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[Jamie]

Hello and welcome to CoachCast by England Football Learning, the coaching podcast that brings you insight from people across the game. As always we're Jamie and Louise and today we're joined by Matt Jones who's returning to CoachCast to talk about the start of pre-season and welcoming players back to training. Well hi Matt, welcome back to the show, how are you?

[Matt]

Hi you both, thanks for having me for what is third instalment.

[Louise]

Yeah, lucky us.

[Jamie]

Hattrick appearance, yeah.

[Louise]

Really nice to have you back with us. For anybody who hasn't listened to those three episodes, do you want to just remind everybody what it is that you do?

[Matt]

So I'm lucky enough to be a regional coach development officer, work in the West Midlands, and my job is to try and help coach coaches, so support around coach development, delivery of workshops, in-situ support and then also working with coach developers as well as mentors and there's a bespoke focus to my role around EDI. So yeah, that's what I'm lucky enough to do.

[Jamie]

Brilliant, well Matt you're no stranger to this podcast as you say, so you know what's coming here, because before we dive into the main part of the show we always like to give our listeners some top tips to start.

[Louise]

Yeah, so we're gonna give you 30 seconds to tell us those top tips, are you up for that challenge?

[Matt]

I am, I was thinking about it driving here, how do I pick out three different ones because it's trying to challenge myself not to repeat what I've already shared but hopefully I've got three new ones for you.

[Jamie]

Brilliant.

[Louise]

Right when the music starts you can begin.

[Matt]

So the first one would be to have a pocket planner so a little bit of paper with a bite-sized version of your session plan in your pocket, just to prompt your memory. Second one is, I've started to use a whistle more in my coaching, links more to game day, so referee blowing a whistle and the players reacting, as well as cuts down my voice and gets the players attention and the final one is plan where you're gonna stand in your session so if you want to take up a particular vantage point to understand a particular objective position yourself there but really think about why you're standing there and what you're seeing.

[Louise]

Perfect. Absolutely perfect. He's a pro.

[Matt]

It's taken me three episodes to get there but I'll take it.

[Louise]

It's always good to just keep practising.

[Matt]

It is.

[Louise]

That's a good thing to take away.

[Jamie]

It is, yeah. Thanks for that Matt. It's a good start to the show that. Now Matt, it is currently the start of preseason when this goes out So looking back at your experiences as a coach and developing other coaches as well, what does this period of the year look like for you?

[Matt]

I think for me that there were three things. One is pause and reflect and draw breath because the world of a coach you never seem to stop And when you're in the thick of a season, you know, games come thick and fast, the next training session is just around the corner. So I think the off season is really important for you to just pause, compose yourself, identify any key learning, what's gone well, even better if, do differently next time, et cetera. And that's not just you doing that, that's you collaborating with your, you know, your fellow coaching colleagues, as well as maybe asking the players before they depart and have a period off. I mean, it's interesting, isn't it? We call it the off season. I don't think the coach actually ever switches off. They just behave and act and do their role differently. I think the other thing then is is that once you've taken a moment to reflect and drawn down any key learning, whether it's yourself or the people contributing towards that, it's what does next season start to look like? So can you start to plan but plan purposefully? So link it to the age and stage of your players. So I coach opposite ends of the spectrum. So I work with under-8s boys, which includes my son, and I share that with other coaching parents. And then the opposite end of the spectrum, I'm lucky enough to coach Water City women who play in the National League, so tier four of the women's pyramid. So two very different environments so I've got to think, act and do differently as a coach or a head coach And so for me to be able to plan out purposefully what pre-season is going to look like to help an under-8 or an adult player who's trying to establish a career in the women's game high up, then that's something that I've really got to give some thought to. So using the off-season ahead of pre-season is good for that.

[Louise]

In your opinion, what's the first thing that you need to do as a coach at this point?

[Matt]

Reconnect. So reconnect with the players, but prior to that reconnect with the staff. So in the world of Water City Women, we had a planning meeting. I say planning meeting, if I had my time again, because I did call it a planning meeting, I'd probably call it a reconnecting meeting. Because we had three objectives. So connect, collaborate, and then provide clarity. So I'm the head coach of the first squad. We've got reserves, we've got under 18s, we've got strength and conditioning, we've got sports therapy. So we had all of those disciplinarian teams, if you like, if that's the correct term, all those disciplines, if you like, under one umbrella. And so I wanted those people together in one room, bearing in mind there's some returning staff and there's some new staff. So connections first on the agenda, who am I, who are they, who are we, then it's right start to collaborate. So we did do that reflective piece where we went what were you happy with last season, what do you want to make 10 or 15 percent better because if we're going to climb the league table we all need to get better not just players but that starts with staff. And the final thing was who do you want to start to collaborate with because when the season starts and the ball starts rolling Sometimes we find it difficult to be able to go and have conversations with other coaches Even though we might train together So I wanted to start as we mean to go on have regular touch points right from the off It was probably more of a reconnection meeting. We did it did a little bit of planning What does preseason look like But it was more that connection and collaboration piece. And then my job around the clarity was, okay, what does the football piece look like, the project? Because they'll be looking to the first squad, the reserves and the 18s, of, okay, what does good look like? So the football, is it a philosophy or an ideology? That's my responsibility. They help me shape it because it's an ongoing and evolving piece of work, but that's something that I lead on. So I needed to provide that clarity, especially if they're new coaches to the club, they've got to know what they're part of. So yeah, Reconnect was my answer to that question.

[Louise]

It's almost like the conversational part before the planning and kind of just getting everybody on the same page.

[Matt]

And dare I say, like the humanistic part. We don't want to be robots as much as there might be a process that we work through as coaches and we might have a favourable methodology. So there's got to be thinking behind why we do what we do and that's where the word purposefully comes in for me but a big part of coaching is being human and understanding people and emotions. And clearly that is involved in any environment that you're in, but most definitely in a coaching football environment, there's a lot of human factors to consider. So yeah, connecting is key.

[Jamie]

You talk a lot there about like reconnecting with players if we just take a little bit of a touch back just before that point is almost like the bit where the players haven't returned yet but you know they're going to return from that summer break so do you have any tips to help coaches sort of like mentally prepare for that first training session, the first time that they are going to be able to reconnect with the players after the summer break?

[Matt]

So I think you have to accept that there's like two categories, there's what players want and there's what players need And so all coaches now listening to this are going, well I want them to have this, but are my wants the same as their wants? And that's where you've got to separate the wants and the needs. So I've started to think about if I'm a player and I'm returning, what do I want pre-season to look and feel like? Because I've been a player. I turned 42 last Friday and I've started to feel my age, thank you. I've started to feel my age but I can still remember what it was like to be an 18 year old, to be a 25 year old, you know, returning. I can even just about remember what it was like to be 9 and 10 and return to what preseason looked like then. So clearly what a player wants might be different to what a coach wants and that's what I mean by separating the wants and the needs. So a player wants a ball at their feet, they want to play games, they want to be with their mates. And even in Water City Women's World, so adult football playing Tier 4, the Women's National Pyramid, they still want some of that because they're still big kids as much as we're there to compete. So I've got to make sure that I'm factoring that in. Equally, there's the stuff that we know they need. So if we go for the obvious one of the physical corner, they still need an element of fitness to be considered in the pre-season. And some players will want that depending on how they're motivated because there are those players that do like to run the hard yards and the hard miles Maybe they have got a an affiliation with like cross-country or hiking so for those players It's it's less of a hard sell, but for the majority of players It's a hard sell, but we still know there's an element of fitness that's needed in a game of football so how do we get them football fit? So you have to be really clever and creative in how you weave it in but you still can't deny the the hard fitness work needs to be done and it's going to serve them well when you get into the the thick of the season. So I think that's important, that would be a really top tip that I would say to coaches, accept that there's going to be what the players want and what you need them to do as the coach, and that it's mapping out how you're going to deliver that in whatever the time period is you've got. So for Water City Women we've got seven weeks. We start this Tuesday before our first National League game. So we're looking at a particular programme of work to build up to that seven weeks to make sure that we're game ready come what August 17th. Whereas for my boys under eights team, we're actually having downtime now. We've just finished like post-season tournaments. We had a couple at the weekend, one on Saturday, one on Sunday. And when you factor in the heat, it takes a lot out of the players and the staff. So having that downtime now is important and we'll go through the reflective phase, the planning phase. As a group of dads, it might look slightly different to what it did for Water City Women. It might be a glass of shandy, you know, down the park or the pub, but that's me Yeah, connecting with my fellow coaching dads and mums and saying, okay What do we want the boys under nine season to look like?

[Louise]

And what is your focus for the first session back and is there anything coaches should avoid doing?

[Matt]

It doesn't matter whether you work with eights or adults, avoid running up hills because this ain't the military. And the reason I'm smiling is because we've probably all done it as players and as coaches. I've thought about doing it because you do what was done to you. And I like to think I'm a bit more experienced and switched on now with what, 25 years coaching experience than I'm about. But that killer question of why do you do what you do as a coach? What's the purpose behind it? So yeah, avoid running those steep inclines. What I've also done is I've sort of mapped out here in my notes around, well, what does a grassroots under-8s pre-season look like by comparison to open age adult women's National League and in terms of the under 8s grassroots I've mapped it out to like the four corners and I've just like lifted out some match of the day highlights of things that I would want to go after working with my under 8s transitioning into under 9s. So the first thing is in the technical tactical corner is lots of touches of the ball. Absolutely lots of opportunities to get on a ball, stay on the ball, master the ball. So going back to those foundation phase key messages, who doesn't want a ball at their feet. Now I'm not saying that's not important for adults because it still is, but for the kids, that football is the carrot. It's the real thing that motivates them and it will get them running. That then links us into the physical corner. So foundation phase, anywhere between 5 and 11 years old, they still need development work on their ABCs, so Agility, Balance, Coordination, Speed. I've also squeezed in the term football movements. Can we make sure that they can apply those ABCs to a football movement? So if they are turning, so using their balance and coordination, they're turning to try and make a recovery run, maybe. Or if they are challenging their agility, it's looking to change direction dynamically to maybe deceive an opponent, going back to one of the six key capabilities. Then we move into the psychological corner. I'm going to sound like Michael Bublé here, so forgive me, but we want to switch them on and get them feeling good. So how is our environment helping them to rekindle the love for the game that they hopefully had last season and Also reminding them of the rollercoaster ride and excitement that we're going to go on this season because it will be up and down You know, no, no season has ever been Flawless for any team or coach So we've got to make sure we're preparing them for maybe some bumps in the road, but the most important thing is get them connected and get them feeling good about themselves in the environment. And then that links nicely to the one word I've put in the social corner is togetherness. So there might have been some new players come into the mix, there's new friendship groups to try and bond and create, and so pre-existing players coming back into the fix or the mould that maybe haven't seen one another for a few weeks if they've been away on summer holidays and whatnot. So that reconnection piece again is absolutely crucial. So those would be like the key headlines I would map into all four of the four corner model around an under-9s team. And then probably a bit more formal around my work with Worcester City Women, so an open age adult team is, we've mapped out what the seven weeks looks like. So to give you a flavour, S&C testing and remote programme will begin. So our contact time with the players is they'll train two hours on a Tuesday, two hours on a Thursday, 7.30 to 9.30 and within those two hours there's a divvy up of the football piece but also the S&C piece. So I collaborate with the S&C team on what that looks like and they collaborate with us as the football coaches and we'll try and dovetail together at that two hours to work smart. That said there's also going to be some distance commitment and learning for the players because again we're trying to professionalise a women's football club that are climbing the women's football pyramid. The sports therapy screening to factor in. So again, our contact time needs to be really well used to make sure that we're drawing down on information and data that's going to help the player as an athlete learn about themselves and also prepare them for the season. We also might have one or two players who are returning from injury. You need to reconnect and see where their rehab is. Then you've got the technical and tactical match prep that will start to build in, so as part of our pre-season programme we've got five pre-season fixtures. So we'll spend a couple of weeks on the training ground and then we'll get into the first of five games, then we'll have one game a week on a Sunday, again to get through the technical and tactical bits and pieces, but also to get the players into performing and spending the same level of energy, and I say energy not just in the tech and the physical corner but also psychological and social corner every week on a Sunday when we'll play those games. So it's almost like that habitual process of okay this is what a week is going to look like, train Tuesday, train Thursday, you've got your bits in between that you need to commit to, find balance between perform and rest, then come Sunday at two o'clock, you're going to hopefully perform. And then you've got the post-match recovery etc. So having those five fixtures is sufficient enough to hopefully start to re-groove that habit individually and collectively. And not just for players, but also for staff. And then you've got squad togetherness building so you might weave in some some social work in there so whether it's you know bowling, paint bowling, some off-field connection and collaboration with the group and again because we've got new players joining our squad it helps them to feel part of the group not just on the field but off the field and also it's a chance for some of the new staff to connect with players and staff and then a real key one is When we get into week three of our programme this summer, once we've finished almost like our player recruitment phase, because in the first two weeks there might be one or two new players who we're still assessing, and I know we're going to talk about that word trialling later on in the podcast, we're still trialling and assessing players. So once we get into week three, and we've got that slightly leaner squad, and signposted other players who have been unsuccessful elsewhere, we will talk about expectations. What do they look like for the season? I'm not saying you can't do this with under 8s or under 9s because you'd go about it a slightly different way. You could ask the under 8s and the 9s, well what's important for you as a player and what's important for each other because you are a team? And I think that's a really good question to ask your young players and see what answers they come back with because then you can use some of their responses. But it's the same for adults, but I think you can go into a bit more detail with the adults and there's a bit more obvious accountability. So a quick example of that might be, okay, well, what style of football do you want to play? And they might say, okay, we want to be more positive. We want to be high pressing. Okay, well, what do we need to do that? We need to be fit. Okay, so we need an element of commitment to your S&C programme, not just in the four hours that we see a week, but the other hours in between your work and your training with us. So straight away, there's that buy-in. Well you want to do this, well to do that, you're going to have to commit this. So that would probably be a quick example around, okay, expectations are your S&C programme is this, we expect you to be fulfilling that, assuming that you've not got any sort of injury or illness or reasonable rationale for not doing it. So I think going through that expectation piece, you know, how do we want to behave in front of one another, around one another? What about if we are going to navigate some conflict? What does the respect piece look like? So I think having those conversations earlier on and nailing down the expectations will help later on in the season. So yeah, that will give you a flavour of two pre-seasons if you like.

[Jamie]

Yeah no thanks for that, it's quite interesting seeing like the difference between as well and obviously you're in that unique position where it is both at like the senior game and obviously at the grassroots game that was quite interesting seeing that insight.

[Matt]

It feels more serious with the adults but then if I flip it around and go well fun is serious to the kids, so us planning an element of fun for the under 8s, under 9s is still at the forefront of what we do, but that's not to say there aren't still some fun elements in the adult game pre-season, because there will be, there has to be. It just looks and feels maybe slightly different and again it goes back to what your aims and objectives. So we've got clear aims and objectives for the city we're in this season, to climb the leading table, to get so far in the FA Cup etc etc. For my boys and the nines team, it might be a case of fun is, them turning up every week with a smile on their face, win, lose or draw. So if that's the case, we've got to make sure that our environment is feeding into that. We think about how we behave as coaches after a defeat. We think about the fact that, okay, we had those two tournaments at the weekend. In terms of results, one went well, one didn't go quite so well. But we'll lift out some of the key moments, even in the tournament where we didn't win or we got knocked out on penalties. We'll lift out some of the key moments when we reflect with them to say, well this, this and this was a wonderful moment because we want them to remember the good times, not just the result or the outcome.

[Jamie]

Key word you mentioned just in your answer there, environment, leads on very nicely to this next one because it's so important to get the environment right in pre-season. So do you have any top tips for creating that positive environment where everybody can thrive?

[Matt]

Yeah, so I suppose I'm gonna expand more so now on the wants and the needs. Do your practices and do your pre, during and post session interventions spark connection? So if that's something that's important to me, am I creating an environment whereby there is connection taking place? So am I encouraging conversations between players and staff? Am I then allowing those conversations to develop and manifest into something really good and really healthy? Am I or are we as staff challenging the players, so putting them in problem-solving situations? Because the game's about solving problems, So we've got to make sure that we are rehearsing that in our training. But we also know that if I'm posing a problem to two or three players, you've got to collaborate at some point. And then you've also got to agree. And here's where the conflict might creep in. But if we've got a really supportive, healthy environment, even if conflict comes in, we'll hopefully be able to deal with it more progressively and help one another, even though there might be disagreements. Because, God forbid, we have a different of opinion in football, which actually is sometimes what makes it so beautiful, that we do see the game differently, both players and coaches, because we'll all have biases that kick in. But I think as long as we keep an open mind and we're prepared to be progressive in working through that conflict, then that makes you stronger as a unit. I'm a big believer in squad mentality, especially with my adult team, because it's going to take 20 to 24 players to compete in a National League season. Whereas with my under-8s, we might use the term team as opposed to squad because it makes more sense to them. It's a more child-friendly term. But if I can help develop squad mentality going back to the reconnection and togetherness piece, then that sort of plays in nicely to the environment that I want to create. So if you are the player who doesn't start in the XI but you're on the bench, you still feel part of it. In the same way that if you're a player who's number 17 to 22 doesn't even get in the matchday 16 in any given week, for a valid reason, you still feel connected to it. So I want to make sure that I'm addressing that. But yeah, finding the balance between the wants and the needs. They want games, they want the ball at their feet. We also know there's some work in the physical corner which is less glamorous. I'm going to try and weave that in together. An example of that might be, so the S&C coach wants to get through some certain mileage with the players, whether it be short and sharp or over a slightly longer distance. Proper cardiovascular bits and pieces. So this is the adult environment I'm referring to here. We've said and agreed, okay, Why don't we do like a bit of a sandwich approach, whereby, so they go and do 400 metres, we give them so much time to recover, as per the S&C recommendation, then we put them into two small sided games, where we get them, if you like, operating where they've dropped off the threshold a bit, but we want them then to spike again, but we'll disguise it by getting a ball at their feet, maybe playing 3v3, 4v4 so they get more touches of the ball, more turning, twisting, accelerating, deacceleration, game realistic movements. We'll do it for a certain time period, then we'll let them rest again, and then we'll do another 400 metres. And then we'll be able to compare and contrast the 400 metres, knowing that they've taken part in some football practice in between. We disguise some more of the physical returns. So that's one of the ways that me and the S&C coach or S&C team have decided to work cleverly, like covertly, almost camouflage some of the physical work that the players need to do. But we also know they want to play a game. So that kind of marries up nicely, hopefully.

[Jamie]

Yeah, absolutely. Can't go wrong with a game, can you?

[Matt]

Usually not. I mean, it depends what the game is. I find that if you've got a game or a practice and I'm sure I've mentioned this on a previous podcast which is Godlikes, has goals, opposition, direction, It's such a good recipe that it kind of sells itself.

[Louise]

Thinking about creating a good environment for your team or your squad, if you've got new people coming into that, how do you make sure that they're kind of feel part of it and bring them in. Have you got any tips for that?

[Matt]

Yeah, so my way of dealing with this is to almost pose a question. And if it's not apparent by now, my third podcast in, I love to work with questions. I think it's a really good way to work, because it gets people thinking about, you know, why they do what they do. So I think ask the players to consider what it feels like to be the new person. Because we've all been that new person. So even if we come out of the football environment momentarily and go, well, what was it like to be the new kid at school? Even on the first day at school you still would have had a feeling of, oh this is new to me, that's a new classroom, that's a new teacher, that's a new boy or girl in my class who wasn't in my previous school who's now is in this new school, when they might have moved from first to middle, you know, whatever it might be this scenario, we've all felt that feeling of being the new person in any given context. So I think getting them to think about that and then asking them the question what would they want to receive from their new teammates or coaches if we do take it back into the football world? If they were that person, what would you want to get off that first conversation? Can you be the person who goes up and says, oh, welcome Joel or Josephine. It's really great to have you as part of the team. And if you're the staff member, it's okay, a high five to a nine-year-old, ***, that physical gesture of welcome, this is what we're about and getting down to their level, their eye line etc. So I think that that for me in under eights and under nines world is really key, that appreciation for it. We all know what it's like, what would we want to receive. And you know what, it's the same in the adult world. I'd probably go a little bit deeper on the conversation. You know, you're having a chat about what was your day like at work? I mean, when I've tried to connect with some of the new players that we've invited in to the mix at Water City Women over these last few weeks, it's tell me about yourself. Let me learn about you because yes, we want to pick some of the best players, but we also want to pick the best people and characters that align to our sort of morals, values, beliefs that shapes culture And culture is your environment day to day, isn't it? So some of those conversations away from football are just as important about talking about the Xs and the Os. So I think that would be my top, top tip about how to approach it. Appreciation, self-reflection and opening up dialogue and then hopefully snowballs in a good way.

[Jamie]

Just diving a little bit deeper into that dialogue and that communication aspect of things. Getting to know players is obviously so key. You've talked about wants and needs as well but then obviously Louise has asked in terms about like new players joining to help them settle. What top tips can you maybe give to coaches to help them build relationships with players, whether they're new or whether they're current, but also the parents as well, in particular, looking at, you know, If you're working in grassroots youth football.

[Matt]

Yeah. Again, another question would be, well, what does success look like for them? Because I've done this in the past, we obviously have our aims and objectives as a club. And I mentioned, you know, Water City Women's earlier. So we're going after these two or three key things around performance and we shouldn't apologise for that because the club's got to have a vision and aspirations, but they can only become reality if they link to, well, who's going to help us get there? So do the staff buy into that, going back to the pre-planning in the summer. And then are the players who are key parts of the jigsaw, and I love that analogy and I know I've used that on a previous podcast, and you can use it in a number of different ways, but as a head coach you're moving all these different pieces to a jigsaw you're trying to build. And there's a jigsaw for the club, which probably doesn't change as often, because you're going, well that's important, that's important, that's important. You've got your key rocks. Then you've got like a smaller jigsaw down here where it might be a week by week jigsaw where you're building a starting 11 and a match day 16 and what that looks like. But under that, you've also got to have, and this is me getting to answering the question is, what do the players want out of it? Because every player is on their own journey. They will have somewhere that they want to get to. And in the case of the adult team that I work with, success for them is in three or four years' time they might want to move onwards and upwards, they might want to play higher in the women's pyramid. Now don't get me wrong, we have aspirations to climb the pyramid but that doesn't happen overnight for various different reasons. But that doesn't mean to say we're any less ambitious, but ambition meets realism. As fast as the women's game is growing and funding is coming into it, etc. But we also want to help players get to where they want to get to. And that then boils down to what does success look like for you in this next 12 months? So yes, let's have one eye on the future, but let's also live for today a little bit. And that then starts to shape what we would call a player profile or individual development plan. As soon as you can make it personal to them, and they see the benefit in what they're going to get from it as an individual, I think they're more likely to then make a contribution to the collective and feel like they're part of something bigger than themselves, because they're getting something from it themselves, but they're also helping the team, squad, the club achieve as well. So I think once you get down to the nitty-gritty of that, that'll really, really help you. Then you've got the job of producing that individual development plan or player profile and then mapping out who helps you and how. Not forgetting that of course they're going to have to take some accountability of that. And then I think there's a piece around, and this probably links more to, if I go to the under-8s perspective, of who shapes the environment. So you've got the staff and the players, but in the world of grassroots football, and especially children's football, you've got the parents. So we all know what an impact they can have on the sidelines, whether it be at training or on a match day. Now it's probably another podcast if we get into pros and cons, so we'll let the listeners or the viewers decide what some of the pros and cons are. But very, very briefly if we just say, well how are we helping the parents on the periphery to support our environment? And this comes back to a question that I'm sure other colleagues have posed, which is, how do the parents know what they don't know? So how do they know what we haven't shared with them? So if the club has success, and as mentioned earlier about players always having a smile on their faces, win, lose or draw, and we're about development, not win at all costs, yes we want to win, because I don't know any players, whether they're 5 or 55, that turn up and go I want to lose today. But I've also never come across a player who says, I'm not going again to training or match day next week, and the person asks, well why not? And they go, well I've just had too much fun, don't you dare make me go back there. The environment is that much fun, I want to come back for more. So there has to be that hybrid approach, especially when we're dealing with children and young people. So we've got to let the parents in. Success to us is creating an environment where they want to come back and enjoy it, regardless of the outcome. That's not to say it won't be hard, that's not to say we won't challenge them and develop them and test them, because most people want to be stretched playing this game. That goes back to problem solving and then equipping the players, whether it be technically and tactically, physically, psychologically or socially, and then being able to do that. So letting the parents in and going, well actually we're trying to encourage them to stay on the ball, master the ball. So on a game day, when they've got possession of the ball near their own goal and you shout, get rid of the thing or kick it out, there's like conflicting messages going on there. Now I know why the parents saying that, because they don't want their child or their child's team to experience an element of failure whereby they might try and dribble out of trouble and risk having possession turned over and then the opposition score. I know that feels bad for that player, but we're looking at a slightly longer term, a journey for that player in that moment. So again, it's a fine balancing act, isn't it? Because we don't want the child to just associate football with failure, but also we want them to build up an element of resilience. And going back to previous podcasts you had me on was around individual tactics. So first of all we want them to develop confidence on the ball, because if they get confidence they're going to get comfortable. Once they're comfortable they're going to explore in terms of creativity. And then out of those three, you then develop a level of competence. So I go back to that, because hopefully that shows consistency in the way that I work, but also that all of these topics that the podcasts are on that you've done brilliantly in pulling together, they're all intertwined. And hopefully what they do is, for coaches that they spark those different light bulb moments where they go, well, the environment links to developing players and players links to developing staff and then staff going on coach development and learning about different types of practices, you know, the list just goes on and on and on because that's going to shape the environment. So, yeah, I've gone off on a few different avenues there, but hopefully listeners can pick something out.

[Jamie]

I have plenty of really good stuff in there, thanks. Yeah.

[Louise]

Talking about environment, you'd probably agree that a good environment is an engaging one. Do you have any top tips to help coaches ensure that they're developing their players but also keeping them engaged?

[Matt]

Yeah, so I'll give you a couple. So a bit of sugar, a bit of salt. And I'm sure you might know what I mean by that, but everyone likes a bit of sugar, that keeps them sweet, and then people taste salt and they go, oh I didn't like that, but I think you've got to strike that balance. And this goes back to, there's what the players want, and there's what the players need. So again I think it's how you sell that. So the two examples I've got is music. So a lot of players, not all, I don't want to pigeonhole here, but generally speaking a lot of players love a bit of music. I want that music, especially during the warm up. It might help prepare them. For some players they can take it or leave it. Other players might find it a bit of a distraction, especially if it's loud music or it's not music to their taste. So I don't want to give out the message here that music is one size fits all, but around the topic of environment, music can be a good thing if used purposefully. So a lot of the players say they want music and I'm thinking that's good but I don't want it to be a distraction. I also don't want you to only perform to music because when we kick off at two o'clock on a Sunday, music stops. You've got to be able to self-motivate. So we have a bit of a hybrid model whereby for part of the warm-up I will let them use music, and I will let them choose the songs that they want. And then sometimes we'll have a bit of fun. If we play a game at any point during that session, or something where it's highly competitive, and it might be two teams against each other, or I might even play them against me, linked aims and objectives, we'll say that the winner of the competition gets to choose the soundtrack next time, or a couple of songs. So that's a way that you can use music, again balancing out the wants and the needs, so that the music doesn't become the forefront, but it's something that helps them and helps the environment. The other one is S&C, so I think I mentioned earlier about almost providing a bit of a football cocktail. So yes, you might have some intentional time where you're focusing in on S&C, but we also want to make sure that we don't lose sight of why we're putting them through strength and conditioning, is to make them better footballers. So some of the little ideas that you can pick up on from the England Football Learning website and the bucket loads of websites and bits and pieces out there that you can draw upon is, I always say to coaches, don't be afraid to take risks. Would you want to take part in your own session? If the answer's no, then maybe you need to look at your own session and your practices and the diet of practices that you're putting on. So, I know I gave the example earlier about bit of S&C, game, bit of S&C, so that sandwich approach. Another idea might be a case of, okay, if you want your players to work on sprints, so, who doesn't love a game of foxes and tails, or catch the rabbit, so you put the bib in your shorts and you've got a sprint. So different ways of playing that so it might be that me and you are paired up Jamie, I'm facing you like we are now with probably five yards in between and I'm going to decide when I turn and sprint to an end line which might have been decided. And the distance might be linked to the S&C coach going, well that's the distance I want you to cover, 30 yards, 40 yards, 50 yards. But the fact that I'm facing you means that technically you've got an advantage because you're facing the way we're going to sprint, aren't you? However, I'm going to try and balance that out with the distance that we've got between us. But I've got two bibs in my shorts, one on the left, one on the right. All you've got to do is try and grab one bib to get a point. I've got to try and turn, sprint and get through the end line before you grab a bib. If you manage to get both bibs, well, that's double bragging rights, isn't it? If you don't get any bib, then I've got the bragging rights back at you. But that would be a way of me trying to sell and that football cocktail of, okay, we've got an element of S&C in there because of some sprint work, acceleration, de-acceleration And I'm doing it over 30-40 yards Which they when I was growing up they used to nickname shuttle runs or doggy runs and you're going who wants to do those? Again and again and again, but we're camouflaging it through a game and it's almost like it's a 1v1. Then we get into individual tactics again don't we? So I'm looking at you and going right which foot are you taking off on? Am I going to turn to my left? I'm going to turn to my right? So there's real details. We could even get a ball in there, couldn't we? So maybe I give an extra five yards, so more of a start, but I've got a ball that I've got to dribble. And you've either got to try and overtake me or better still, nick the ball off me and get back to your start line. So yeah, a football cocktail with S&C is probably a really good idea around you pre-season and hopefully from an environmental point of view if we go back to that healthy competition, build togetherness, a bit of football banter and that's a game you could do with adults or with kids.

[Jamie]

Yeah, no I love that, the creativity of actually being able to put those fun activities together rather than, as you say, just running for the sake of running. It's actually making it purposeful but making it fun and then making it engaging as well. I really love. Talking about, well, kind of sticking on the same theme as engaging really. At this time of year in the summer there's always like international tournaments going on obviously the under-21s winning their tournament earlier on in the summer. Congratulations. Yes absolutely, congratulations everyone there but then also the Lionesses are playing in the Euros and the Euros is still going on now when this goes out. So just thinking about international tournaments, is there a way to maybe embed those into sessions and make it, finding fun little creative ways to take inspiration from them in training?

[Matt]

I think there's an opportunity for us to, yeah, look at what the best are doing. Obviously the Lionesses are riding a very successful wave these last few years, and so everyone's looking at us, aren't they? But you can look at things like pre-match warm-up, when I go and sit pitch side, you can look at, I mean, I'm a bit sad, some would say committed, but probably sad. I look at how the coaches are interacting with their players. Obviously, I don't know what the individual conversations are, but if they've got a team of coaches, how are they splitting themselves? What do the practices look like? How much are they running versus how much are they resting? Bear in mind that they're gonna warm up to play a 90-minute international game. If they are waiting in a line, because there's an element of a line practice, how long is the line? Is the coach setting off the ball or is one of the players setting off the ball? And that's something that you can discuss. I'm a big believer in if a coach is setting off the ball, then the opportunity is missed then for players to have an extra touch on the ball. That classic drill of, okay, you're lining up to bounce a pass off a coach, receive it back and then shoot it on goal. Do you put the goalie in goal? Because the goalie might concede 10 goals out of 20 shots. What does that do for their motivation? I'm not saying it's right, I'm not saying it's wrong. I'm not saying the coach shouldn't bounce the pass because the players might not want to bounce it. But when we get into the game in a few minutes time, what normally happens is there's a player on the edge of the area who might be setting off that ball. So Russo, in the case of Adelaine Esses as the number nine might be pinning the centre back and holding it and bouncing it back to Kiera Walsh who then drives the ball into the goal as a through pass or maybe even fancies a 20-yard, 25-yard strike on goal. So if Rousseau's not rehearsed that because the coach has done it there's a benefit in a trade-off that isn't there so I look for little details like that around the pre-match warm-up but yeah there's definitely a lot that we can take from watching these international tournaments.

[Jamie]

Have you ever used international tournaments as an inspiration in training in terms of actually playing your own tournament and if so how successful in the outside to our kids when when doing that?

[Matt]

Coaching in Worcestershire we're right on the border if you like of Worcestershire and Wales so we get a lot of students come to the university and a lot of those players will then potentially bleed into our squad at Water City Women's. So when we have tournaments and then we decide who's on which team, so is it England, Scotland, Wales, is that Home Nations healthy rivalry if you like, And that can really play out in such a good way. So you can put players in certain teams or let them pick and choose. And I think there's some real social returns there because who doesn't like playing a tournament? Some of my best memories growing up were jumpers for goalposts, 16 of us meet up down the local Park and we have a team of four so we play a 4v4 competition. If that's then introduced into a more formal coaching setting then wow what is that going to do for one fun and excitement. You mentioned engagement earlier I think sometimes The old ones are the best in terms of our ideas. Yes, we need to be clever and creative in how we think about our coaching, but if it ain't broken, you know, why fix it? So yeah, if you've got an international tournament going on and you've got different cultures and international representation in your squad prevalent, then why wouldn't you use that to your you know advantage? It's a really good way to connect and combine as a group as well as hopefully have some healthy rivalry, especially if it goes to penalties.

[Louise]

How powerful can it be for children and female coaches to see women on the international stage and know that they've made, they're made for this game, would you say?

[Matt]

Huge. So, if you see it, you can be it, I think is the line. And that's one that I very much buy into. I mean, I've been privileged enough for the last five years around my coach's work to shine a lens on EDI work. So if you think about making the game more inclusive, regardless of age, gender, disability, ethnicity, sexual orientation, religious belief, we want to make it a game for all. So if we shine a lens on the gender piece momentarily, given the lionesses, what an opportunity we have yet again to fly the flag. The fact that we're successful as a nation, touch wood, it continues, makes it easier. Doesn't necessarily make it easy though, there's still a lot of work to do to make sure the game is inclusive. But it's huge, it really is. And if I think about my role and responsibility, so I'm a male coach, I'm choosing as a male coach to coach in the female game with Water City women. And the first thing I try really hard is to ensure that I'm respectful of that because I'm choosing to do it and they're inviting me in but it's still football and So I never try and miss an opportunity to champion the women's and girls game when I can knowing that I've got a really good opportunity to do it as a head coach of a tier four national women's side. And I mentioned earlier, my two sons love to go and watch all sporting events but for them to come and watch Worcester City Women's, they think it's great to see women playing. We're lucky enough to play at Six Ways Stadium and it really does feel like a professional environment, something that we work hard to create, but for our spectators to feel that and for my own sons to feel like it's a really special environment says a lot because sons and daughters who come and relations of the players, you know, sisters and brothers, mums and dads, grandparents, yeah it really can spiral and when you've got the Lionesses performing so well at the highest level and the squad's made up of some fantastic role models, not just players but also staff, who we feel are approachable in the way that we communicate outwardly from the football association, then I think that's a real powerful tool.

[Jamie]

How do you think that coaches can be good allies then and then create the right environment in preseason to encourage more women to take up coaching?

[Matt]

I think to be a good ally, it's about being a good person and being a good person is being open-minded and being prepared to work on your self-awareness, because that's the learning I've taken from the last five years of working in the EDI space. What do I know about myself? What are my biases? What are my blind spots? Am I prepared to learn about them? Because it's me that ultimately will either help or hinder an inclusive environment, most definitely. So it's quite a short brief answer which is unlike me, but if you can focus in on those key things, then I think that will make you the better person that you need to be and then directly or indirectly your environment will get healthier because you'll be more inclusive in the way that you think, act and do.

[Jamie]

Can you kind of give us an insight into how recruitment should happen fairly but also any top tips to help our listeners with recruitment?

[Matt]

Yeah so prevention is better than cure, plan ahead. So if you know you're going to need new players for the following season, how are you using the back end of the previous season to be able to plan for that? So if you're moving from 7v7 football to 9v9 or 9 to 11 or whatever it might be, 3v3 up to 5v5, you might be seeking one or two extra players. So have you got a good relationship with your local school? Have you touched base with your local county FA because they might be able to provide some support around school club link work. Who is moving into the area? So I think we often forget that. So I mentioned university before, because we train at the University of Worcester, we naturally get a turnover of new students coming in. They may feed into our under 18s or reserves. We might find a gem or a jewel where we go actually now you're ready for first squad football even though you might be you know that age and stage of your development. So I think working clever like that new pupils might come to your local school. And so going back to what does it feel like to be the new person, what better way to help them feel not just part of the school but part of the community than inviting them into the local football club and saying, well come down to our pre-season training sessions as well. It's a really good opportunity and it might just increase participation. I always think about can winter sports, if we're terming football a winter sport, work smartly with summer sports? We don't want to take kids away from playing other sports because I think that's really important to have a well-rounded experience of sports as a child and a young person. But I'm thinking about cricket and tennis. I used to play tennis in the summer and football for the rest of the year. Who am I kidding? I played football for 12 months solid, but tennis used to get more of a look in during the summer months. So, yeah, can you go down to your local cricket or tennis club and go, oh, can I just hand out these flyers for our football club because there comes a point when cricket and tennis does stop and those participants in those sports might have always wanted to play football, but you know what? They'd never been asked. And it wasn't till someone pointed that out to me. You know, you might be putting flyers here, there and everywhere. In the world of modern technology, it might be on a website or a social media site, but they were never asked. So they never came. Going back to that, feeling part of something. So just taking 15 minutes, just walking down to the local tennis club or cricket nets and saying, I'm a local football coach, just wanted to let you know we train at this very facility just over there. We're starting pre-season in a few weeks. We train at a different time to when your cricket season's coming to an end or tennis fixtures, we'd love to see you. So I think it's a really obvious one. And then finally, don't underestimate word-of-mouth. So saying to your sons and daughters or your own players in your own grassroots setting and we've done it again with the university players is to say right who's part of the the clubs in university sport or indeed football or even transferring from futsal to football it's bring a friend bring a friend to one-off preseason where actually you've targeted that session in your pre-season, because you've planned it, to say this is going to be a turn-up play session. So anyone's welcome, regardless of whether you've played the game for five minutes or ten years, we'd love to see you. So yeah, hopefully some ideas there.

[Louise]

And obviously we want every player to play and enjoy their experience every week. So how can coaches work with parents and carers to ensure that they find the right club and environment for their children?

[Matt]

Yeah, here's where having open dialogue is really, really key. So I think knowing your elevator speech as a coach, so 30 seconds to be able to summarise what you're about as a coach, as a team within a club, and being able to deliver that 30 second elevator speech. And for those that aren't familiar, an elevator speech is you're in the elevator, I say elevator, lift, because we're in the UK, aren't we? But I've spent some time in America. So you're stood in an elevator, someone new gets in, you strike a conversation, but you're going to get out on floor 10, it's going to take 30 seconds to get there, can you leave a lasting impression? So they walk out going, you know, I remember that conversation when they're later on having a cup of tea in the evening. So what's your elevator speech? How are you going to sell your club? We believe in this, this is what we're about, this is what we can offer you, etc, etc. I also think, and we touched upon it earlier, it's inviting the parents in. So at the start of the season, it's this is what success looks like for us, we are aware that your sons and daughters, that's what success looks like for them, and it's marrying the two together, and it's showing and acknowledging as the coaching team and as the club that you have considered the wants and needs of the young people in your club in the case of a grassroots under-9s team for example. But it's the same in adult football, making the participants feel part of it right from the off. And even in the world of Water City women, because we have players who are under the age of 18, we still make it, as you would expect from a safeguarding perspective, really important to build a relationship and rapport with the parents of those young people because yes they're choosing to come into the adult game but they're still under 18 so we need to make sure they feel supported and comfortable in the adult environment.

[Jamie]

Just one more on recruitment, Parents and players may come across like clubs offering trials for instance. What does that term actually mean and is it something to be wary of perhaps?

[Matt]

I was trying to define what trials could be because I think in the most cases people mean well when they use the term trials. I think they do. And the best I could come up with is a definition for trials is they are an assessment of someone's offering. So if you're going to trial me, you want to know what I can bring to the table. Would that be fair? Yeah. That would hopefully be a summary of it. And not just technically and tactically, but go back to the other three corners, physically, psychologically and socially. I'm probably thinking though, if there is a bit of a stigma attached to it, we could probably find some better words to use, especially for grassroots children's football. I think you can get away with trials and assessment for top end of the youth game and certainly in adult football because they're just that, they're more mature, they understand that there's an element of you're going to assess me against the criteria and you're going to decide if I'm above the line or below the line or maybe somewhere in between or whatever it might be and then you get into feedback. So I was thinking how else could you turn it? I think I mentioned a few minutes ago the term open session or turn up and play. That for me will attract people and probably lower the guard a little bit. So if you're recruiting for an under eights and a nines team you want to make sure that you're spreading it, you know, spreading the message wide. The challenge you've then got is if they all come running over the hill that you can actually manage it and accommodate that, you know, health and safety and manage expectations as well. So then you get into a point of, okay, we can only offer so much, but if you've got good partnerships with the local clubs or a good relationship with the County FA, any England football accredited club and any County FA who's got a development team will be on hand to help you to find an appropriate club for your child. They will. They'll work hard to do it and if not then maybe it might spark the development of a brand new team or club and that's how we keep evolving don't we? So yeah, in answer to your question, the word trials could put some people off, so tread carefully, so think a bit more creatively about how you send that message out. Equally, we do know that it sets players up as people for life, that there is going to be an element of you need to meet a certain standard if you're going to get to a certain stage or performance. So it's again striking that happy medium between the two.

[Jamie]

Yeah no thank you, I like that idea as well like you're saying in terms of like the open session, like you're just more inclusive, more fun, more engaging sort of thing, I like that terminology for sure.

[Matt]

Because you can still talent ID. The formal process of trialling or assessing can still take place even though it's an open session. It can. And because you've called it open session they might be more relaxed. You're probably gonna see, pound for pound, a better version of most people, aren't you? That said, there are some people who thrive under test or exam or trial conditions. So, again, it's not one size fits all. Just tread with a caution.

[Jamie]

While we're talking about parents and problem-solving, it might be the case for many new coaches or those tuning into this that they're actually going to be coaching their child's team and Matt you've already pointed out that that is a situation that you're in, you've got experience of it. So what learnings have you taken from your experience so far that you could share with anyone listening or watching today?

[Matt]

So I'll summarize it by saying I've got 25 plus years of coaching experience which hopefully gives me some kudos to be able to share some insight today. But I'll openly admit, I've only got 18 months experience coaching my own son. So when you compare those two statistics, 25 years to 18 months, You could argue, and I have genuinely felt like one of these by the way, I'm a novice parent coach to my own son. So that's me accepting that self-awareness that I've got a lot to learn. Because there's no course that helps you 100% for the emotional rollercoaster that you're going to go on when you choose to coach your own son. Bearing in mind that it doesn't just happen on the pitch, it happens in the car on the way to, on the way back, to training and match day and it also, and I'm sure all parent coaches can relate to this, it happens, or so it feels like, at the breakfast table, the dinner table, you know, it's like seven days a week. It really is continuously, especially if the son or daughter or sons and daughters have really fallen in love with the game, which is great because I want to talk about football 24-7. So yeah, it's not easy, but also for every challenge there's some beautiful moments in coaching your own son or daughter.

[Louise]

Do you have any advice to help coaches communicate effectively? And handle the relationship with their child within the team environment fairly?

[Matt]

Yeah, and The reason it makes it such a challenge is the emotion. That's what I mean by nothing prepares you for it. In the same way that nothing prepares you for parenthood. In fact, I remember going on parenting classes and there were some really useful top tips about, you know, dealing with a baby for the first time. But nothing prepares you for the emotional attachment that you have to this small person that didn't exist until they landed on this planet. So it's dealing with emotions, that's the toughest element of parenting I find, personally. So you've got to find your own strategies quickly. And like any good coach, you have to think on your feet. And so when you then throw a sport in, and especially a team sport like football, where your son is, in my case, with his own friends, and you're dealing with the emotions of your own sons and all the relationships and connections and chemistry that he has with his own mates and then the other staff. That's a lot in the cauldron to mix up and deal with. But some top tips would be work smart with the other coaching parents. So I've mentioned I work with three other coaching dads. So all their sons are in it as well. So they're going through the same thing. So the first thing is lean on each other and they've leant on me a lot, but do you know what? I've leant on them a heck of a lot. And sometimes they've looked surprised going, don't you do this for a living? I've gone, yeah, but it proves I don't have all the answers. And I've only been coaching my son for 18 months. So we're on the same pathway. And one of the dads has had more experience in coaching another son. So I would argue he's further ahead. So why would I not pick his brain a little bit more? So lean on each other. But Then also you can use each other. Let's say my son has an emotional episode because something hasn't gone well. I've sometimes asked one of the other dads to go and support him in the coaching environment. I'll support him before and after but I might just choose to take myself out, not because I don't care, but because I want my son to feel like a player in that scenario. So one of the other coaches goes, that can work. Now this links to another tip, have the conversation with your son or daughter, depending on where you think their emotional intelligence is at, actually have it outright with them. Do you want me to be coach or daddy? When we're going from six till seven on the session. And they might say, I want you to be coach. Do you want to call me coach or dad? Because there's almost that embarrassment thing the older they get. If I call you by a certain name and you call me dad or daddy then you might be ridiculed for it. Now we're not at that stage with my son but I know we might get there so again almost have like that little conversation. A contract sounds a little bit too formal, but what you're doing is you're showing your son or your daughter that you care about how they're perceived in that environment. So I think that helps. And I've probably found some real benefit in that. And the other thing added to the working smartly with other dads in my situation or other mums, in the cases of other grassroots coaches is, also think about in the same way that I might use one of the other dads to help my son in an emotional moment, if I see one of their sons have a great moment, I also want them to go and share that. So it's almost like I'll praise my son, but you critique them. And when I say critique them, I mean provide them with the most appropriate level of support. So it's finding that happy medium, because most sons or daughters, when something goes wrong, they're looking for reassurance off their mum or the dad, aren't they? Going back to the spectator on the sideline. So I think if you can have that team approach as a group of coaches, parent coaches, then that can go a long way to supporting the child through those those emotions that they're experiencing as well as we are.

[Jamie]

There's some really good tactics there, thanks for sharing the insight into that as well. If a coach wants to get preseason right, what's the one non-negotiable?

[Matt]

I'm gonna cheat and give you two, use footballs and games in your preseason program.

[Louise]

And what's something a coach can do to make a big difference to players returning after a break?

[Matt]

I'll go with three stars and a wish in grassroots football. So three things they did well, one thing they might want to get better at and in the adult world that's almost like an IDP or a player profile. So you're getting them to shine a lens on what's in it for them.

[Jamie]

And what small actions or habits can coaches use to show players they care about them as people not just players?

[Matt]

So take every opportunity to personalise. So whether it's an intervention, use the names, it'd be like, hi Jamie, hi Louise. I then take it one step further around if you've got magnets on a whiteboard, spend the time on creating a magnet for each player. I know that on the previous podcast I talked about using cones and writing players names on and then you can use those on the floor. So any opportunity to personalise I think is powerful.

[Jamie]

Looking back at everything we've discussed then and it's been quite a lot we've kept you here for a while Matt so I do appreciate it. But looking back at everything we've discussed, can you summarise the key top tips that you want coaches to take away from this episode?

[Matt]

So I'll try and do it in reflective questions so coaches can take these away. So if you had an out of body experience, so whether it was you walking past your own session, or there was a dog walker just happened to be walking past your pre-season, minding their own business, but just looked over as if to say, what's going on over there? What would they see, hear and feel? What would you want them to see, hear and feel from your pre-season? Because once you answer that question, assuming that the two marry up, you're normally not far wrong. And something else just to squeeze in, we mentioned it earlier around what a pre-season shouldn't have or what we should avoid and I said running up hills. If you've invested in bibs, balls and cones, you've got a brand new set of bibs, two different colours and you've got a brand new set of balls and you've got some shiny new cones and you are not using them straight away because you are beasting your players and getting them running in straight lines or up hills, something has gone horribly wrong. So find that balance between what the kids want, bearing in mind that adults are also big kids, they want the ball, they want the game, but caveat that and work covertly with your coaching staff. So in the world of my adult team, so S&C, to make sure that the physical work is in there in an obvious way but then also in an obvious way so you're working covertly like James Bond in the coaching world.

[Louise]

And if you were to kind of set the listeners a challenge of like the first thing that they might do to kind of prepare themselves for pre-season and creating the right environment, what would you suggest they do as the first thing?

[Matt]

I would suggest if you fail to prepare, then you've got to prepare to fail. So the first thing you've got to do is find time to consider what pre-season needs to look and feel like. So first of all is plan. Then, first impressions count for a lot. So we go back to the brilliant basics of coaching. So, organisation. So setting it up. If you want to attract players and motivate them as they are walking onto the pitch. Does it look appealing? Do you look like you've given some thought to the session that they're about to take part in? Bearing in mind that they might have had three or four weeks, maybe even a couple of months off. So that excitement can happen before they've even turned the corner as they're looking through the fence of the 3G. Or they're walking across the grass field. I know it seems like an obvious one, but for me first impressions count for a lot. And it will also show that you care. So whilst they've been having a break from football, it also shows that, yes, hopefully you have had a moment to come up and catch your breath, but you've also planned, not just yourself, but with the other coaches, something that you're then going to go and take them on for the next few weeks before you take part in your first game.

[Louise]

I like that idea. Kind of shows that it's given them something exciting to walk into and kind of must start things in the right way.

[Matt]

And the analogy I would use is, imagine you are a new shop that's opened up for business. When you walk into that shop, everything is hung up. If it's a shop with clothes, Everything's set out in a particular order, but there's also an element of choice So you've factored in the fact that you've got different wants and needs to appease But they might see that you've taken a carousel approach. There's a practice set up over there. There's one there that looks like an obvious S&C one, there's definitely going to be a game, I can see some goals, there's lots of balls everywhere, I can see bibs, it's not just going to be a physical session with no football returns.

[Jamie]

Brilliant, right well we are coming up to the end of the show now Matt, but it does mean it is time for our swift session feature.

[Louise]

Yep, so it's 30 seconds and we're going to ask you to explain a session idea to us in those 30 seconds. Are you up for that challenge?

[Matt]

Yes.

[Louise]

Okay, once the music starts you can begin.

[Matt]

So this game is called dribbling and staying. So let's say you've got 10 players. There'll be five on one team, five on the other. Both teams start on the outside of the pitch. First player dribbles in with a ball at their feet, has a chance to score a cheap goal, so a free goal. The next player then dribbles in. Player who's dribbled in first has to stay in so there's a clue in the title. So it becomes a 1v1. Then the next player enters from the other team, becomes a 2v1, then a 2v2, then a 3v2. So you get the idea.

[Louise]

Nice, Very well done again.

[Jamie]

Is there anything you want to add to that to add any more context to it?

[Matt]

Well again, you know, if we use the step model, space, task, equipment, players, there's so many different ways you can bend, stretch a practice. So we've talked there about going 1v1, 2v1, 2v2. You could make it so if it's Yellows vs Blues, Yellows send the first player in, Blues send two players in, so it becomes 1v2, then Yellows send two players in so it becomes 3v2. So you're going from being overloaded to underloaded. So you can if you like put the shackles on one team so the other team gets to experience more players but then vice versa. So again, tinker around with the step model when you're trying any practice so that you can put your own spin on it. But yeah, dribble in and stay in. And I also like that practice because if you're transitioning from 3v3 to 5v5 to 7v7, it allows the players to build and also you can scaffold as a coach. What does it feel like? Because it starts off with very few players and by the end of the practice, if you've got 10 players, you're playing a 5v5. So again, you might tinker around with the space, because it goes from being a very big space to being a very congested one. But again, there's certain returns on that by playing in a tight space that you'll plan for around shielding or dribbling, as opposed to if you play on a bigger space you might have longer passing or running with the ball.

[Jamie]

Love it. Thank you very much Matt. I really appreciate that and I really appreciate your time today. This is your third appearance in the most action-packed, top-tip filled episode that you've had. So thank you very much for your time do appreciate it hope you've enjoyed it as much as the other two as well

[Matt]

pleasure and I hope there's something in there for coaches to take away as I say it won't all be gold dust and wherever you're at on your coaching journey I wish you all the very best and yeah always reach out and share ideas with anyone because we're all in it together.

[Jamie]

Absolutely, absolutely agree with that. Right well that is all we do have time for today but don't forget to check out the description for the transcription of this episode and for all the links to our platforms. As always, you can head to the England Football Community to post your questions for us to discuss on the podcast or you can drop them in the comments section below for this episode.

[Louise]

Yes, we'd love to help you out so please do send your questions in. We'll be back soon with an episode focusing on training and getting players active again. So, if you haven't already, hit subscribe to make sure you don't miss it. From all of us at England Football Learning, thanks for listening.