The principles of defending are taught to each player as an individual. It is key that each player knows these basic principles and how to perform them before teaching the tactical aspect of defending as an individual and as a team. The players will learn how to position their body, shadow a player and how and when to tackle.  Players will leave with a far greater knowledge of defending skills, and when and where they should be applied.

Each player will be given the opportunity to work alone with a ball and develop the vital skills that lead to ball mastery.  Repetition of fun activities is the key here.  Players will develop techniques of juggling, tricks and ball manipulation with both feet.  Add to these techniques a range of specific turns and moves, appropriate to players age and ability, and it is easy to see how this will impact player performance on the field.

Players work with their own ball on developing vital skills which lead to ball mastery and proficiency with both feet. Players will learn to manipulate the ball using a wide range of foot movements and tricks. These movements and tricks are then applied to highly pressurized situations, where repetition is key.

Small sided games modify the large sided game without losing the essence of soccer.  They are utilized on our camps to help players make the transition from drills and exercises to real game situations.  Smaller teams and a reduced playing area allows for greater involvement in the game, with more touches, dribbles and passes allowing for a positive learning experience. In a game where learning by doing is important, players develop both attacking and defending skills in the small sided game environment.

Throughout the season a lot of practices will be based on possession. Crossing and finishing is an end product to possession. Adding a purpose (scoring) to possession is a key element of the game. Players will work on the tactical aspect of getting into good crossing positions, and learn the correct technique and areas to play the ball for a positive outcome.  Players will also learn how to turn a good cross into a goal scoring opportunity from timing of their runs, reading a cross and finishing off a cross.

Players will go beyond the keep-away exercises and find out why possession is important. To be truly effective a team’s possession must have attacking intent and not be possession for possession’s sake. Players will learn how to manipulate the opposition’s formation using possession and how this leads to goal-scoring opportunities. Teams will investigate the rhythm of possession and how to affect the tempo of a game through different possession styles.

During Situational Soccer training players will be discover how to react to situations that the game may throw up. Players will learn how to defend a lead by playing low risk and bolstering their defense or conversely how to go after a goal with high pressure and pace. Teams may also discover how to react to losing a player during a game or how to capitalize on their own numbers-up situation. Players need to be able to think on their feet, as there are no time-outs and the game moves quickly.

Every formation has strengths and weaknesses. In this topic teams will not only work on their own formation to make the most of the attacking platform that it provides, but will also find out where their formation exposes them to counter attack. Players will learn what the vulnerabilities are in other team’s formations and how to expose these weaknesses. Players will also find out how formations are related and how to change their shape within a game.

Teams that demonstrate quick and effective transition create more goal-scoring opportunities. However, the transition of the ball, and turning defense into attack, requires players to make decisions under pressure with and without the ball. In this topic teams will experience transition under varying levels of pressure. The team focus on the movement of players away from the ball and how there are many pieces to being truly effective in transition.

Warm-ups and cool downs are vital for athletes of all sports and the demands of soccer make effective body preparation imperative. There has been much discussion regarding the best way to physiologically prepare soccer players for exercise and ensure that players can perform well without the risk of injury. In this topic players will be taught how to own their preparation and will be armed with a variety of dynamic stretches for soccer specific movements. Warm-ups that incorporate a ball and specific stretching routines will also be introduced.

Passing is one of the key elements of the game of soccer. Your United Soccer Academy coach will work on each individuals passing technique. Players will focus on different types of passing including long and short passes, passes to a player and to space, driven and lofted passes. This module can be combined with possession.

Your United Soccer Academy coach will take your team through a series of team building, guidance and discovery games to ensure that your team are working together as a unit. Games are fun but challenging, testing all of your players abilities to work with their team mates. This is an ideal module for any teams that have added players in the off season.

Heading the ball is a skill that many young players find daunting. The heading module will focus on different types of headers, ultimately giving the players more confidence in using their heads during a game. Fun and inventive games are delivered in a safe environment to ensure maximum success. Heading techniques that are covered are Defending Header, Attacking Header, Glancing Header, Flick Header and diving headers.

Our experienced coaches will use a variety of modern training tools, such as weighted parachutes and speed ladders to deliver sessions similar to those used by professional soccer clubs throughout the world.  We deliver SAQ in our curriculum to develop not only the speed of players but also their acceleration, reaction times and ability to execute skills quickly.
Introduction of the ball to the SAQ session ensures the improvements are specifically applied to soccer skills and techniques. After taking part in these sessions for a week, players will not only feel sharper and faster they will feel more confident and this will show in their play.

Does your team have trouble making a wall? Are players static at corners? Do your players understand direct or indirect? Does your team lose the ball too easy from a throw in?
If you answered 'Yes' to any of the above, we have the answers! Players will work on all aspects of restarts including Kick offs, throw in's, goal kicks, corner kicks and free kicks. Your team will work on strategies of attacking and defending keeping you one step ahead of your opponents.