Theme: Introduction to basic body and manipulative control
Physical Literacy: Collision Avoidance, Object Manipulation – Feet

pdf of Session #13: U5-U8 Player Development Sessions #13

Warm-up (10 min) Everybody’s ‘IT’ Game
Purpose: To get players ☺ , sweating and to work on the skill of dodging (feinting).

– Everyone is ‘it’ and play occurs in an area 15 metres by 15 metres.
– If you are tagged, you go down on one knee.
– When on one knee you can free yourself by 1) reaching out and tagging someone else as they run past, or 2) reaching out and high fiving someone who is on one knee freeing both of you.

1v1 Possession Using Players on the Side
Purpose: To allow players to develop 1v1 techniques.

– Players attempt to keep possession in a 12×12 metre area for a designated length of time (i.e. One Minute).
– The players on the inside can use the players on the outside for support and as an option to combine for 1-2s.
– Players on the outside must move along the line in order to provide good attacking options and they will play another ball into the game if the ball is played out.

Octopus Tag (10 min)
Purpose: To practice dodging while dribbling a soccer ball.

– Divide the team into two groups.
– Half of the players will be taggers (octopii) and they must spread out from each other at arms length inside a 20 metre by 15 metre area.
– Their formation should be staggered so that there is enough room for other players to weave through
Taggers must stand perfectly still but can try to tag oncoming players(with their tentacles) by reaching out as far as possible.
– Other players have a ball and start at one end of the area.
– They try to dribble through to the other end with out getting tagged by an octopus.
– If successful, they turn and dribble back along the outside of the area to the starting line again.

Scrimmage (30 min)