UM coach shares drills for soccer

It’s that time of year again. Soccer moms are jamming their vehicles with youngsters, equipment, balls, water bottles, etc.

Thanks to University of Maine men’s assistant coach Chris Parsons, here are some drills designed to improve your players’ skills and have fun.

The Blob is a warmup drill designed to keep players moving, changing direction and developing their speed.

Set out a 50 yards by 50 yards area. Two players are designated as “blobs” and they hold hands.

The game objective is for the blob to catch other players by tagging them. If tagged or if someone runs outside the designated area, that player becomes part of the blob. The last player remaining is the winner.

The Circle Technique drill requires good technique to be executed on every exercise and for players to display focus and concentration and to react to visual cues and communicate.

The setup requires a circle with cones approximately 20 yards in radius.

Players pick a partner. One partner is outside the circle without a ball and one is inside with a ball.

The players in the middle must dribble around inside the designated area without bumping any other player or the ball or going outside the area.

When the coach calls out a command, the player on the inside must dribble the ball to his partner on the outside and the partner dribbles to the inside and starts the drill over.

Whenever the coach calls out the command during various progressions or the drill, players switch with their partners.

In the next progression, players in the middle must find somebody on the outside and complete a wall pass (give-and-go). That means the player in the middle passes to someone outside the circle and then sprints to an open space to accept a quick return pass.

The next step in the progression has players in the middle make eye contact with somebody on the outside and communicate with them as they make a pass. The middle player commands the outside player to “lay the ball” back to them. As the player on the outside does so, he makes the command to the inside player to “turn” which means start dribbling in a different direction or “man on” meaning stop and shield the ball before turning.

The last and most advanced progression has the players in the middle juggling the ball in the air until the coach gives a verbal command and they swap with their partner on the outside.

The next drill is called Possession Game.

This drill is designed to ensure players take a look up before receiving the ball, keep the ball on the ground and be prepared to make a good first-touch pass.

You set out an area 20 by 15 yards and you have three teams of three. Each team has a different colored jersey. Two of the teams will form one six-person team to start and they will try to keep the ball away from the other team. If the team of three that is defending makes contact with the ball, the team that last touched the ball becomes the defending threesome.

The progression of the game includes two-touch passes in which the player who receives the ball is allowed one touch with the second touch requiring a pass.

One-touch is the next progression as players pass it without first stopping it.

Then the coach can decrease the playing space to make it even more challenging.

Last but not least, Parsons suggests coaches finish off practice with a scrimmage before the cool-down and stretch.

Larry Mahoney can be reached at 990-8231, 1-800-310-8600 or by email at lmahoney@bangordailynews.net.