Coaching Tool Kit
The Coaching Tool Kit consists of four methods to help you interact with your team during your practice and effectively deliver valuable information to your players that keeps the intensity and engagement (aka FUN!) high.
Stop/Freeze
With "Stop/Freeze" you identify something important from your session topic that needs to be coached. It begins with stopping play and asking your players to freeze in their positions. Then communicate the situation to your team. Try to use a “picture” to demonstrate what a better option might be. After that, give your players an opportunity to rehearse your idea.
Finally restart play from the moment you originally stopped play. In other words, follow this sequence: Stop/Freeze, Demonstrate, Rehearse, Restart. This method should be used sparingly as it is the most intrusive to your practice session. Be objective with your words and do your best to “get in and get out" of the stoppage as quickly as possible.
Natural Stoppage
With this method you use natural stoppages of play such as corner kicks, goal kicks, throw-ins, substitutions etc. to halt play and pass along some information. This tool can be really valuable because it does not disrupt play. Remember, be clear and objective with your words. Stay on your session topic and try to pass on actionable items.
In The Flow
With "In the Flow" you communicate with your team as play continues, similar to what you might do on game day. This can be a really valuable tool as it doesn't interrupt the flow of play. As with "Natural Stoppage", be sure to communicate in concise and meaningful ways. For example, telling a team to “spread out” can be interpreted many different ways. Focus instead on conveying specific actions such as telling players to “move up to the midfield line."
Individual Reference
This method is similar to "In the Flow" but instead of addressing the entire team, you communicate with only one player without stopping play. This tool can be very useful when you have some quick information or adjustment to pass on to an individual rather than the everyone. This also helps us accomplish our goal of keeping intensity high and avoiding unnecessary stoppage. This is a great tool for delivering some individualized coaching or for just offering some encouragement to a player.