Uncategorized Archives - Page 4 of 5

Category: Uncategorized (page 4 of 5)

Goalkeeper HQ Summer Camp Dates

June 6, 2016 / Leon / 0 Comments

Please see our promotional video for the camps taking place in Milford, CT this Summer.

Dates are:

July 6th – 9th ( Wed – Sat ) 9am – 12 noon

July 27th – 30th ( Wed – Sat ) 9am – 12 noon

A collaboration of quality goalkeeper coaches are coming together to provide the very best Summer Goalkeeping experience.

Each day provides technical work on the following:

Shot Stopping
High Balls & Crosses
Distribution
1 on 1’s & breakaways

Competitions such as Goalie Wars will be included. Goalkeeping testing will let you know how you compare.

Camp takes place at Milford Academy, Gulf Street, Milford, CT Price for the four days is $240

My footwork is poor – What does this mean?

April 28, 2016 / Leon / Comments Off

I recently worked with a goalkeeper who had been told his footwork was poor at a recent tryout. What I came back with was the following diagnosis.

I have replaced the goalkeeper in question’s name with mine to protect the innocent!

Footwork – Lateral movement. Shuffling or gliding.

Leon moves across the goal well when instructed. Ie lateral movement through ladder. He does have a lot of movement with his head – up and down, caused by the height in which he raises his legs and not squatting to keep smooth motion. My old coach told me I have to imagine a pole through my ears so as not to have my head go up and down.

Course of action: Practice lateral movements. Ladder work / Shuffling between cones. Focus on quick feet and head at same height. Video him doing it so he can see what we mean.

Footwork – Adjusting to the ball once it is struck.

Leon tends to stop moving his legs once the ball is struck. The ball is often struck at different angles or at higher level, moves whilst in the air. Leon tends to forget leg work and focuses on trying to save with hands. This results in him not having his body behind the ball or turning to make a save. It is important that the goalkeeper’s body shape is correct to make a comfortable save

Course of action: Have shots taken from 10 – 12 yds out, into a goal just 6 yds wide. Aim chest & head height. – No diving allowed. Test how many balls are saved with body completely behind the ball. Focus on quick feet and continue to move feet even after the save is made.

Footwork – Placement of foot on side contour save

By stepping back, due to being apprehensive about a ball coming towards you ( only natural for a 10 year old ) you turn your shoulders, resulting in no second barrier, hand shapes being off and the ball going into the back of the net.

Course of action – Practice saves from underarm service to head height in 4yd goal with only one step needed to side to make save. Focus on being aggressive and stepping forward. Getting hands out in front of face and ensuring good hand shapes ( W’s ) – This save in US Soccer is called the “Side contour” – Not taught in UK.

Footwork – Favorite side

Leon has a favorite diving side and his lateral movement across goal reflects this. Like me he prefers to dive to his left despite being right handed. Quite unusual but there are often outside factors that affect this. The side on which he sleeps, lays down to watch TV, or weakness in a particular leg. I bet he starts a race with his left foot!!!

Leon is better moving to his right because he is weaker at diving to this side. He compensates poor diving with better feet. Likewise he is lazy on his left because he pulls off good saves on that side. OK in the small goals but will get found out in the bigger goals as they often require a shuffle prior to the dive.

Course of action – Start going up stairs with right foot first. Without diagnosing anything, i think he needs to work on his strength / balance of his right side. It might be his kicking foot, but the power comes from the ability to balance and have core strength with the left leg. This correlates to kicking which is below.

Footwork – Stepping leg when diving

On Leon’s weaker side, I have noticed his first step is not correct. He steps more to the side with his foot almost at right angles. It should be facing forward. By facing outwards, you are physically unable to dive forwards as you dive in line with the outside of your foot. This restriction leads to “Swimming pool” saves or taking off with the other foot. The turn in the body leads to arms getting stuck under the body and not being able to save appropriately.

Course of action – Leon needs to do the proposal save. One knee on floor with leading leg up – Like a proposal! Server throws the ball to the side where foot is on ground ( Not the knee side ) Focus on position of foot at the beginning and diving forward when making the save.

Footwork – Distribution from back pass

Leon’s left foot is non existent!! – All the above come into play with distribution. Ability to move into line quickly, see the ball, open up hips to control with the inside of the foot. Balance on standing foot and have strength in that same standing leg to be able to have your kicking leg swing.

Course of action – As mentioned before, focus should be made on balance of right root. Lots of wobble board types of things to help. Bands also allow you to stand on one foot and move other leg ( Kicking leg ) with resistance.

The mistake of a goalkeeper playing on whilst injured

April 12, 2016 / Leon / 0 Comments

As goalkeepers, we all looked on in horror as we watched not one but two goalkeeping howlers by Liverpool’s Karius in the Champions League Final. If you didn’t see them, I firstly have to question where have you been? Secondly, here is the video below

I’m not going to desect the errors here, but the inspiration for me to update this original article from 2006 was the fact that it has recently come to light that the Liverpool goalkeeper has been diagnosed as concussed.

The concussion likely happened during a collision with Madrid’s Sergio Ramos in the 48th minute. It was only two minutes later that Real Madrid scored its first goal when Karius tried to roll the ball out to a defender, only to have Madrid striker Karim Benzema stick out his foot and redirect the throw into the net.

A concussion is a traumatic brain injury from a direct blow to the head that affects brain function. Regarding Karius, Mass General said in a statement: “At the time of our evaluation, Mr. Karius’s principal residual symptoms and objective signs suggested that visual spatial dysfunction existed and likely occurred immediately following the event. Additional symptomatic and objectively noted areas of dysfunction also persisted. It could be possible that such deficits would affect performance.”

The question we have to ask, is did Karius play on knowing that he had the concussion symptoms of headaches, confusion, a feeling of pressure on the head, dizziness, ringing in the ears, nausea, vomiting, slurred speech and fatigue?

I’m sure no one would want to admit being injured half way through the most prestigious game of your life, but the consecuences are there for all to see. Karius may never play for Liverpool again and will always be known as the goalkeeper that made two howlers in the Champions League Final.

See below for the original article where England goalkeeper, Jack Butland also played on after an injury.

April, 2016 –

Having recently watched a very entertaining international friendly between Germany and England, the one stand out was the manor in which Germany scored their first goal.

England goalkeeper, Jack Butland was hoping to stake his claim for a Euro 2016 spot by playing for England in the absence of established Number 1 Joe Hart, but Butland suffered an injury when going to ground to collect the ball in the 41st minute. He pulled up visibly after kicking a back pass two minutes later.

The Stoke goalkeeper did not signal to the England bench after sustaining the injury and his poor kick out was pounced upon by Germany, who took the lead through a long-range shot that beat Butland at his near post. The goal was obviously a result of Butland being concerned about his injury and then not being able to spring off correctly.

After the goal and with the England goalkeeper being in some pain, he was stretchered off.

See highlights of the game below, which shows how the injury happened after the goal is scored.

England coach Roy Hodgson said after the England win “Let’s keep these players’ feet on the ground. Let’s keep them humble. Let’s keep them hungry to learn from their mistakes so that, next time Jack Butland is injured, he goes down and makes sure he receives treatment rather than allowing the game to play on.”

This is a lesson we can all learn from.

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Keeping track of goals and habits

January 30, 2016 / Leon / Comments Off

I find that by keeping track of goals and habits to achieve throughout the year, you are less likely to fail and then give up. An example would be;

“Run 100 miles by April 18th” ( 100 days from January 1st ), Rather than “Run a mile a day”. This way, if you miss a day you can look to make it up over time until April 18th.

What to keep track of.

I feel it is important to set goals that are measurable. The things we measure are the things we improve. It is only through measurement that we have any proof of whether we are getting better or worse.

With this in mind, you should try to be as specific as possible. For example – “This year, I want to improve my kicking distribution” may seem quite specific as kicking distribution is just one part of the distribution theme of goalkeeping. You need to be more specific than that.

There is the following;

Short distance, wide, left & right
Playing through oncoming players to a central position ( Normally a defensive CM )
Playing into wide midfielders
Playing onto forwards
Playing beyond the forwards and the back line

Each element of this kicking distribution needs a test or a marker of success, like hitting a certain area. You then need to get your base level. ( your first attempt ) As a result, you can look to improve your score to achieve your goal.

In the Goalkeeper HQ membership, I look to break down every core competency of goalkeeping ( 102 of them ), with explanations on what they are, education so you can improve, and tests to track your progress. There is also my list of expectations for each age group. [Get the Goalkeeper HQ membership here]

How do you keep track of goals and habits?

There can be a whole article on both “Goal setting” and “Deliberate practice” but really, this article was to tell you that I have been using an app on my phone that has helped me keep track of the things I am trying to achieve. I have no affiliation with the developer and receive no benefit, I just wanted to share as it has been working for me.

The app is called “Strides” and is described as a goals and habits tracker.

Here are some examples of what I’m tracking:

Run 100 Miles in 100 days.
8 Cups of water per day
How many weeks with no soda (read what happens to your body when you drink soda)

Other examples that active Goalkeepers may use could be;

Number of goals conceded in the season
Mile speed
Number of missed practices
Money saved for new gloves

Let me know if you use it and what goals and habits you choose. [Leon@GoalkeeperHQ.com]

The goalkeeper possession changes and rules

January 11, 2016 / Leon / 0 Comments

Upon investigating when the “Six second rule” came into play, I came across this article on the FIFA web site which lists the rule changes that goalkeepers went through prior to the six second rule that we see today. The rule that recently Simon Mignolet got pulled up on which resulted in a goal from the resulting indirect free kick.

Here is the insert from FIFA.com taken from October 31st 1997 post.

Game of cat and mouse
Goalkeepers have of course always tried different tactics (or these have been devised for them by their coaches) to exploit the handling privilege in order to use up time. The International Football Association Board, as the rule-makers of football, have repeatedly tried to counteract this, and it has resulted in a kind of running battle, or game of cat and mouse, between the Board and the goalkeepers over the years.

It is quite a fascinating story to review, to see how we arrived at the latest rule changes introduced by FIFA on 1 July this year.

The story starts in the early 1960s, at which time the goalkeeper was still allowed to keep the ball in his hands for virtually as long as he liked, taking as many steps as he wished in the process, as long as he bounced the ball on the ground or threw it in the air and caught again as he moved. In other words, he was free to use up as much time and penalty-area space as he wished, and it was up to the opposition to try to get the ball away from him fairly and safely a virtually impossible thing to do.

It was around this time, as gamesmanship crept in and the privilege first became systematically abused, that the rule-makers felt it necessary to fire the first salvo in the battle, by introducing the four-step rule. The goalkeeper was given up to four steps to travel while holding, bouncing or throwing the ball in the air and catching it again, without having to release it into play.

The goalkeepers and coaches were quick to react. The goalies exploited the wording of the new law by using the four steps rule as they liked : they would hold the ball, put it on the ground after one or two steps, dribble it a few metres and still have two or three steps “in the bank” when they picked it up again thus using up valuable space and time.

The Board hits back
The Board hit back by declaring that if the goalkeeper held the ball with his hands and then put it on the ground, he would not be allowed to touch it again with his hands until it had been touched by another player.

The goalkeepers responded by holding the ball and then throwing it to a nearest defender, sometimes only a metre or two away, who would pass it back to the goalie, who would repeat the whole process all over again … and again. Another way of wasting time, and against the spirit of the FIFA ruling.

It was the turn of the rule-makers to react, which they did by saying that if the goalkeeper held the ball in his hands and then put it on the ground, he could not touch it again with his hands unless it was played by another player, of either team, outside his own penalty area. That meant that goalkeepers now risked having their short passes to defenders intercepted by alert opposing forwards.

But it did not stop some goalkeepers abusing the basic privilege of handling the ball, as they developed a new tactic: that of parrying the ball instead of catching it cleanly, even when they could have done so. They would merely pat the ball down to the ground with their hands, then take their time dribbling it to the edge of their penalty area before finally picking it up and holding it in the true sense of the term. Of course the goalie could always be challenged by an opponent, but he would react by quickly picking the ball up, thus limiting the effectiveness of such a challenge.

So the Board came up with an anti-parrying rule, saying that such deliberate parrying for the purpose of evading the Law was to be regarded also as holding the ball. That effectively put an end to that tactic.

But still the goalkeepers continued to defy the aim of the rule-makers to prevent time-wasting, now by use of the infamous back pass. Defenders would pass back to the goalkeeper, sometimes even from the halfway line, simply to exploit his special privilege of being able to pick the ball up with his hands and stifle all movement of the game. This frustratingly negative tactic was difficult to prevent for many years, and struck a very sour note in the minds of all those who loved the game for its real spirit of skill and attack.

The back-pass revolution
Then came the most potent salvo yet from the Board: the so-called back-pass rule. In 1992, it was ruled that if a player deliberately kicked the ball with his feet for his goalkeeper and the latter touched it with his hands or arms, there would bean indirect free-kick against him. Heading the ball, playing it with the knee, thigh or chest were all still permitted, as it was felt that such situations, deprived of the accuracy of a pass with feet, might create a chance of the opposing forwards stealing a wayward back pass to their advantage.

Within a matter of days of this revolutionary new rule being introduced, the coaches hit back and there were some absurd attempts to circumvent the Law: players used their feet to flick the ball from the ground into the air in order to head it back to their goalkeeper, or would take a free-kick by kneeling down and passing the ball back with their knees…

Within days, FIFA responded by making clear that any player thus deliberately negating the spirit of the new rule would be likely to be cautioned for unsporting behaviour and punished by an indirect free-kick.

This year ( 1997 ) , after long debate, it was decided to extend the successful back-pass rule by applying it also to throw-ins from defenders to their own goalkeeper, but the urge to extend it to all back-passes (with the head, thigh, chest, etc.) was resisted.

But the battle continues, with an important new element. From 1 July, referees have been given mandatory instructions not to permit the goalkeeper to take more than four steps while holding the ball as stipulated in Law 12, and if the goalie holds the ball for more than five or six seconds the referee must adjudge this as time-wasting and award an indirect free-kick against him.

The importance of learning from mistakes

January 10, 2016 / Leon / Comments Off

The cup games often give an opportunity for coaches to play the reserve goalkeeper.

I have, in the past, written about the importance of working hard to get back on the team and cup games are often the perfect opportunity to prove your worth.

The FA Cup 3rd round had Liverpool reserve goalkeeper, Adam Bogdan take to the field. Bogdan had recently been given an opportunity of first team football when first team Goalkeeper Simon Mignolet was injured. That did not end too well as Liverpool were beaten 3-0 against Watford. Bogdan was to blame for Watford’s opener with a dropped corner. ( See below )

Dealing with mistakes is not easy. No doubt he would have practiced corners to ensure he was fully confident with dealing with them again. All goalkeepers should work on their perceived weaknesses as well as the things they are good at.

Bogdan was given his chance again 3 weeks later in the FA Cup on live TV against Exeter City, who play 3 divisions below the Premier League, but unfortunately, another corner and another mistake left the Liverpool reserve goalkeeper red faced. (Video below )

With the ball that close to the goal, the goalkeeper is expected to deal with it. The options, are catch, punch or tip, as described in a previous article on corners.

Maybe, with the thought of the Watford corner on his mind, in which he didn’t get to the ball quick enough after his drop, he was keen to attack the ball?

It is important to not make the same mistake twice to show coaches that you have learnt from your errors and that you are coachable. Good match analysis will be able to help with this. Here is my comprehensive match analysis sheet.

Dealing with corners

Dealing with mistakes

Getting back on the team

College Coaches Consider Parents When Selecting Recruits

December 17, 2015 / Leon / 0 Comments

My trip to San Diego to help Yale, GK coach Marty Walker identify & recruit college players opened my eyes to how young players are getting looked at. Colleges are identifying players graduating in 2018! Take a look at what you should be doing at different levels at school. Interesting also to note that not one college coach ever asked what the score was in the games, but it was the parents getting worked up on the side that can only have a negative affect on players going to the college of their choice. Interesting that I saw this video passed on to me from a college coach friend in CA.

All coaches want to try to create a positive environment, and the parent on the side that becomes critical of their own son / daughter, the team, coach or opposition becomes a red flag for any future recruits.

Please see my other article on being a good soccer parent

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Parents dealing with a goalkeeper’s disappointment

November 5, 2015 / Leon / 0 Comments

My last article on dealing with disappointment was aimed at the goalkeepers themselves, but here is a post specifically for parents on helping their son or daughter deal with disappointment. The disappointment may be a little broader than just the result, which is what I focused on during the last article.

Firstly I would like to share my very popular post on how to be a good goalkeeping parent.

Disappointment can actually be a good thing — especially when you, as a parent or coach can teach them how to bounce back.

The fact is, life is full of disappointment and if through the game of soccer, it provides life lessons on how to deal with it then bring it on.

I have been amazed at the lengths goalkeeping parents go to to protect their son or daughter from the valuable lessons that goalkeeping disappointment may bring. Here are two examples; 1) Only playing for teams that win all the time 2) Taking players away from a club when their goalkeeper’s playing time is threatened by a second goalkeeper.

The following exert was taken from NBC Basketball Camps.

Watching your children in pain is so challenging. It is harder on you than it is on them. Don’t make it worse by living below the line through rage, back-stabbing the coach, talking negative about the program or other players, and filling the home with bitterness. Your words can be an even heavier burden. Disappointment is a fact of life but bitterness, shame, and rage do not have to be. Work to help your son or daughter become a more powerful, healthy and mentally tough person.

Remember this story. A young boy observed a butterfly straining to emerge from a cocoon. The butterfly appeared to be struggling and in pain. He rushed into the kitchen and brought out scissors. He carefully snipped the cocoon open and the butterfly was free. But the butterfly’s wings where misshapen. He later learned, the struggle and pain the butterfly must endure emerging from the cocoon were necessary for it to fly. Parents, take a deep breath and avoid the reactive impulse to rescue your children from disappointment, it could be the very thing they need to become the best they can be.

Here are five things you could do / shouldn’t do after a disappointing result.

Be in control over where and with whom you share your feelings. Immediately after the game is not a time for reactive, hostile, or bitter behavior. Venting in public, bad mouthing the coach, acting like you don’t care are poor ways to handle disappointment. Not only do you come across as a bad loser, but you will also be an embarrassment for your son or daughter who will already be dealing with numerous emotions.
Empathize, Empathize, Empathize! Though it’s tempting to rush in and reassure or correct your child’s thoughts and feelings (by saying, don’t feel that way, don’t say that, that’s not true!), this will only make kids get more upset because rightfully so, they feel you haven’t heard them. Instead reflect what they are saying, “this feels like the worst day of your life,” or, “you feel like you’re the worst player.” Empathizing doesn’t mean agreeing with their conclusions, it means accepting that this is your child’s state at this moment. By hearing his or her thoughts played back, children are often able to move beyond the feelings and recognize how they are different from the facts, “I feel that way, but I know it’s not true.”
Lower the stakes, not the standards: Separate your child’s value from the outcome of the game. Your child’s value as a human being isn’t at stake every time he or she steps on the field (it only feels that way to them) Don’t dispense with the importance of playing well, but dispense with the inaccurate interpretation of what it means to lose: ask your child what it means to him or her if he loses, and then ask them to think what it really means in life. What is the interpretation that the coach has? The other players? The outcome of the game is temporary and changeable, your value is permanent and only will improve with effort.
Separate the feelings from the facts and ditch the absolutes: When we’re upset our feelings are extreme, fortunately, the facts are not. Best way to point this out is to simply reflect back what your child says and remind them that feelings are strong at first, but they pass; they don’t last forever. So, if your child says: “Everyone is better!” you say, “It feels like everyone is better than you—is that what you really think is true, or just how you are feeling right now?” Listen and help your child correct the absolutes: “everyone is better” becomes “some people play better, some don’t”, “I never do anything right,” becomes, “I usually play well, this was a tough game.” “I stink at everything” becomes I am strong in shot stopping, I need to practice my kicking more.
Identify where your child is on the learning curve: Ask your child how long they have been playing the position. Think through with your child about how long it will take to learn a new skill and how they will know when they have mastered it. Be aware of all the core competencies that goalkeepers need and ask the goalkeeper to evaluate themselves on each to get an idea of where the work needs to start.

The Goalkeeper HQ learning cycle helps players in each area of the game.

Read and watch more about the coaching cycle and how goalkeepers can put it into practice through the Goalkeeper HQ Members Area.

Dealing with team disappointment

November 5, 2015 / Leon / 0 Comments

As a goalkeeper, you will be prone to the odd mistake. Unfortunately for us, the goalkeeper’s mistake more often than not leads to a goal. Our hope is that any goal that comes from a goalkeeping error does not affect the outcome of the game. I have previously written about goalkeepers dealing with mistakes

Disappointment comes with playing sports as there are winners and losers. I have discussed disappointment on playing time and getting dropped from the team previously, but in this article, I would like to deal with the disappointment of a bad result.

Learning to handle disappointment appropriately is very crucial. Disappointment left unattended and unchallenged can lead, according to researchers to depression, bitterness, a weakened immune system and a more pessimistic view of life.

Disappointment is defined in the dictionary as the feeling of dissatisfaction that follows the failure of expectations to manifest. In other words, to have what you were expecting, hoping for, planning on, not work out.

Here are 7 ways players can deal with the disappointment:

Be mentally tough. Make decisions based on your mental toughness not on your feelings. You may feel like giving up, you may feel like blowing up at the coach. Instead, decide to act as mentally tough as possible by not becoming reactive, hostile, or bitter. Venting in public, bad mouthing the coach, acting like you don’t care are poor ways to handle disappointment. Be in control over where and with whom you share your feelings.
Find the Wins within the losses. – While every game or event has winners and losers, the real loss is when you don’t give credit where credit is due. Ask yourself what went well? While you may be critical of something you did wrong, you may be dismissing and devaluing the things you did well, because in the all or none game, if you can’t do it all, you lose. Not so. Look at professional athletes, the best hitters have the most errors, the best basketball players can’t master the free shots.
Learn from your mistakes – Help make the crisis an opportunity for learning how to improve: Analyze like a detective what went wrong and see if there are things to help make it happen differently next time (practicing a particular skill, staying focused on the game). Analyzing is the first part of the Goalkeeper HQ learning cycle.
Identify the outlier: When perfectionistic kids make a mistake they assume that error redefines their life, starts a new trend for them as a loser. It is important that if you are on a winning team that suffers a loss, it is an exception and should not make a new rule.
Create your own goals for each game. Despite the outcome of the game, you can always circle back to the goals that you can control.
Get your eyes off yourself. Serve someone else to get your mind off your own troubles. As bad as your loss may feel, remember there are many, many people who are worse off physically or environmentally.
Research how a favorite player or role model has dealt with disappointment. Tim Howard talks about his disappointment on being so close to winning the FA Cup in this bleacher report. Howard was able to take the wins from a disappointing World Cup result for the USA as they went out to Belgium in 2014. Tim Howard had more saves ( 15 ) than any other goalkeeper since the 1966 World Cup.

Parents dealing with a goalkeeper’s disappointment should click here

Discussion about turf and it’s effects on goalkeepers.

October 1, 2015 / Leon / 0 Comments

I recall seeing this story last year. It recently came up again as one of the clubs Everton America play against have just had their application for a turf turned down due to the pellets and Wilton High School, who will be replacing their turf next year will no doubt be aware.

I trained on turf at Greens Farms Academy the other week which used different material from the tyre pellets.

Read the article here.

http://www.nbcnews.com/storyline/artificial-turf-debate/how-safe-artificial-turf-your-child-plays-n220166

Read another article about the facts of playing on turf and how it affects the game.

Your headquarters for all things goalkeeping

Category: Uncategorized (page 4 of 5)

What to keep track of.

How do you keep track of goals and habits?