Individual Juggling
Physical Homework
Players should perform the following conditioning activities plus practice their trapping methods, accomplishing the following over the course of the week:
Conditioning
Leg raises. Players can do these exercises indoors or outdoors. Laying on their backs, with their arms folded across their chests and their chins on their chests as well...players will raise their feet, together, off the floor 6 inches...hold for a ten count...raise them 6 more inches...hold for a ten count...raise them 6 inches...hold for a ten count...put them down 6 inches...hold for a ten count...put them down 6 more inches...hold for a ten count...put them down 6 more inches...hold for a ten count. Take a break and then repeat. Perform 3 times per day, every day this week.
Individual Juggling
Players should practice in their backyards, or at a local school while siblings play other sports.
Players will be practicing juggling the soccer ball. Juggling is an important skill since it makes players comfortable with controlling the ball on all surfaces of their body. Players should start small, with single juggles that they can then catch in their hands, and then advance to two juggles with the same body part before catching it, and then to three, etc...Eventually, they should be able to juggle once with one foot, and juggle with the other foot, etc. Using all of the body parts. This should become an individual skill that they work on - even into adulthood.
The secret to juggling the ball is to take the spin off the ball. Strike the ball with flat surfaces - instep, thigh, chest, head, etc - but strike it evenly, trying your best to keep the ball from spinning. Always try to strike the ball into the air at a comfortable height - 12-18 inches - to give you time to strike it again. Much the same surfaces as trapping, just that you are striking through instead of relaxing the body part.
At the end of the week - all players should be able to juggle the ball at least 3-4 strikes before losing control of it or having to catch it. Practice this!
Mental Homework
Players should study the following and come prepared to answer questions:
Soccer is basically a game of diamonds and triangles. When a team keeps a good "shape" on the field, there is always support for any player.
The yellow player is the goalkeeper, obviously. In diamond number one, the players, from bottom to top, are the sweeper, defenders, and center midfielder. The center midfielder makes up a crucial position in 8v8 - since they are responsible for passing to the "most open" player in both the defensive and offensive "diamonds". Diamond number two starts again with the center midfielder, then two outside midfielders, and finally ends with a single forward up top. We will cover all of the jobs of the players in the coming weeks, but for this week, please study the primary functions of the defenders:
The basic job duties of a defender are: "No Get; No Turn; No Pass; No Shoot". This means that the first job of a defender is to keep
her mark (opponent) from ever getting the ball; then to keep her mark from turning if
she gets the ball; then to keep her mark from passing the ball off to a more dangerous attacker; and, lastly, to prevent any shot on goal.
In that order.