Hi Paul,

I coach an Under 9s team and we have three teams. During training we separate them out into A, B and C abilities which helps them and us.  During tournaments or games we are encouraged to mix our abilities and yes it can be extremely frustrating for both us as coaches and the higher ability children.  If it comes down to kids who are mucking about then i just sub them off more than others who are not and explain that to them that is why.  If a child is of a lower ability but you can see they are trying then I explain to the higher ability children that they are giving everything just like them so they tend to be less annoyed.  I have also tried using/mixing more level As and and a few Cs in a team and then having a complete level B team which worked out ok.  Hope that makes sense!

Thanks

Paul  

Hi Paul,

A common and typical challenge amongst this age group. Would moving the children just move the problem? Some things to consider:

- find out why they are coming to football, is it to see/be with their friends? 

- consider practice design, how can your sessions and practices be super engaging for the age group and players you coach?

- consider coaching methods, what works with the group and what works with individual players? 

- give attention to and highlight the behaviours of the children who are engaged to the whole of the group rather than any disruptive behaviours (look for Pete Sturgess Sessions as examples, he is excellent at doing this and modelling coach behaviours), this works with some children who then try to mimic positive behaviours as this is where the coach is focussing their attention. 

- talk to the parents about how this is managed at school/home to help you. How can we support the children to regulate and recognise the impact of some of their behaviours. What tactics can you use as a coach? This is a life skill that we can help them to learn in our football settings. 

- consider that even though they are in the same age group some children could still be a lot younger than their peers e.g. a Child born in August will be nearly a year younger than another child in the same group born in September. So the August child could potentially be less physically, socially, emotionally and cognitively developed (mature) than their team mates at that point in time. So we may need to adjust our expectations of some children with this in mind. This links to knowing your players. Are they the youngest or oldest in the group?

Some more tips here: https://www.thefa.com/bootroom/resources/coaching/how-to-manage-player-behaviour

Let me know what you think!

EH