1998 Volume 1 Issue 3 Coaching

Coaching Fourteen Year Olds

ERICH RUTEMOLLER

Erich Rutemoller recently attended The Football Association's

Football Academy Seminar at Walton Hall, Warwickshire.
He conducted a practical coaching session on shooting and smallsided games for young
and youth age players using boys from the Centre of Excellence at Coventry City FC.
Erich is the National Youth Director for the
German Football Federation and was formerly
a staff coach at the German Coaching School
in Cologne.

After a brief introduction and warm-up, the

following practices were conducted:

Shooting

Practice 1
1. The players start from 30 yards from the
goal.
2. Players should dribble in and out of three
cones placed five yards apart, as shown
opposite, and on passing the final cone,
shoot at goal from a distance of 15-18
yards.
3. Players work both sides, using left and right
feet to shoot.

Practice 2
1. Players stand, back to goal, a ball at their
feet approximately 25 yards from goal.
2. Players should back-heel the ball, turn and
shoot from 20 yards.

Practice 3
1. Players should stand 20 yards from the goal
as shown opposite.
2. Players should 'toe-lift' the ball into the air,
approximately five yards ahead of them.
3. Player runs forward to volley the ball past
the goalkeeper.
4. Work both sides to use left and right foot
volleys.

Practice 4
1. Players start 18 yards from the goal.
2. On the coach's command, the players
should dribble the ball towards the goal
and beat the goalkeeper in a 1-v-1 situation
- either dribble around or shoot past the
goalkeeper.
Small-sided Games

Practice 1
1. A game of 4-v-4 in an area of 40 yards by
25 yards.
2. Five goals are set up at random within a
playing area - using cones.
3. Play 4-v-4 and a player must dribble the
ball through a goal to score a point for his
team.
4. Once through the goal, the team in
possession must attack one of the other
goals - players cannot score twice in the
same goal.

Practice 2
2. Four players (X) play for the team in
possession of the ball. They cannot enter
the playing area but can move along the
outside lines of the pitch.
3. Three players attempt to retain possession
of the ball against two defenders. Should
the defenders gain possession of the ball,
they attempt to retain possession using the
outside players.
4. Number of touches:
(i) unlimited
(ii) maximum two touch.

Practice 3
1. An area of 35 yards by 15 yards.
2. Two teams play 3-v-3.
3. One team (X) in possession attempt to
keep possession in their own half of the
pitch - area A.
4. If the other team (O) intercepts or gains
possession of the ball, they move the ball
(run with the ball or pass to a runner) into
their own half of the pitch - area B - and
attempt to keep the ball in their area
against the three X s who follow and press
them.

Practice 4
1. An area of 35 yards by 15 yards.
2. S-v-3 inside the area and one player for
each team on the end line of the playing
area.
3. The team in possession retains possession
of the ball until they can pass to 'their'
target player behind the end line.
4. On passing to the end player, X enters the
playing area in possession of the ball and is
replaced by the player who passed to him.