Monday 29th October

Brazilian Soccer Schools

Year 5/6

Session 8

Over the past 7 weeks since I took control of this group we have been covering a lot of technical skill based work, which can become repetitive for young players at times. Hargreaves (1990) states that acquiring new skills can be repetitive, physically and mentally demanding and also exhausting. Skill work is the foundation for BSS players, and it is a continuous process that we will work on for many years in order to get our players progress through the stages of learning as stated by or as suggested by Fitts and Posner (1967) we want our players to become autonomous. However for now I felt it was about time to give the players a relaxed session in terms of rules and drills; therefore today’s session was based entirely around game play minus the warm up and 20 minutes core work. Carroll and Loumidis (2001) suggest that perceived competence and enjoyment affect motivation. I wanted our young players to enjoy scoring goals and experience success when playing sport, which will help give them perceived competence and in turn help increase motivation. I took this idea and decided I would make a high success rate in the little drills that we performed. In addition to this Roberts et al (1981) suggested that children with a higher perceived competence are more likely to be more persistent and have higher future expectations of success.

I began the game play with 1 v1’s; we finished last weeks session with a 1 v 1 drill and therefore I wanted to recap and cover last weeks coaching point which was timing of the move. National Soccer Coaches of America Staff (2004) suggest that by recapping coaching points the following session it helps to refresh the players mind. I decided to do this as a little reminder so they could take the point on board for the following game play drills. Holt et al (2006) state that effective instruction also promotes the transfer of learning from practice tasks to real game. I decided the attacker could have two goals to attack therefore it increased the likelihood of success. We then progressed from 1 v 1 to 4 v 4 in a 10m x 10m grid; the aim was to keep possession and 5 passes constituted a goal. As I had 16 players I had two games active at once; The American Sport Education Program (2006) suggest that you must keep your players active attentive and active in order to keep them safe and well behaved. The players are cultured enough and disciplined enough to be able to referee the game themselves and therefore I could concentrate on supervising the two groups. Beswick (2000) states self-discipline is very important both on and off the pitch in order to stay focussed. .I wanted to be able to highlight times in the two groups when players done things well. Praise is important in order to give players recognition for a good performance (Bloomfield et al 1995), however Mueller and Dwack (1991) suggest that praise can be detrimental to performance as it undermines children’s motivation and performance. I let the 4 v 4’s flow and never commented other than praise but kept it limited as I didn’t want to undermine motivation and performance. (Harrison 2005) suggests a 40 x 25 grid for 4 v 4’s and 4 v 4’s are good for developing individual and team defending. I wanted to deploy a man marking system and matched up each player to similar abilities, therefore each man has a responsibility to defend against there man and stop him getting the ball, this in turn helps the team defend. After the 4 v 4 we moved on to a marked out pitch and played 6 v 6. I always had 4 players resting and rotated players every five minutes in order to keep everyone involved. I could have played 8 v 8 but I wanted players to have more touches of the ball. As stated by Goncalves (1998) in Principles of Brazilian Soccer 6 v 6 football allows for full pressure from attackers and it allows the coach to intervene and work tactics into play without the need for a full 11 a side; and so I felt there was no need to have an 8 v 8 game where each player would have fewer touches on the ball.

On the whole today’s session went really well; it was different and relaxed, whilst being structured with a high tempo also. It was good to see the players create a high tempo by themselves without me constantly building it up. Bangsbo and Peitersen (2003) state that tempo is important especially when a team changes its pressure style. They go on to suggest that a tempo can be changed within a few players in a team however other team mates must acknowledge this and increase the tempo also. I felt this session was beneficial to the players as they got to spend a lot of time working in game play and gained many touches in game environment.

American Sport Education Program (2006). Coaching Youth Soccer. Human Kinetics

Bangsbo, J, Peitersen, B (2003). Offensive Soccer Tatics. Human Kinetics

Beswick, B (2000). Focused for Soccer. Human Kinetics

Bloomfield, J, Fricker, P.A, Fitch, K.D (1995). Blackwell Publishing

Carrol, B, Loumidis, J (2001). Childrenís Perceived Competence and Enjoyment in Physical Education and Physical Activity Outside School. European Physical Education Review, Vol. 7, No. 1, 24-43. [online] [Accessed 06^th Jan 2008, 16:25hrs] http://epe.sagepub.com/cgi/content/abstract/7/1/24

Fitts, P.M, Posner, M.I (1967). Human Performance. Brooks/Cole

Goncalves, T (1998). Principles of Brazilian Soccer. Reedswain inc.

Hargeaves, A (1990). Skills and Strategies for Coaching Soccer. Human Kinetics

Harrison, W (2005). Game Situation Training For Soccer: Themed Exercises And Small Sided Games. Reedswain inc

Holt, J, Ward, P, Wallhead, T (2006). The transfer of learning from play practices to game play in young adult soccer players. Physical Education and Sport Pedagogy, Volume 11, Number 2, pp. 101-118(18) [online] [Accessed 06^th Jan 2008, 16:35hrs] http://www.ingentaconnect.com/content/routledg/cpes/2006/00000011/00000002/art00001

Mueller, C.M, Dweck, C.S (1998). Praise for Intelligence Can Undermine Children’s Motivation And Performance. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, Vol. 75, No. 1, 33-52 [online] [Accessed 06^th Jan 2008, 16:35hrs] > http://www.dana.edu/lmassa/PS/Dweck.pdf

National Soccer Coaches of America Staff (2004). The Soccer Coaching Bible.

Roberts, G.C, Kleiber, D.A, Duda, J.L (1981). An Analysis of Motivation in Children's Sport: The Role of Perceived Competence in Participation. JSEP, 3(3) [online] [Accessed 06^th Jan 2008, 16:35hrs] https://www.humankinetics.com/JSEP/viewarticle.cfm?aid=8777

Monday 22nd October

Brazilian Soccer Schools

Year 5/6

Session 7

Today’s session required a lot of equipment to be set up, I therefore arrived earlier than usual in order to set up the venue to become prepared and organised for the players arriving. Marco and Aschermann (2007) suggest it is good practice to arrive early as a coach to set up and be there to greet each player as they arrive. Potrac et al (2002) suggest that coaches gain respect by their personal manner, professional knowledge and also professional image thus being another reason for having the session set up for players on arrival. Our sessions try to capture the essence of Brazil so as the players arrived I had some South American bosanova music playing; I always like to start the session off with a game of possession in a square where the players can beat each other with tricks and show boat. Along with the music this creates a good spirit amongst the players. Karageorghis et al (1999) suggest that music helps to increase motivation due to its motivational qualities. In addition to this Priest et al (2004) suggest that the music chosen should be characterized by a strong rhythmical component. The beginning of the session when players have a small amount of time to themselves helps to play an important role as it allows all players to greet each other and have fun without interrupting the session when we are focussed. The possession at the beginning of the session is part of a routine that happens at the beginning of every session. In relation with Beswick (2000) he suggests that by having a routine it allows players to clear their mind and become focussed.

Today’s main session objective was to work on moves to beat players. I wanted to strip this down to a basic drill, focussing on one or two coaching points keeping things simple and straight to the point (Jones et al 2003). I began with a warm up and then core ball work as usual; (Pain 2007) suggests that maintaining routine can has a positive effect on performance. I set out an area with cones spread around a 20 x 20 grid the objective was for the players to dribble with the ball and perform one of three moves specified by me, beat a cone and then move onto the next one. Anderson (1981) suggests that practice brings improvement, and more practice brings further improvement. I highlighted to the players that the timing of the move is important when trying to beat an opponent; we used poles as an opponent. Knapp (1977) highlights the importance of accuracy and timing when trying to beat an opponent. We progressed from cones to poles and then eventually we can move onto real payers. I had the players running in towards the poles at a fast but comfortable pace performing one of the three moves previously specified continuing to focus on the timing of the move. This in enjoyable for the players and I feel that when they enjoy a drill they seem to perform it better with a greater intensity, this coincides with research found by Strean &Holt (2003), they suggested that skill acquisition and fun are interlinked when coaching young children. This drill helped set the intensity for the 1 v 1’s which followed. I wanted to continue with the timing of the move as the coaching point in the 1 v 1 drill. The drills we done prior to the 1 v 1’s were performed well with a good work ethic and intensity. The players took this intensity into the 1 v 1’s and performed them well with great enthusiasm, however I tried to stress the timing of the move continually but it was difficult for the players to grasp under full player pressure. I feel the only way we can develop this is by working on 1 v 1’s on a regular basis. It is a fun and enjoyable drill for the players and allows the players to bring out their creative flair.

On the whole I feel the session went well and we will continue to work hard in coming sessions in order to continually make progress as players. I feel that our players are far advancing the suggested Long Term Player Development model. It suggests that at stage 3 players should be developing practice (FA.com 2007). Stage 3 is ages 11-14; I would argue that players at our soccer schools are developing practice at around the age of 8. We have players aged 3 years old after advancing from the Socatots program, the world’s first soccer specific child play scheme, confident in using both feet to kick the ball and performing toe taps on a ball or domed cone. We have a player aged 9 who can perform over 4000 juggles with the ball and has been able to do over 1000 since the age of 7. I feel this is far advancing the guidelines the governing body is providing.

Anderson, J.R (1981). Cognitive Skills and Their Acquisition. Lawrence Earlbaum Associates

Beswick, B (2000). Focused for Soccer. Human Kinetics

FA.com (2007). Long Term Player Development. The FA. [online] [Accessed 04^th Jan 2008, 19:25hrs] http://www.thefa.com/GrassrootsNew/Player/Postings/2007/02/LTPD

Jones, R.L, Armour, K.M, Potrac, P (2003) Constructing Expert Knowledge: A Case Study of a Top-level Professional Soccer Coach. Sport, Education and Society, Volume 8, Issue 2, pages 213 – 229 [online] [Accessed 03^rd Jan 2008, 16:25hrs] http://www.informaworld.com/smpp/content~content=a713696102~db=all

Karageorghis, C.I, Terry, P.C, Lane, A.M (1999). Development and initial validation of an instrument to assess the motivational qualities of music in exercise and sport: The Brunel Music Rating Inventory. Journal of Sports Sciences, Volume 17, Issue 9, pages 713 – 724 [online] [Accessed 03^rd Jan 2008, 16:25hrs] http://www.informaworld.com/smpp/content~content=a713776199~db=all

Knapp, B (1977). Skill in Sport: The attainment of Proficiency. Routledge

Marco, J.S, Aschermann, K (2007). Coaching Kids to Play Soccer: Everything You Need to Know to Coach Kids From 6 to 16. Simon & Schuster

Pain, M.A, Harwood, C (2007). The performance environment of the England youth soccer teams. Journal of Sports Sciences, Volume 25, Issue 12, pages 1307 – 1324 [online] [Accessed 04th Jan 2008, 19:25hrs] http://www.informaworld.com/smpp/content~content=a779321351~db=all

Potrac, P, Jones, R, Armour, K (2002). 'It's All About Getting Respect': The Coaching Behaviors of an Expert English Soccer Coach. Sport, Education and Society, Volume 7, Number 2, pp. 183-202(20) [online] [Accessed 03^rd Jan 2008, 16:25hrs] http://www.ingentaconnect.com/content/routledg/cses/2002/00000007/00000002/art00006

Priest, D.L, Karageorghis, C.I, Sharp, N.C (2004). The characteristics and effects of motivational music in exercise settings: the possible influence of gender, age, frequency of attendance, and time of attendance. J Sports Med Phys Fitness. 44(1):77-86. [online] [Accessed 03^rd Jan 2008, 17:35hrs] http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/sites/entrez?db=pubmed&uid=15181394&cmd=showdetailview&indexed=google

Strean, W.B, Holt, N.L (2000). Coaches’, athletes’, and parents’ perceptions of fun in youth sports: assumptions about learning and implications for practice. Canadian Association for Health, Physical Education, Recreation and Dance. 6(3) [online] [Accessed 03^rd Jan 2008, 17:55hrs]

http://www.rgalberta.com/coachingResources/Fun%20in%20Sport.pdf

Monday 15^th October

Brazilian Soccer Schools

Year 5/6

Session 6

In continuation with last week’s theme of working on team work and reducing the prevalent individualism that has arisen we began the session with the same two drills as last week. I decided to do this as the players seemed to enjoy the drill last week and everyone was actively involved. I wanted to spend time working in pairs, as in previous weeks when doing this it hasn’t been performed well due to the uncooperative nature of some players. This is an area, that if we do well can benefit the group as players. The main issue when doing paired activities which I have found in previous sessions is the psychology of working in pairs, such as, getting along with each other and also sharing. (American Sport Education Program 2006). Gadson (2001) suggests that working in pairs allows opportunity for instant feedback which can benefit performers as it allows opportunity for improvement.

I decided to organise the pairs myself; I done this is order to separate problematic pairs and also to put similar ability bodies together. Clark (1999) suggests it is best to place similar ability bodies together in order to avoid frustration, in addition to this, Helson et al (2000) found that there is a positive linear relationship between individual plus team practise and skill. We do a lot of individual work and the paired, small group work we do represents the team practise. I began by placing players opposite each other about a metre and a half apart. We began with simple passing with the sole of the foot, this way there are many touches on the ball and it is simple to keep under control with a high success rate. I encouraged players to be on their toes one foot at a time; Wein (2004) suggests the importance for players to be on their toes one foot slightly in front of the other and one foot at a time to avoid being caught flat-footed, by having one foot always on the floor it allows the player to change direction more efficiently. In addition to this, Lennox et al (2006) suggest that active feet allow players to be ready for arising situations. It is good practice as a coach to try and instil this in young players and hopefully or players will become autonomous in doing this. An autonomous player can perform tasks with little or no conscious thought which therefore provides more space for other thought processes (Fitts and Posner 1967). After the passing exercise we moved onto the passive pressure exercise. I wanted our players performing a selection of our core drills under passive pressure; as this passive pressure drill is new all I want the pressuring player to be doing is to stand in front of the performing player up on their toes. This gives the player something different to think about from usual; with having a passive defender it allows similar pressure but the player maintains the ball and can gain experience of being under pressure. (Brown, Hopper, date unknown). As we progress and become more proficient in this area we can change the position of the pressurising player and also move onto the player becoming actively pressurised; by simply placing an arm upon their shoulder and slightly forcing them in different directions. It also allows players to gain experience as a defender in terms of marking and positioning when opponent has the ball, two important factors in defending as stated by Bansgo & Pietersen (2002). We then progressed onto paired juggling; I wanted to focus more on the reception of the ball. Davids et al (2004) suggest that players need to understand coordination and control of soccer skills to make improvements. I therefore made it clear to my players why we were doing this task and why it is important to be coordinated and also what coordination is. We set up about a metre and a half away again. One player served into the other, the other player received the ball with the inside of the foot and caught the ball; I ensured the players alternated feet and had five turns each on each foot and then changed. We also spent time on our laces and also outsides of the foot. At BSS we want to develop players that are both footed and therefore begin with weak foot drills from an early age. Caruso (1996) suggests that players should be encouraged to use the weaker from a young age so that it becomes more natural to use when players grow older.

I was pleased with the players approach to the session tonight they worked very hard and the paired work was much improved from previous sessions. I want to try and continue with paired work so our group becomes highly motivated to work in unity with one another. Zaccaro et al (2001) suggests there must be functional leadership in order to develop team or group dynamics, they also suggest that leadership and team processes influence each other. Relating this to the group as a coach it suggests that I must interact with the players in order to create team dynamics. If we have good team dynamics and cohesion then group motivation increases. Next week I want to spend time working on moves to beat cones and then progress from cones to poles and then into 1 v 1 situations.

American Sport Education Program (2006). Coaching Youth Soccer. Human Kinetics

Bangsbo, J, Pietersen, B (2002). Defensive Soccer Tactics. Human Kinetics

Brown, S, Dr Hopper, T (Unknown date). Can all Students in PE get an ‘A’? Game Performance Assessment by Peers as Critical Component of Student Learning. University of Victoria [online] [Accessed 02^nd Jan 2008, 15:10hrs]

http://www.educ.uvic.ca/Faculty/thopper/Web/articles/Cahperd/On-line%20GPAI.pdf

Caruso, A (1996). Soccer coaching, Deeloping and Tactics. Reedswain Inc.

Clark, B (1999). Coaching Youth Soccer: A Baffled Parent's Guide. Mcgraw-Hill Professional

Davids, K, Lees, A, Burwitz, L (2000). Understanding and measuring coordination and control in kicking skills in soccer: Implications for talent identification and skill acquisition. Journal of Sports Sciences, Volume 18, Issue 9 , pages 703 – 714 http://www.informaworld.com/smpp/content~content=a713776363~db=all

Gadson, S (2001). Psychology and Sport. Harcourt Heinemann

Lennox, J.W, Steffen, B, Rayfield, J (2006). Soccer Skills & Drills. Human Kinetics

Wein (2004). Developing Game Intelligence in Soccer. Reedswain Inc.

Zacarro, S.J, Rittman, A.L, Marks, M.A (2001). Team Leadership. The Leadership Quarterly. Volume 12, Issue 4, Pages 451-483 [online] [Accessed 02^nd Jan 2008, 16:25hrs]

http://www.sciencedirect.com/science?_ob=ArticleURL&_udi=B6W5N-4550867-6&_user=10&_rdoc=1&_fmt=&_orig=search&_sort=d&view=c&_acct=C000050221&_version=1&_urlVersion=0&_userid=10&md5=d75e3ce9c710180c27919234ec753978