Learning through experience

I’m a big believer in learning through experience. The FA courses and wealth of other online learning resources out there all have their place, but I don’t think anything can replicate actually “doing”. Think about it, just because you pass your driving theory test does not mean you are able to safely handle a car on public roads, you need to get out there, have physical lessons and learn by doing – for me, the same applies to coaching.

With the times we live in, I have as of yet been unable to undertake any FA coaching courses (something that may only become more difficult as the FA continue to cut back their face-to-face education programs), but I’ve completed every online course they have to offer – even those that are arguably of little benefit. From the new flagship “FA Playmaker”, right through to Talent ID, taking in the first aid and welfare courses on the way.

When I started coaching back in September, I went into it blind. I took my first session (and all those subsequently, for that matter) based purely off of watching and learning from other coaches through Twitter, YouTube and other online resources. This has proved to be a fantastic basis for my learning, but offers far from the complete package I think I’ll need to really do this to the best of my ability.

I’ve reached out to a few local goalkeeper coaches working with professional and semi-professional clubs to enquire about observing one of their sessions. Eventually I got some success when Paul Walker, goalkeeper and current goalkeeper coach for AFC Sudbury, offered me the chance to head down to the team’s training session last night and watch him work with the keepers.

Paul, who is currently sidelined through a nasty injured sustained in September, is currently working as a coach for the club whilst he undergoes his rehab, but has a wealth of experience behind him as a player. Starting with Northampton Town, Paul joined Sudbury back in 2017 after a long spell with Corby Town and a shorter one at Haverhill Borough. During his time with Sudbury, he’s picked up Players Player and Supporters Player of the year in each of his three seasons to date.

Coaching wise, he has both his level 1 and 2 goalkeeping badges and is currently working towards a UEFA B license with the Welsh FA (for whom he made two under 17 appearances as a youngster).

The session didn’t quite go as planned, only one of the potential three goalkeepers turned up on the night and the one-to-one time he had with the keeper was cut short by the head coach who wanted to run some attack-vs-defence and set-piece drills. I didn’t mind this at all though, as these are very similar to the challenges I face during my own coaching, as different numbers of keepers are available each week and time spent with them often varies too. Something I’ve learnt quickly is that you need to be prepared to change and adapt your sessions for the circumstances you’re in, whether that’s a limited amount of space to work with, a late change to the number of players you’ve got that day or adjustments to time you have to work with them.

Despite only being short and with just the one keeper, I still learnt a lot by observing this session. In many ways it acted as a sort of validation that much of what I’m doing is on the right lines and heading in the right direction, whilst at the same time it was interesting to pick up on things that perhaps I’m not doing or should be doing better. Speaking to the keeper(s) and reviewing each drill is something I certainly need to focus on more. Just hopping from drill to drill with little explanation as to why is not ideal and perhaps makes the session seem a little fast-paced and random, whereas taking just a few seconds to explain why we’re doing something and how it will benefit them gives a lot more basis to the process and likely increases the trust that is needed for them to feel comfortable you know what you’re talking about.

Paul was kind enough to invite me back down for a future session (after lockdown, of course) when perhaps there will be a few more keepers present and hopefully a longer, more focused session, something I will definitely take him up on as soon as it’s possible to do so.

Beyond observing the session itself, I think the most value I took out of the evening was spending half an hour or so afterwards talking to Paul about his experiences, both as a player and as a coach. Knowledge and experience are invaluable tools and something which I am obviously without much of at the moment. It really did provide me with a fantastic insight and left me with a lot of pointers to take forward.

For anyone else out there starting your journey into coaching, I would 100% recommend getting in touch with as many local coaches as you can and asking to observe their sessions. The worst they can say is “no” (or nothing at all…), but best-case scenario is that you’ll learn something from someone that will aid you to improve your sessions and yourself moving forwards.

Once again, thanks to Paul (and to James) for allowing me to get one final coaching fix before lockdown, see you all on the other side…!