Homework / Practice

The FDS Academy requires players to practise away from sessions.  In elite sport, across all sports, there is something called the ‘10,000 hour rule’, which says that expertise in any field requires 10,000 hours of practice.  Breaking this down, this is 3 hours of practice a day every day for 10 years.  In any young players timetable this is near impossible to achieve.  Therefore the practice that players do, needs to be deliberate and also specific to what they will improve most at a given age.  Growth and development play a big part in this, which is demonstrated by ‘windows of opportunity’ which occur as the player gets older and develops.  This influences when skills are learned best, when to concentrate more on strength and when spatial awareness develops.  If the right training is applied at the right age, by tapping into these ‘windows’ the benefits are much greater.

Practice away from sessions is made up of Tap Ups, Individual Skills and Turns, Footwork with the ball, Ladder Exercises, Skipping and Speed Work.  Details of the different activities are detailed below, with the most important first.  The reason they are put in a particular order, is to highlight the priorities we have for the players.  There is no point in asking players struggling with Tap Ups to do all the activities if they haven’t yet mastered the ball.  Once players are working well with the ball, activities without the ball to give extra improvement can be added.  Each player within the Academy will also have different priorities, which is why not all players will be given the same practcie at the same time even within age groups.

TAP UPS

The reasons for taps ups are that they are quantifiable and recordable so improvements are obvious.  This helps the players’ confidence to improve as they can see the rewards from their hard work.  This type of technical skill is also not heavily influenced by the ability of the player and is more a product of concentration, practice and hard work.  All of these qualities will serve our players well as they progress with their football career.  From a technical point of view tap ups improve touch, balance and most importantly weak foot.  These areas fit well into the long term development of the player as they tap into the ‘window of opportunity’ of physical developments, dictated by the growth and development characteristics of players at the Academy.

Academy players need to set high targets with their tap ups and continually look to improve week on week.

INDIVIDUAL SKILLS AND TURNS

Players can practice in an area, between cones or against cones, to help improve this aspect of the game.  This work with the ball also provides the fitness and physical development the players need to work on away from sessions.  Here are the skills that the players need to work on

Individual Skill	Turns
Matthews	Inside Hook
Luis Figo	Outside Hook
Scissors	Cruyff Turn
Double Scissors	Stepover Turn
Revilino	Dragback Turn
Edu	Stop Turn
Ginola	Maradona Turn
Gazza Stop Kick	Socrates
Romario	Zico
Ryan Giggs	Cruyff – Outside Hook
Ronaldinho Scissor	Tostao
Flip Flap
Jay-Jay Okocha
Ronaldo
Carlos
Cristiano Ronaldo

FOOTWORK WITH THE BALL

This involves repeated exercises with the ball improving close control, quick feet, co-ordination and weak foot.  They can be done in a small area and also help to develop football muscles.  Each exercise needs to be performed on both feet, and for about 30 seconds for each exercise.  Listed below are the various footwork exercises we use

Brazilian	Dutch
Single Foot	Single Foot
Roll Back – Laces	Outside-Inside
Pivot	Roll-Outside
Roll Round	Out-Out-In
Pivot – Roll	In-In-Out
Double Foot	Double Foot
Toe Taps	Out-In
Side Taps	Out-Out-In
Roll – Tap	In-In-Out
Socrates – Roll	Out-Out-Roll
Ronaldo – Roll
Socrates – Ronaldo
Carlos – Roll
Roll Back – Laces
Ronaldo – Ronaldo
Ronaldinho
Zico – Zico
Elastic – Elastic

SKILL ASSESSMENT

Below is a table that we use to assess skill levels.  It is designed to develop speed of execution and also drive players on with their practice to achieve the highest levels.

Move	Level 1	Level 2	Level 3	Level 4	Level 5
Toe Touches (both feet)	20	40	60	90	120
Quick Feet (both feet)	30	50	70	110	140
Socrates-Roll (one side)	10	15	25	35	40
Roll-Back-Laces (1 foot)	10	20	30	50	60
Roll-Back-Laces (2 feet)	10	20	30	50	60
Elastic-Stop (one side)	10	15	20	35	50
Elastic – Elastic (both feet)	10	20	30	50	70
Steopover-Stepover (both feet)	10	15	30	40	50
Pivot (one foot)	15	20	25	35	50
Ronaldo-Ronaldo (both feet)	10	15	25	35	45
All skills are based on how many completed in 30 seconds
Tap Ups 1 foot	25	50	75	100	200
Tap Ups Alternate	25	50	75	100	200

LADDER EXERCISES

These exercises help players to develop fast feet without the ball.  They also provide a good foundation for speed and agility training.  All exercises are designed to be done ‘well’ before they are done ‘fast’.  To be done well, players need to maintain balance and body shape.  The ‘ladder exercises’ can involve sticks, cones or floor tiles as long as the spaces are equal and allow for players to repeat the various movements.

Hopping	Running
Hopscotch	1 foot run
3 Hops – 3 Hops	2 foot run
Hop continuous	Icky Shuffle
Zigzag Hops	2 forward – 1 back
2 forward – 1 back	Sideways 2 in
Jumping	2 in – 2 out
Single	Lateral Twist
Zigzag
Big
Big Zigzag
2 forward – 1 back

SKIPPING

Skipping is an excellent exercise and works really well alongside the ladder work, speed work and quick feet.  It helps to improve footwork, fitness, landing correctly and spring.  The length of skipping exercises needs to be gradually increased as the player becomes more used to doing them and fitter.  Here are a list of skipping exercises,

• 2 Foot Jumping – double jumps
• 2 Foot Jumping – single jumps
• 2 Foot Jumping – jumping jacks
• 2 Foot Jumping – split steps
• 1 Foot Hopping – double hop alternate feet
• 1 Foot Hopping – single hop alternate feet
• High Knees Running
• Heel Flicks Running
• Crossover Skipping
• Double Skips

SPEED WORK

Speed work will be given to certain players and the type of work will differ from player to player.  Before players get to that stage they need to be working on the areas above as this will have big benefits for speed.

CLICK ON THE LINK BELOW TO PRINT OFF A TAP UP SHEET

Tap Up Sheet