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Here is some further clarification on the 4v0 shooting game. The rondo squares were set up ~ 25 yards from the goal. Both teams used the same goal to shoot on. There was nothing special about placement beyond choosing an area with good grass equal distance from the goal.
The rule to unlock the goal for shooting was that the team needed to complete 15 consecutive passes that were received across the body. If a player on the team made a mistake (didn’t receive across the body, one touch pass..etc) they had to start back at zero. Once they completed the 15th consecutive pass the player with the ball could dribble towards the goal and take a shot, or could pass the ball to another player so he could take the shot.
Once I saw progress with receiving the ball across the body I layered in the movement to the nearest cone to support the play. At that point I moved to 4v1. In retrospect I should have stayed with the 4v0 game a bit longer to really lock in the ideas, but we had been at the rondos for over 3 months and I was ready to move on. Once we made the switch to 4v1 progress took a step back with the biggest issue being the players getting to the supporting cone. I had to make the rondo box larger for a while so the kids could get use to the pressure.
We did rondos at every practice with my U10 team last year. We started with 4v0. The activity lacked intensity, and we were constantly pushing the boys for more energy. We stuck with it, and didn’t progress beyond 4v0 for a good part of the year because the quality of execution wasn’t there. I tried turning it into a competition, but even that didn’t help much. Finally, I created a game where after receiving the ball across the body 15 times the person with the ball could take a shot on goal. I ran it as a competition between two teams, and put a goalie into the goal. Suddenly I had intensity. The quality shot way up, and they wanted to keep playing. If they missed the shot I had the team start over again until someone scored. The next practice I started raised the target to take a shot until we were ready to progress to 4v1. I ran 4v1 as a competition with the person in the middle coming from the other team (which dramatically improved the intensity). As with most development some kids got it faster than others, and depending on the teams I formed and who was in the middle the quality ranged from pretty impressive to sloppy. That said – there was definitely growth over the season and by the end of the season some of them were asking if we could do rondos.
My U10 team had its first practice of the season tonight. We did the 4v0 and 4v1 (ghost) excercises as outlined in the videos. We’ve done rondos before so the idea wasn’t new to the players, but he have never emphasized receiving across the body and getting to the end cones for support . I found the players were able to do a good job on both of these key details in the 4v0 format..though their touch was very rough. When I layered in the ghost player things started to break down. They still did a decent job of receiving across their bodies, but having a person in the middle with very light pressure caused the pace of play to pick up significantly and the quality of the passing and touches dropped off. The other casualty was the players getting to the end cone to provide support. I used the tip Andrew shared above to help emphasize why it was this movement is important. I think they understand what they are suppose to do as they can respond on this when prompted. I think they just need more exposure to start developing the muscle memory/comfort needed to start to master these details.
I really like the idea of letting the person in the middle switch out if they catch someone not receiving across their body. As Brian did in the video demonstration I had to make a few comments like “you could have been out of the middle Jackson” to get the ghost to pay closer attention to how the players were receiving. I found that was a great way to get all of the players to focus. All in all I’m very pleased with the first session and can definitly see how repeated focus on this is going to yield great results. A big thanks to Brian, Gary and all of the posters for guidance and tips that helped get us started on the right foot tonight.
I coach a U10 team in Northern California. We aren’t year around at this age, but I run into similar problems in the spring because several players on my team play baseball or lacrosse. I’ve chosen to position myself as a multi-sport friendly coach as a way of attracting and retaining talented players who aren’t ready to commit to one sport. My team typically doesn’t have many games during this part of the season so the impact is primarily on practice attendance. I have a couple of strategies for managing the situation. First, I worked with my club to find a non-traditional practice time when everyone could make it. I ended up with one weekday evening practice and a second practice on Sunday afternoon. Second, I focused on a core set of technical skills during this time to mitigate the impact of a player missing the occasional practice. It’s not optimal by any means, but it has helped attract some talented athletes. Another down side to this approach is losing a player to another sport. Most of my players are soccer first, but I lost a great player this year to baseball and basketball. It’s a tough balance to manage, and I wish you the best as you work through your situation.
Thanks Michael, Ryan and Niels for your thoughts.
Michael – thanks for sharing the video of Bracelona – always helps to be able to watch it done.
Andrew,
Thanks for posting. I watched both of the videos and it appears as though your team really developed between the first video and the second one (edited with 5-pass sequences). In the first video there were some good moments of possession, but overall it looked like the team was less comfortable with spacing and movement. In the second video it was a dominent performance and I was really impressed by your teams poise on the ball. Even when the other team put pressure on your players they worked out of it and found an open player. There was a lot of receiving across the body, and some really good combination play. I particularly enjoyed the attack that starts around the 13:20 mark. There are four or five nice passes that lead to a goal. While I was at it I also took a look at your team information on your club web site. I liked your description of your philosophy and how you play. I think I might use some of that myself. I’ll let someone else give you some pointers for improvement….and this point I’m more on the receiving end of the advice. Thanks again for sharing.
Thanks Jed. I just bought a copy of your book and looking forward to working through it over the holiday break.
My name is Bret Anderson, and I live in Folsom California. I’ve been coaching for 5 years, and over that time it has become a passion/obession. I currently coach two teams with my wife Jessica. We coach a U12 girls rec team and a U9 boys competitive team at American River FC. We’ve wanted to implement a possession style of play for our teams, but the results have fallen short of our expectations. That is what led us to 3four3. The statement at the top of the sign up page sums up what we are after perfectly: “Reduce the Trial & Error Cycle and Gain Confidence in your Coaching”.
A huge thanks to Gary and Brian for helping to feed our passion and get us on a path to realize the vision we have for our teams!
I look forward to interacting and learning with you in the future.
