— TRAINING SESSION

Pre-season Day 1 — back to basics

Stretch the Game · 75 minutes · 4 drills · Generated 21 May 2026

Light-but-sharp opening session. Focus on touch, passing rhythm, and movement. Builds fitness through ball work, not laps.

4DRILLS

75MINUTES

19AVG / DRILL

1 Line dribbling — both feet

0 min Difficulty: Beginner Age: u8 Court: Half

Player dribbles along a straight line, alternating which foot touches the ball with every step. The drill that fixes a one-footed player.

Coaching points

• Every step is a touch — right foot, left foot, right foot, left foot
• Inside of the foot only at first — outside later
• Head up — don't watch the ball
• Touch is light, ball stays within a yard of your feet
• 30 seconds of perfect touches beats 5 minutes of sloppy ones

2 Passing diamond — outside, inside, switch

0 min Difficulty: Beginner Age: u10 Court: Half

Four players form a diamond and rotate through passing patterns at pace. Builds passing accuracy, communication, and intelligent movement after the pass.

Coaching points

• Pass and follow your pass — always be moving
• Call for the ball early and loud
• Inside of foot for accuracy, laces for distance
• Receiver checks toward the ball before opening up
• Coach calls the pattern: 'outside!' or 'switch!' to change direction

3 Rondo 4v1 in a 10-yard square

0 min Difficulty: Intermediate Age: any Court: Half

The foundation drill of modern football. Four players keep possession in a tight square; one defender presses. Builds first-touch quality, body shape, and the habit of opening up to receive.

Coaching points

• Open body shape — receive on the half-turn, hips angled to the next pass
• Two-touch maximum: kill the ball, find the next player
• Pass into the back foot of the receiver, never the front
• Use the third-man combination when the obvious pass is closed
• Defender works in 45-second bursts then rotates

4 Ball-based conditioning circuit

0 min Difficulty: Intermediate Age: u14 Court: Half

Circuit of three stations — dribble, pass-and-move, sprint with finish. Players rotate through, building football-specific fitness without losing technical quality.

Coaching points

• Quality before quantity — sloppy technique under fatigue is worse than rest
• Recovery between stations is active (jog) not passive
• Use the rest to refocus — the next station starts now
• Coach times the rotations — don\'t leave it to chance
• Hydrate between rotations — fatigue compounds without water