Coaching Advice by Scott Hankins

Coach Hankins is the varsity boys soccer coach at Highland High School. He has many years of coaching experience at the high school level, holds a USSF "C" license, and is the former District I Commissioner of IYSA. Over the years, Coach Hankins has participated in the development of our club's players and coaches through camps and training. We welcome his advise.


Goalkeeper Communication

The following commands and instructional phrases are suggestions to better allow you to do your job effectively in the goal. Communicating with your teammates is one of your top priorities! It will make your team more organized, thus harder to beat, and will help make your job easier! The fewer quality shots your teammates allow, the less you have to work, and the fewer goals allowed!

Ball In Farthest Third of Field Away From You:

  • Best Position: Out at top of penalty arc.
  • Priority: Defensive Organization. Don’t get caught up in "cheerleading" or instructing attackers. Have your defense prepared for a possible counterattack. Try to maintain "numbers up" on defense.

Ball in Central Third of Field:

  • Best Position: 6-12 yds off line (depends on your recovery/tip save ability and position of ball)
  • Priority: Ensure your teammates are recovering toward your goal, and organize defense to prevent long thru-balls and penetrating runs.
  • Commands:
    • "Pressure"/"Go Ball". Get someone near the ball-carrier now!
    • "Step Up". When opponent passes/drops ball back, get your defense to move out a few steps, 5-yards immediately is a standard "Step".
    • "Drop In". You want more players to get back in front of the ball (goalside).
    • "Shift Left/Right". You want your team to move toward a flank in unison.
    • "(Name), Move". Encourage a teammate to run,esp while ball is in flight.
    • Specific marking assignments. "(Name), stay with 12!"
    • "(Name), Stay/Hold". Discourage central defenders from drifting with the play away from their primary/central area(s).

Ball in Your Defensive Third of Field, Approaching Your Goal:

  • Best Position: a step or two off line
  • Priority: Give good information to individual defenders, esp in 1v1 situations to prevent shots.
  • Commands:
    • "Hold her/Don’t dive in". Encourage patience in defenders so they don’t get beat. Help them buy time for teammates to recover and add pressure.
    • "No Turn". Not allowing an aggressive forward to turn toward goal can often prevent a shot from ever happening.
    • "No Foul". Often a defender in a tight 1v1 isn’t exactly sure of their position or positions of supporting defenders. You can help them be patient and not commit a dangerous foul near goal when it’s not prudent
    • "(Name), there - Left/etc". Give specific instructions to mark to specific players. Saying "Someone mark #10 won’t get the job done, your teammates will assume someone else will get her. Be specific.
    • "(Name), coming your way". Alerts a teammate that a runner is approaching their area, prob’ly blindside. Help them.
    • "Side on". Help your defenders approach/challenge attackers with good body positions. Pay particular attention at your teams’ defensive practices, so you’ll know how exactly your coach wants your players to pressure, then you can help them in game situations.
    • Any positive feedback. "You’re good right there, (Name)".
    • "No cross". Encourage outside defenders to pressure enough to eliminate good crossing opportunities. Many goals are scored from balls served into the box from wings.

Ball In Dangerous Shooting Position:

  • Priority: Watch the ball. Focus all of your attention on the ball.
  • Other reminders:
    • Give helpful info to your defenders as they attempt to possess or play out from the back.
    • "Mano on" and "Turn" and "Carry" can help keep your teammates from making a costly ball-handling error near your own goal.
    • "Away". Urgent neeed to get ball out of our half now!
    • "Keeper!". Lets both teams know you’re coming, often will prevent dangerous collisions.
    • Compliment your defense on job(s) well done.

Be an assertive but cooperative goalkeeper and your team will work hard for you and your Goals Against Average will be low too!

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Goalkeeping Tactics

Defensive Wall

  1. GK should make a forward (upfield player) set the "Post Player" - the player who is lined up on a direct line between the ball position and near post. Have this player take one (1) half-step to the "outside", then build wall in from her/him. Build the wall from tallest as Post-Player to shortest to the inside.
  2. Quickly & loudly indicate how many bodies you want in your wall. Instruct all others to man-mark opponents.
  3. Enforce that your defenders "Hold Their Line". One player panicking and "dropping in" too early may allow dangerous attackers to move closer to goal in on-side positions.
  4. Notes: Put size in your walls. Smallish players aren’t very effective at chipped/lofted kicks. Keep one taller player out of the wall to man-mark the opponent’s most likely aerial threat.
  5. Remember: The wall is responsible for direct shots at near half of goal, you are responsible for the other half, and moving to any chip in behind the wall.

Coming off the Line/Breakaways

  1. Use the 2-step rule: If a teammate is within 2-steps and not losing ground at the time you feel that you need to commit, stay home! If your teammate is more than 2-steps behind the attacker, or if the teammate seems to be losing ground, go!
  2. Keep your hands low in either case. Be prepared to sprawl out at the feet of the attacker to block as much of goal as possible.
  3. Once you’ve committed to the ground, always go hands to ball. Don’t make "cute" saves! Make strong saves! Dive/sprawl with your hands going directly for the ball.
  4. Never watch the opponent or his/her body! Keep eyes focused entirely on ball. Don’t be faked out by a clever move or feint. Only the ball position and speed matter, that's what you’re after!
  5. Do everything you can to grab & hold the ball in a 1v1 situation. Cover it up. Tipping, parrying, or deflecting will only give the striker another shot!

Penalty Kicks

  1. The secret is in the eyes! Watch the shooters eyes after they set the ball and stand up. Almost every shooter will glance at their intended target area w/o thinking about it, it’s an unconscious reflex!
  2. At younger ages, shooters are not deadly accurate, trust your ability & athleticism and let the ball be struck, then react to it’s flight. Choosing a side and diving early is for professionals. Be smart about it!

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The Battler

Philosophy

You may be the greatest striker of a ball ever seen, but if you only get 2 shots off per game, you won’t break any goal-scoring records.

  1. The Battler makes Opportunities for himself and the team.
  2. The Battler is not afraid of being fouled, doesn’t fear the meanest defender’s tackles.
  3. The Battler will use his entire body to get to a shooting position or through a crowd; understands when to push vs a pull and pull vs a push (Aikido).
  4. The Battler can Hold The Ball with skill and confidence even under extreme physical pressure or challenges.
  5. The Battler has a 1v1 Mentality: "Bring It On, Defender! Take your best shot, let’s tango! I will score on you! The only ‘move’ you need today is picking the ball outta the back of the net!"

Team Exercises

  1. 1v1 All the time! Get comfortable with the ball at your feet, and develop ability/skill to protect it from a challenge and get around defenders. Go to a goal (cone, tree, etc).
  2. Dribbling Games Marbles, Knockout, Sharks & Minnows, Hospital Tag. All encourage constant ball movement, but with eyes up to observe approaching danger, and the ability to shield ball from challenges.
  3. Traffic Any game in a tight space, where pressure is frequent and close. Games should have directional objective (goal to shoot at, line to cross, etc) to encourage players to drive "forward".
  4. 1v1 to Goal Games vs defenders + GK in full-size goal to develop confidence to beat a defender, spot the GKs position and get accurate shot off.

So what can I do at home?

  1. Strength-Physical strength (via running, weights, etc) does more than just make the body stronger, it tends to increase an athlete’s confidence. Make yourself hard to knock over, hard to take the ball from.
  2. Agility-Jumping rope, hurdles, dot drills, agility drills. All make you quicker when you cut or change direction near defenders, not to mention give you a safety factor vs reckless defender’s challenges (you’ll jump over that slide tackle!).
  3. Confidence-Be so comfortable with the ball, and in your own strength, that you want the ball at your feet, and you want to make defenders look foolish!
  4. 1v1-Every chance you can, talk your dad, sister, neighbor, or best friend into some 1v1 in the driveway, backyard, or basement. Set up goals (water jugs work well) and make fools of them!
  5. Moves-You should develop a couple of moves to beat or fake a defender/GK. practice!

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The Raptor

Philosophy

  1. The Raptor is swift, deadly, efficient! Defenses and especially GKS fear him!
  2. The Raptor intends to attack via breakaway at least twice per half!
  3. The Raptor is always watching a defense’s shape, looking for a gap to sprint through, space to fly!
  4. The Raptor is patient, but crafty. Always looking for that one defender who doesn’t want to be there, or the slow footed one who he knows he can beat every time! Runs at these weaker targets as often as possible!!
  5. The Raptor thrives on 1vGK confrontations. Dares the GK. to stop him from scoring! "Come on, Keep! You’re team are all on the ground behind me! Here I come! Whatcha gonna do?"
  6. The Raptor is efficient in the goal mouth. Having broken free with speed, can beat the GK with a well-placed and well-paced ball into the back of the net! Can chip, drive, touch, knock, & flick balls confidently and with accuracy, even if trying to jump away from a psycho-keeper’s lunge! Bergkamp, Shearer, Van Nistelroy ~ poise under pressure.

Team Exercises

  1. 1vGK-Breakaways, (old) MLS Shootouts.
  2. Half-field 1v1-Forward and defender take off after ball sent in. Try to score on goal.
  3. Scramble-Players inside the penalty area try to score on a GK (or multiple GKs!) who are scrambling around in the box to knock balls out. Develops the shooters’ ability to avoid GK challenges at close range and to flick, chip, etc on-target.

So what can I do at home?

  1. Run-There’s no substitute for fitness. You must be fit to make full-speed runs at goal!
  2. Run with Ball-Run, even do sprints, with the ball at your feet. Get confident moving forward with speed, yet keeping the ball close and under control.
  3. Target-Set up targets, cans, bottles, jugs, other balls. Hang from tree, fence, prop up on Shooting cones, etc. You want to develop the ability to hit the ball to a precise target at various speeds - hard shots, light flicks, short chips, etc.
  4. Moves-Again? Yes! Even the best GKs can be tricked into going to ground too early, or committing to one side too soon on a breakaway by a shouldeer dip or hip fake or step-over move. If well-timed and the GK bites, the finishing part is easy!

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The Poacher

Philosophy

Coaches often refer to bad bounces, deflections, etc in the goal area as "Half-Chances". Most players see a bad bounce as a "no chance", but not the Poacher! The Poacher, like those coaches, knows that a ball in range, with no one controlling it, is still at least a half-chance for him to knock into the net!

  1. The Poacher is always on his toes in the goal mouth! He knows that a ball may come his way at any moment!
  2. The Poacher knows the ball bounces funny, and doesn’t expect or need the ball to fall exactly on his right laces to attempt a strike!
  3. The Poacher is willing attempt strikes at goal that others might not, even if showy or flamboyant. Headers, diving headers, flying side volleys, and the always spectacular "chilena" or Bicyce Kick are all part of the Poacher’s repertoire!
  4. The Poacher loves climbing over defenders to head at goal, or to slide recklessly into a crowd of confusion to make one last poke at the ball toward goal!
  5. The Poacher knows that 2-5 shots per game is typical of most forwards, but he won’t settle for less than 10+ for himself!
  6. The Poacher has a 1vEverybody Mentality! "Get outta my way! Comin Through!" No fear of crowds, will climb over his own teammates to get to a ball if necessary!

Team Exercises

These can be VERY entertaining, fun practices!!

(Use caution though, as a lot of this can be physically dangerous if too reckless or unsupervised!)

  1. Crossing/Heading-Any crossing practice should create plenty of opportunities for the team’s Poachers to have a field day! Headers, diving, bikes, go nuts!
  2. Receiving Air Balls-It’s important as a Poacher to become comfortable receiving long balls, air balls, even crosses with all parts of body to direct the ball to goal (shoot!) or to drop ball to feet for a shot. Most American players struggle with air balls, but it’s part of the game, and can turn nothing into a sudden strike at goal!
  3. World Cup-Everybody vs the GK. GK throws a ball out, everybody tries to score. The epitome of the 1vEverybody Mentality!! Keep in mind, if everybody wants to score, they don’t want you to score! So when you get the ball, everyone will be trying to get it away from you! Go for the goal!

So what can I do at home?

  1. Jump-Develop height in your jump. (US Star/Columbus Crew’s Brian McBride can hit the crossbar with his forehead!!)
  2. Quickness-Fast Feet give you a better shot at those Half-Chance balls!

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The Finisher

Philosophy

"We don’t have Shooting practices. That implies missing occasionally. We have Finishing Practices." US Women’s Nat’l Team Coach Tony DiCicco said right before the Women won the World Cup in a ShootOut.

Our game is about one thing: scoring more times than they do. That means we’re not successful unless we put the ball into the opponent’s net! Who’ll do it? Our GK? Our defense? Maybe. But the responsibility falls primarily on our Forwards.

  1. The Finisher likes his team to get him the ball, because it’s his JOB to score goals!
  2. The Finisher has struck so many balls in training, that it’s always a comfortable motion.
  3. The Finisher never panics, rushes, or flails at the ball. Movements are precise, efficient.
  4. The Finisher knows that his skill, shooting, is the single most technically difficult skill to do well in soccer. Therefore is willing to put in extra time and training to hone that ability.
  5. The Finisher has a wide variety of striking skills. Bending balls, long-range driven balls, close-range knock-ins, headers, even Free Kicks. David Beckham and Roberta Carlos don’t bury Free Kicks regularly for lack of practice!
  6. The Finisher has a 1v0 Mentality. Supreme confidence to "tune-out" all other players when shooting, and total focus on ball and his own mechanics. No distractions. "Only the back of the Net Can Stop this ball today."

Team Exercises

  • Shots Plenty of balls struck at goal, ideally at a full-size goal + GK. Many clubs worldwide believe a True Forward should strike 500 to 1000 balls a Shots day!! Repetition is critical! But beware! Coaching is vital here! If you hit 500 balls today, but 490 of them were struck wrong or poorly, you’re only reinforcing bad habits!!

So what can I do at home?

  1. Touch-Spend a lot of time with the ball. Juggling, dribbling around yard. Get comfortable with the touch, shape, size, of the ball.
  2. Breathing-Teach yourself to breathe in through the nose, then out through the mouth. This helps focus, concentration, and relaxation, which are all necessary for a quality, accurate strike on the ball.
  3. Target Work-Spend time on accuracy, not power all the time. England’s David Beckham is known as the best chipper/crosser in the world. My favorite TV soccer ad is Beckham, at night, chipping a bag of balls, one by one, onto a golf green, from distance, even hitting the flag a few times. An old groundskeeper watches him and tells the camera, "Lad’s out here every naht."

Coach Hankins can be reached at CoachHankins@aol.com. You can visit the Highland High School Trojans Boys Soccer web site at www.eteamz.com/HHStrojnSOCR

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