The FA’s Pete Sturgess adds to his first blog series which is designed to help people who are taking their first steps as a coach with players aged 5-11. Here he encourages the use of small-sided games.

Hi coaches, in the first blog I asked you to think clearly about what coaching in the Foundation Phase means for both the players (who are in a magical period of development) and for you as the coach, who is tasked with maximising the development during this important phase.

I cannot stress enough the important role you can play in shaping what the young people, who come to your sessions and play in your teams, might turn out to become, both as people and, of course, young footballers.

I know that most of you will be desperate to get into session design, games and other activities because that’s most people’s perception of a coach.

Ideas for these things will follow but I urge you to do some thinking, reading and reflection of your own in preparation for the practical activities so that they will be truly engaging, age appropriate and most of all enjoyable.

So, what might you need to familiarise yourself with? The phrase;

“They are children not mini adults”

This is used so often that you might wonder why some coaches still treat their training sessions and matches like games in the Premier League. Yet on pitches the length and breadth of the country we have coaches adopting this outdated approach.

I have a certain sympathy if the coach is a parent who has taken on the role to prevent the team from folding and to provide their son or daughter with an opportunity to play in a team.

However, if we’re to make all the time and effort we give to the team productive, we cannot adopt an approach that would be better suited for adults.

From the very beginning try to become a coach that is comfortable using small-sided games to help the players improve.

Small-sided games can be any numbers from 1v1 right through to larger numbers and any combination in between (2v1, 2v2 and 3v2 are great numbers to introduce as they can provide lots of opportunities to challenge players and to help deal with difference).

This immediately meets the young players desire to play and be involved in a game. If you adopt this approach you will then need to sharpen your observation skills so that you can quickly build up a picture of each player’s capabilities so that the help and advice you offer is really going to help them improve.

Observing more and saying less is a great place to start but you will need to let the parents of your players know why you are taking this stance. If their idea of a coach is one that “directs all the traffic” and shouts instructions continually to the players, then they may question you about this. This is where you will need to have your answer and where these blogs will help.

Children come to football to play and to have fun. Playing games (games that are carefully planned and include certain challenges and constraints for the players) is a great way to let the players begin to make their own decisions and solve the problems that the games present.

Using smaller number games increases ball contacts, types of movement and decision making – perfect for our young players. You have to know about, and believe in, this approach otherwise you will not be sending out clear and consistent messages to either the players or their parents.

If you’re already using small number games and improving your observation skills as a result, then you have made a very positive start as a Foundation Phase coach.

Next time, we will look at why play is a very important thing for us all, but particularly for young children.