A day at G8Soccerschool
My days at G8soccerschool start at around 8am,carrying the equipment to and from my car to the facilities at Salesbury Memorial Hall home of Wilpshire Wanderers football club.
I spend some time opening up the changing rooms and putting the signage out for the soccer school. While waiting for the urn to boil, we start Drawing up daily session plans for all the different coaching functions and practices that we do over the day.
Next is setting up the sessions on the grass before I get a chance to Grab a quick coffee just as the first set of parents arrive with their children normally around 9am for the meet and greet.
There is some free time for the kids to get used to the environment,before I Call them back to the changing room for the daily briefing.
The briefing kicks off with a team meeting were I Introduce the kids to each other and to the coaches then I explain the rules of the soccer school.
I'm a believer in ball juggling and using a Futsal ball occasionally,this enables the kids to get lots of touches on the ball making the ball easier to control and help get more confidence in your first touch.
The kids have now renamed the Maradona 7 (a keepy-uppy skills game)to the Gally 7.
Depending on the level of each player,there is a choice, The Gally 3/5 or 7 and it doesn't stop there,with the current record standing at 21.
With their free time practicing juggling they will then try to attempt their Gally challenge on the Friday in front of the watching parents.
After a bit of fun during the warm up its onto the serious learning and the days category.
These range from passing,control and heading skills to basic shooting games with defending and attacking functions before Ending the morning coaching session with a match based on specific rules.(free play, 3 touch with 1 touch to finish etc.)
After Lunch has settled,the kids are back onto the practice field for another light warm up with more basic skill techniques and then the days fun competition starts.
Every afternoon we have a competition, whether it is bending it like Beckham, chipping into some buckets, taking penalty kicks or even a crossbar challenge with a difference the kids always look forward to the Friday and Football golf.
I designed a football golf course around the playing fields, this was made up using all the small goals as bunkers, slalom poles for flag sticks and cones for out of bounds markers.
This game brings all the kids match techniques out from their week of learning.Side foot passing, striking the ball with the laces,chipped passes even using your standing leg to kick the ball in difficult circumstances, all this brought together with the weight of the pass,challenging themselves and each other for the lowest
score.
Some parents like to arrive early and try out the football golf for
themselves,trainers on and eager as anything along with their child off they trot to try out the football golf course.
After the parents have had their fill and tested their own ability against their child's,we then start the presentation.
Handing out trophies to the competition winners and not forgetting any player who takes part in G8soccerschool, we hand out medals and certificates for their efforts through the weeek.
