goal, so your opponents can't get easy Fast Breaks 3. If the Punt, Goal Kick or Throw-in goes past the opponents, your players are in position to win the punt or throw. 4. Your players will be able to see where the ball is going and either step in front and steal it OR crowd behind the receiver and steal the ball when the receiver tries to turn Please let me know how this works for you. This is the simplest thing you can do that will make a huge difference. This will let you control games and at U8 you should be able to steal the ball 75% of the time. This should be worth 2 goals per game. On another note: If you have a player who has a big kick, have her take all the Goal Kicks and try out all your slow players and see if any have a Big punt and if you find one, think about putting him or her in Goal. You said: "My definition of a good offensive soccer game is having as many kids score from the team as possible. Throughout the season I rotated forwards depending upon the competition and all but a few of my girls scored a goal this season." I want to encourage you to re-think the idea of measuring your success by how many players scored a goal. There are 2 problems with it: 1. Making a big deal of whether all your players score could lead your players to believe that scoring goals is more important than anything else, and that will become a problem because most of your players will feel inferior or they will all be wanting to be a scorer and no one will want to play defense. It will make things much more difficult for you as the coach. I can tell you from my own experience that it will be much better for everyone and for your team if you redefine what is important to include other things besides scoring a goal. 2. Be sure to praise defenders, Goalie and midfielders as much or more than your scorers. Some of your players just aren't scorers, but they might be great defenders (this is true with every team). Praise your defenders, Goalie and midfielders as much or more than your scorers. Scorers get lots of positive feedback, but other players don't get enough. Be sure to praise your Defenders and Midfielders a LOT and praise them in front of the Team and in front of parents. Consider some sort of program to reward your defenders and Midfielders so they can see tangible signs of their improvement. Here is how you can educate the parents and players so they understand that Defenders, the Goalie and Midfielders are as important as Scorers: 1. To the extent possible, praise and reward players on the field or in a meeting in front of the parents and players - make a BIG DEAL out of it so everyone sees it. Try to give Defense and Team Play as much Glory as scoring a goal. Make it clear that ALL positions are important. The patches such as the "D" patch help make a statement about the importance of Defense. Mostly the parents just want their kids to have a chance to be successful, and they don't understand that there are lots of ways to be successful in soccer and that Defense is just as important as scoring goals. The truth is that some players can be successful and help the Team in some positions but not in others. Why put a player in a position where he or she can't be successful? Soccer is a team sport and the interests of the individual must be balanced against what is fair to the rest of the team. The purpose of the Team Attacking rewards is to make it clear that there are more players involved in scoring a goal than one player. Almost always another player or even several have done something that allowed that goal to be scored - it could have gotten started when the Goalie made a save or when a defender cleared the ball. One reason the Team Celebration idea described below is good is because it is on the field and EVERYONE on the team participates in the celebration. It makes the point that scoring a goal is a Team Effort. 2. Team Attacking Reward Ideas and Team Goal Celebration Idea When a Goal is Scored. Look at the new Patch Reward Program I developed at Patch Award System. In that program, players are rewarded for the actions and behavior a coach wants to encourage such as Bravery, Leadership, Teamwork, Special Effort, Team Attacking, Defense and Playing Both Offense and Defense. I've pasted the part from Team Attacking below because it is a way to start to teach what allows a goal to be scored. At U8, Team Attacking probably won't involve as many players as it will at U10 and U12, however, it is very important to still make it clear that scoring is a TEAM EFFORT and when a goal is scored have the ENTIRE Team come together in the Center Circle or near the sideline for a Team Goal Celebration where they put their arms on each others shoulders and do a Team Cheer or a Chant. This Team Goal Celebration will allow EVERY member of the team celebrate and share the spotlight for scoring the goal and it will cut down on jealousy. This is what the Brazilian National Team does after scoring a goal. How to help your players score more goals. You said: "I think what I am struggling with how to help my best player score more. In any given game she has 5, 6 or more shots on goal with sometimes none finding the back of the net. She really struggles with goalies who come out at the ball." The key to this is to continue to work on Dribbling AND play the "Dribble Around Cone & Pass Relay Race" soccer practice game at EVERY practice. That game will improve your players dribbling and ability to kick the ball while running and under pressure. It will also improve "First Touch" and "One Touch". Those skills will help your players score more goals. Also play the "Dribble Across a Square" soccer practice game as a warm up to start every practice because it will improve instinctive reactions and teach players control dribbling while under pressure. Those skills will also help your scoring. It is very important to play those 2 games a lot - there aren't any good substitutes - they are very effective and efficient. The more you play those 2 games, the better your players will become and the more goals your team will score. The following is copied from http://www.soccerhelp.com/Patch_Award_System.shtml : The "A" Patch = AKA "Team Attacking and Scoring Patch" Given to players who do something that creates the opportunity to score a goal, assists with scoring a goal, and to the player who actually scores the goal. Scoring a goal is a team effort and this patch recognizes that and rewards the players who contribute to a goal being scored. More than one player can earn this patch when a goal is scored. Sometimes the key pass isn't the last pass before the goal, so it will be given to the players who the coach thinks helped the goal occur. This patch will be given for passes OR for runs that create scoring opportunities and lead to goals. This could be for a through pass, for a breakaway run, for an assist, for pulling a defender out of position, for taking a shot that the opposing Goalkeeper blocks and we then score on a rebound, or for stealing the ball or winning the ball that results in a goal, even if the goal wasn't immediately scored, AND the player who actually scores will also always get this patch. So, it is possible that 3 or 4 players will get this patch when a goal is scored. This patch makes the point that effort is important, but that we need to "finish" and actually score goals, so this patch will only be awarded when a goal is scored. However, the better the effort, the more likely it is that a goal will be scored, and great effort can earn a Green Star patch even if a goal isn't scored. This patch will encourage teamwork and discourage selfish play. We can only win through teamwork. This patch will cause players to think about and notice the types of actions that result in goals, and to learn that more players are involved in a goal than just the player who actually scored the goal. Sometimes actually scoring the goal is the easy part, and the opportunity to score the goal was created by another player, who could even be a defender who steals the ball, or sends a long pass, or even by the Goalkeeper who makes a great punt or a great goal kick that leads to a goal. NOTE TO THE COACH: This patch will cause Coaches, Players and Parents to think about how goals are scored, and that will cause everyone to think about "Team Attacking", and it will result in better attacking by your team. It is much more difficult to teach "Team Attacking" than it is to teach "Team Defending". The reason is that great Attacking requires creativity and "Team Attacking" requires creativity and anticipation by several players, not just one. This is the best approach I know of for getting players to think about and strive for "Team Attacking". "Team Attacking" is especially hard if you have some unathletic or unmotivated players who are "weak links". If you have better ideas, please let me know. Please let me know what you do and what works. David at SoccerHelp
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