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Well our focus on core skills for the first two practices followed by drills simulating parts of the soccer game paid some dividends. I'm going to list the most of the drills we used in our practices and try to follow the order in which we organize our skills.

1. Dribble, Dribble shoot
   • As players arrive to practice we have them shoot on the goal. Follow some simple rules: Players must shoot before the line that you setup, no stopping to shoot, kick away from the coach (goalie)
2. Learning everyone's name  on the team
   • Name Game
3. Ball Control
   • Soccer Ball Hop (Part of our warm-ups for practice)
     • Gets our players use to touching the ball with both feet. I'll add this one soon to our list of drills.
   • Swab the Decks (Part of our warm-ups for practice)
4. Dribbling
   • Double Dribble Across the Square (Practice starts with this drill)
   • Dribble Round the Square
5. Passing
   • Passing Pairs Game
   • Crisscross Passing Game
   • Pass, Pass, and Score
6. Kicking & Game Simulation
   • Animal Act
   • Monster Corner Kick
   • Monster Goal Kick
   • Kick and Attack
     • We simulate starting the game by passing and attacking
7. Throw-ins: Hit the coach
   • All the players on a line following the rules for a proper throw-in. Players try to hit the coach with the balls.

At the end of the practice we talk about rules of the game using a clipboard of a soccer field:

1. Defensive players (fullbacks) must keep the ball to the sides of the field. If you want to kick it out of bounds you go for it.
   • Defensive players kick the ball up to the forwards
   • Run back to your position after the forwards have the ball
   • Defensive players cannot pass the half field line

1. Offensive (Forwards) players  want to move the ball up field and center it when possible  
   
   • Don't wait to get to close to the goal before kicking
   • Forwards can come back as far as the end of the center circle to assist the defense and wait for a pass
2. Midfielders can go on both sides of the field

There are more rules we go over but you have a feel for what the players are learning. During this discussion I'll ask players questions instead of going over the rules as it makes talking about soccer more interesting. Spending the 10 minutes to go over our team rules is just as important as all the skills we practice.

Our first game went very well has we controlled the ball most of the time. As luck would have it the other team scored first giving them a 1 - 0 lead over us. The Goalie Girls didn't give up and shortly afterwards one of our younger girls took the ball, charged down the field and scored our first goal. It was amazing as she showed great determination in attacking the goal and shooting the ball. The game ended with a 1 - 1 tie that made both teams winners! What a great way to start the season as both teams scored goals.

We did have some trouble with positioning on the field as our forwards wouldn't cross the midfield line. There were times when the ball was very close to the midfield but our forwards wouldn't cross the line to help. Other times our defensive players would kick the ball as best they could to the forwards but again they didn't cross the line to get the pass. No fault to the players has they were following our rules-of the-game in keeping their positions. So how did we resolve this problem?

At the start of the next quarter I pulled the forwards together and quickly told them that they can go to the end of the center circle. See the "Forwards" article for a picture of what I'm talking about. To show them what I meant we ran out to the field together and looked at the center circle. I also said, "If the ball gets close to you go get it." That change in positioning had an immediate impact as it was easier for the defensive players to transition the ball to our forwards.

After the game we pulled the players together and recognized each player by passing out motivational soccer patches. For example, we talked about how one person played excellent defensive and presented her with a patch. Or how another girl made a good pass in the first game of the season! I'm happy to say that our players were very proud of how they played and really enjoyed their first game. Checkout the attachment below for what we reward our players for when passing out the iron-on patches.

Follow the Coach: Team Bench

For those that been following the progress of the "Goalie Girls" you know that I've been co-coaching the team and also assisting with another team called, "Fire". Working with both teams has been a great learning experience as I see how other the coaches like to run their practices and games. One idea that I thought was terrific involved making a team bench for the players to sit on during the game. If you watch the slide show at the top of the screen you will see our Goalie Girls holding the team bench for a picture. Coach Missy brought a piece of wood painted sky blue on one side and soft pink on the other. Great bench colors for the Goalie Girls! Accompanying the bench was different color paints the girls and coaches used to write their names and make hand prints. After we all had our turn putting our names and hand prints on the bench Coach Missy took it home and put on a clear protective coat so that art wouldn't wear or wash away. Now besides this being a great creative idea that you would keep for a long time it had a very positive impact on our soccer games!

Normally, our players rest on the sidelines with parents or they follow the coaches which has its advantages and disadvantages. With our custom team bench our girls sit in one place that I can easily see and call too when we need a quick substitution. Once more sitting on the team bench is fun for the girls meaning that it takes no direction from the coaches or parents to get the girls organized when they are not in the game. That's how the team bench has improved our game. I hope you like the idea and consider using a team bench with your players!

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