Soccer drills can open your players' eyes to the potential for how skills improved by practice pay off once at game time. "Remind your athletes that the way they train in practice is the way they will play in the game," writes California-based coach Debra LaPrath in "Coaching Girls Soccer Successfully." Because your players will rely on recall almost totally during competition, intensity during practice drills is key.
Dribbling
While high-level coaches emphasize the speed and elegance of passing, dribbling takes first priority in skills work by youth coaches. Every player, even the youngest, wants to dribble from the first time she sees a soccer ball, and the creative heart of the game relies on stylish dribbling. Introduce your players to concepts of using various parts of the foot by having each player, with her own ball, play follow the leader. Lead them in a line as you use the inside and outside of the foot to change direction. Alter your speed and use fake moves as they imitate you.
Passing
Passing also ranks as an extremely important technical skill; LaPrath notes that it allows a team to move the ball quickly up the field and maintain possession. The elements of good passing include maintaining the right speed, or pace, good timing and accuracy. Short passes are the bedrock of team play, writes Alan Hargreaves in "Skills and Strategies for Coaching Soccer." Hargreaves recommends setting up cones about 6 feet apart to form passing lanes. Have your players pair up, one ball per player, and pass the ball to each other from a distance of 10 yards, keeping it within the lane marked by the cones. Have them push the ball with the side of the foot through the horizontal centerline of the ball so that it is straight, accurate and travels with a topspin to their partners' feet.
Heading
Players above the age of 10 can learn to strike the ball with the top of their forehead, either offensively as part of an attempt to score or defensively to remove the ball from danger. Practice proper heading technique in a seated position on the ground to help isolate the movement of the head and neck, LaPrath recommends. Pair off players. One sits on the ground with her knees bent and the other stands and throws an underhand toss. The seated player heads the ball back to her partner's hands, keeping her eyes open and striking the ball with the forehead, at the hairline. This drill emphasizes the sharp and integrated movement of the torso to provide power.
Shooting
The most difficult task in soccer, scoring requires shooting the ball with power while using the instep or laces area of the shoe. Have your players practice with a supply of soccer balls in front of a goal with nets and a goalkeeper ready to defend, Hargreaves advises. Lob an aerial ball to the first player, waiting in the area of the penalty arc, who must head it forward, follow it to goal and shoot using an instep drive --- in other words, with the top of his foot. Have the players focus on an area of the goal that is difficult to defend, such as the corners at ground level. They must aim carefully for the focus area while looking for a contact spot on the ball, then send the ball with power to the spot.
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