When asking the player’s coaches about it, they told me that they were used as a visual reminder to the players about remembering to use their weaker foot when appropriate, as well as to check their shoulder before receiving the ball.
On a recent trip to observe the Celtic Academy train their youth players, I noticed many players had small bands on their left wrists, as well as around one of their calves.
“The definition of insanity is doing the same thing over and over again and expecting a different result.” – Anonymous Two Creative Instructional Methods Used by Soccer Coaches Players learn in different ways and it is important for coaches to be perceptive to the learning styles on their team. There are many different learning styles, so repeating the same message the same way continuously will only serve to frustrate the players and yourself. Be creative with how you deliver instruction to players. If your players aren’t learning what you want them to, it’s not necessarily a problem with the players, but an issue with the message. Solution: Successful coaches can vary their instruction methods. You’ve run multiple practices on the topic, but your players still only play the way they face when receiving. One example would be players can’t seem to get into the habit of looking over their shoulder before receiving the ball. How would you address the problem? What steps would you take to help your players bypass these hurdles? Issue: Players having trouble getting into good habits To explore some successful coaching traits, please consider the following common problems that arise with all teams. The personality of the coach, and how they treat their players, is so important that in German coaching education courses, the majority of a coach’s grade is based on if the instructor “ would want to play for them.” Personality and intentions count, and as we explore the other qualities that make up a strong youth coach it’s important to understand that exemplifying your players as people, over your ego and need to win, will be the biggest leap you can make towards making your soccer team stronger.
Makes sense, right? Try replacing “coach” with “boss” and “players” with “employees” and see how close this applies to you with your current job satisfaction. Having a coach who is a good role model.When the coach treats the players with respect.Through the study, players were asked to identify what is fun about playing youth sports. However, what causes fun? Good Youth Coaches Cultivate “Fun”Ī fairly recent study entitled Fun Maps was conducted by Amanda Visek at George Washington University which focused on finding out exactly what fun is. Being this type of person helps gain the respect of your soccer players, their trust, and allows them to have fun playing for you. Being a good person, who is fair, consciences, empathetic and has good intentions goes a long way towards becoming a successful soccer coach. It’s important to understand that, no matter if you agree or disagree with the points made in this article, that being a good person is the overriding #1 most important factor in any endeavor you take on in life, whether that be your personal job, family life, or coaching. – Chris Panayiotou, Developmental Director of Coaching - Virginia Rush Soccer It is my goal to never be anyone’s last coach” “What we need to know is that many of us are making a difference in many children’s lives, whether they go to play at the highest level or their highest level. To start, I’d like to throw this quote at you: In this article, we are going to explore what the common tendencies are of a successful youth coach, be that on the recreational or competitive sides of any sport.
Quick, off the top of your head, what do you feel are the main qualities that make a youth coach successful? Is it passion for the sport? Friendliness? Ability to teach techniques? Ability to communicate with players? Approachability? Your quality of practice plans? Your knowledge of good soccer drills? What do you feel are YOUR top three qualities as a coach?