Timbits and U7
Fernie Youth Soccer Association
25% general movement
25% coordination
25% soccer technique
25% small sided game
In a 45 minute practice, 5 minute warmup, 10 minutes one station, 10 minutes other station, 5 minute
refreshment break (coaches setting up fields and splitting up teams) and play for remaining 15 minutes.
Work together with the coach of the team you are playing against that evening. You can set up stations
and it will make set up a lot easier.
Warm up:
To start practices, have the kids each get a ball and dribble there and back to a set of goals or other
landmark about 40-50m away. Do some stretching for a few minutes with the ball:
Round the world: the players pick up the ball and move the ball around in a big circle from the ground to
the sky. Both directions.
Skip the ball: players hold the ball with both hands. From the ball on the ground between their legs the
pick it up and hold it high over their head and stretch backward and drop it. They turn around it and
hold the ball on the ground. Repeat a few times.
Tip-taps: ball on the ground in front of them. Tap the ball with the toes on each foot in turn. Speed it up
so they are hopping. Alternate so they are hopping over the ball.
Between the feet: each player has a ball between their feet. Pass the ball between the feet as quickly as
possible.
The key to any little warmup at this age is each player or having their own ball. It’s the beginning of
practice and the players will be hyped. Before practice they have each grabbed a ball and they will resist
have the ball taken away.
Also, change the drills often so the kids are engaged and don’t get bored. Don’t get stressed when the
balls are flying around. But DO keep your eye on if there are kids getting stressed. We don’t want to
frighten some who are not comfortable with that kind of chaos. That’s when the assistant coach might
take those ones aside for a little passing one on one or a little dribble out to a goal and back.
Head, Shoulders, Knees and Ball
Technique and Movement: dribbling
This is a nice warm up.
Each player has a ball inside a larger grid.
Outline:
Players will stand in front of their ball. They will do a little jog on the spot with their weight forward.
Coach will say a body part and players have to stop and touch that body part to the ball and then they
pop back up and resume a little jog.
Lots of giggles here.
The coach can say ‘Hands’, and the players who do touch with their hands have to then run to a cone
marking the grid and come back while everyone keeps jogging.
If the coach says ‘ball’, the players have to turn using a cut back or a drag back and go to the outside of
the grid, on the line. Coach can get them to come back with a command like “show for me’.
If the coach says ‘swap’, players change ball with another player.
Warm up Circle
Technique: control:
Outline:
While you have everyone on a line or circle in the warm up, practice a little juggling. (Or get them back
in the circle or line for your station.) The players should hold the ball between their hands around waist
height in front of one of their legs. They can bring their knee up to meet the ball, hit it out of the hands
and into the air and catch it. Try to hit it so the ball rises over your head and catch it. Next, try dropping
it onto the foot. Use the top of the foot, inside of the foot to kick it back up to the hands and catch it. Try
to master once in a row and then twice.
Variations:
Coach says: coach says “thigh” or “foot”. If the coach says “Coach says foot”, they do it. If he or she only
says “foot”, players should not to it. If players does it when they shouldn’t, they have to a put the ball
between their knees and hop three times.
Pair Up: In a line, pair up with another player or parent with one ball and try to throw underhand to
another player to the thigh or the feet. Stand 1m or 2m apart and throw it softly and hit it so one or the
other player can catch it. Add a small square of cones the receiving player has to try to stay in.
If they are in pairs, they can spread apart. The coach will
call “bounce” or “roll”. The player receiving the pass
must control it and pass it back. Switch players that are
receiving after 4 or 5 passes.
Line-ups with really young kids are often more work than
they are worth and sometimes work best once kids have burned off a little energy. Do not keep this
going if the kids are starting to get jumpy. Change it up!
Survivor Island
Technique and Movement, dribbling (and defending)
Outline:
20x20 area. Set up about same number of cones as you have total players. Start off with: Players don’t
bump the cones while they dribble and you use commands like “red” (stop with ball under the foot),
“green” (go), “knee” (players stop ball with any knee), “turn”(players reverse direction”), “trade”
(change balls with another player). It’s a nice warm up.
Next phase. Choose one of:
Knock out: If you have triangles (best), players will dribble and try to knock over cones with balls while a
parent or coach runs around trying to set the cones upright. If the player’s ball goes out of the square,
they are out and then they have to take the place of the coach in keeping the cones right-side up.
Killer Knock Out: Pick one or two players from the team and have them be the defenders. One group of
players has a ball, the other no. If you have triangles (best), players will balls have to run around and
knock cones over, while keeping control of the ball. The other players have to preserve the cones by
blocking attempts to knock them over. Same thing, if a player’s ball goes out (maybe a defender kicks it
out) then they go on defense.
Sharks (passing): players pair up. May need to have half players rest or expand square. The players have
to pass to eachother without knocking out cones and keeping the ball in the square. Coach moves
around and forces players to move to either give or receive pass by stepping in between them.
Cat and Mouse: take away the cones. Two players are picked out and do not have the ball. Other players
have to dribble inside the square and try to keep it away from the players that don’t have the ball, who
are trying to kick it out. If it goes out they become defenders.
Variation:
Don’t Crash the Car, or Horse etc…
Outline:
The Car is each players’ ball. Players each dribble around and try not to hit the cones or go out off the
cliff (out of the circle). You can be the police and they can get a speeding ticket for going too slow.
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‘Red’ is stop.
‘Green’ is go.
‘Yellow’ is do a 2 second sprint.
‘Pump the gas’ is the ball to a corner a do toe taps.
‘Wash the car’ is passing the ball between your feet.
‘It’s raining’ is stopping the ball and moving left to right with the bottom of your foot.
‘Police chase’ is when the coach chases the players and tries to knock their ball out. The players
should shield their ball.
Clean your room
Technique: passing, controlling the ball:
Outline:
Divide team in half. Each team takes one half. Each team will have one minute to try to pass all the balls
into the square. If a new ball is passed in your square, you pass it back. At the end of a minute you stop
play and count the balls. The team with the most balls in their area has to do one lap around the field.
All players get the balls and start again.
Coaching Points:
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Try to get good balance before you strike the ball
Control the direction and power – use inside of foot
Hit the ball into a space where the opposition player is not
Special Delivery
Technique and Movement, dribbling (and defending)
Outline:
Divide team into 4 groups. Each group is assigned a square in one of the corners. There should be even
number of balls in each corner to start. On “Go!”, each team tries to go and steal another teams balls
and dribble them back to their own corner. After 2 minutes, the coach stops and counts to see who has
the most. The losers have to do 3 dizzy spins. Start again. Repeat at least a couple times.
Variations:
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All the balls start in the middle and there are only two squares and team is divided in half pr
keep them in quarters with only a couple per team. Drill stops when all the balls are gone. You
can decide if the players may steal from other area or not.
You can have them line up and do it like a relay.
Players are not allowed to steal balls from in area but are allowed to tackle. (Not slide tackle!)
Maybe just certain players.
Players must pass the ball out of another team’s square.
Coaching Points:
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Turning – efficient turn in close space
Heads up dribbling, close dribbling – avoid collisions
Accelerating after getting the ball and turning
Stuck in the Mud
Technique and Movement: dribbling
Outline:
It’s like tag. All but one of the kids has a ball, they are the Mud Monster. The Mud Monster runs about
and tried to tag the other players that have balls. If a player is tagged they must stand with their ball
over their head and their legs apart. They are ‘stuck in the mud’ and call for help. They get unfrozen by
having someone pass the ball between their legs. Rotate the Mud Monster. If the Monster is able to tag
everyone so no one can be freed, they win.
Coaching Points:
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Kids should use all parts of their feet and dribble in little touches and short strides to evade the
Monster with their ball. (Close dribbling) Be ready to change direction quickly.
Keep your head up so you can see the Monster and keep your distance.
They should be composed when the Monster comes and not lose their ball. Keep breathing.
What Time is it Mr Wolff?
Technique and Movement: dribbling
Outline:
The Coach stands with his back on one end of the grid and players all stand on the other end with a ball
facing the coaches back. The players ask. The coach says a number and the players all have to approach
by that many steps. Eventually the coach says ‘Time for Dinner’ turns and chases them. They turn with
the ball and run for the end and the ones he catches are out. Or not. You decide. The youngest players
can do this forever and they vibrate at the thought of being the wolf.
Coaching Points:
Show them the best ways to turn with the ball. Other techniques for dribbling and stopping.
Telephone Call – Long Distance
Technique and Movement: dribbling and passing
Set up a large grid with the balls and two smaller grids. There are two teams, each with one player in the
one of the smaller grids. The balls are all in the large grid to start. They can be in a jumble around the
middle or in line on the side furthest from the small boxes. You can make the small boxes a little outside
or increase the distance to about 5m maximum to start.
Outline:
On the coaches command the players have to get the balls into the smaller grid. They are not allowed to
leave their box so they must pass it. If they miss and the player can’t get it they have to leave it be.
Coaching Points:
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Just like a telephone call, the say the name of the player they want to pass it to before the kick
the ball. They have to say the name or the call (pass) doesn’t go through. Coach takes away the
pass and put the ball back into the middle.
Show the correct technique for passing accurately – the inside of the foot.
If the players is having difficulty they can dribble closer to make the pass shorter.
They need to look up so that their pass isn’t hit by a player or a ball.
They shouldn’t pass two balls to the same player at the same time
Some kids might decide to block the passes of the other team. That’s ok. The other team will
need to dribble around them to find a better angle.
Indy 500
Technique and Movement: dribbling
Outline:
The players atart in ‘The Pit”. On command either a mass start or one by one, they do a lap. They can
even go in pairs and race. While in the pit you can have them with their foot on the ball or between their
feet moving the ball to heat up the tires. If the player is dribbling and the ball goes out, they have to
restart their engine by doing three toe-taps.
Varitions:
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Perhaps use a horse analogy or something else to appeal to other players.
Players have to change direction on coaches command. Make the tracker wider or narrower,
use parents to make the track curvier.
Coaching Points:
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Dribble under control by using short, light touches
Keep your head up
Use both feet
Use the inside of the foot, show how tip or top of outside of foot might be faster