Category: Goalkeeping
Type: Tip
Equipment: Goal, 150 ft. extention cord, ball
Age: 6 to 10
CUT DOWN THE ANGLE
One of the tougher concepts for the young keeper is that of cutting down the angle of the shooter. At the younger ages you generally have two extremes: Keepers who never come off their lines, and keepers who just charge at anything.
What the keepers lack is the perspective of how much net is left exposed if they do, or do not, move. This is because there are no real visual cues for the keeper to lock in on.
There is a simple, visual way to show the keeper how much of the net is exposed based on the ball’s position and his position relative to it and the shooter.
All you need to demonstrate this is a net, a length of cord (a 150 foot extension cord does nicely) a ball and the keeper. Tie one end of the cord to the near post, the other end to the far post. Then you simply pull the cord out and set the ball at the apex of the triangle.
Obviously everything outside the cord line will miss the net when shot, everything inside will hit the net. (There is of course the third dimension, height, but we’ll get to this later.)
It is also easy to move the cords around to show how different angles of approach by the attacker yield different angles that the keeper can cut down.
The Height Dimension
Now of course there is also the issue of a shot being played over the head of the keeper. At the younger ages this is usually a line shot that just clears their hands.
At the older levels, as players come off their lines more there are chipped shots for which the keeper must drop back quickly for to punch away.
For the younger ages however, where we just want to show them the basic perspective of how cutting down the angle helps them, use this simple technique.
With the cords still in place, put a ball at the apex of the triangle. Then have the keeper go out and lie on the ground with their chin on the ball, looking toward the goal. This gives them a “balls eye view”.
Have a second player be the keeper in the net and have them slowly approach the ball. The keeper with their head on the ball will see how the player approaching “miraculously” grows in relation to the net, giving the shooter less and less of a target … simple, yet effective.
Submitted by: Coach George Lasher
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