The soccer goalkeeper is one of the most forgotten and unappreciated positions in the sport. The majority of people are afraid to play it or watch their kids play it; the few who do decide it is their spot, are marked off and placed in the goal. With youth players, it is usually the one or two kids that do not completely hate goal that end up being put there. This lack of interest and focus on the position is why creating an opportunity that solely focuses on the goalkeeper is needed among youth soccer clubs.
These opportunities will give many young players a chance to get a full grasp on their feelings for the position, may it be love or hate. Clinics also provide an easy way for aspiring goalkeepers to learn the technical side of the position from people who are experts in the goal. Creating a soccer goalkeeping clinic from scratch, however, has many challenges to be worked through. There are many different parts to holding a sports clinic that will be beneficial to all that are involved. When working with kids, it is especially important to focus on keeping spirits up, getting better, and having fun.
These thoughts have to be kept in mind when creating any type of sport training session. After much research, there are different approaches to setting up the clinic, but three things seem to be reiterated by all experts. To put on an efficient goalkeeping clinic the behind the scenes work must be addressed early on and promptly; the drill structure should be planned out and assessed based on the clinic’s age group; and the host of the clinic must focus on how to make the players aspire to keep playing the goalkeeper position.
A sports clinic can only run as efficient as the time spent and work done weeks before the clinic takes place. The planning stages of any major events are the most important to take care of early on. These initial steps are essential pieces of the sports clinic puzzle. Everything is based on how well planned out the event is. The first step, however, of getting a clinic up and running, is figuring out the goal for the training. As a man who has coached many soccer teams, Steve Watson says that it is important to “write [an] objective down on a small piece of paper or a notebook [for reference] during the training session” (Watson).
This objective can be very simple at first glance, but it will be the basic outline for the entire session. It could plainly be similar to: focus on the technical aspects and give youth goalkeepers the attention they have been deprived of in their early years of playing. This is the very first idea that must be brought forward. It gives the clinic coordinator an air of confidence and dependability, which are attributes needed to help persuade other people to help throughout the process. Having a goal helps people better understand what exactly will be asked of them if they are needed through the process.
Danny McEllin, a board member of a local town travel soccer club, says that having a common goal gives the best outcome for the players as they will all understand the same principles when it comes to higher level play. The next step is gathering a basic idea of what will be needed during the clinic. Soccer balls, goals, goalkeeper gloves, and field space are the most fundamental equipment needed for a goalkeeping clinic. If these are not easily accessible, it is important to figure out a way to get them before going in front of people to promote the training.
Once all the elemental aspects are thought of, it comes down to getting people to work together to get the clinic set up. The logistics themselves can be one of the most tedious part of the whole organization process, but are also key to the development of the training. Doing things like reserving the field, deciding the date, gathering resources, and finding assistants are tasks involving large amounts of communication by the clinic coordinator. Meeting with people who control different aspects that will be needed for the clinic is one of the first steps to setting up a session.
Getting to talk to the people who control field space or are willing to help oversee the day is vital. “Putting a good [training] together for a goalkeeper takes a little planning and a little organization from the coaching side” (Walker). Communication is key to show professionalism as well as reliability. People will sign up for a camp that is well thought out and not just thrown together at the last minute. All the behind the scenes things need to be addressed in advance so people will be willing to participate. This willingness to participate comes down to advertising the clinics to the community.
Telling the date and time of the clinic, and listing out the supplies the kids will need to bring, gives the community the opportunity to sign up. Sign ups should be held for a certain amount of time and closed before the clinic day so the coordinators can use the information to look at more specific jobs. A clinic for 30 kids should be handled very differently than a clinic for 10 kids, based solely on the amount of supplies that will be necessary to run. The number of attendees influences how many assistants are needed as well as how the clinic will be set up.
Then the development of the specific drills run will be worked on to give the maximum efficiency and fun out of the clinic. These steps are ordered this way to give the host of the event the image of professionalism. It is necessary to have a simple outline to give people an idea of what will go on. The outline should be filled in as the organization process progresses. Not everything will run perfectly, but having a plan makes it easier for people to respect the work done and to have more time to develop their own skills on the field.
Sports clinics need to be developed and structured around the age groups that are taking part in the training. When working with younger, less experienced goalkeepers, it is essential to keep their attention for as long as possible. This is why most clinics directed towards under 14 year olds should run for no more than 4 hours. Within the selected time, Danny McEllin along with Ben Nabers suggest creating 30 minute blocks to focus on specific skills. There should be 6-8 skills to focus that should be addressed in their unique time block.
Examples such as “leadership, organization, distribution, crosses and box domination, shot stopping, reflexes, and many more” (McEllin) could be used as the focal points. With that said, remembering the age group, attention spans can be very limited. This means that keeping things under the K. I. S. S, Keep it Short and Sweet, method used by Steve Watson is very important. Most youth coaches have 3 major don’ts when it comes to training a younger age group; lines, standing up, and talking. Keeping the kids focused on the specific task at hand will give them a better opportunity to get better, and will also keep them interested.
Short and sweet drills get the message across while not giving the players any chance of getting distracted. This will give the kids a first glance at the concentration that is needed to play goalkeeper. Rob Walker, a former MLS soccer goalie and US soccer federation goalkeeper trainer says that, “Learning how to concentrate is the same as a technical skill: it is all in the application” (Walker). With younger players, the more technical aspects, like hand placement and footwork, are key pieces to work on at goalkeeper specific training.
Younger players have less ‘bad habits’ to break; it is easier to teach a child to do one thing than to un-teach them a hand placement and give them a new way of placing the hand. Understanding and being able to explain the entire game is one of the many benefits of playing the goalkeeper position in soccer. Many experts believe that young goalies should also play on the field to get a better grasp on the game as a whole. “Working on recognizing the cues [of the game]… and learning to verbalize those can be a helpful step in translating focusing to decision making to communication” (Walker).
Catching the ball and knowing how to throw the ball are technical aspects, but learning when to do those particular skills is something to be taught at a young age. When kids not only understand the game, but also get recognition for doing so, they also gain confidence in themselves. Young kids need to feel as if they are appreciated, which will drive their determination. Joe Cannon, one of the most respected MLS goalkeepers, says that, “Rather than just technique and athletic ability, coaches should also be looking at determination, attitude and drive of each individual.
Coaches at clinics should encourage kids to show determination as the goalkeeper position is all about confidence. It may not be something that can be taught, but confidence is something that can be nurtured. The use of six 30 minute blocks is an ideal structure for a youth goalkeeping clinic because it keeps the kids active while giving them enough time to learn something new. It is necessary to provide substantial time for growth, while also boosting up the kids confidence in themselves as well as their teammates. All coaches at a training have to be willing to help and inspire the young players to keep playing the game.
Coaching is all about nurturing the excitement that comes from within the individual players. Most youth level goalkeepers see very little individual help on the specific skills needed for the position, so when the time comes for any sort of attention is usually accepted with passion. Joe Cannon spoke about his first experience with a goalie specific training, “I felt so special to have someone come over and tell me how to catch this way or move that way. It didn’t matter at the time that Nick had very limited GK experience, what mattered is the attention I received” (Cannon).
Young kids want to learn and experience new things; coaching is about finding those skills and allowing kids to explore every angle of a position in sports. Many clinics have a variety of different coaches who can give the players different teaching methods. All of these coaches take different styles of coaching to allow their players the best training they are capable of. When it comes to coaching younger players, it is important to remember that some are there to just have fun, while others are there to focus strictly on the technical aspects.
Both of these kids are going to show up at most sports clinics, so it is important for the head coach to find ways to handle both attention spans. Making the clinic personal also gives the kids a better connection to the game; personal stories about the coaches experiences show the kids what a future in the sport could look like. Nabers says the best way is to show the community how you are different from other clinics to “stand out in your community” (Nabers). McEllin, a local coach and training developer, suggests giving a unique story about how the position both drew the host in as well as pushed them away from enjoying their time in net.
The goalkeeping position is one that very few attempt to play, which makes it essential to help the kids see the power and confidence they can gain from playing it. Paying attention to the kids attitudes is just as important as pushing the technics. As Rob Walker would say, “As coaches, [it is key to] come up with ways to involve players in quality technical and tactical situations. The ‘other side of the coin’ is how to make the goalkeeper experience some of the same ‘quality of life’ moments as the field player gets” (Walker).
Young kids see a ball and want to chase after it; they need to expel the energy they have been harboring all day at school. Showing kids that a position that can be high impact one moment and low impact the next is fun is hard work when all they want to do is run around. It is essential to express the role of the goalkeeper and give the kids an example of how exciting the position can be. This can be shown through the more experienced coaches demonstrating bigger saves or videos of the best saves in professional leagues. These small pieces are not about the technic, but about the attitude of the players after they leave the training.
Every kid should leave the clinic with a smile and a stronger motivation to play the position correctly. The host must nurture this idea by being positive while still giving comments. Helpful, positive criticism is the only way to keep interest up. All young players want to be in the action. It is the coaches job to show them the action is all in the emotions brought on by game day. Sports give kids the ability to use their energy, and being a soccer goalkeeper is one of the many positions where energy and excitement never lacks.
There are many aspects that go into a running an efficient and interesting sports clinic for youth soccer players. The main things to focus on are the preplanning, the structure of the drills, and the inspiration of the players by the adults running the camp. The work done before the clinic should be worked through at an efficient pace as to leave time for any kinks to be worked out before the clinic date. The structure of the drills should be age specific, so the players can get the right amount of practice on specific skills.
The host needs to be motivating as well as organized to make sure the kids enjoy the day and any future endeavors as a soccer goalkeeper. Kids are more willing to learn new things. They do not have as many bad habits that can be broken, so it is easier to mold and develop specific skills. Training kids at a young age is all about helping their growth little by little and keeping their interest. Goalkeeping is a very specific position in soccer that very few people are willing to play, so giving youth players the opportunity to play that position can give them a more open outlook on the position and the sport as a whole.
