Communication

[crabacle]

Hi all

We have a great U17 keeper - great shot-stopper - needs some help with positioning etc - which I can sort out - but has a massive problem with communication. - Basically he's almost silent.

Has anybody any ideas as to how I can help with this - basically try to bring him out of his shell and shart to work with the back 4 more (and the rest of the team).

I thought of just telling the back 4 to stay still and get him to tell them where to go as part of the drill - just to get him started - any other ideas (or better ideas)?

Thanks

Craig

[huffsw]

Keepers must communicate in order to be successful. This is Primary to their function. Start with having him set up a "Wall" of the defenders. I will cover this technique briefly, with the ball outside the penalty area at an angle to the right or left, have the goalkeeper stand at the front post and direct the four Defenders (standing shoulder to shoulder) right or left to have the end defender in line with the ball and the front post. The angle of the Wall of defenders should be parallel to the angle of the shot to be taken. This will engage the goalkeeper to not only speak out loud but to lead the defenders to follow. It will also encourage him and teach a vital skill that most coaches just feel that their goalkeeper should receive though trial by fire.

Don't allow the goalkeeper to come out, off of his arc or line, without calling out to the fullbacks to let them know that he is there for them to pass to.... He is a player too!! Get him in the game!

I hope that this helps.

[Val]

Some kids are just silent. Just like some of us are extroverts and some of us are introverts, it's just who we are. What is this kid like with the rest of the team in practice, in the car? If he is more naturally gregarious, then maybe the silence is a response to his feelings of tenseness and the pressure of the position. Maybe you can play some keeper in a scrimmage and have his stand beside you in the goal and you can model the level of communication you want out of him. Just a thought, but know we all struggle with this as coaches.

[Ahmad Ansari]

Just to complement what Val mentioned about the nature of the kids it would be a good idea to have a word with his parents and find out wether he is the same in his social life aswell or not and if yes why?

[peterhart]

Sounds like your goalkeeper is naturally quiet. Try not to single him out as this will probably embarrass him and make hime retire in to his shell. I would start be doing group exercises where everyone has to shout for the ball or express themselves verbally in some form and then take it on from there.

[donnybelles]

Peter's right - basically you have to get the communication going at the most basic level which means getting the keeper (and all players for that matter) talking to one another. Therefore the best thing is to build communication into every single drill and emphasise that communication is as vital as an accurate pass, a good dribble, shot etc. The whole team will benefit and if your keeper sees that everybody else is communicating as well then he might just feel less inhibited.
Of course you can also build it into the keeper's pre-match warm up routine - before they start the diving and catching bread and butter stuff why not give them a couple of voice warm up exercises like singers do? Sounds daft but it works in my experience - plus its a great ice-breaker!

[Archie Graham]

Perhaps start him off with the most useful and basic 'cry'!

'KEEPER'S BALL!'

Give him a decibel rating from 1 to 5 for each shout.

You can set up a simple drill by just throwing a ball up for him to jump and claim along with the shout! This way he is 'communicating' that it is his ball - it may be that he will be more comfortable with this as he isn't actually needing to communicate or shout at any individual.

You can then put one or two defenders into the drill and later an attacker. If he becomes confident with this then the next step should be easier.

By the way - have you sat down with him and talked to him about why he is so quite?

[Coachkev]

Originally Posted by crabacle

Hi all

We have a great U17 keeper - great shot-stopper - needs some help with positioning etc - which I can sort out - but has a massive problem with communication. - Basically he's almost silent.

Has anybody any ideas as to how I can help with this - basically try to bring him out of his shell and shart to work with the back 4 more (and the rest of the team).

I thought of just telling the back 4 to stay still and get him to tell them where to go as part of the drill - just to get him started - any other ideas (or better ideas)?

Thanks

Craig

Craig, play a SSG where ONLY the player nominated by the Goalkeeper (loudly) can challenge to win the ball.
If another defender tackles without being 'nominated' = Goal against

Next, play the opposite = CANNOT call out at all, ONLY point or gesture with the hands.
5 minutes of this will have him going up the wall. Then allow him to call but MUST be brief otherwise go back to silence again.

If I know 17 year olds well enough, telling them NOT to do something will virtually GAURANTEE they WILL do it.

[One-Opportunity]

Okay, I am a goalkeeper, and I have struggled with this in the past, so I know what I'm talking about.

You can't really teach someone to talk on the pitch. It isn't something that will happen overnight; it will develop over time. At the beginning, the goalkeeper may only call "Keepers" for easy balls, and, when he has grown confident with that, he will start to talk more. Eventually, he will be talking all the time.

When I say eventually, it will take at least a year.

As has already been mentioned, the personallity of the player will affect how much he communicates. Obviously, if he is a quiet person, he will be more likely not to talk as much, whereas a confident person should talk a lot more.

As for getting your 'keeper to talk, encourage him. Don't always say it infront of the whole team, as this could embarrass the 'keeper, making him less-confident, and less-likely to talk. Try approaching the player before the match. What you say to him is up to you; it depends on the player, and this is where your man-management skill must come in.

Never shout at a goalkeeper during a match if he isn't shouting, or if he could have prevented a goal by calling. This will destroy the goalkeeper's confidence, and he will start worrying about the matter, leading to a drop in performance.

When you hear a goalkeeper start talking in a match, encourage him. After the match, talk to him, and tell him you were really impressed with his talking. Even if he didn't talk much, this will get his confidence up, and he will start to feel good about talking, which will lead him to do it more often.

Oh, yeah, you must tell your defenders, and the rest of the team for that matter, to listen to the 'keeper and do what he tells them to. If the 'keeper sees that the other players are listening to him, and reacting, he will feel good.

Never, ever, ever, let your players shout back at your keeper when he tells them what to do. The goalkeeper will be scared to tell players what to do, as he will be worried that they will react badly. That rarely happens though, or, at least, it shouldn't.

Well, I think that's it. I'm not sure if I have forgotten anything, but I guess that will do for now.

If you've got any questions about anything I said, or would like to have a constructive arguement with me, I would love to talk to you.