brochure-U6-Marlboro Youth Soccer

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The key takeaways are that the primary focus of the Marlboro Youth Soccer program is on player development, having fun, and safety. The goals are to develop basic skills through getting players touches on the ball and introducing basic skills activities.

The goals of the U6 program are to have fun for players, coaches and parents, get players as many touches on the ball as possible, and introduce basic skills.

The coaches are trying to develop the players' basic skills so they are prepared to move up to the next level. Key skills include dribbling, kicking, trapping and throwing.

Player Development Guideline

U6 Co-Ed Soccer

www.marlboroyouthsoccer.org
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Marlboro Youth Soccer Overview

Marlboro Youth Soccer Mission


Marlboro Youth Soccer (MYS) is dedicated to providing all children of Marlboro a
place to play soccer. Our primary focus is on player development, having fun,
and providing a safe environment.

• Player Development – our goal is to teach the players how to play


soccer to the best of their ability. To accomplish this all players are to
be given equal playing time during games and attention during
practice.
• Having fun – the number one reason to play is to have fun. The
number one reason not to play is that it’s not fun. To promote fun we
will encourage equal participation in practice and games, matching
athletes’ ability to their challenges, and by helping to set performance
goals, rather than outcome goals.
• Safety first – it is important to always make sure that a safe and age
appropriate environment is set for games and practice.

Player Development Guideline


The goal of this document is to:

• Establish clear and age appropriate goals and objectives so our


coaches, players and parents know what we are working toward
• Establish objectives so coaches have a common understanding of
which skills players should have when they proceed to the next age
group
• Establish age appropriate priorities and focus areas in the four
elements of the game (technical, tactical, psychological, and physical)
• Ensure consistency among our programs so we’re all teaching the
same way and using the same vocabulary
• Create confident coaches that are better prepared

U6 Player Development Handbook Marlborough Youth Soccer v.1.0


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U6 Player Development
Typically a U6 player that starts at age 4 will have 4 seasons of play before
he/she moves up to U8’s. A fall and spring season at age 4 and the same at age
5. Our goal is to develop their basic skills so they are prepared to move up to the
next level. We can’t expect these young players to master everything below in a
single season, but taught consistently from season to season they will get it over
time. Keep this in mind as you read through this document.

Key Objectives for the U6 MYS Program

• Have fun (players, coaches and parents)


• Get players as many touches on the ball as possible
• Introduce basic skills
• Individual and pairs activities

Transition Considerations
This for many or all of your players is the first exposure to both soccer and
organized sports. They may have no frame of reference or comparative
experiences.

For most U6 Players:


• They will have never played on a bounded field
• Are used playing with their own ball
• May be aware of positions (Wing, Center, Fullback, Goalie) but still lack the
discipline to play any type of formation
• Soccer is about scoring goals not defending

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Typical Characteristics of U6 Players

Below is a list of typical expectations and characteristics you can expect from U6
players in the MYS program

1. focused on themselves – reality to them is solely based on what they


see and feel
2. unable to see the world from another’s perspective – it is “the world
according to me” time.
3. Asking them to understand how someone else is seeing something or
feels is unrealistic
4. everything is in the here and now – forget about the past and future,
they live in the moment.
5. heating and cooling systems are less efficient than adults – we need to
give frequent water breaks (every 8-10 minutes) or they may just run
until they cannot run anymore
6. enjoying playing, not watching – they feel no enjoyment from watching
others play when they could be playing too. Make sure every player
has a ball in practice so every player is always playing
7. limited attention span (on average 15 seconds for listening, 10-15
minutes when engaged in a task) – keep your directions concise and to
the point. When in an open environment, such as a park, their attention
span will dwindle towards 10 seconds
8. effort is synonymous with performance – if they have tried hard, they
believe they have done well. This is a wonderful quality and we should
be supportive of their enthusiasm
9. active imaginations – if we utilize their imaginations in practice
activities, they will love practice!
10. look for adult approval – watch how often players look to you for
approval or to see if you are looking. Also be encouraging when they
say “Coach, look what I can do!”
11. unable to think abstractly – asking them to think about spatial relations
or runs off the ball is Unrealistic
12. typically have 2 speeds -- extremely fast and stopped
13. usually unaware of game scores – we should keep it that way
14. often like to fall down just because it is fun – they are just children
having fun
15. often cannot identify left foot vs. right foot

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Player Development Objectives


This document will help to identify key objectives within the four key areas of
player development. The priority areas will evolve for each age group
progression. The key areas of player development across all age groups and
levels are:

Technical Development– These are the skills used to play


the game, i.e. the “fundamentals”. This includes things like
dribbling, passing, shooting, receiving, tackling, juggling,
heading, etc.

Along with making sure players have fun, skills is probably the
most important area for youth players to focus on.

Tactical Development – Tactics for youth soccer focuses


largely on decision making, i.e. how players can make the
correct decision given a particular situation. We should try to
understand the progression of tactics and develop the
players in the proper sequence, so that players are
comfortable solving easier problems (1v1, 2v1) before they
move on to solve more complex ones (4v4):

Psychological Development – For youth soccer, this


relates to whether the player is having fun playing soccer,
and other aspects such as how they deal with winning and
losing, their level of motivation, and how they interact with
teammates, coaches and their parents.

Physical Development – Fitness for youth soccer players


can be largely achieved by just letting them play soccer,
although some of the older age groups (U14 and maybe
U12) may start incorporating speed and conditioning into
practice games and activities.

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U6 Player Development Objectives


The following key training priorities are recommended by US Youth Soccer and
Mass Youth Soccer for coaches of U6 players. A focus on helping players
develop these skills and very basic tactics is critical as it will serve as the
foundation for skills and tactics that will be introduced when these U6 players
move on to the next age group. The key focus is an introduction to the basic
technical aspect of the game and ensure all the players are having fun.

low high

medium very high

Over the next few pages we will go into the specific elements within each area
that players will be encouraged to learn before entering the next age level.

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U6 Technical Skill Priorities

Technical focus at U6 level should be an introduction to all the fundamentals of


soccer skills with a specific focus on dribbling.

Field Play - Technical Skills:

• Dribble with all sides of both feet (inside, outside, sole)


• Dribble out of trouble
• Dribble past someone
• Changes of direction and turns

• Introduction to shielding – Players should develop proper technique to shield


the balls from opponents
• Introduction to shooting with both feet (with inside of foot and laces)
• Introduction to passing with inside and outside of both feet

Players should spend equal time developing both feet – this is very important!!!

U6 Children are physically and maturationally undeveloped and we must remain


patient and not try to force them to develop too quickly. Dribbling needs to be the
primary focus of our efforts, though passing and shooting should be introduced at
this age as well. With all age groups, especially at U6 children, we need to make
sure that fun is a central theme in practice. Player development will occur most
appropriately and expeditiously if all players are enjoying themselves.

Dribbling is the Technical Focus Area


The most important skill for beginners is dribbling. The ability to dribble the
soccer ball is absolutely critical for youth players in the U6 age groups as it is the
foundation for all the other basic skills of soccer such as receiving, passing and
shooting. When a player is comfortable with the ball at his or her feet, the game
becomes easier and more fun.

It takes many years to be a confident dribbler and the process takes a lot of trial
and error on the part of the young player. In the beginning, there will be a lot

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more failed attempts at dribbling than successes in both practices and games,
but be assured that with each attempt to dribble the ball, the player is figuring out
what works and what doesn’t work. As coaches and parents, we need to be
patient with the young players as they learn how to dribble. There will be many
times, especially during games, when we will have the urge to yell “kick it” or
“boot it” to the player, but we should refrain from this as it will likely send the
wrong message and discourage him or her from learning this very important skill
and using it in a game-like environment.

We also need to encourage players in this age group to take risks and be
creative in their dribbling. Ronaldinho and Mia Hamm weren’t able to pull off
their great moves when they were six or eight years old – but they might have
been thinking of those moves at that age!!

U6 Player Development Handbook Marlborough Youth Soccer v.1.0


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U6 Tactical Skill Priorities

Coaches should not try to teach young players about tactics at this age. This will
lead to frustration both for the players and the coach. The focus for U6 players
should be learning technique, especially dribbling. Just let them play!!!

• No Tactics!!!

For players or teams who are the more advanced end of the technical spectrum,
simple introduction to attacking and defending could be introduced. Problem
solving and making decisions for themselves are critical tactical elements in
young players and simple 1 on 1 drills can help introduce these concepts. Below
are some of the tactical skills to focus on at this age-level.

Players could be exposed to these simple tactical scenarios and understand how
to both attack and defend these game contexts.

• 1 v 1 (attacking and defending)

1 v 1 duels could be incorporated into practice sessions to allow all the players to
get plenty of opportunities to learn how to dribble past an opponent and how to
stop one.

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Psychological Development

Psychological focus at U6 level is another major priority. Fostering an


environment where our players can grow in confidence, try new things and have
fun whilst doing it are critical to developing well rounded players.

• Keep it fun and enjoyable!!! This will help foster a desire to play (intrinsic
motivation)
• Need approval from adults
• Need constant positive coaching
• Encourage imagination and creativity

The most important aspect of psychological development for young players in the
U6 age group is for them to have fun. As a coach, you should strive to create an
environment where the players, parents and you, the coach, are all having fun.

Young players are constantly seeking adult approval. As such, positive coaching
is critical for this age group. In addition, positive coaching can help build the
young player’s confidence, which is a very important in their psychological
development.

For some experienced U6 players, they could start recognizing the fact that they
are part of a team and they begin to associate themselves with their team. This is
a great opportunity to start teaching young players about the value of teamwork
and what it means to be part of a team (i.e. trusting your teammates, not
criticizing them, etc.). Certain fun teambuilding activities can be done during
some practices, especially in the beginning of the season when players may not
be familiar with each other.

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Physical Development

Physical development is not a priority for U6 soccer. Encouraging all players to


play and participate and give their best is really all that’s required.

• Just play soccer

U6 Player Development Handbook Marlborough Youth Soccer v.1.0


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U6 Player Development Overview


At the introductory level of soccer it is crucial that we do not overload our young
players with too much information or try to teach them everything we know about
soccer. Just as in parenting, it is important to be consistent in coaching and we
must make sure that we follow a progressive trend of development for young
players. To this end, we need to continue to focus on technique during our
practices, as we will in future years. Creating environments in which players get
maximum repetitions of technical skills is key.

Player Development Web References and Resources:

Mass Youth Soccer week by week practice plans offering proper coaching
technique and example drills.

http://www.mayouthsoccer.org/pages/3611_u6_practice_plans.cfm

Marlborough Youth Soccer has posted other coaching resources available for
download at:
http://www.marlboroyouthsoccer.org/Documents.asp?snid=343615339&org
=marlboroyouthsoccer.org

Player Development Curriculum Updates


Marlborough Youth Soccer wishes to thank its Board of Directors for their work in
contributing to this development curriculum.

Comments and Suggestions are always appreciated


Please forward all comments pertaining to the coaches handbook or players
development handbook to the Director of Development who can be located at
http://www.marlboroyouthsoccer.org/contacts.asp

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Coaching Notes

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U6 Player Development Handbook Marlborough Youth Soccer v.1.0

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