Coaching soccer drills - 'Cone in the Middle'
When coaching soccer drills they need to be both fun and allow the players to learn. This drill has both aspects and can be changed to suit the needs and abilities of your players. This drill only really works if you have 8 or more players but could be adapted to suit less (for example using three outside cones instead of four).
Preparation
Take a look at the diagram below. You will need five cones laid out with one cone in the middle - hence the name of the drill. You will need an equal amount of players behind each outside cone and a ball each to allow for progressions later (less can be used to begin with).
Explanation
This soccer drill is designed to allow the players to dribble with the ball and change direction. It can also be made in to various games. Begin simply by allowing one person from each corner to dribble with the soccer ball at medium pace toward the centre cone and once they get there, do a turn to face the opposite direction and dribble back to where they came from.
*Coaching soccer drills like these allow the players to show off their 'soccer turns' - check this page for help on turns!*
The player should then pass the ball to the next player in line who in turn will dribble to the middle and come back.
Progression
There are a host of progression ideas that come from this drill.
- Dribble to the right - when the player gets to the center cone, they will then dribble to the cone to the right of them and pass the ball to the next in line.
- Dribble to the left - same as above but this time go to the left. Changing direction is important to allow the use of both feet etc.
- Dribble through the middle - this time the players will start at the same time but dribble to the opposite cone avoiding bumping in to other players and the central cone.
- Long pass - the players will dribble to the center cone, do a turn and pass the ball back to the next player from a further away distance than before.
- The Race - any number of races can be performed where the players are up against one another. The performance quality will dip considerably so make sure the players are playing fair and dribbling correctly.
Coaching Points
-> Make sure that dribbling is done with small touches of the ball, keeping the ball close to them, inside and outisde of both feet should be used.
-> When passing make sure that the inside of the foot is used and accuracy is thought about by the players.
->When the players do a turn, make sure it is a recognised turn such as the drag-back turn.
