I have spoken to many of the Goalkeeper HQ community about the importance of the goalkeeper being comfortable with their feet. Those that have read my coaching philosophy and expectations know that despite there being so many topics to cover as a goalkeeper, distribution in some shape or form will be covered in my sessions. Why? Because the goalkeeper is not only the last line of defense, but now, the modern day goalkeeper is also the first line of attack. (The inspiration for our L1 range of Goalkeeper Gloves) 

It is as important for us as goalkeepers to be able to play the ball out of the back as it is for a quarterback not to throw interceptions or get sacked.

I have provided other articles regarding how we can control the tempo from goal kicks, but we also get to dictate the style in which the team play. Do we Hail Mary every time? Do you go short? Do you get rid of straight away or do you hold on? 

There are some important coaching points when playing out of the back.

• A good first touch is important 
• Be in a position to play early if required
• Be comfortable with left or right foot to avoid being read.
• Have a range of passes in your locker – Long or short, Driven or lofted
• Communicate with players 

For all his faults this year, Claudio Bravo was brought in to Manchester City for one reason…… to provide the first line of attack to the team. This video below shows both how often he has to deal with the ball at his feet, and how good he is as the Quarterback of the team.

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This article has been taken from a recent newsletter from Goalkeeper HQ partner and Yale assistant coach, Marty Walker, who delivers weekly articles on sports psychology. You can sign up for his newsletter here.  Check out his web site, http://train-your-mind.com e-mail him at martywalker@train-your-mind.com

Pre Game Nerves!!!!!

How do they make athletes feel? Do they get excited about the impending competition or do they crumble under the pressure of nervousness and anxiety?

The truth is that it is perfectly normal to have a range of nervousness prior to competition and I believe in their necessity in obtaining optimum performance. Just as we feed our bodies with the fuel to perform, fueling our mind and managing our mind for performance is a necessity. Nerves are a fuel for the mind. 

So here are several tips on how to start managing nerves pre-game. In order to maximize your potential as an athlete, these tips need to be learned and mastered. 

So here goes…..

In a recent 442 Article, Leicester City’s strength and conditioning coach Matt Willmott was asked about the physical demands of academy football.

Here are a couple of the questions, with the speed comparisons at the bottom.

How big is the physical difference between Premier League and academy football?

Often, with games in the New England area being played in late November, December and March, I find myself constantly having to remind goalkeepers to keep warm in cold temperatures. This applies to practices and games and if you are the starting goalkeeper or are sitting on the bench.

Goalkeepers, more than any other position, have to keep their core body temperature up as they may have periods of inactivity.

A drop in the core temperature of the human body can result in numb hands and slow coordination – Obviously detrimental effects for goalkeepers.

Practice & training:

Use all necessary warm clothing to start the session. Layers are key with a water proof jacket as the top half layer. 

Any practice on a cold day should should be high tempo meaning that goalkeepers may need to shed layers. Be ready to add back on to these layers if / when the practice tempo slows down. i.e. – game play at the end. 

• Hat
• Snood
• Warm compression shirt
• Training shirt x 2
• Training top ( long sleeve )
• Water proof jacket 
• Compression shorts / pants
• Training shorts
• Goalkeeping pants

Game day – Playing:

Goalkeepers can take advantage of the fact that goalkeeping uniform often has long sleeves and pants are acceptable. 

Use hand / foot warmers prior to warm up. It is harder to get hands and feet warm than it is to keep them warm

Although a goalkeeper should not be playing with a hat on, there is nothing wrong with wearing a hat for warm up to keep body heat in.

Get a good warm up in. a)before you do your goalkeeper warm up routine b)before the game.

If the ground surface is wet, you should warm up and have separate kit to play in.

Take every advantage to be on the move during games. Be involved, but also get quick movements in when the ball is up the other end of the field.

• Dry kit to play in ( Change after warm up if necessary)
• Snood can be worn, but hats should not be worn for games
• Layer up, with a good warm compression base layer. 
• Multiple layers of shirts are allowed, but allow full range of movement
• Surgical gloves are good to wear under goalkeeper gloves to keep hands from getting cold / wet. ( powder inside stops sweating ) 
• Have additional clothing and gloves for second half
• Towel to wipe any excess water if wet.

Game day – Sitting on the bench:

Substitute goalkeepers have an important role to play to ensure the starting goalkeeper is suitably warm. The sub goalkeeper should help, rather than hinder the starting goalkeeper during warm up and be ready to perform. The sub goalkeeper should also be aware that in cold temperatures, injuries are more likely to occur and they should have the mind set that they need to be ready, as per the article [Waiting in the wings]

Sub goalkeepers, like the starting goalkeepers should have dry clothing to change into after what should be a rigorous warm up with the starting goalkeeper. There is nothing worse than sitting on the bench getting cold from your own sweat!

• Dry clothes / kit for sitting on the bench after warm up
• Hat should be worn
• Layer up in such a way that you are ready to play if called upon
• Thick bench coat ( if not already provided )
• Use hand warmers whilst on the bench
• Pants should be worn whilst worn on the bench.
• Keep warm with sprints and movements when coach asks players to warm up.

New addition – Keeping hands warm – 

This question was asked specifically via e-mail. Here was my answer.

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I found myself having to go in goal during the Quinnipiac indoor scrimmages this last week. It was good to get in between the sticks and after a shaky first 10 minutes in which I dusted the cob-webs off, I got back into the groove. My mind did start to wonder if I could play again at any decent level but the way I felt later that day and the next day soon reminded me what a foolish thought that was!

As if to rub it in, I then see that 44-year-old Essam El-Hadary has helped Egypt to the final of the African Cup Of Nations.

In doing so he has kept four clean sheets from five games. Here are some highlights of him from the tournament.

https://youtu.be/BIStAO0LCkI

Another 40 something year old is Sutton Utd’s Wayne Shaw. Non-League Sutton Utd recently shot into the limelight with an FA Cup 4th round win against Leeds Utd and now face Arsenal in the 5th round. Shaw in the reserve goalkeeper and goalie coach and will play if 1st team goalkeeper Ross Worner gets injured.

At 6ft 2″ and 280lb he will surely be Arsenal’s biggest test!!

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In a previous article, I wrote about some of the feelings goalkeepers feel when dealing with injuries. 

See here for Part 1.

Here are some of the strategies that have been shown to help players with injuries.

*Imagery: Visualizing one’s body healing and seeing oneself back on the playing field.

*Journaling: Writing down emotional content related to one’s injury.  Doing so with consistency and commitment can be a helpful way to manage the slew of emotions one experiences when injured.  It can also be a great resource for the athlete in the future, should another setback arise, as it can serve as a reminder of how he/she persevered through bleak times.

*Goal-Setting:  Much like with one’s regular training, setting and tracking goals when injured can be a beneficial strategy.  Goals should be reasonable and realistic and should include both long-term and short-term views, so progress can be monitored in an ongoing way.  Flexibility with goals and their attainment is especially important when injured, since rehab progress is often unpredictable.

Acknowledging Feelings and Reality: Recognizing some of the feelings from Part 1 and acknowledging them is important. Ignoring these feelings and trying to be distracted from facing these realities is not beneficial. (O’Connor Sr., 2011; Gallagher and Gardner, 2007; Evans, Hardy, and Fleming, 2000).

Counseling: In many cases, working with a psychologist can be helpful when one is injured and the emotional ramifications are significant.  Support from coaches is also critical, but there are times when a coach is too close to the situation and outside assistance is warranted and most likely to help. Marty Walker has a Masters in sports psychology – You can contact him here.

Find a Way to Stay Connected to the Sport and/or Find an Alternative Outlet: If you can manage to become a spectator, cheerleader, or coach for teammates or other athletes during your down time, this is sometimes a good way to remain involved.  However, it may be too emotionally painful if you are seriously injured.  It is also important to engage in other activities and be social with non-athletes.  At the risk of redundancy, social connection is critical when you are sidelined.  Recovery periods may be a good time to pursue alternative endeavors and take advantage of some down time that can be hard to come by when training is in full force.

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I write this post as two goalkeepers that I am close with are dealing with the heartbreak of long term injuries. For one player, it was just before a big college showcase which he missed out, and for another, it was the start of the club season after a successful High School season and being full of confidence. 

Dealing with injuries is as much a psychological issue as it is a physical one. Luckily, good friend, GKHQ partner and sports psychologist, Marty Walker is on hand with a list of thoughts and feelings that injured players may be going through. In this part 1, we help parents & friends who are close to the injured GK. It may also help the injured GK make sense of their thoughts. 

In part 2 we will look at some ways of coping with these feelings. 

Some thoughts of an injured goalkeeper.

1. Isolation – Although the goalkeeper can be quite a lonely position anyway, an injury can lead to feelings of isolation as you are no longer involved in team activities. 
2. Envy – There may be an unwanted feeling of envy towards the player that has taken your place once injured. Envy is an uncomfortable emotion and is often accompanied by shame or guilt.  Injured athletes should know that envy may be part of their experience, especially when an injury is serious and long-term.
3. Anxiety – Goalkeepers can feel anxiety with both their sense of identity ( now that they are not playing ) and also in their ability to fully recover. Some studies even indicate symptoms of post-traumatic stress after an injury (O’Connor Sr., 2011; Brewer and Petitpas, 2005; Podlog and Eklund, 2007; Peterson, 2009; 1; O’Neill, 2008; Appaneal, Perna, & Larkin, 2007). The anxiety of not wanting to re-injure may also lead to overdoing any rehabilitation exercises thus actually hindering the recovery process.
4. Fear of lack of ability – Linked to anxiety above, goalkeepers may fear that they may not return to the same ability or stronger than they were prior to the injury. When this happens, the goalkeeper may wonder if it is worth the hard work and battle needed to fight for the number one spot again.
5. Fear of re-injury – Injured goalkeepers often feel vulnerable after getting injured. This may affect decision making and technique once finally getting the gloves back on
6. Depression – When an individual’s source of enjoyment is taken away via injury, it is not surprising that mood will be affected.
7. Low Self-Esteem – Self esteem is often related to the identity you have on the field. A good goalkeeper is a leader, assured and an important part of the team. This identity can be challenged upon injury. 
8. Sense of relief – In some cases, when a goalkeeper has been under a great deal of pressure and strain to perform, being forced to take a break because of an injury can bring an unexpected sense of relief and even joy, even if this is not conscious.  The relief may be a source of conflict for the goalkeeper though, and he/she may not be able to simply enjoy it.  Rather, he/she may feel guilty for having such feelings and may try to hide them from others, especially coaches and teammates.  As one author puts it, an injury “may function as an ‘honorable discharge’ for [athletes] looking for an excuse to leave their sport” (Peterson, 2009, p. 230).

Go straight to part to of the article – How to deal with these feelings… Here.

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Coach Marty and myself recently took a team to play in Ireland. The team entered the Foyle Cup held in Derry, Northern Ireland and we took two goalkeepers who are part of the Goalkeeper HQ Mentor program.

Here is the daily e-mail sent to the team parents back home.

UPDATE 1

Parents,

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Parents,

Parents,

Just got back from our final group game which we won 2-0.  Austin and Sean got us the goals in the second half.

There seems to be a real bond amongst the boys who are keen to practice their Irish accents. The bond was needed today as they experienced some of the most one sided refereeing I have ever encountered. They got through it though unscathed.

This leaves us progressing through the group stages with a 1-1-1 record. We are currently awaiting details of our opposition tomorrow.

The group had a great walking tour of the peace murals in the Bogside of Derry today. Some great insight into the history of this city and life lessons for all.

Here are some photos of the Murals.

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Parents,

We had a lovely trip to Donegal today to see the Irish countryside. Some stunning scenery, especially at Grianan Ring fort, the venue where Marty proposed to his wife a few years back.

It was great to see Steve Rullo turn up at our hotel to surprise Nick last night. The press coverage continued as BBC Radio Foyle had Marty and Cam Sweedler in their studios to talk about the experience.

The boys yesterday joined some locals in the city square to play some football also. ( video of their extravagant entrance below )

I’ve put off talking about the game as it was, performance wise, our worst one tonight. The boys were tired, did not get to the second ball and unfortunately lacked quality in distribution. We are thinking the five games in five days plus excursions may be taking it’s toll. We lost.

There was a collective disappointment but there is still banter amongst the group.

We play our final game tomorrow against Foyle Harps, who, ironically is who we had our first game against. We could have played a number of teams, but one of the tournament’s assets is the seeding of teams so that you play your last game against the most evenly matched. We tied 2-2 in the first game so I guess the seeding works.

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