Belmont Soccer Association New Placements Process Information for Coaches and Parents 1
Summary of changes to Placements process Spring 2016 1. Hold Placements outside and during the week instead of a weekend: a) Placements will take place week of June 6 th 10 th weeknights from 5pm 8:00pm 2. Run the Placements by Age group a) Have specific sessions (days) for each travel age group - U10, U11, U12, U13/14 3. Placement Exercises a) Offer expanded technical skills and scrimmage sessions for better overall evaluation 4. Who does the Placements? a) Any player who wishes to play travel in the Fall of 2016 or Spring of 2017 (including 4th Grade Town players (U10) who think they may switch to travel for Spring 2017) b) All Town players will be placed on their team based on the player evaluation form completed by their coach Our belief is that these improvements will result in a more holistic assessment of the soccer skills of each player allowing BSA to placed the player appropriately for their age & development level 2
Placement Exercises Field Layout 12 Kids 12 Mins 3v3 12 mins 3v3 12 mins Technical Skills Dribbling Form 8 Kids 8 Mins Technical Skills Shooting Form, 12 Kids 12 Mins 8 Kids 8 Mins 6v6 12 mins Technical Skills Passing / Receiving Form 8 Kids 8 Mins 3
Placement Exercises - Scrimmage All exercises will be run by Champion Soccer School and their team of experienced soccer coaches. There will be two 3x3 and one 6x6 scrimmage run simultaneously (as shown on previous page) Players play 3v3 or 6v6 for 12 minutes. Players may switched across teams to create more balanced teams if necessary After 12 minutes, the groups of 3v3 play 6v6 and the 6v6 group plays 3v3, and scrimmage for another 12 minutes Players play 3v3 or 6v6 for 12 minutes. Players may switched across teams to create more balanced teams if necessary Key areas of focus: Player positioning off the ball; Position awareness, Tackling/defensive skills, Ability to create space/beat a player, Pass into open space, Shoot accurately under pressure 4
Placement Exercises - Dribbling This will be a timed exercise which measures a players ball control and use of both feet while controlling the ball There will be a series of cones or discs set in a pattern with varying lengths in between the cones. They will not be in a straight line more of a zig-zag pattern. Some cones will be close together to measure control in tight spaces, and some will be further apart to measure ball control in more open space. Players will be timed to complete the dribbling course and assessed based on ability to dribble through each cone while accurately controlling the ball. Each player will have 2 attempts Key areas of focus: Ability to maintain control of the ball in both tight and open spaces Ability to dribble and turn left/right while controlling the ball 5
Placement Exercises Passing / receiving Evaluators will measure the players ability to pass while moving with the ball and receive (and control) a moving ball. Any combination of 4 drills mentioned below will be used. Two circles of cones inner and outer - Group of players split between both circles. 1st drill - players on the outside have a ball. Each inner circle player leaves the circle, checks to an outside player and receives a pass. Receiver passes it back, returns to the inner circle and checks to another player on the outside. 2nd drill - same as 1st drill but the inner players plays 2 touches of the ball. One to receive and one to pass back. 3rd drill - Inner circle players now start with a ball. Leaving the inner circle, they dribble around a cone on the outer circle, back to the inner circle where they pass to a player on the outer circle. This player then dribbles the ball through the inner circle to another cone on the outer circle; back into the middle and pass to a new player. Cycle keeps going. 6
Placement Exercises Passing / receiving contd. 4 th drill - Inner circle players start with a ball. Leaving the inner circle, they dribble around a cone on the outer circle, back through the inner circle then plays a pass to a target player who immediately plays it back to that player. The receiver then turns and dribbles back into the circle and plays it out back to a different target player, switching roles at this point. So essentially, this 4 th variation would have the active players playing two passes before switching instead of one. Key areas of focus: Ability to control the ball from a pass with a first touch; Ability to pass accurately to a player while moving with the ball; Ability to maintain control of the ball and awareness of the other players while dribbling with the ball 7
Placement Exercises Shooting Evaluators will measure the players ability to control a moving ball and shoot with correct form. The shooting form of the player (power and lift of ball) is the key focus There will be a shooting line marked by 2 discs between 8 and 12 yards from the goal. An additional, outer cone will be 5-7 yards further out Each player will be required to run around the Outer cone and will be served a relatively fast moving ball while running toward the goal The player will be required to control the moving ball with a first touch, and then shoot / strike towards the goal with a second touch from the shooting line. We are NOT measuring players ability to strike the moving ball on the first touch. Control and shoot is emphasized. Key areas of focus: Ability to slow down a fast moving ball with a first touch to create a shooting opportunity Correct shooting / striking form when taking a shot use of laces, ability to position the ball towards the sides, a shot rising in the air. Use of the toe-shot is highly discouraged for this exercise 8