/Session Review: Reactive Shot Stopping
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For this session, I chose to utilise some ideas from Notts County goalkeeping coach Tom Weal published in a video recently put out by the club. The biggest thing for me on my coaching journey has been learning from experienced and knowledgeable coaches first-hand plus, as they taught us during our FA Level 1 course; “the best coaches are thieves”. Perhaps a little strongly worded, but the sentiment stands – Utilising and using another coach’s session is a great way to learn and if it’s good enough for the pros, it’s good enough for the rest of us!
The thing I enjoy most about this approach is the way it provides a tried and tested starting point, but gives plenty of scope to adapt things as needed. There are many variables during a session, from the number of ‘keepers and amount of equipment available, to the space on offer and weather conditions at the time. For me, the best coaches can think on their feet and adapt their sessions on the fly, rather than stubbonly trying to shoehorn a square peg into a round hole, as it were.
The Session
This session focuses on reactive shot stopping and consists of two primary practices, each with their own specific areas of focus for the coach and the goalkeepers to analyse and work from.
It’s made up of a 5 minute warm-up and two primary practices, designed to last for around 30-40 minutes in total and with three goalkeepers and a coach. It can also be easily adjusted to work with two goalkeepers and a coach, depending on players available.
Following the warm-up, which can be anything from some simple handling or footwork drills to a little bit of foot-tennis or keep-ups, we move into the first of the session’s primary practices.
Practice 1
This practice begins with the goalkeeper on their knees towards the centre of the goal and three servers positioned in a crescent to one side.
The first action is a low show from the central server to the side of the goalkeeper. The goalkeeper needs to spring up off their knees and push out to the side to make the low save. The focus for this part of the practice is on ensuring that they drive up and forwards effectively to maximise their chances of making the save and controlling the ball. They roll the ball back to the central server.
The second action involves the outer-most server playing a hard but controllable pass into the feet of the goalkeeper. They must control this pass and quickly play a return ball to the other server if available, or simply back to the one who played them the ball if less players are involved. This portion focuses firstly on the goalkeeper’s ability to quickly adjust their body from making a save to receiving a pass, their ball control and short distribution. We are looking for a fast, smooth and flowing sequence here with the goalkeeper always in control of the situation.
The third and final action of this practice comes from the original central server playing a volley in towards the goalkeeper in a manner that encourages them to make the save. Again, we are looking at their ability to quickly adjust from one situation (footwork and distribution) to another (making a save), their reactions and, of course, their saving technique.
Once complete, the players rotate round and the process repeats.
Practice 2
Again, the second practice is focusing on reactive shot stopping and the goalkeeper’s ability to adjust, react and make saves under pressure.
The servers are positioned similarly to before, though this time the outer-most server is right on the byline to the side of the goal, around 8 yards out.
The first action is a half-volley high towards the corner of the goal with the intention being for the goalkeeper to make a medium difficulty save. Here we are looking at the goalkeeper’s save technique, but also their post-save behaviour – are they quick to get back up and prepare themselves for the next action, or is there room for improvement in that regard?
The server on the byline instigates phase two by playing a pass into either of the other servers, which is unannounced as the goalkeeper doesn’t know which one they’re going to pass to, with that server then taking the shot upon receiving the pass. Here we’re looking at how the ‘keeper reacts and adjusts and their decision making when making the save – do they rush out to close the shooter down or stay in their goal to make the save? The correct action will often depend on the shooter’s first touch, so we need to look at how the goalkeeper monitors that and reacts to it.
Summary
This is a great, short session with good intensity and a good mix of shot-stopping and other skills for the goalkeeper’s to focus on. It keeps all players engaged, even when they are not actively in goal and provides ample opportunity to analyse, review and work on a range of different techniques that will be crucial to the goalkeeper’s performance in match situations.