Category: Coach Talk

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Coach Talk

COACH TALK: Pedro Dias (Sporting FC Toronto)

This week I spoke to former Sporting player Pedro Dias (CHIQUINHO). Pedro is the Technical Director at Sporting FC Academy Toronto.

Pedro a former professional footballer who retired due to injury after 15 years in the game. Pedro has been coaching for over 10 years in Portugal, the USA and Canada.

TCD: Talk to me about your love for football, when did it begin? 

PD: Since I born, I guess….lol I grow up playing soccer in my street with my friends and peers… It was a way of life, natural.

TCD: You played for Sporting Club Portugal the 2nd biggest sporting club in the world after FC Barcelona. When did start playing there? 

PD: I start my soccer career at Petrogal (U10) and then I play for Sacavenense (U14). Until I was scouted to try out at Sporting, and I made it. It was a new world for me and change my life. By that time, Sporting have the old stadium and the conditions were very different from now, but the coaches, players and staff make all the difference. It was fantastic playing beside Figo, Peixe, Porfirio.. and I have the opportunity to excel my qualities and sign as a professional Soccer Player at Sporting CP.

TCD: How did you get into coaching? 

PD: While I was playing, I decide to start my coaching education, I had 2 Acl´s operation and I start thinking in my next step. I have the passion and the drive for it, so it was a very natural process.

TCD: What is your current role at Sporting FC? 

PD: Im the Technical Director and Head Coach and I also run international programmes outside of Portugal. In my current role of Youth Technical Director and Head Coach at Sporting FC Academy, I am responsible for the day-to-day operations of a soccer academy for new/inexperienced players, as well as a competitive program consisting of 8 age groups – U8, U9, U10, U12, U13, U15, and U17.  I currently lead a technical staff of 16, in delivering the OSA’s Long Term Player Development strategy to develop young players properly and to their full potential.

In addition to my coaching responsibilities, I oversee all administrative duties for the club, including: developing technical curriculums & manuals; overseeing recruitment and on-boarding of new players; and managing internal/external communications & marketing.

TCD: What is the most important skill for a coach to have? 

PD: Patience, Passion and knowledge.

TCD: How long as SFC been in Toronto and what is the clubs philosophy? 

PD: Sporting FC is a youth soccer academy opened in 2011, operating as a non-profit organisation in Toronto, Ontario.  Our club serves the broader GTA community, and has a membership base of approximately 300 athletes ranging in age from 4 to 18 years.  Sporting FC’s motto is to “educate for life through soccer”.  This philosophy of imparting valuable life lessons through a soccer curriculum is unique to our club, and is what gives our players the confidence and conviction to succeed in soccer and in life!

TCD: What changes would you make to the grassroots game to benefit the development of children?

PD: In Canada, I would like the new LTPD, which I support could be adjusted according to whats happening right now… for example I cancel the retreat line, definitely.

TCD: Why would you remove it? 

PD: In Canada we have the retreat line from u9s to u12s. “The Retreat Line has been introduced in the Toronto Soccer Association (U11/U12) Development Leagues to allow our young players to learn and gain confidence in how to play the ball out from the back and play forward to attack, as opposed to the goalkeeper “Sending It” aimlessly down the field.” “The Retreat Line will be positioned at halfway at the U9 and U10 age levels, while at the U11 and U12 age groups the Retreat Line will be signified by off-field cones (or flags), supplied by the home team and placed 1/3 distance of the field from each end.”

My view is allowing the player 3 seconds to touch the ball, or allowing them not doing a oriented reception neither attacking the ball, the rule is not giving to the players the right tools to solve “problems” during the game. What the rule is giving is “laziness” I order they don’t attack the ball, and they let the ball be rolled in order to avoid the others players can attacking them. This is not game related. In my perspective “its a pill like pain killer” doesn’t solve the game, only create more problems on the long run. It’s not realistic.

Also, this allows some coaches to neglect the basic principals of the progression: Attacking the ball, oriented reception and decide what will be the next step.

What my players and team do is: They stay on the retreat line and don’t attack the player with ball, and do you know what opposition do? They just kick the ball away…. because they don’t have pressure and they don’t know what to do… “Kick and rush”

TCD: What concerns you most about Canadian Youth soccer?

PD: Many, the league system, the different leagues, low referee quality, low coaching quality, the winter and the indoor facilities are way too expensive, just a few aspects to change.

TCD: What age do kids move to the 11v11 (Full Size) game in Canada?

PD: They move at under 13. I agreed, because I consider this is the natural progression of the game with 7×7 on U9 to U10 and 9×9 on U11 and U12, if the coaching staff do their job properly the players should progress smoothly for the “bigger picture”. They should understand the game and they are mature enough to development and continually optimised  the routines of the 11×11 game.

TCD: Have you any mentors?

PD: Yes, Professor Rui Mâncio from Madeira Island.

TCD: What kind of player do you like working with? 

PD: Players willing to learn, and with drive to be better.

TCD: Can Canadian soccer grow as big as US soccer?

PD: Yes, definitely! But we are still little bit away…We need indoor facilities, and organize the grassroots until to build a national mens league. Long way to go.

The Coach Diary would like to thank Pedro for this interview. You can find out more about Sporting FC Toronto on their website Sporting FC Toronto.

Why not like their page on FB Sporting FC on Facebook

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I always like to hear your opinions and views. If you feel you have something to say, please comment below or email me info@thecoachdiary.com If, you don’t have anything to add then please forward this on to a friend. As always, thanks for reading.

I’m also on twitter  @Coachdiary

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Coach Talk

CoachTalk: Ray Power

This week I spoke with Irish Coach Ray Power. Another Irish Coach making his way across the water.

Ray is a 31-year old, A Licence football coach. Although from Waterford, Ireland he is currently based in Nottingham, England.

He is currently working as an Academy Manager full-time with under-19 players at Conference/Football League level and he is also a coach education tutor for the English FA.

TCD: When did you start coaching?

RP: I came to England in 2007, following two years as a teacher in Switzerland. I had dabbled in grassroots coaching prior to arriving in England, but once here I began working in the Academy system.

Love this quote “Otherwise I’m a bit of a magpie – I pinch ideas and traits from others that I incorporate into my work”

TCD: What is your coaching style and how did you develop it?

RP: That’s a difficult question to really pin down. I suppose it has evolved through the years and I guess it is still evolving – I think it has to. My style comes from me as a person I guess. I like to create a positive environment where the focus is on the players learning, so is player-centred rather than being all about the coach. Therefore I like to use methods like Q&A and Guided Discovery where possible, as well as Skilful Neglect. If it’s optimal for player learning to be more command-like, I’ll use it, but this is very occasional.

All the work we do is based around the game. That sounds a little obvious but you would be amazed at the amount of coaching sessions where players are involved in activities that are barely football-specific! Everything involves a ball, and puts players in situations they will find themselves in come match-day.

TCD: Have you any mentors and if so, who?

RP: Loads – whether they know they are mentors or not! When I fist came to England, Steve Welsh at Boston United gave me my first opportunity to coach academy players and I learned lots from Welshy – about the game, but also about presence and manner with players. The one that comes straight to mind however is Dick Bate. Dick is now at Cardiff City but was the head tutor on my A Licence. He was so knowledgeable and immersed in the game that you felt that if you could get anywhere near his level then you were on the right track. Otherwise I’m a bit of a magpie – I pinch ideas and traits from others that I incorporate into my work.

TCD: What are the most important traits of the modern coach?

RP: I devoted a whole chapter of Making the Ball Roll to this, but the traits are virtually endless. We all know – or should know – that we as coaches are role models and teachers, but being a modern coach is that and more. First of all you need to know the game – the modern game. We need to produce players that can cope with the evolving nature of football. So, for example, rather than coaching strikers to play in a 1980s style ‘big man, little man’ system, they need to be able to play as a lone striker, be more multi-purpose – added to evolutions like false 9s, inverted forwards etc.

Coaches also need to embrace technology (this is the world of our young players), use appropriate learning and coaching styles etc.

“SKILLFUL NEGLECT” The art of knowing when to do or say NOTHING. Because YOU know that THEY know the answer and they will work it out!

TCD: What part of the game do you prefer to coach?

RP: In recent years I’ve adopted a model known as Tactical Periodisation – something we speak about in the book. This involves practices and games that are simultaneously technical, tactical and physical. Simply because the game involves exactly that – all at the same time.

Players need to be worked with in all areas – attacking, defending and transitions so I suppose if I favoured one area I wouldn’t be doing my job correctly. If they leave the system having improved across all areas then I’m satisfied.

TCD: What kind of player to you prefer to coach. A technically gifted one who lacks work rate or a good player with excellent work rate?

RP: For too long we have prized the worker over the technician. Hard working ones were praised (and rightly so!) but any tricky players get lambasted for doing too much. Obviously to be successful a player needs both. Every individual though will have different needs, and therefore a different programme of work, targets etc. As a team game you need both. Look at Jordan Henderson. He’s a decent technician but is vital to Liverpool as his work rate allows the technically gifted players like Suarez and Coutinho the freedom to express themselves.

It’s easy maybe to teach a young player to run around all day, but he’s obsolete if another player has work rate AND technique.

TCD: What’s the future of the grassroots game in the England and what changes are happening or need to happen in order to develop players with game intelligence?

RP: Youth coaching in England gets a lot of stick – and maybe justifiably so in some parts. But change is afoot. There are lots of good people leading a drive for a better standard of grassroots coaching, through coach education, mentoring and books like Making the Ball Roll.

Like I mentioned above, players need to be put in game situations. Game intelligence can only come from constantly solving real-game problems. We have a big issue in this area. Players are often put in sessions where they warm-up by running laps of the pitch, then stand in queues to either pass or shoot. There’s very little decision-making involved in unopposed ‘drills’ like these so when players are in games, they can’t solve problems once opposition are in place and a game is going on around them at 100mph. I also believe we are ‘two-touching’ the flair players and dribblers out of the game by constantly putting ALL our players in two-touch games, when they need it or whether it’s their style or not.

At youth level if we can take focus away from match results, allow players the true freedom to express themselves and place them in game situations regularly, this can only improve.

MAKING THE BALL ROLLTCD: Tell me about your book, what is it about and what inspired you to write one?

RP: When I started coaching I had to go to hundreds of different places to find what I wanted – books around technical practices, tactics, physical development – others about psychology and communication; conferences around Talent ID and goalkeeping. What I wanted was a “one-stop shop” that included it all! So I wrote it!

The book has 15 distinct chapters that relate to different aspects of youth development – and added to by some wonderful stories from youth coaches. If the reader wants further information on psychology for example, then the chapter signposts them to the best sports psychology resources available.

See chapter breakdown:

  • Chapter 1. Understanding the Argument for Development Over Results
  • Chapter 2. Understanding the Modern Youth Development Coach
  • Chapter 3. Understanding Teaching and Learning in Soccer
  • Chapter 4. Understanding Psychology in Soccer
  • Chapter 5. Understanding Communication in Soccer
  • Chapter 6. Understanding Leadership and the Team
  • Chapter 7. Understanding Age-Specific Development Needs
  • Chapter 8. Developing a Coaching Philosophy and Syllabus
  • Chapter 9. Understanding Technical Development and Skill Acquisition
  • Chapter 10. Understanding the Tactical Development of Soccer Players
  • Chapter 11. Understanding the Physical Development of Youth Soccer Players
  • Chapter 12. Understanding the Modern Goalkeeper
  • Chapter 13. Understanding Talent Identification and Assessment of Players
  • Chapter 14. Understanding Parents
  • Chapter 15. Looking in the Mirror First

Where can TCD readers get your book?

The book is available in the UK and US through amazon and via bennionkearny.com/power and The book depository website also distributes worldwide with free delivery.

-End

The Coach Diary would like to thank Ray for this interview. You can follow ray on Twitter  

Right, I’m off to buy my plane ticket to Lisbon…… Thank You UEFA!

I always like to hear your opinions and views. If you feel you have something to say and want to be the next coach on COACHTALK,  Please comment below or email me info@thecoachdiary.com If, you don’t have anything to add then please forward this on to a friend. As always, thanks for reading.

I’m also on twitter @Coachdiary

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Coach Talk

Coach Talk : Accelerate Performance Coaching

acpThis week I spoke to David & Nick from APC. Ireland newest Speed Performance coaching programme. The guys are working with kids of various ages with the focus on getting them to move and react quicker. I started by asking the lads who they are and why they set-up ACP.

TCD: Who are you?

ACP: Accelerate Performance Coaching is Nick Hogan, an Irish international 400m sprinter, and David Knowles, a UEFA qualified coach. We are based in Dublin Indoor Football in Santry.

TCD: Why did you set up Accelerate Performance Coaching?

ACP: We started APC as we want the aspiring elite youth players in Ireland to have every chance to succeed in football and get professional contracts. We provide speed and power training as we feel that is the area that is fundamentally lacking in football coaching in this country, and which ultimately will make the difference.

TCD: Tell me about the training you provide?

ACP: We take a players from the ages 10+ and put them through our courses which are all aimed at making players faster, more powerful and more confident. Our courses give players a combination of a new training environment, style and focus all in a small group setting where they can get individual attention and coaching.

We completely remove the element of competition from the training as we feel that it hinders learning new skills and abilities. Their focus is then entirely on improving themselves with no distractions. This is how track and field athletes train, and we think it is the best environment to learn what it is we are coaching them. Soon we will have a gym in operation, the first strength and conditioning facility specifically for youth footballers in the country. Which will give us even more scope to achieve the results we are looking for with our players.

TCD: Do you only coach elite players?

ACP: It is not important to us what level a player is playing at as long as the right attitude is there. We are elite only in that we demand that whatever level a player is coming from, they are willing to learn and want to improve themselves.

TCD: Do you work with teams?

ACP: Yes, as long as the team is the right fit in terms of attitude. Our work with teams follows a similar structure to the programs that we coach on our courses, all aimed at improving player speed, agility and confidence in their abilities, but structured in a way that fits in with the team’s existing training set up. Recently we have worked with Malahide u16 Premier and the Kildare (K.D.U.L) Kennedy Cup squad.

TCD: Are you seeing results?

TCP: Yes. We recently finished a 12 week program with a group of ten players and every single one of them improved in every single test that we use, speed, agility and power.

More important than that is that all of those players told us that they feel faster and more capable on the pitch, and more confident as a result. Results don’t mean a whole lot if they don’t transfer to match situations, so the real results for us are players telling us about how they feel our training works for them in their matches. We even get parents of our players telling us that people are telling them at games that their son looks faster, without any knowledge of the work they have been doing with us.

If parents are interested in applying for a place on any of their programs they can go here: APPLY NOW

The Coach Diary would like to thank Nick & David for this interview. For more infomation go to: www.accelerateperformancecoaching.ie

-End

I always like to hear your opinions. Please comment below or email me info@thecoachdiary.com If, you don’t have anything to add then please forward this on to a friend. Thanks for reading.

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Coach Talk

Kids Play, because it’s FUN!

This is an email that was sent to me by a coach of an u11s team. Here it goes:

I have a group on Facebook for my under 11 team where we posted match reports and photos etc. They were beaten at the weekend so I did a little Q & A with them at training on Tuesday. Here’s what I posted in the group. I’d be interested to hear what you think?

Everyone knows I’m fortunate to look after one of the best kid’s football teams around. A nicer bunch you wouldn’t get anywhere. On Saturday lost their first league game since they were under 7 (almost 3 years). Obviously the lads were disappointed but they’ll learn more about themselves from games like that. We spoke briefly after the game about how they were feeling but never analysed the match or what had gone wrong – if indeed anything had gone wrong. In fact, the opposition played superbly and took the chances they created very well. We agreed nothing more was to be mentioned about the game and we’d train again during the week.

As I was planning out the session, I started thinking what drives these kids to be as good as they are? What do they like about the game and match days and what do they not like. The SILENT SIDELINE weekend is also coming up at the end of March. So I wrote down a few questions and asked them before training.

Here’s what they said:

(10 of the squad of 12 were present)

  1. Why do you play football, to have fun, to exercise or to win? A. 10 said have fun
  2. What matters most, having fun or winning? A.10 said having fun. 2 also said its nice winning but it’s not important
  3. Would you play football if we didn’t keep the score? A. 10 said yes
  4. Do parents & supporters shout too much at matches? A. 10 said yes
  5. Does it confuse you when parents & supporters shout during a match and tell you what to do? A. 9 said yes, 1 said no
  6. Do you get nervous when parents & supporters tell you to do something during a match and your manager has told you to do something different? A. 5 said yes, (because we hear them moan about it on the sideline). 5 said no, (we listen to our coach says. He’s in charge)
  7. Do you play better when lots of people are shouting instructions at you? A. 10 said no
  8. Would you try a new trick in a match? A. 5 said yes, 5 said no. The 5 who said yes were all midfield/forwards – “because it could create a chance for us to score a goal or make a goal”. The 5 who said no mainly play as defenders, because they felt that “if we make a mistake it could cost the team”. They also said they were afraid to “mess up” because they hear people give out on the sideline.
  9. Do you think you play better when your parents are watching or not? A. 5 said when they’re watching, 5 said when they’re not watching.
  10. Do you enjoy playing for this team? A. 10 said yes (phew)
  11. Would you play for this team if we lost every week? A. 10 said yes
  12. What’s the best thing about playing for this team? A. They said; “it’s fun, we’re with our friends, we learn stuff, training is fun and different every week, because the coaches don’t scream at us”. (They mentioned 2 games we’ve played this season where opposition managers had been screaming at their teams before, during & after the game)

A team that’s as good as this is rare. There’s a couple of things that show up clearly in the above and it’s the most important one to me and is making me reconsider how we do things – None of them said winning is what matters.

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Interesting results and ones that don’t surprise me. You could conduct this exercise with thousands of kids and 99% of the time get similar replies. Adults just seem to forget that. I conducted a similar exercise when I asked 12 years old 3 questions, here are their answers 3 Questions I asked our u13s.

Thanks for Sharing PK

I always like to hear your opinions. Please comment below or email me info@thecoachdiary.com If, you don’t have anything to add then please forward this on to a friend. Thanks for reading. I’m also on twitter @Coachdiary

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Coach Talk Irish Grassroots Football

COACHTALK: Footblogball with Jesus Enrigue Gutierrez Major ‘Guti’

This is an interview by Mark O’Sullivan with Jesus Gutierrez.

Guti is educated at the highest level within the framework of the Spanish Football Federation. He worked for 5 years at the Real Madrid academy as head coach for the U 14- U 16 teams and is currently an instructor for coach education with the Madrid Football Federation.

His brilliant book – Possession: Play football the Spanish way is an insight into the philosophy of coaching young players, dealing with the practical and theoretical side of developing game intelligence. Mark started, by asking him about his work with his various football organisations.

FOOTBLOGBALL: Can you give us a brief account of your work in Futbolconcept and as technical director in Escuela Deportiva Moratalaz?

JESUS GUTIERREZ: Together with my 4 partners we have created a company with the aim to improve the coaching. We have our own approach to teaching football, we call it “TRAINING BY CONCEPTS”. We have developed special software for coaches, including a lot of training tasks that follow our ideas. It will be available in English really soon. My position in the company is Director of the International Department.

In relation to Escuela Deportiva Moratalaz, I’m the Technical Director. We are a very humble football school here in Madrid. We work with almost 700 players in 35 teams, with ages between 4 and 5 up to senior. We have an agreement with Real Madrid, so they can have first choice with our best players. My job is coordinating the coaching, following our “Training by Concepts” philosophy and being sure that everyone is working in the way we want and according to our Model .

FOOTBLOGBALL: Research suggests that young players only retain 18% of concepts that are learned passively but 68% of what which is learned actively. This implies a more player centered approach rather than coach centered one. Can you suggest how you can achieve this using your methods?

JESUS GUTIERREZ: No doubt ! The player should be the protagonist in his own learning. The idea of the coach giving all the information to the player is not a good one. Young players must learn to make their own decisions , analyse what’s happening around them ( teammates and opponents). Simple repetition is boring for children. They come every day to training because they want to enjoy themselves, they want to play football and, sadly, there’re a lot of times when we the coaches prepare very boring exercises for them. They don´t like standing around listening to the coach and repeating a lot of drills. They just love to play. It is very simple to understand. So we offer the players a very active training. We start with a small sided game. No worries about injuries. They don´t need a hard warm up. They arrive most days by running to training. So the first thing we give them is the ball and a game. After playing 5-10 minutes, they will pay more attention to what the coach is saying. All our training tasks are in relation to games situations (concepts). So we try to work with them according to their age and to the situations they are going to experience in the real game. Our main goal is helping the players to identify these situations and choose the right decision. Them all must learn to understand the game, to decipher what’s happening at every moment.

FOOTBLOGBALL: What are the basic and essential tasks that young players should often practice?

JESUS GUTIERREZ: Technique is very important in football, of course but we don´t need to perform the same passing and control drill 100 times. I can do that on my own, after school, when I’m free, during the weekend, in my garden, with my father…I need a real coach to explain the game to me, one who helps me to read the different situations I can find myself in. So the training tasks we create and use are always in relation to the competitive game: myself, the ball, my teammates, the opponents and, most of the time the goals.A big mistake is thinking that young players are not ready to play matches until they can perform most of the technical skills. Maybe it should be the other way around. Let’s put the players into the game, let’s check their weak points and then from the training session let’s prepare an individual plan for them in order to improve in those areas that we have identified. Possession games, position games, small side games, 1 vs 1, 2 vs 2. Attacking-defending (against real opposition), matches with tactical aims,…everything around the game. Replicating what they will experience in the competitive game.

FOOTBLOGBALL: In a possession based style that is the main feature of your book, perception is one of the most vital parts in the Perception- Understanding- Decision – Action chain. The ability to constantly take in quality information, enabling the player to deliver and perform the best action for a particular moment. How do you suggest that we introduce the value of perception in our sessions at grassroots level?

Guti with kidsJESUS GUTIERREZ: Maybe the answer is really simple: put the players into the real game situation. When players are practicing a dribbling exercise with no opponent they don’t need to pay attention to anything but the ball. Every time we introduce just a light opposition in the training we are forcing the player to analyse what is happening around him. Checking over his shoulder before receiving. Passing the ball to the correct foot or to the space in front. Playing with the first touch or creating time to control and turn; dribbling and protecting the ball. Players never have to take into account all these questions when you are training without opposition. They are performing nothing in relation to perception and decision-making!!

FOOTBLOGBALL: Do you think that there is a common misunderstanding with regard to small sided games? That sometimes they don’t reflect the real game that the player experiences on match day?

JESUS GUTIERREZ: We should understand there is not just a magical tool in training. All methods have both positive and weak points. Nobody should state that small side games are not good tasks for football training, but you cannot base all your training sessions on these kind of drills. If players get used to only playing in a 15 x 15 m area and in competition they must play in a 60 x 40 m (seven a side) field they will be lost. So we need to help them to feel comfortable in the space they will finally play.

FOOTBLOGBALL: Do you think that there is a need for isolated technique training for kids when they begin playing organised football? Some coaches feel it necessary but others think that it is more important to play and learn the game first with a focus on fun.

JESUS GUTIERREZ: In my opinion, first thing is “waking” the players’ interest for the game. Having fun while training. As I explained above, let them play and then analyse their performance, detect their mistakes and help them to improve. But first is the GAME!

FOOTBLOGBALL: During some recent work I did with RCD Espanyol a topic that we discussed was balance and coordination training for kids. It was felt that kids socialise and play in a different way now . They are rarely outside climbing trees playing street football experiencing free play etc …. It was felt that there is an even greater need to work on balance and coordination and general motor development of young players when they begin with organised football. Do you agree?

JESUS GUTIERREZ: I can agree with this way of thinking. Coordination, balance, stretching. Everything is covered in order to improve the players level. But remember, don´t “steal” time from the ball to attend to all of these other questions. In our football school we place a very high importance on coordination , but players come 15-30 minutes before their training session begins. So once they put their foot on the field, we forget about everything and concentrate on the ball and the game.

FOOTBLOGBALL: Can you tell us one thing through your work that you have learnt in 2013?

JESUS GUTIERREZ: Although I defend our training methodology, every way of training has something useful that you can use. Your ideas should constantly be checked. Don´t close your eyes to other opinions. A lot of top players reached the highest level practicing with very different coaches and methods. You must be always willing to learn from others.

Follow Jesus @Susen_31 and Follow Mark @markstkhlm 

I base a lot of my training on the content of this book, the best €15 I have ever spent. I am planning to bring Jesus to Ireland in 2014; to find out more subscribe to the blog or join the Facebook Event Page 

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I always like to hear your opinions. Please comment below or email me info@thecoachdiary.com If, you don’t have anything to add then please forward this on to a friend. Thanks for reading. I’m also on twitter @Coachdiary

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Coach Talk Coaching

To Be A Coach

What do you need, to be a great coach?

Here are my opinions on what is required to be the best you can be, at coaching in sport.

‘Most kids would rather play on a losing team than sit on the bench of a winning one. That doesn’t mean that kids don’t value winning, just that they prefer playing’

 Why do kids Play?

  • To have fun;
  • To be with their friends;
  • To learn about the sport & improve their game related skills;
  • To compete;
  • To work on their fitness;
  • To do something I’m good at.

And not having fun is one of the major reasons 70 percent of kids quit playing sports by the time they’re 13.

‘A good coach supports, rewards, teaches, and makes a sport fun’

 The Basics

  • Having a qualification doesn’t make you a great coach but continuous improvement could. To become a great coach you must be prepared to learn & develop.
  • Developing your coaching knowledge comes from being involved, practicing your methods and having the desire to go and attend courses- opening up your mind by reading and studying different methods.
  • Be organised, be on time, be prepared, be presentable, be approachable, be Enthusiastic and be Fair.
  • Teach your players to respect each other & don’t use foul language.
  • Communicate, demonstrate & take up a good position so everyone can hear and see you.
  • Get inspiration for other coaches, ask questions and share your ideas.
  • The more you coach the more you will learn – Coach all ages.
  • Start a blog; bank your ideas.
  • Devise a core set of values, beliefs and a philosophy and tell your players about them.
  • Subscribe to coaching websites. I recommend InsideSoccer.com
  • Read the best coaching books and explore new methods. (Get drunk on good books)
  • Watch other coaches in action, ask questions and attend workshops regularly.
  • Keep things simple and try to do something different at every session. Keep it fun.
  • Ball Mastery should be part of every session.
  • You want to create an environment within which every player has the best opportunity to flourish.
  • Always focus on the positives. Negativity will be bookmarked in a player’s head.
  • Always compliment your players at least a couple of times in a session.
  • Be in control of the sideline and most importantly let the parents know, that the only one who should be directing is the coaching staff and even at that, we want minimal instruction.
  • Watch and observe you team play. Take notes on team play and use this information in your next training session. The best coaches are highly skilled in observation.

Ask yourself, what does it feel like to be coached by me?

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Coach Talk Irish Grassroots Football

COACHTALK: Austin Speight

I met up with Austin Speight again to find out how Coerver is going in Ireland. Austin Speight is a UEFA A qualified coach and the Ireland Director of Coerver Coaching.

He has worked at the highest level in England since age 28 as a coach & has worked with some of the games biggest names inc David Beckham, Steven Gerrard, Joe Cole, Frank Lampard and Man Uniteds latest £20m purchase from Blackburn Rovers, Phil Jones to name a few.

Austin has formerly coached at the following clubs: West Ham United (92-95); Stockport County (95-98); Manchester City (98-99); Blackburn Rovers (99-06) and Crewe Alexandra (06-07) and is currently working with some of the best British and European Soccer Academies.

TCD: How long has Coerver been operating in Ireland?

AS: Since 2009 so 4 years, Globally it has been around since 1984, 30th Anniversary 2014! We are planning a couple of big coaching events here in Ireland and our main event is in Madrid at Easter which is a global Coerver event.

TCD: Coerver seems to be accepted all over the world, do we really value ball mastery in Ireland?

AS: No there is extreme ignorance here in Ireland of coaching  generally and coaching techniques. Too much emphasis is put on winning at all costs, having leagues and results at younger ages, U12 and below is not good for development of young players or coaches. Ideally, coaches need to work individually with the player and then work with the team. Generally coaches just focus on the team and winning. Ideally, focus of U12 & below should be on development of talented players. Small sided games 4v4 etc more touches on the ball, more opportunities to defend & attack, more opportunities to score and no leagues or results.

In my experience of coaching all over Ireland both North and South very few, if any, clubs actually follow any coaching curriculum or plan. Each coach. team makes up the sessions without too much thought about technique or how to develop young players both male and female. Would you send your child to any school that didnt have a planned curriculum?

Coerver is huge across the globe especially in USA, Spain, France, Germany, Holland, Japan, Asia and Australia

“Skill is an athlete’s ability to choose and perform the right techniques at the right time, successfully, regularly and with a minimum of effort. Footballers use their skill to achieve football objectives. Skill is acquired and therefore has to be learned. Coerver Coaching has developed a strategic plan and curriculum over 30 yrs to help develop young players to reach that sort of level of ball mastery and technique & I would highly recommend this program to all young players & coaches in Northern Ireland.” Jim Magilton Elite Performance Director IFA

TCD: Where is Coerver operating in Ireland?

Cork, Waterford, we have a strong base there and we also work closely with development of coaches within the Cork Schoolboy League. We deliver monthly sessions in Cork which is open for all coaches at every club in the CSL. Eddie Doyle, the league Secretary, is a strong believer in the correct development of players and also coaches.

NDSL in Dublin with Mitch Whitty have also had Coerver in to deliver coach education programmes for the league coaches.

We have a coerver partner club program which in UK many grassroots and top professional clubs work with Coerver, such as Newcastle United, Arsenal, Stoke City etc. Here in Ireland, Shelbourne FC are one of our Partner Clubs, we have a 5 year development plan for the schoolboy section of the club which is aimed at developing both players and coaches.

Outside of this we have many Performance Academies across Ireland – we have just open 6 new ones in Northern Ireland. This is were parents pay coerver directly to improve their child by weekly coaching sessions. Basically getting pro level coaching at grassroots level and sole aim is technically developing the individual from age 5 upwards.

TCD: Are they IFA now using the Coerver programme for their underage teams?

AS: Yes the new head of Elite player development Jim Magilton is a big fan of Coerver and the results it has produced globally over 30 years. He has also been promoting Coerver to all grassroots clubs in Northern Ireland to use the system and have Coerver in at their individual clubs to develop players and equally the quality of  coaching. Not just the IFA, many of the Worlds leading clubs and National Associations use Coerver to improve their players technique.

TCD: How important is ball mastery and what age can kids start to master the ball?

AS: Its essential, if you cant master the ball- you cannot play!! The younger they start the better. Our Academy system here in Ireland and across Europe we start them at 5 years old. If you are being coached correctly on technique at 5-6 years old, how good are you going to be at 10, 12, 14 etc?? 5-6 year olds generally dont have any bad /poor playing habits, so given the correct instruction, it is amazing what they learn in a short space of time. We focus on 5-7 love of the game, 8-11 – skill Acquisition 12-16- team conversion.

Result at 12-16 you have players who can create a goal, score a goal or stop a goal.

TCD: How important is it for coaches to be working on ball mastery?

AS: Very important, players will not improve otherwise. How often when watching the Irish national team on any TV channel, the co commentator, constantly repeats the phrase “Lack of Technique” in comparison to who ever the opposition maybe.  Our 1 hour sessions with players, they literally touch the ball hundreds of times. Every session we deliver always has a ball, ball mastery – players all have a ball each.

TCD: What are your thoughts on Futsal?

AS: Futsal is good, anything that improves players touch, control, foot/ ball skills is a plus. Issue with futsal is can players transfer those skills onto grass in 11v11

TCD: I recently read about some Irish kids going to Spain to train after developing through the Coerver programme, is this true and what are the differences between an Irish kid and a Spanish kid at under age?

AS: Yes this developed from our Youth Diploma Course in Dublin with myself and Coerver Co Founder Charlie Cooke. The final part of the course, we invite some of our academy players in to play in the  final session. We had coaches attending the course from La Liga clubs and they invited one of the boys over. He has developed really well and he is now based in Madrid for next two years.

TCD: If coaches are interested in attending a Coerver course, how can they find out about the next one?

We several course throughout Ireland and we are delighted to say that our Youth Diploma Courses are always very well attended.

Next Course dates are as follows: 

Limerick Feb 22/23

Belfast March 2/9

Dublin May 17/18

Cork/Waterford TBC

We also have a new course – “Play like Spain” Which will be next Summer dates to confirmed at Tolka Park.

We can also come into any club anywhere in Ireland and deliver Coerver coach Education sessions for that club, or league. They can call our Irish Office on 042 936 6910.

If you want to find out more about Coerver Coaching check out their website www.coerver.ie or go straight to their Youtube page for some great content.

TCD would like to thank Austin for this interview.

Next Up: Mike Antoniades

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I always like to hear your opinions. Please comment below or email me info@thecoachdiary.com If, you don’t have anything to add then please forward this on to a friend. Thanks for reading.

I’m also on twitter @Coachdiary

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