Forwarding the ball by using the head while the ball is still in the air is an effective method and most of us have never thought about it. In youth soccer drills, this exercise in no way hurts the player provided it is learnt properly.
Before you begin with training the players in the skill of heading, deflate the ball a bit especially when they are doing it the first time. This can be done by letting some air out of the ball so that it shrinks and becomes soft and supple for kids to play. Before I get down to the details of kids soccer drills on heading, let me share with you the basics of this skill that players need to be taught first.
Teach the players to move along the ball in such a way that their body comes directly in front of the ball when they get in contact with it. Teach the players to continue watching the ball all the way through and until that time when it strikes their forehead.
The kids must know the importance of keeping their eyes open and watch the ball coming to and going away from them. If their eyes are closed, they can be hurt. Teach them in youth soccer practice to use the top-front part of their forehead to strike the ball and not with the temples or top of the head.
Most of the youth soccer drills highlight the movement required to head the ball properly. Following are the two drills that have been explained for you:
Sitting and Knees: When it comes to youth soccer coaching, this drill uses 2 players and 1 ball. One player will sit on the ground with their feet straight out in front of him or her. The second player will stand directly in front of the first one and throw the ball really low towards him or her. The idea is to throw the ball short so that the one heading it has to move forward to strike the ball.
This activity should go on with a player positioned with both knees on the ground. Then the player will have to bend forward to strike the ball. This drill is useful in teaching the players to use their head in guiding the ball.
Head out of Hands: To work with this drill, you need to have cones and a ball for each player. This drill requires the players to hold the ball with their hands and the throw it off by heading it. They should be instructed to move their head to the ball and then the ball to their head.
Using the cones has the advantage of teaching the players to head the ball to a specific location. The players learn the techniques to head the ball in a direction using their head.
So this is it; using these youth soccer drills, your players will get confident in heading the ball and competing without getting hurt. Our youth soccer coaching community has tons of valuable information on youth soccer and you can take advantage of it by enrolling for it.
Andre Botelho is the author of “The Expert Youth Soccer Coaching Guide” and he’s a recognized expert in the subject of youth soccer coaching. Learn how to explode your players’ skills and make coaching sessions fun in less than 29 days! Download your free pdf guide at: Soccer Practice.
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