You want to be a better player?

You want to be a better player?

The subject deals with the importance of always improving. It seems that some players are content with where they are in terms of their playing ability and think, “I am a good player, I don’t need to get any better”. This attitude shows during training sessions as well as in games and the people who think this way don’t understand that they aren’t staying at the same level if they aren’t constantly improving. There is a quote by Walter Bahr (although I have seen it credited to other people as well) that says “If you don’t get better, you get worse” This is an extremely accurate statement because if you aren’t improving and players all over the world are continuing to train and play you will fall further behind simply by staying the same. Every year players get bigger, stronger, faster and more skillful (although not necessarily more tactically proficient) so if a player doesn’t work improving, they will fall further and further behind, even if they stay at the same level. Sometimes players will decide to sit out a season for various reasons with the idea that they were good players when they stopped players so they will be good players when they start back up. Again, this doesn’t take into consideration that the other players continue to improve and if they don’t, they will fall behind. This doesn’t mean that players can’t take breaks away from the game or that the great game of football shouldn’t be fun but they do have to continue to improve if they don’t want to fall behind the others. Continue to have fun, work hard and improve and the game of football will be something you will enjoy for the rest of your life!.


DISIPLINE

Its simple, whatever the referee says, it goes. Avoid getting yellow cards or getting sent off by learning to rise above poor decisions. If you get fouled, pick yourself up and get on with the game, lashing out at your opponent can end with your team playing with ten men, and you not being popular with your team-mates.
I'm personally pretty ok at team sports, as I don't like to lose because of a weak link within the team. What I'm now learning to do, is to find that weak link and rectify it. If it means dropping a team member because there is a stronger player, then accept the coach's / managers choice and simply ask what you need to do to get your place back.
Too many players once dropped have a completely negative attitude, look upon it as a challenge to prove your coach wrong. Train wiser and smarter than before, show commitment to your team, and even if you don't make the first team, at least you can respect yourself for trying and giving 100 percent.


SPEED EXPLOTION - TRAINING

It’s either incredible or ridiculous, depending upon the way you look at it. In Track and Field they measure the wind, the amount of reaction time in the starting blocks, the shoe spike pattern, and several other things in championship sprints before accepting a time as valid. In training for ball sports, we don’t bother to measure much of anything.

Is the grass long or short, wet or dry, sandy or solid, hard or soft?
Was the distance recently measured, down to the inch?
Was the surface level or slanting downhill?
Was the wind measured or even considered?
Did the athlete run on grass, turf, or a track?
What kind of shoes were worn?
What triggered the watch, eyesight or a electronic pad?
Did the runner have a finish tape to hit?
What terminated the time, eyesight or an electronic beam?

These are just a few of the vital questions that should be asked before you believe the next guy who says, "Yea, I ran a 4.5" But the reality is we just believe it, write the time down, and go on to the next guy.

Run all 40 yard dashes on an all weather surface. Track, tennis court, even large gym floor. How in the world are we to accurately compare soft grass, thick grass, wet grass, sandy grass? And by all means accurately measure the 40 yards yourself, with a tape measure. No guessing, please.

Don’t get timed when it is windy. Wait to be fair.


BETTER JUMPING

The vertical jump is one the most impressive and sought after abilities in almost any sport. It is a part of sport that can really show off an athlete’s ability to perform. However, as with most basic movements, it is also taken for granted and is rarely trained properly. For example, most athletes and coaches have come to the conclusion that great jumpers are born not made (this is a similar argument in the speed business as well). While genetics plays a role and explains the occasional freak that can jump over tall buildings, the average athlete can, with practice, increase his or her vertical easily.

Currently the problem is that athletes have so many programs of vertical jumping development that it gets overwhelming. Where does one start? A simple rule of thumb in the technology age is, Keep It Simple Stupid (KISS). With the KISS approach you will be able to attain results quickly and effectively.

The following six points will help you improve your jumping ability over night. This will be the case whether you are looking for performance enhancement on the field or when being tested for your sport. Some athletes will need all seven points; others might only need a few. Most importantly, this is a very basic, down to earth method of optimizing your jumping performance.

1. Warm-up: This is by far the most over looked aspect of any performance and/or test. Many athletes believe that if they do too much before a game or test it will hinder their performance. What actually is the case is that if you are not properly and thoroughly warmed up you will not jump your best. So take the time to get a good warm up and you will jump higher. What constitutes a jumpers warm up? Lots of movements like jumping rope, dance, martial arts, skipping, and old fashioned calisthenics. Whatever you do, don’t jog around and then sit down to stretch as this will probably reduce your jumping success.

2. Focus: Being mentally prepared is as important as anything physical. When you mentally rehearse as well as focus on the task you will in most cases do much better. Another word for this is to "day dream" it. See yourself getting ready, down to the smallest detail. See yourself exploding up. Hear the people around you clapping. Feel the firm handshake of someone congratulating you for a great jump.

3. Foot Placement: Foot placement is vitally important when performing a great vertical jump. The basic rule of jumping is that you must jump from your forefoot (ball of the foot) rather than heels. Far more force is generated and applied to the ground through the forefoot rather than the heels.

4. Relaxing and Breathing: Learning to relax the muscles that are not involved in jumping will help you tremendously. When you have excess tension in the body it becomes restrictive, which will not help you perform any better and can in fact shorten your jump. It is also very important to forcefully exhale when you jump. This again reduces the tension in the body allowing for better performance. Think of the Ninja warrior yelling as he springs over buildings. Now grunt like him!


5. Upper & Lower Body: Throwing the arms forcefully in the air when jumping can add as much as 1 to 2 inches to your vertical jump. Not throwing the arms up and reaching as far as you can will rob you of what is rightfully yours, a better vertical. How low you bend down is the next question? Some athletes like to get real low (thighs parallel to the ground) others will hardly bend their legs at all. What tends to work best is somewhere in between. You want to keep your butt (glutes) tight and your chest up (the position looks the same as a squat). When you stick out your butt and lower your chest you are actually using your lower back to swing your self up. The last thing that you do before you leave the ground is push off with your toes. Calf muscles are one of the strongest parts of the body and can propel you as well, so use them.

6. The Jump: When you finally take the jump you want to "drive your feet through the ground." This means that you are trying to drive your thighs as forcefully as possible into the ground, bring your hips forward as quickly as possible. This will insure that the force being generated is used correctly. Another key mistake is that you should NOT be directly underneath the measuring device or whatever you jumping to. This tends to throw off your balance when jumping vertically. What usually happens is that you will actually jump away and back from the measuring device or basket, when this happens you will lose valuable inches. Therefore, give yourself a little forward angle to your vertical.



STRETCHING

As with most sports, people forget to stretch prior to the start of the game. With football having sudden bursts at any point in the game, it is vital to stretch the whole body in order to prevent injury. After a gradual warm-up spend time stretching, both statically; then Dynamically.
Dynamic stretching involves slow controlled rhythmic movements progressively through the range of movements associated with your game.
A key point to remember is at the half time stage in a match, keep warm, take in fluid and energy bars that you are used to, to help your energy and concentration levels. Whilst listening to any team tactics, keep stretching your muscles and if possible, learn how to massage your own legs to help prevent injury and prepare yourself for the start of the game.
At the end of the game, spend time again stretching after you have showered / bathed, paying particular attention to your hamstrings. Due to the nature of the game, you will always pick up injuries, avoid these as much as possible by wearing correct protection and footwear. Have any injuries looked at as soon as possible, as minor tears become major ones, resulting in fewer matches for you.
Take the time to train well, and you will get more out of your game!

BLACKJACK

Assuming there are 16 players at training use a grid that is 50 x 40 with two teams.
This is a very simple game and works on getting teams to maintain possession, play one and two touch and defend at full speed With two even teams, a ball is put into play and the team that wins the ball tries to keep possession of the ball. Anytime they make a one or two touch pass, it counts as one point. If the other team wins the ball, they try to maintain possession and they get a point for every one or two touch pass. When a team loses the ball and then wins it back they keep counting from where they left off (so if a team has 4 points and then loses the ball and then wins it back, their next one or two touch pass would take them to 5 points). If a player takes more then two touches and then makes the pass, their team maintains possession but they don’t get a point for the pass. The first team to score 21 points wins. To have players play even quicker, reduce the size of the grid or, only award a point for a one-touch pass.