Rory, nice introductory video. Always great to see Futsal getting more attention in the US, as it can be such a valuable developmental tool. I appreciate your focus on the MOVEMENT/Rotation. I have to mention that there are two Futsal laws of the game that you seem to have misinterpreted. Firstly, there is no rule against slide tackling. This is an oft repeated myth in the US that needs to be dispelled. The language in the FIFA Futsal Laws of the game that define what is a foul (direct free kick offense) is copied EXACTLY from the Association Football laws of the game. Many tournaments (specifically small/local tournaments) will have adjusted in-house rules that prohibit slide tackling. This is not an inherit part of Futsal though. Secondly, the rules regarding the goalkeeper being in possession of the ball are misinterpreted. The goalkeeper may only touch the ball within a teams *defensive* half once per possession. If the ball crosses mid court and is played back to the goalkeeper a second time this would still be an indirect free kick offense. The keeper may only have the ball multiple times within a possession if the keeper is in the *attacking* half of the court. When the keeper is in the opposing half he is allowed unlimited touches and is not limited to 4 seconds of possession.

thank Thank You!

You are so right about how rondos are misused. About the only rondo I do is a moving rondo where players simulate their positions down the field. Typically it is a diamond: One back, two midfielders, one forward, and a couple defenders. The players start at the goal line and move to the half pitch line and then back again. The defenders are playing at what I call 50%. That means full out defense, but no kicking at the ball. This keeps the rondo moving. They rotate players at the ends.

I coach U14. What I do is divide the field in half lengthwise instead of widthwise. Typically it is a bit shorter than a full field, depending on other teams using the same space. We then have buildout drills from both ends. I have the defending players play what I call 50% defense at first. That means that they are going all out, but not taking the ball away, kicking at the ball, or using physical contact. They simply move aggressively to get in front of the attackers. It is a great improvement over playing against poles or manniquins. It also allows me to practice a full field drill with as few as 12 players, not 22 (11v11 U14)

Your teams must ROCK! I see coaches at the U14 level who have NO CLUE of this stuff. I've seen some of the videos of your teams and it is IMPRESSIVE!

Wow amazing, coach Ray

Coaching here in USA with 7 years old kids.... How to manage the wingers for covering all the field? Too low as described in the video would lead to have only the midfield and striker attacking.... Id love to see the positioning when attacking from midfield and when the ball is lost on this upper part of the field. I meant how the wingers react ?

What IF, a tryout includes a scrimmage at the end? I will start coating next summer and my first task is to plan a tryout. Including specific activities, such as rondos, 1v1, etc, will give me an idea of individual potential. After watching this video I got the impression that scrimmage is out of the question, but, after reflecting on that, I believe that scrimmage can be used in the end, to have an idea of how each player works in a team, attitude. Maybe the player will have few touches and not the best on 1v1, but he/she is the best one at finding open spaces and creating options. Or, even with poor 1v1 he/she can easily find an open player because of his/her awareness of the playing field. We can only see this in a scrimmage. Am I wrong? Maybe this is a rookie question. Any thoughts?

My son is born in Jan 24th and is advanced cruising u6 playing u8 now as a 5 year old almost 6. How does these changes effect him I don’t get it? Regardless if you are good you play up if your not good you stay your level? Please explain long term and short term effects I’m confused. Sorry soccer is not my sport and only learning it because my son loves it

Thank you!

Also on futsal, the GK can only roll it to someone on their half of the court? Or can they throw it in the air to the offensive side of the court to the pivot for example?

Please explain why pivot would ever be pronounced pee-voh.

Coach, Great video. The biggest thing I struggle with is most teams playing futsal don’t practice futsal. Do you practice these patterns on indoor turf?

Thank you Coach Rory, 1st class as always! Are there any other online trainings or resources you recommend for new/aspiring futsal coaches?

Keep them coming!

Are picks legal in futsal? Thanks for sharing!

Thank you Coach, gracias. Question: can these ideas be used also at Indoor (board wall) Soccer?

Reminds of how my dad built his high school team

Great video! I completely agree with the approach and really appreciate the detail.

girl have more flexible knee ankle and other joints than boys so we need to work even more on prevention with them

Thanks!

Thank you again sir. Another great video with great (and timely) advice.

What’s your email? I would like a copy of your excel spreadsheet if possible. Thanks !

I had a really tough Fall Season. I had one (1) player who had a terrible attitude, complained all the time, blamed all teammates except himself when something went wrong (on/off field), almost got into 3 physical fights (1 of the fights was with my own son), used overwhelming profanity on/off field to teammates and coaches, complained about his position, wouldn't listen/follow directions, etc. Not only did I strip his "Captain" designation right away when I realized who he really was (it didn't start like this during pre-season practices), I benched him during games and made him run laps during practices. From this discipline, his parents got pissed off at me and I ultimately wanted to kick him off the team, but I wasn't allowed because this is a rec team. He was toxic/poison to the team and we only won 1 game for the entire season. "I'm not looking for the best players, I'm looking for the right ones." - Herb Brooks, Head Coach, Team USA Ice Hockey, 1980 Olympics. Chemistry and rapport is key to any team and feel it's even more important than technical skills. This player was not a good fit for this team, or any team of that matter and I personally believe he needs a lot of professional help as I feel his behavior originates from home. This was such a bad experience because I didn't get what I wanted, I never want to coach again!

Hi coach, thanks for the really great info here! Do you reference previous evaluations to see if the player has grown in the areas that were identified as needing improvement?

this is great advice! I agree with everything you noted here and have seen great success with mid-season evals. one thing I like to include is a self-assessment section. I setup a “team survey” google form ahead of time where players can rate themselves and offer feedback. the way you shape the questions leads them to provide an invaluable look into how they experience their own soccer journey. i include this on the final eval form, right next to my own feedback.

Starting to think you can see what's happening on my computer, Coach. I just spent the last month developing a player framework for U9-U14 players for my club so that we could start doing better evaluations and analysis of our players. I felt we needed something guided to identify where we needed to spend more of our energy - especially when our younger teams have their technical sessions with our trainers.

thank😊

How often do you think players should be moved up and down between 1st, 2nd, 3rd teams? Often times it seems players are grandfathered onto teams and promoting/ relegating players is a tough conversation (but necessary). I'd prefer to see movement amongst players at least every season if not more frequently to promote competition. Thoughts?

As a career teacher, I wholeheartedly agree with this approach. Your spreadsheet looks a lot like the rubrics that many effective teachers use to grade assignments. I wish more clubs took the time to evaluate their players in this way. I'm also glad that you're not afraid to rank the players and tell players honestly how they compare to the rest of the team. I think most players do have a good idea of how their skills compare to their teammates' skills, but they do need to understand what they specifically they can do to improve. Out of curiosity, do you also have similar evaluation sheet for the coaches in the club?

Hi Rory, really enjoy your content and would love the evaluation document if you wouldn’t mind sending it on?

Thanks!

Great content as always Coach Rory! Your videos have been very helpful, as a new coach I appreciate seeing a different perspective. Thanks again!!

Just get the balance right. One brand of coaching will not fit every player.

Hi Rory, I love these tactical breakdowns as an adult. But how do teach this in a training session with 8 and 9 year olds. I find when I get into more tactical discussions with them they tend to lose focus and not adsorb it. Any tips there? Thanks in advance!

Can I get copies of your excell docs used for the video

Good video. It's just too bad that your opinions weren't reflected when Jurgen Klinsman and his mob forced this down everyone's throats seven years ago down to kindergarten rec. They didn't care about all the teams that would be broken up (including the two rec teams I coached at the time). Shame on them for this mess.

Actionable is the key. Need an agreed apon plan to help things keep moving in a better direction.

Just did these with my club team through play metrics. Your system seems so much better.

We're aligned in many ways. Here's a few where I'll offer a different perspective. In my experience, you can and SHOULD (and again, my opinion) have evals with the players too. It's about engaging the player, and reviewing LESS on the quantitative scale (or ranking) and MORE on the qualtitative. Asking the player open-ended questions and giving them a forum to speak up. Plus, it's their journey and their experience. Even from a young age, we as coaches can help them to take ownership of their development. Too, for the IDP - I believe that also has an age/experience scale in terms of how it is developed, and is important with the player engagement. Have a 10yr old who needs extra work at home? Have them identify what they enjoy, what motivates them, and identify areas and things they can do at home that will cultivate that extra effort feeling natural instead of forced. Even if they want to do something that they already excel at, or isn't a deficient area. This will help drive more intrinsic satisfaction. Then when players are older (~HS age and above) they'll be more inclined to do the 'extra' work on their own - the stuff they NEED to work on, but will have a greater appreciation for it because of a love of the game as a whole.

Thanks Coach, gracias. Do you keep the same rosters after winter evaluation?

Is there a way you can share your templates for rating these attributes? I’m one of the coaches for my local high school team and it would be very helpful, as we are in pre-season currently

I like your opinion on the age qualifiers on when to include the parents and when to only counsel the players. I have defiantly seen coaches try to give a lot of feedback to 8 an 9 years olds and the eyes glaze over really quick.

Coach, This is something I have heard in passing, but never considered. Do you provide the overall ranking of where the player racks and stacks to each player?

Here at lonestar we do it by giving a grade 1-5 like you mentioned.

Thank you so much, Coach! 🙌🏼

I've always thought the whole thing was dumb. They should make it based on age by a certain date prior to each season, spring and fall, for example. So, 14U would be any kid 14 or under prior to the start of the season, whatever season that is. So, if you are 14 or younger by a specific date in spring, you can play 14U. If you turn 15 prior a specific date for that same year fall season, you play 16U. That would be most accurate based on age, which is the most important factor is creating the age groups. In essence, the age would be more accurate up to around half a year. Also, it should be standard for ALL soccer, even international so that you could have fair competitions between any leagues.

Non-Answer is the perfect summary Coach. Why not just stick with birth year but allow a buffer of flexibility down (since no one is super concerned about kids playing up). Eg: 2015 birth year but if the kid is in 3rd grade instead of 4th grade because they were born after Labor Day, let them play down if that's better for their development. Most kids playing competitively are interested in playing up, not down.

Taking more time to make a decision seems smart. If the feedback they rx'd is 'clear' and that members need flexibility and 82% stated they aren't ready to make that drastic a change then the majority of the statement makes sense. I understand wanting either change/no change , but it appears they based their current decision of data and not emotion. Also thinking one blanket rule for all soccer leagues regardless of location (ex: rural Iowa v. urban Dallas) instead of relative flexibility works best really does seem short-sighted.

Let me simplify: All governing bodies and, in turn, leagues can do whatever they want in order to make the most money.