South River Youth Athletics

As in the Tots clinic, the main emphasis in the Junior Clinic should be individual ball control. 5 year olds are finally understanding the idea of chasing the ball on defense and taking it from the other team. If you tell them to pass the ball right after they get possession, they'll likely not understand why it's so important to go get it in the first place. Rather, emphasize taking the ball to open space (green grass) when ever they get the ball. Once they break out of the pack, they can start making their way to the goal. If they tire or get blockaded when dribbling--then explain to look for a teammate to pass the ball to. As the season progresses, begin teaching the concept of dribbling to open space and then passing to a team mate in a position to score.

Practice I

• Warmup
  • Do 20 Tick Tocks: tap the ball back and forth with inside of feet
  • Do 20 Step ups: put left foot on ball, switch to right foot, switch back and forth 20 times
  • Do 20 outside tick tocks: push ball back and forth with outside of feet. Key is to move body side to side and not twist the hips.
• Dribbling
  • Use tops of feet, keep ball somewhat close
  • To dribble faster, push ball farther and run faster
  • Change direction with outside of feet
• Games to Play
  • Bear and Bees: players (Bees) dribble balls around trying to sting the coach (Bear) with their balls.
  • Simon Says: players dribble ball according to coaches commands: dribble, dribble faster, stop ball with bottom of foot, turn with inside of foot, turn with outside of foot, etc. Variation: coach has three different colored pennies and ask which color is held up at various intervals
  • Freeze tag: one/two players (without balls) tag other players trying to dribble away. Players who are "frozen" stand with legs apart and hands above head. Other "unfrozen" players try to dribble/pass their own ball between "frozen" players legs.
  • Relay Races
  • Sharks and Minnows: Minnows line up on sideline (with ball). Sharks start in the middle (without balls). Minnows try to dribble past sharks to the other sideline. Sharks try to steal ball and put it in the goal (or out of bounds if no goal).

• Warmup
  • Do 20 Tick Tocks: tap the ball back and forth with inside of feet
  • Do 20 Step ups: put left foot on ball, switch to right foot, switch back and forth 20 times
  • Do 20 outside tick tocks: push ball back and forth with outside of feet. Key is to move body side to side and not twist the hips.
• Dribbling and Evading
  • Shield ball with body
    • Put body between defender and ball
    • Practice just staying between ball and defender without moving the ball
  • Use outside foot to move ball
    • Pull ball with bottom of foot
    • Push ball with top and outside of foot
• Games to Play
  • Sharks and Minnows
  • Kick Out: each player starts with a ball in a confined area. Players dribble around with their ball while trying to kick other players balls out of bounds.
  • One vs. One (with multiple goals in a row): pair up players. One player starts with ball and tries to score in any of several goals in a line. Other player in pair plays defense. After scoring, the player who scores allows partner to start with the ball.

Practice III: repeat practice I

Practice IV repeat practice II

Practice V

• Warmup
  • Do 20 Tick Tocks: tap the ball back and forth with inside of feet
  • Do 20 Step ups: put left foot on ball, switch to right foot, switch back and forth 20 times
  • Do 20 outside tick tocks: push ball back and forth with outside of feet. Key is to move body side to side and not twist the hips.
• Shooting
  • Use top of foot with toe pointed down or inside of foot with toe up and ankle locked
  • Leg should still swing back and then forward - not roundhouse style
  • Step next to ball with plant foot
  • Follow through with leg to shoot ball farther
  • Use arm swing and follow with body to gain even more distance
• Games to Play
  • Survivor: pair up players with one ball for each player. Player with ball dribbles toward goal. At a certain point, player stops or passes ball to other player who then shoots. If player scores, the team is still alive. Start with coach as a goalie. More advanced: last team to shoot becomes goalies for next team to shoot. Team must score or save to stay in.
  • Around the world: form teams of two. Use two or more balls (two less than number of pairs). Teams try to score goals by shooting past goalie. If teams don't have a ball, they're on defense to get a ball. When a team scores they stand aside. Last team to score is out. Start again with remaining teams. Play until one team left.
  • Numbers: split into two teams per goal. Have each team line up next to goal. Number players on each team. Toss ball into field of play and call out a number (or multiple numbers for advanced play). First person to touch ball is on offense. Other person is on defense. If offense scores, credit two points. If defense holds for 30 seconds, defense gets 1 point.