Teaching the Game
Ontario Soccer Association
Annual Coaches Conference 2013
Sam Snow – Technical Director
US Youth Soccer
Teaching the Game
Teaching the Game
Canada
U.S.A.
Most of the challenges to growing the game are the same for both
nations – not the number 1 sport, immense geography, underfunded
infrastructure, etc. These reasons as well as our cultural mindsets
means we must TEACH the game.
A 20 Year Game Plan
a.k.a – Long-Term Player Development
TEACHING THE GAME
Teaching the Game
The goals of youth soccer should be to promote
physical activity, fun, life skills (such as selfreliance, conflict management, purposeful
interaction with others), fair play and good health.
Many soccer programs start out like this, but change
over time because adults and children misunderstand
the difference between competition and cooperation.
Teaching the Game
L T P D
A Lifetime of Participation
Stages 6 & 7
Stages 4, 5 & 6
Stages 3 & 4
Stages 1, 2 & 3
Biological stages of growth which correlate to the 7 stages of LTPD.
Teaching the Game
• You are among the most
important coaches in youth
soccer!
Zone 3
U18+
• Everything that happens in
older age groups and higher
levels of play rests upon the
Zone 2
U13 to U17
foundations you lay.
• Your words and deeds
Zone 1
U6 to U12
impact the children as
players and as people.
U.S. Soccer Player Development Pyramid
Teaching the Game
Least Experience in the Game –
Volunteer – Typically no formal
coaching education
Zone 1
U6-U12
Some Licensure –
Moderate Experience
Zone 2
U13-U17
Zone 3
U18+
Highest Licensed –
Most Experienced
Coaches
Zone 3
U18+
Zone 2
U13-U17
Zone 1
U6-U12
Teaching the Game
All team sports are long-term development experiences.
Compete
U19
Technical/Tactical
Functional
U16
Applied Skills
General Tactics
U14
Ball Skills – Fair Play
U10 & U12
Passion – Fun – Play
U6 & U8
These stages compliment Long Term Player Development
Why coach (teach) instead of just manage.
TEACHING THE GAME
Teaching the Game
• Too many youth coaches follow the Power and
Performance model exclusively.
– Exclusion of long-term development players
• Ex. – recruits heavily, micromanages players/staff
– Will not share power
– Relies heavily on athleticism and direct play
• The talented coach balances both player-centered
and coach-centered needs.
– Inclusion of both short-term and long-term players
– Questions and listens, as well as commands
– Sets challenges that put players in the “Flow”
Teaching the Game
The overly managed team plays with trepidation.
Confident teams play with verve.
"Easier to say no than go - harder to teach go than no.” – Logan Fleck
Teaching the Game
Of the average
Youth
when a player of this size
What
areCoach
the expectations…
shows up at a tryout?
Can you spot the best player in the world?
Teaching the Game
My guess is your eye goes directly to this youngster:
A physical Specimen
Teaching the Game
“I do everything through instinct, I
play like a child ... I think about
myself on a small field, or in the
street, I see myself with the ball in
the same way as I am now. I have
not changed at all. You must
remember soccer is a game to have
fun and you play for that. I don't
plan or anticipate my play.“
Lionel “the Flea” Messi
Would they expect this?
Teaching the Game
In youth soccer parents are part of the team. When coaches properly
engaged with the parents they can become your biggest allies.
What to Coach
TEACHING THE GAME
Teaching the Game
• Have a Curriculum as the overarching plan
– Wellness to World Cup
– Curriculum and rubric for Physical Literacy stages,
U6-U12
– Canada Soccer Association LTPD Volume 2,
Technical Matrix
Teaching the Game
- cont.
• A Curriculum is the overarching plan
– US Youth Soccer Player Development Model
– U.S. Soccer Curriculum
– The Future Game
• Accentuate the Curriculum with match analysis
Teaching the Game
CYCLE = Game – Training – Game
The Match is the Indicator
GAME = performance
ANALYSIS = evaluation
TRAINING = education
GAME = performance
Teaching the Game
Soccer has traditionally been taught using
the skill and drill or progressive part
method (part-part-whole). The game was
broken down into its components and
these are then taught. This technical
approach, developed after World War II,
taught the skills isolated from the game
and then the skills and the game are put
back together.
Teaching the Game
Excessive turn taking leads to boredom
and inattention, leading to misbehavior –
all because the coach was a killjoy.
Inefficient use of training time.
Infrequent turns.
Over-coaching that leads to frustration and failure.
Rote (static) repetition (muscle memory) was the main methodology, but without the requisite
decision making that soccer demands of the players.
Teaching the Game
Random (dynamic) repetition combines technique training along with tactical awareness and
emotional engagement. To the untrained eye it looks messy, but the learning experience is
richer. Organized chaos with the right guidance, teaches!
Teaching the Game
Technique
Fitness
Tactics
Technique
Fitness
Psychology
The
Game
Tactics
Psychology
Teaching the Game
Failing to Plan is
Planning to Fail
Plan Practice – In Writing!
How to Coach
TEACHING THE GAME
Teaching the Game
Coaching Styles & Methods
STYLE – a distinctive manner … a characteristic
mode of presentation …external fashion
METHOD – a way by which we proceed to the
attainment of some aim …logical or
scientific arrangement or mode of acting
The New Webster Encyclopedic Dictionary of the English Language
Teaching the Game
Coaching Methods
Command
Task
Guided Discovery (exploration – trial & error)
Problem Solving (cognitive dissonance)
Interactive (free exploration)
Active Learning (directed discovery)
Peer Teaching
Modeling
Teaching the Game
The traditional way sports have been taught is with
the coach at the center of attention. The coach told
the players what to do (command style) and expected
them to produce. With the command style, the
coach explains a skill, demonstrates the skill and
allows the players to practice the skill.
Teaching the Game
• A player-centered training and match
environment must become our soccer culture!
• The proper mix of coaching methods will allow
us to develop world class players as well as the
full scale of life-long players.
“Coaches – adapt our die.” – Andy Roxburgh
Teaching the Game
• In contrast to "reproduction"
of knowledge in the coach-
centered approach, the
guided discovery approach
emphasizes the "production"
of new talents. The
approach invites the player
to think!
Teaching the Game
It is often argued that effective coaching is as
much an art as it is a science. Guided discovery
in coaching soccer is a balance of the two. In a
broad sense our coaching style of the North
American soccer player must move away from
the “sage on the stage” to the “guide on the
side.”
Teaching the Game
COACHING ACTIVITIES CHECKLIST
Are the activities fun?
Are the activities organized?
Are the players involved in the activities?
Is creativity and decision making being
used?
Are the spaces used appropriate?
Is the coach’s feedback appropriate?
Are there implications for the game?
Most aspects of the game are eternal.
How has it come to pass that kids can't throw down something to
mark goals, pick teams and play?
Teaching the Game
Free Play
Part of good coaching is knowing when to step back and let the players
sort it out themselves. We must allow and encourage more pick-up
games in youth soccer.
Teaching the Game
Street Soccer
The importance of giving the game back to the
players cannot be overemphasized. Whether you
call it street soccer, a sandlot game, a kick-about
or a pickup game -- this is the way that millions
upon millions over many decades have learned to
play soccer.
Teaching the Game
Free Play must be a core value in the player
development curriculum!
The kids are free to learn how to organize
themselves, solve disputes, become leaders, rule
their own game, experiment with new skills, make
new friends and play without the burden of
results.
Teaching the Game
Teaching Games for Understanding
Game Sense Approach
Well-Selected Games
Games-Based Learning
Game-Like Activities
Teaching the Game