Recreation and Sports

Youth Soccer Drills:Heading Secrets Revealed

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. Doing this skill in Youth soccer drills is particularly safe when it is carried out with care and caution.

When you are about to teach the heading skill to players for the first time, you should do it with a deflated ball. This can be done by letting some air out of the ball so that it shrinks and becomes soft and supple for kids to play. Before I get down to the details of kids soccer drills on heading, let me share with you the basics of this skill that players need to be taught first.

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. The players must keep their eyes fixed the ball all the way through, till the time it comes into contact with 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. They can be seriously hurt of they don’t keep their eyes open. 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.

Youth soccer drills

A large number of youth soccer drills call attention to the movement involved in correctly handling the ball. Following are the two drills that have been explained for you:

Sitting and Knees: Performing this drill in youth soccer coaching requires two players and one ball. One player will sit on the ground with their feet straight out in front of him or her. The second player should stand right in front of the second guy and pass the ball very low towards the other player. The strategy behind this is that the person who hits the ball has to come forward to do it because the ball id thrown short.

This activity should go on with a player positioned with both knees on the ground. Then, the player will have to attack forward to hit the ball. Using this drill, the players learn to use their head to steer the ball.

Head out of Hands: This drill requires cones and one 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 learn to alternatively move their head to the ball and then bring the ball to their head.

Using the cones has the advantage of teaching the players to head the ball to a specific location. The players learn the techniques to head the ball accurately and using their head.

So now you know, using youth soccer drills, the players will learn to safely head the ball in a game without hurting themselves. There is a wealth of information and resources on youth soccer available in our youth soccer coaching community and you too can take advantage of it by registering for it.

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: Youth Soccer Training