Fourni par Blogger.

By Nelda Powers


Youth football training varies from that given to adult players. A number of coaches may not know this but the young need special drills to get the best out of them. More drills only waste training time therefore leaving the team weak and prone to defeat in a game.

Drill is defined as a closely supervised activity that is repetitive and narrowly defined. This builds into the players habits that otherwise they would resist. Drils are used to perfect techniques into kids that they don't want to learnt unless under close supervision. As much as the drills are necessary, coaches should not waste time doing only those but should allow the team to participate in other skill building exercises.

Repetition is another drill every team should participate in. This helps in making the team learn specific single skills after doing it over and over. Each team can decide what skill works best for them then they repeat it for the benefit of the team. Skills like centers and long snappers are important therefore should be repeated enough times to stick in the mind and muscles. These however require very little supervision from the coach as the players can organize themselves and learn the skills after one or two demonstrations. This helps in creating harmony and synchrony in the team.

The very start of skill training is called chalk. Here, the team is taught verbally like in a classroom. The retaining of the lesson is not high but is necessary before the actual physical training. Every team member will have got the explanation before trying out the new skill in the field. Muscle memory is the best way to remember what is taught hence the repetition stage.

Without put-ins, a team will not be fit to play a real match. These are the initial activities a team needs to master t make them consistent and correct in performing certain offenses and defensively stop the other team. Training in football starts with chalk then goes to walk-through then ends in a full speed run. This gives the team the correct timing and reaction skills for a match.

The next stage is walk-through. Here the learnt skill is put into play at slow speed for everyone to see what is happening and for the coach to make corrections where required. This is the longest process since it is done very slowly. The offensive team demonstrates their new skills whereas the other team observes and prepares to react to the offensive. The opposing team stays almost motionless for example the fit-and-freeze technique.

The last stage in the drill is the scrimmage. Here, both teams perform their leant skills at full game speed. With the guidance of the coach, the offensive tries the maneuvers skillfully while the defense quickly prepares to stop them like in a real game. This helps so much especially the rookies who are yet to face a real team in a match. Reorganization after passes is also coordinated in this stage in most cases by the team members themselves since the coach dos very little supervision here due to the speeds.

20 minutes is just enough for the drill section for a youth football training. This will leave enough time in the two hour period for the players to learn other skills and coordinate a play. A good coach will let the flow with periodic input here and there.




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