High School and club coaches have the tough job of getting a team ready to compete in a short period of time in many cases using just a few hours of practice each week. The key to getting the technical and tactical elements in place so they are competitive in their games is to have good progressions for each skill and progressions to train the player well in the tactical elements that repeat with high frequency during the game. This takes a good understanding of what skills matter most and what movement patterns will improve the team's performance fastest. You don't need hundreds of drills to improve the players but the ones that you choose to use need to work meaning, they get the most improvement from the most players in the shortest period of time. You can do research on the internet, buy some of the better books and DVD's on the sport or go to clinics. When I started I went and watched dozens of practices run by the local university coaches and copied them. Eventually, I learned to create my own drills using some good drill structure fundamentals and improved my error recognition protocol and instructional response to those errors. It might be a good idea for interested coaches to attend the Victory High School Camp and Coaches clinic the week before school starts. A few full day or half day sessions will likely make a big difference for you in the gym with your players next season.
- Rick McArthur
