Volleys and Race Pressure

Field Training | Tuesday, Aug 24 | 7:15PM - 8:30PM | 1/2 Field

Tonight’s training started with a little rondo, which the girls are really taking to. We went training into some technical work, focusing on volleys with the laces and inside of the foot.

Took the technique into some race competition, then finished with a lot of 9v9.

Why race competition? Because to me, this pressure to perform is the missing step between training ground work and successful execution under game-like pressure. The races bring pressure, and pressure brings tension. The girls need to be able to execute skills properly under tension WITHOUT defensive pressure before they can hope to execute the skills with a defender in their face. The more comfortable the players can get under race pressure, the more comfortable and confident they’ll be under game pressure. The more comfortable the girls get under game pressure, the easier the game will be.