Tag Archives for " Goalkeeper "

0 Positioning in the Goal

By Lawrence Fine, Author of the FineSoccer Coaching Bible.

Welcome to the Goalkeeping Newsletter.  Today’s topic deals with positioning and taking advantage of the fact the center of the goal never moves.

As a general rule, a keeper wants to be centered (which means however far off his line he might be, he would be on a line from the ball to the center of the goal).  The exceptions of this would be when the ball is out wide and a few other times when a keeper choose to be off center BUT would want to know where center is.

The one constant is the center of the goal never changes so we can start by putting a cone in the center of the goal.  Then we spread some balls out around the 18.

0 Goalie Wars

Goalkeepers have often been overlooked and under appreciated. In recent years, a competition that focuses on the special skills of goalkeepers has become increasingly popular. Goalie Wars tournaments started as a part of Goalkeeper camps but have started to be held as stand-alone events.

The rules are simple, two goalies are positioned 20-30 yards apart and they shoot, dropkick, throw or punt the ball to try to score on the other goalkeeper. They play two halves of three to five minutes.

Here's a example

0 Training a Team with Two Goalkeepers

This is the first time I've coached a team with two players that think of themselves as full-time goalkeepers. We came to an understanding before the season began as to how playing time would be divided. We also decided which events they would have a chance to play on the field when they were not in goal. In other events they would play one half in goal and not play in the other half.

This has worked well in large part because everyone has known what to expect and there have been no surprises. I also think it has been very good for both goalkeepers because there is an element of competition that

0 Don't Forget the Goalkeeper In Training

By Lawrence Fine, Author of the FineSoccer Coaching Bible.

Incorporating the keeper into team training is vital to do but so often neglected.  Those teams “fortunate” enough to have a designated keeper coach tend to have the keepers go with this coach for part, if not all, of the team training.  The reason for doing this is because the skills, techniques and tactics in goalkeeping are so different than the rest of the team.

The problem with sending the keepers “off to train” is if they aren’t incorporated into the teams tactics, major problems will occur in games.

As an example, if a team is going to occasionally push up into an offside trap, if the keeper isn’t aware of his positioning, great goal scoring opportunities might be created AGAINST you.

In the diagram below the black team is establishing a line around 25 yards out from goal.

If the backs all decide to step up, in order to condense the field or to push the opponents into an offside position, the keeper

0 Great Activity For the Goalkeeper AND the Team

Welcome to the Goalkeeping Newsletter.  Today’s featured activity works on a keeper reading the situation when the ball is on the end line.  This activity is great for keepers as well as the rest of the team.

Start with a keeper in goal, an attacking player on the end line just outside the 18, a defender 3 yards behind the player on the end line and a few attacking and defending players in the 18.

As soon as the attacker with the ball touches it, the game is live.

The attacker can dribble straight toward

1 Integrating the Goalkeeper into Team Training

I don't think most coaches give a lot of thought to the needs of their goalkeepers when they sit down to plan their session. They're usually just another player in the team for most of the session and then go in goal when it comes time to shoot or play a game. While it's important for all goalkeepers, especially young goalkeepers, to work with the ball at their feet they also need to train with the team in functional exercises. This establishes a link between the goalkeeper rest of the team that will translate to game day.

A book that got me thinking about this subject is, "Team Training for the Goalkeeper" by John Murphy. In this book Murphy gives examples for training your goalkeepers with the team in all phases of training. Warm-up, Functional Training, Possession, Small-Sided Games, Phase of Play exercises and 11 v 11 setting are all discussed. He also includes full sessions that integrate the goalkeeper throughout the session.

Here are a few warm-up exercises

2 Footwork, Anticipation and Breakaways

Welcome to the Goalkeeping Newsletter.  Today’s featured activity works on footwork, anticipation and breakaways.

Start with a keeper and a server.  There are 4 cones making up a 4 yard square and the server is just outside of one part of the square and the keeper is just outside the opposite side.  There is a ball 4 yards outside of each side of the square.

In this example the black player is the server and the yellow player is the keeper.

The server moves side to side within the boundaries of the sides of the square and the

0 Goalkeeper and Team Warm-Up

Integrating goalkeepers into team sessions is often a challenge for coaches who have experience playing or coaching the position. John Murphy deals with this subject in his excellent book, " Team Training for the Goalkeeper". Below is an excerpt from this book. It is from the Goalkeeper and Team Warm-Up Chapter. If the goal is

0 Sweeper/Keeper

Incorporating the keeper into team training is vital to do but so often neglected. Those teams “fortunate” enough to have a designated keeper coach tend to have the keepers go with this coach for part, if not all, of the team training. The reason for doing this is because the skills, techniques and tactics in

7 Should the "Pass Back to the GK" Rule Be Changed?

I often think about rule (laws of the game) changes that could be made to improve the game of soccer.  For instance, during the World Cup, I posted about changing the red and yellow card system, by maybe having a sin bin or using video replay after the game to catch the cheaters who are

6 A Wall or No Wall?

This is something I have thought about for years.  I remember talking to a goalkeeper coach a few years ago and he thought I was out of my mind.  This only spurred me on even more to thinking I was on to something.  After all, sometimes it takes thinking out of the box and going