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Purpose:
to improve player mobility, quickness and speed
Equipment:
5-7 marking objects to mark the zigzag course, such as cones or
balls. Also, 4 cones to mark the starting and ending lines.
Setup:
the course is a 5 yard sprint from the starting line (or gate) to
the first ring (marking object); the next 4 to 6 rings are
symmetrically zigzagged at 5 yard intervals; at the last ring, the
ending line/gate is 5 yards away.
|
x
P1 P2
x
(start)
O
O
O
O
O
O
x x (finish) |
Procedure: the
players sprint to each marking object and place their near foot into
or beside the object and continue their sprint to the next object.
Players should rerun course, on the other side. In the above
example, P1's near foot will always be his left as P2's right foot
will be the near foot.
Options:
Coaching
Points and Considerations:
The ability to sprint for short distances then cut into a different
direction quickly is a very important attribute of a soccer player.
Players need to be able to adjust the strides to compensate for the
specific foot placement. Areas a coach should watch for is a stride
length that is too long, especially at each point of direction
change. Plants and cuts should be as quick as possible. Players need
to learn to shorted strides, without lessening their speed.
"One-footedness" shows up when a player is not as fast on one side
as he is on the other. By changes the starting footwork position,
this offers the player a chance to train on minimizes steps to get
up to full speed. Players need to be encouraged to get to each mark
as if it is a 50-50 ball. |