The Mixed Soccer Revolution has started!

SoccerFit gets the fellas to pass to the girls

I have frequently heard girls saying how disappointed they are that the guys won’t pass to them more in mixed soccer competitions. I have definitely seen that myself, and I think probably most people would agree. It seems to vary from 2 extremes :-

• Guys who see the female quota (there is usually is a requirement to play a minimum of 2 girls in a mixed soccer 7-a-side team, for example) as just a rule that has to be complied with and once the game is on, omit or forget to play the game in true ‘mixed’ soccer spirit.


• Guys who do pass to the girls, but in a kind of patronising way which doesn’t make them feel like full and proper members of the team.

Surely there is a better way!



We think there is. At SoccerFit we apply the following ‘revolutionary’ game conditions during our Game Experience that solve this problem once and for all. These are :-

• Two touch Only : When you receive the ball, you can touch it once to control it, but you only have one remaining touch to pass or shoot - if you touch it again, the refereeing trainer will award a free to the opposition


• Two seconds on the ball : When you receive the ball you must pass or shoot within 2 seconds. OK that can be hard with beginners sometimes, but don’t worry, our trainers give newbies plenty of leeway.


• No tackling and no contact : By doing it this way, players can just relax and concentrate on making a good pass (or shot) without worrying about being hurt in a tackle


• The ball is not allowed above the knee. The ref will award a free kick for infringements of this rule.

With these rules in place, the whole approach to the game changes dramatically, and the game becomes more about which team can move the ball around quickly and efficiently. For a team to win, it makes a huge difference if you can use all your players, not just the guys.



With these key SoccerFit Rules in place, we have observed the following :-

• Players with the ball will decide quickly and will pass to the person in the best position, whether they are male or female


• Because the game is fast-moving overall and the ball moves over a greater area, all players, male and female remain engaged with play and get into the ‘thick of things’ more readily which gives everyone greater possession of the ball


• Due to the constant action of the game, to preserve energy, players will make more passes to other team-members over all, whether male or female,


• Due to this need to link up with other players, the ‘vibe’ of the game is very team-oriented leading to less individualistic play and more passing, communication and interactivity with other team-members.

OK, so we’re not solving world hunger at SoccerFit, but we feel very gratified that we have been able to develop something which is not only great for fitness and fun, but also gives a sporting experience to a wider range of people. There are not many sporting activities of a physical nature where men and women can have a well matched sporting contest, but mixed soccer is certainly one. By introducing some simple format changes we feel that we have improved what was already a great ‘product’, and made it even better.



Don’t believe us? Try for yourself at any of our exciting SoccerFit activities - Group SoccerFit, Train Our Team, Corporate Team Builder and Big Match SoccerFit.

Keep it simple for new and inexperienced SoccerFit participants (Blog Series)

Part I - Focus on short passing of the ball

In this series of blog posts, we want to encourage new and developing players to not only enjoy the social fun fitness benefits of SoccerFit, but develop some basic abilities in soccer so that they can potentially derive a lifetime of benefit from it.

For new and/or inexperienced players, one of the first things we will help you with at SoccerFit is building your confidence in one of the most powerful aspects of the game - short passing.

Many would agree that passing the ball is absolutely the most important thing you can do in a game of soccer. Here are some reasons why :-

• Passing saves energy - it reduces the need for running
• Passing helps to keep possession - it stops the other team getting the ball
• Passing aids concentration - everyone loves having the ball and are really interested when they think they might get it next
• Passing is sharing - it builds the team bond and gets people to work for each other

Good passing doesn’t even have to cover a long distance. In fact, probably the most effective pass is over a short distance of 5 meters. And here’s why :-

• It’s probably easier to be consistently accurate over this distance
• It’s probably easier to judge how hard to hit it so a team-mate can receive it
• The ball is more likely to stay low along the ground - again easier for a team-mate to receive it

And if every player on a team can, for the duration of the game, complete more short passes successfully than the other team, then their chances of winning are sure to be greatly improved.

Don’t believe me! Watch Spain in the recent World Cup - short passing in all areas of the pitch was one of the most defining characteristics of their playing style.

At SoccerFit, we practice short passing a lot, at almost every session, especially over a 5 metre distance. Even for more expert players who come to SoccerFit, they love the fact that our drills help to improve the speed, weighting, and consistency of their short passing. And don’t forget passing drills are terrific for fitness too!

We take great care to ensure both feet, and every part of the foot is used when passing.

And here’s the fun bit...just to challenge our participants and for a bit of a laugh...we try all sorts of weird and wonderful passing techniques - what about these ‘beauties’ :-

• back-heel passes
• ‘fancy’ leg-around Brazillian-style back-heel passes
• tricky ‘wrong-way’ passes
• Angled ‘flick-passing’.

What a hoot! If you’re curious about these and other fantastic SoccerFit activities you’ll just have to come along and join in!

Three kids later, SoccerFit was the perfect way to get active again - Alicia's story

"Before SoccerFit, I actually hadn’t done any sport in 20 years. I always found the gyms a little intimidating. I felt pretty good after having my first child but having twins exhausted me physically and I just couldn’t seem to recover. It was when I needed to have a rest on the way to the clothesline that I made the decision to do something. And then I saw the ad for SoccerFit in the Far South Coast Community College brochure. Thankfully, no experience was needed because I’d never even seen a soccer game, let alone kicked a ball!

Although my fitness level was atrocious, I could take a rest whenever I needed to. I was comforted by the fact that I wasn’t the only one who had no experience and nobody seemed to mind that I had no co-ordination. The trainer, is great, really skilled, knowledgeable and always encouraging. But it was playing the simplified game at the end of the session that I knew I was hooked! I’ve been doing SoccerFit for 18 months now and I love it. The people are fantastic and the atmosphere is great. Being able to spend time outdoors is wonderful. What I had hoped to get out of SoccerFit was to improve my fitness while having fun. But I wasn’t prepared for how much more I would get out of it. I feel like I have taken ownership of my body and along the way discovered a passion for soccer."

Women's Health magazine 'expanded' tips on 'How to score a goal'

Emma Anderson, deputy editor of Women's Health magazine asked SoccerFit recently to provide some pointers to their readers on how to score a goal (click here for original magazine piece entitled "How to hold your own in the park"). We put together a brief set of tips and insights which we hope her readership enjoys, or even better, finds helpful.

Here in this blog, we expand on some of the points we raised in that snippet, and try to give a little more detail on what exactly we meant, and talk about a wider range of factors to affect one's ability to score a goal in a match (as opposed to during practice, which, I think it is universally agreed, is a lot easier).



The techniques and opinions provided here are subjective. Please agree or disagree as you see fit. Our views are principally based on our experience of assisting developing footballers, and women in particular, with improving their basic game skills in a social fun fitness-oriented environment.



Technically-speaking, all players on the pitch should be able to score, but in the main, in a structured game, the forwards (also known as strikers) and the attacking midfielders are expected to provide the goals for the team.



For the purposes of the article, let's just narrow it down to 4 key things that affect one's ability to score. There are other things of course - age, experience, fitness-level, injuries, wind conditions, pitch conditions, playing at home or away, your general mood, heck even the condition and feel of your footwear - but let's just stick to 4 'big ones' for now.





These are :-

• The Kick - the kicking action or strike itself which must be accurate, have sufficient power and be well timed


• The overall Skill level - the skill level to create scoring opportunties is highly significant.


• The Brain - the brain needs to be calm and absolutely focussed


• The Position - reading play sufficiently well in the seconds (even minutes) leading up to a scoring chance being created. Generally the closer you are to the goal, the better

Doing a good job in these 4 areas will give you great scope to start scoring goals, and, better still making a consistent habit of it.

The Kick

To send the ball rolling smoothly along the ground ( to score close to goal in the penalty box area)

• Generally, aim to make contact just slightly above the centre of the ball with the inside of the foot. Making contact precisely here helps to reduce/eliminate lift


• Follow through with the foot, smoothly sweeping it upwards as it separates from contact with the ball - again this helps to ensure it rolls sweetly along the ground (which aids accuracy)

The inside of the boot is generally more effective and comfortable to kick with but all players should be able to kick with the outside of the foot, and on the 'laces', as well.



In all kicking styles, experiment with 'shaping the foot', as in, varying the part of the foot or the angle at which it strikes the ball (be careful with this, there is a risk of injury). This gives a greater range of options for directing the ball in a chosen direction, particularly during the moments before you shoot when defenders are crowding around and you may have to rapidly adjust the style of kick you had momentarily planned to make.



To send the ball high through the air when shooting from long range (on the edge or outside the penalty box area)

• Generally, aim to make contact below the centre of the ball with the laces of the boot


• Make sure to follow through with your leg, as this gives it lift and direction


• During practice, experiment by varying the contact point and notice the different effects.

Some players report that visualising the trajectory of the ball in your mind moments before you strike can improve your technique over time.



Most strikers would probably advise to work on your technique to keep the ball low every time you shoot at goal. It is one of the most common errors to give the ball too much lift. It is easier to be accurate with a low shot. Also, most would say to emphasise direction over power - don't try to hit it too hard.



Probably in about 95% of goal scoring situations you will look where you want to the ball to go - this is probably a necessary step for your brain to visualise the shot to be attempted and make the all important rapid calculations about where to make contact with the ball and how much power to apply.



For penalty-taking, unless you are a professional, it is probably best to look where you want the ball to go because you probably need to do whatever you can to make the shot accurate, even if you give a hint to the goalkeeper. If it's accurate, you still have a great chance of scoring.



Always practice using both feet - dominant and non-dominant (or strong and weak as they are commonly referred to). To develop your non-dominant foot kicking, dedicate training time on your own or with a group where you only use that foot for an extended period of time.



It's a cliche, but 'practise practise practise' - every training session try to pass or shoot the ball at least 500 times. Someone at a SoccerFit session described this as developing 'muscle memory' which, although this may not be the scientific term, conveys very well the idea of your brain developing the mastery of successful kicking through repeated use.

The overall skill-level

As well as kicking technique, there are many other facets that go to complete the picture of a players overall skill level - ball control, balance, flair and creativity and complex movement to mention a few.

In particular, high levels of skill will enable you to get the ball under control quickly, perhaps adjust a little to the left or right, or even skip past a defender, to ensure there is enough space and time to take a high quality shot at goal.



Improving your ability to accomplish this, essentially, requires you to practice (there's that word again) a lot. And basically, the focus of this type of practice is to repeatedly complete as many high skill activities as you can. Types of high skill activities that we recommend include :-

• Juggling - everyday, at work, out in the backyard, when walking the dog, at soccer practice. Juggle with both your feet, both your knees, inside and outside feet, with your heels (really really hard), on your head, on your shoulder. Never stop - it's just the best way of developing that 'connection' to the ball that will make such a difference to your game.


• Tricks - simple ones and hard ones, dummies, twists, turns, flicks, shimmies, flip-flaps, nutmegs, spin-twists, elastics...whatever...if you can't quite pull them off it doesn't matter...keep doing them anyway, they are great for movement and teaching the brain the 'physics' of football.


• Dribbling - not just a great way to burn calories, but a fantastic way to improve ball skill - don't even dribble very fast...emphasise technique over speed and work through endless variations - right outside only, right inside only, left inside only, right inside only, rolling the ball underfoot, inside to inside, inside to outside (same leg), double dribble with two balls at the same time, no-touch-in-between, mid-dribble changes, mid-dribble turns, stepovers, double stepovers, triple stepovers, quadruple stepovers. There are an infinite number of these to try.

In some cases, a player can have a lot of natural skill, and this is obviously a great advantage, but, over time, every player can enhance their skill level through lots of hard work.

The Brain

Make no mistake about it, although it looks simple, putting a ball in the back of the net under match conditions is one of the hardest things in the world...ever! (That might explain why Christian Ronaldo is worth $160 million Australian dollars). Time and time again, at all levels of football, from Grade AA7 to Champions League and the World Cup, simple 'tap-in' goals are missed by even the biggest stars. It's unbelievable when you see it happen, but if you think about it, the intensity of the moment for both brain and body, is enormous, and while everyone can score a goal at some time in their life, to do it repeatedly over a season, or several seasons, it takes a lot of work and the more experienced you are, the better.



To score a goal, the brain just has to be right...it doesn't get any more scientific than that. Certainly professional clubs invest a lot of energy and money into better understanding how to control psychological factors to ensure their players perform better, but it's hard to know how well that investment pays off. One would have to assume that it is some way successful because clubs and sports-stars continue to work with specialists who try to give top-class performers that elusive 'mental edge'.



It's such a complex thing and in some ways highly contradictory - to score a goal, you have to be really focussed, concentrating to an extremely high intensity level, but at the same time, you have to be relaxed, if your muscles are too tense your kicking action may vary from that intended, or you may unbalance just at the critical moment.



So, here is just that, some 'contradictory' suggestions about how to overcome the mental obstacles to scoring a goal :-

• At the moment you are about to strike the ball, stay calm, relax


• If there's time (there should be otherwise you probably shouldn't be taking a shot), have a last quick glimpse at the goal area and 'know' where the goalie is positioned.


• Your brain will quickly calculate where it thinks it wants the ball to go (i.e. effectively you take aim)


• Now focus on the ball and apply most of your concentration to making the cleanest contact you possibly can with it, as opposed to giving it lots of power. A cleanly-struck ball will more likely be accurate.


• Try this...when presented with a scoring opporunity, learn to pause for just an extra 10th of a second before you strike the ball...even at the risk of being tackled...on most occasions this will improve your chances significantly. You can call it your 'making sure' pause.

The Position

There's a real knack to getting into the right position to find yourself with a good scoring opportunity. Assuming your team is good enough to launch a number of attacks during the game, and can deliver a final pass to you in a good position, your chances of scoring are massively improved. So in that respect, you are very dependent on your team-mates. But you should also learn to play the percentages - the majority of goals are scored from within the penalty box area...so, mathematically, if you want to score, you should be in that area as much as possible (but be careful not to get caught offside). Here are some suggestions :-

• Focus on getting into the penalty box area as quickly and frequently as possible - don't get distracted or dragged into the midfield (although sometimes that's hard if your coach or captain, or other players are screaming at you to help them :-)


• If you like to dribble past defenders, it may be smarter to wait until late in the game to try this when hopefully your opposing players are more tired - this of course assumes that you still have energy.


• Learn to manage your energy levels, so that you have energy in store for when you need it most (hopefully that killer run into the penalty area to score) This probably means making hard decisions during the game about when to not expend energy - this may frustrate your team-mates but if your relationship with the team is good, they will usually support you.


• Talk to your team-mates, tell them repeatedly how you like to receive the ball, where you intend to try to position yourself. Over time, they will get to know how you play, your strengths and weaknesses, and they can try to adjust how they involve you in the game.

And don't forget, when you score...it's one of the most exciting feelings you will ever experience in your life...guaranteed!!! So make sure you celebrate wildly like they do on TV :-)

Join SoccerFit on Facebook (Become a fan or a friend) - click here.

My First Goal (Thanks for your help SoccerFit) by Ilja Noordermeer

Ilja used SoccerFit 1-2-1 to enhance her fitness, sharpen her technique, and boost her confidence....her reward for all her hard work came when she scored a goal on the last day of the season...

At the start of the year I set myself a few life goals to achieve and prepared a plan in order to achieve those goals. To score a goal in football was one of them - something I have always desired but never thought capable of.

In football I have always been chosen to play right back because I would tire quickly in positions that required more running. I worked hard to get my fitness level up but I was still lacking the development in my ball handling skills. I couldn't wait for the season to begin.

I had done all the pre-season preparation I could on my own and now needed some good coaching to improve my ball skills. When I couldn't get what I needed from the club coach, I gave SoccerFit a call to discuss what I needed. Liam understood my passion for the game and my desire to improve and organised one on one soccer coaching with Tarek.

From day one I knew that Tarek could make all the difference. I was learning how to dodge past players and learning the mechanics of the fancy footwork I always saw the better skilled players able to do. Tarek continued to add to my skill development every week and built my confidence up.

In the last game of my season, I put all that extra training with SoccerFit into play and achieved my goal...finally. I can't wait to play again and I don't need to wait long, having been selected to play in the World Masters Games for the Sydney Stingrays (30+) in October 2009. The new skills Tarek has taught me have added an additional element of enjoyment to my game. I'm now confident that I can achieve another one of my life's goals; play in the SW2 competition in 2010. Thank you Liam, Tarek and SoccerFit!

Getting the Simple Things Right

The Inside of the Foot Pass

A well weighted and accurate pass makes our work on the field simple, and it makes our receiving teammates look good. The inside of the foot pass is the most widely used pass in soccer. From the gentlest of taps to a teammate close by, to a blistering pass designed to assist the switch of play across the field, this pass is useful, accurate and powerful. While it's primarily used for short passes, goals are scored, and free kicks are made with this pass. So are you executing the inside foot pass correctly, or do your passes go off course, are incorrectly weighted or have no power? Getting the simplest thing like the inside of the foot pass right, can vastly improve your soccer game.

The Technique

Stride to the ball. The foot that will not be striking the ball - the supporting foot - is planted alongside the ball (15-20cm or a little less than the ball's width) with the toe pointing in the direction of the target. If your toe is pointing at the target, then your body and hips should be also be facing the target. The knee of this supporting foot should be bent slightly for balance, and your eyes should be on the ball. Hold your arms out away from your body also for balance.

With a short backswing, bring your kicking leg forward. Turn your kicking foot outward and lock your ankle so it's positioned at a 90 degree angle. The toes of the kicking foot should point slightly upward. Your foot remains in this square position throughout the kick. With your head down and eyes locked on the ball, strike the middle of the ball with the back half of your foot. At the moment the ball is kicked lean forward over it, and follow through with your kicking leg in the direction of the target. The follow through is very important for accuracy and power.

Troubleshooting

• Supporting foot not pointed at the target - ball goes right or left of the target
• Foot not turned out 90 degrees through the kick - ball goes left of the target
• Foot strikes the ball too low - ball will pop up in the air
  
• Leaning back - ball may pop up in the air. It will also lack power and accuracy
• No follow through - ball lacks power and accuracy.
  
• Striking the ball too far forward on the foot - ball lacks accuracy and power.
• Ankle not locked - ball lacks power and accuracy may suffer.
• Eyes not on the ball - ball lacks accuracy.

Practice

Practice all your passes against a wall. You can't get too much practice ever.

To check if your ankle is locked, hold your ankle in the position where it will be kicking the ball, and ask a teammate to try and move your foot. If they can move it, it's not locked!

Visit the SoccerFit website : www.soccerfit.com.au

DISCLAIMER NOTICE : All data and information provided on this site is for informational
purposes only. SoccerFit (the organisation) makes no representations as to
accuracy, completeness, currentness, suitability, or validity of any
information on this site and will not be liable for any errors,
omissions, or delays in this information or any losses, injuries, or
damages arising from its display or use. All information is provided on
an as-is basis.

Out of Africa - My First SoccerFit Session (by Anand Sundaresan, Guest Blogger)

Having grown up initially in Zambia in southern Africa my football skills were formed from street football
involving kicking a ball (made from plastic bags and rubber bands) and
learning dribbling skills from the kids in my neighbourhood. Footballs
were hard to come by and coaches in schools or otherwise were non existent.
I've somehow managed to play some level of recreational competitive football
(of very dubious quality) based on these street honed skills. So
when I heard of SoccerFit which was an opportunity to learn soccer skills
that I had never formally learned before and stay fit at the same time,
I was excited.

The first session required a bit of motivation in dragging my lazy ass out of bed earlier on a Saturday
morning for a 9 AM start and also meant going easy on the drinks on Friday
evening. However once I had dragged myself to the field in Randwick, I found
a very well organised session which reminded me of the training sessions
you see on T.V. when they are interviewing players. Even better was the
enthusiasm of the participants. We had a diverse group (moms, men with
kids, singles and DINKs) who all enjoyed football and the group environment. Once
I'd managed to shake off that weekend morning daze and worked out the sequence
of some of the drills, it was a great session. The pace was just right
and we gradually got warmed up and nimble before we did the more extensive
drills. Our trainer was incredibly encouraging even when we were probably
screwing up the drills completely. The two touch no contact
game at the end was great fun and you are forced to learn ball skills in
passing and moving into space as otherwise you lose the ball. You also
have to learn to communicate really well with your team mates and be there
to support them always.

At the end of it , the most exciting
part of it was I feel like I'm learning a new skill, even though I have
been playing this game for years. I have formed the conclusion that if you have not played before, or for a long time, SoccerFit makes football refreshing
and fun.

Visit the SoccerFit website : www.soccerfit.com.au

DISCLAIMER NOTICE : All data and information provided on this site is for informational
purposes only. SoccerFit (the organisation) makes no representations as to
accuracy, completeness, currentness, suitability, or validity of any
information on this site and will not be liable for any errors,
omissions, or delays in this information or any losses, injuries, or
damages arising from its display or use. All information is provided on
an as-is basis.