Take 3
When it rains pours. Indeed, when it rains it pours! There was torrential rain unlike man had ever seen before (barring Noah’s ark and the flood times). Ironically as I approached the pitch I was thinking about how the weather was very warm and nice- I even contemplated taking off my jacket. An expensive error avoided- my bag and iPad would’ve been soaked if I’d left it outside. The rain did not relent for 2 hours. It was monsoon-esque, rain drops the size of paintballs and with a bit of its potency. The plants were singing for joy- maybe we’ll get some more corn.
Now to the football. The first part consisted of a 2v2 plus 2 drill where the additional duo were positioned on either wing to provide support for the attackers (making it a 4v2). Before a goal could be scored on the large goal, the ball would need to be switched to both wide players. If the defending pair intercepted the ball, they could counterattack and score into 2 smaller goals. The drill promotes width and encourages overloads, whilst it also punishes cheap interceptions. Depending on the speed at which the drill is executed it can feel quite abstract especially if there is no movement on the ball, so we insisted of it being done at a high intensity.
The second and predominant section for this week was focused on a possession game consisting of 3 teams, 2 of which were tasked with keeping the ball whilst the other team pressed. After a few iterations it became clear that the players were going through the motions. Realistically I thought that with the sizeable numerical advantage at least 10 passes should be completed without fail as the width of the pitch also made the task relatively straight forward. But the players needed to be challenged. So we altered the game so that the teams played against each other, thus making the retention of possession much more difficult as each team would be outnumbered on the ball. It was certainly possible to keep the ball under these conditions, but it required careful thought and strategy.
To incentivise intensity and get their competitive juices flowing, a point was rewarded for each team who completed five consecutive passes between themselves. As I’ve stated before we use any opportunity to creative competitive play so that there is positive reinforcement for good actions. Not everyone is born with the inherent desire to win so we find ways to stimulate that same winning feeling that one should desire to experience on the matchday. A player with no affinity to winning may become comfortable with losing, so exposing them to this in a healthy and constructive manner can cultivate this mindset. I emphasise that this is not suggestive of an unhealthy philosophy where the total utility of playing football is wholly determined by the end result of the game (victory = ecstasy, losing = melancholy) as we’ve seen how this can strip away the joy of playing the sport independent of its competitive outcome. Irrespective of age football should be played with diligence and joy, however the reality is, as with any profession, that to be the best there is a healthy level of pragmatism that zero-sum games induce.
Stringing together five passes was initially difficult as the players adjusted to having fewer options on the ball, so I reduced the target to 3 passes until they got the hang of it. The chasm between the three teams was stark- the final score was 10-1-1 to the blues. During the feedback session I wanted to see if the blue team recognised what made them successful alongside whether the other teams knew what they needed to improve on. When I asked the blues for their thoughts, they said the following:
Taking minimal touches- why is this important?
In such a densely packed space you cannot afford to procrastinate on the ball. The more touches taken the more pressure is induced and the opposition can compress the pitch to limit the space. The blues recognised that playing one and two-touch football sucked defenders in which allowed them to play around the pressure. They also played fairly close together to avoid a teammate being isolated on the ball, which was particular important given the numerical disadvantage
First touch and scanning: The game becomes easier when you have a picture of the space around you. The blue team were aware of their surroundings which ensured they did not get caught in possession
Effective press: Perhaps the most important determinant for the blue team’s success was their press when losing the ball. Time after time they won it back within 5 seconds of losing it as they hunted in packs aggressively. It was a pleasure to see such desire off the ball. The quicker you win the ball back the less energy you spend chasing it- this is football not athletics.
Overall, it was another good session, one where I realised the importance of layering drills to ensure the players remained fully engaged. Finding ways to add different stipulations which can work on specific skills or increase the difficulty of the task is important to seeing growth.
To a simpler life;