Youth Soccer Drills:3 Simple Steps To Heading
Forwarding the ball by using the head while the ball is still in the air is an effective method and most of us have never thought about it. In Youth soccer drills, this exercise in no way hurts the player provided it is learnt properly.
Before you begin with training the players in the skill of heading, deflate the ball a bit especially when they are doing it the first time. Let some air out of the ball so that it becomes soft and easy to handle. In kids soccer drills, I’ll be happy to tell you the fundamental rules of heading before getting down to the major points.
When the ball is in air, teach the players to move along with it so that their body is directly in front of it when they face the ball. Players should learn to maintain a clear view of the ball all the way in until it thumps their forehead.
Let the kids understand the significance of keeping an eye on the ball and watch it coming to them and going away from them. If they close their eyes, they’ll get hurt. In youth soccer practice, players should be taught to strike the ball with the top-front area of the forehead instead of the temples or crown of the head.
A large number of youth soccer drills call attention to the movement involved in correctly handling the ball. Two of these have been discussed for your benefit and are as follows;
Sitting and Knees: This youth soccer coaching drill involves just 2 players and a ball. One player should sit on the ground with the legs spread out in the front. The second player will stand directly in front of the first one and throw the ball really low towards him or her. The objective behind this is that because the ball is thrown short, the person will have to come forward to hit it.
This activity should go on with a player positioned with both knees on the ground. Here, the player will have to lunge forward to strike the ball. This drill is useful in teaching the players to use their head in guiding the ball.
Head out of Hands: In this drill, one requires cones and a ball for each player. This drill requires the players to hold the ball with their hands and the throw it off by heading it. They should be taught to move their head to the ball and not move the ball to their head.
Use of cones can help in teaching them the skill of heading to a specific location. The players acquire the skill of heading the ball in a particular direction using their head.
So this is it; using these youth soccer drills, your players will get confident in heading the ball and competing without getting hurt. There is no limit to the amount of information and knowledge available in context of the heading skill and you can subscribe to our youth soccer coaching community to let this knowledge help you too.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR:
Andre Botelho is the author of “The Expert Youth Soccer Coaching Guide” and he’s a recognized expert in the subject of youth soccer coaching. Learn how to explode your players’ skills and make training fun in less than 29 days! Download your free pdf guide at: Soccer Drills
Tags: Kids soccer drills, Soccer Drills, Youth Soccer Coaching, youth soccer drills, youth soccer practice
