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SPGS Director, Rogers Named
Goalkeeper Coach of Canadian
Women's National Team
Paul Rogers, Assistant Coach at Florida State University takes a leave to assist Canadian Women qualify for and compete at Beijing Olympics


Canadian National Team and Olympic Coach Evan Pellerud has hired Paul Rogers to assist his team as they prepare for the 2008 Olympics.

Rogers takes a leave of absence from FSU, where the Seminoles made a second-consecutive appearance in the NCAA Final Four. He will return to FSU when his duties with the Canadian National Team are complete.

In his first season with the Seminoles, his goalkeepers posted a 0.93 GAA Average and 12 shutouts on their road to College Station, TX. His goalkeepers this season were Erin McNulty, a Canadian National who has been part of the U15, U16, U17, U18 and U20 Youth National Teams and Kate Milstead, a former SoccerPlus ANTC camper, Regional ODP Goalkeeper and current SoccerPlus Staff Coach.

SoccerPlus students have had the privilege of working with Paul since he joined the Goalkeeper School staff in 1998 from Brighton, England. By 2000, having demonstrated his professionalism and expertise in the field, he was promoted to being a SoccerPlus Director.

Paul has played professionally and represented Great Britain at the World University Games in Degue, South Korea in 2003. He has also worked at Tulane University and the University of Louisville in similar roles to his current role at FSU.

Up first for the Canadians is CONCACAF qualifying April 2-13 in Mexico. We wish Paul and the Canadians a swift path to the silver medal (behind the US of course).

Rogers and his wife, Lisa, reside in Tallahassee, Florida.

Paul Rogers (2002): Paul has been a SoccerPlus Goalkeeper School Director since 2000.


Paul Rogers and Tony DiCicco at ANTC held at Suffield, CT in 2006.

SoccerPlus/Region I Clinics
For the past several years, SoccerPlus Goalkeeper School and Region I ODP have joined efforts in order to train goalkeepers throughout Region I. February 3rd we had 200 female goalkeepers at the USTC in Downingtown, Pennsylvania, we hope to make these upcoming clinics just as successful.

March 2nd (MD) Maryland SoccerPlex, 11-2pm
March 8th (MA) MIT, 10-1pm
March 9th (WV) Pro-Performance in Morgantown, 12-4pm
March 16th (DE) Schutte Park in Dover, 5-8pm
March 22nd (Western PA) Slippery Rock Univ., 12-3pm
March 30th (Western NY) Monroe CC, time 11-2pm

If you are interested in hosting a SoccerPlus clinic in your community, please contact us at tkl@goalkeeper.com or 1.800.KEEPER.1.

Soccer Champions Clinic
Learn from the best at the 2008 Soccer Champions Coaches' Clinic at Disney. Led by Tony DiCicco and Ray Reid, this clinic for soccer coaches features multiple days of cutting-edge instruction and on-field demos by some of the world's top soccer minds.

Feb 23rd & 24th (FL) Champions' Clinic at Disney
*Saturday at 5:00pm Tony DiCicco with present Goalkeeping: Controlling the Space Behind the Defense

At Disney other presenters include Michelle Akers (soccer legend and FIFA co-player of the year), Jeff Tipping (NSCAA Director of Coaching Education), Mike Freitag (National Champion Coach at Indiana University) and Fernando Clavijo (Head Coach, Colorado Rapids).

For more information visit: soccerchampionsclinic.com.

Feb 28th-Mar 1st (CT) Champions' Clinic at Mohegan Sun
*Friday at 10:15am Tony DiCicco with present Goalkeeping: Advanced Handling for Goalkeepers.

At Mohegan Sun other presenters include Anson Dorrance (Head Coach UNC - winner of 19 of 26 NCAA D1 National Championships), Emma Hayes (Arsenal Women), Charlie Cook (former Chelsea star and Coerver Coaching Director) and Bruce Arena (former US MNT Coach and MLS Championship Coach).
 

Starting Position and
Extending Range on Crosses

At SoccerPlus Goalkeeper School we constantly speak to the goalkeepers who attend to find out what we can do to tailor the program more specifically to the needs of our students. If there is one thing that the goalkeepers we talk to want to improve upon more than anything else, its crosses. Unfortunately, the advice is not always what goalkeepers want to hear but the way to get better at crosses is to see lots of crosses, multiple times a week. Only then will the goalkeeper's timing and decision-making start to improve.

But there are many other considerations as that need to be thought through as well.

Starting Position
How far can I position myself away from my line and still make saves back to the near post and the goal itself? Generally, keepers position themselves one yard off the line and roughly in the center of the goal. But depending on the position of the player with the ball, that might not give the keeper the advantage on a particular crossed ball.

Here are some of the variables to consider when positioning for crosses:

Distance of the Cross
The level of player that he/she will be playing against will dictate a goalkeeper's positioning.  At a U13 level, a player crossing the ball from the touchline will probably not be able to serve the back post area or the center of the goalmouth. Therefore, a keeper could shade their positioning to the near post area. At a collegiate level, a player at that distance may have the ability to serve a dangerous ball thus making the goalkeeper take up a more balanced central position bearing in mind it will always be easier to go forward than to go backwards, so as long as you're not leaving the near post exposed, you may want to steal an extra yard or yard an a half towards the back post.

Depth (How close is the ball to the goal line?)
The deeper a player takes a ball to the goal line, the more a goalkeeper can move away from the line and look to extend his/her range. When a player takes the ball end line, the angle for the shot on goal is severely reduced. There is always the chance that the ball will be miss hit and veer toward the goal but extending away from our goal does not mean that all responsibility to the goal is abandoned but our recognition of the situation dictates that the need to come off our line is now more likely than having to handle a shot.

Angle of Approach by Player Crossing the Ball
1. If the ball is touched toward the post the striker has the proper body position to shoot at the goal, play a ball into the box on the ground for a teammate, or serve the ball in the air to the back post.

2. If the ball is touched parallel with the sideline, it is much more difficult for the striker to get power and accuracy because they are now kicking across the body.  Look for balls to either fall short or be lofted.

3. If the ball is touched toward the sideline, it is very difficult for the striker to serve and the ball will have a tendency to fall short of the near post.

The Early Cross
Balls that are crossed from the flank and from outside the 18 give a goalkeeper the chance to start further off the line (anywhere from 3-6 yards). The shot is still a threat but now the space in behind the defense is vulnerable and must be covered by the goalkeeper at every reasonable opportunity.

Factors that dictate what a keeper attempts to win are:

The Height of the Service
1. The higher the ball, the more ground a goalkeeper can cover.

2. If a ball is struck at head height or below, the goalkeeper might elect to hold their position to guard against flicks or deflections. If the goalkeeper is not going to come for the ball, he/she should get an early "away" call and retreat to his/her line. If the goalkeeper comes, they are looking to close the striker and put him/herself into a point-blank position with his/her weight forward while keeping the chest upright and looking to make as big a barrier as possible.

Pace of the Serve
The faster the ball is kicked, the less ground a keeper can cover

Bend of the Serve
1.  If a ball is out swinging, the goalkeeper will have to take more steps to get to the ball.

2. If a ball is in swinging, it is basically coming right to the keeper.

Number of Players in the Immediate Area
Corner kick situations are usually crowded with attacking and defending players. Goalkeepers may have a hard time finding a quick safe path to the ball. On crosses where there are a minimum number of players inside the box, it is much easier to navigate.

Other Things to Consider
A goalkeeper (or coach) will have to be realistic about what level a goalkeeper should be challenging him/herself.  Qualities like quickness, height, power, experience and courage all factor in to where a goalkeeper should be positioned.  The process of starting position and range is constantly being adjusted.

Crosses: SPGS student training crosses with light pressure.

























Goalkeeper Making a
High Contour Save

Hydration: SPGS students hydrating at ANTC.

Analysis of the Goalkeeping
from USA-Mexico
by Scott Fox, Assistant Director, SoccerPlus Goalkeeper School, 9 year SPGS Student, 4 year SPGS Staff Coach, Ziggy Zigante disciple


North Carolina versus Duke. Lakers versus Celtics. Red Sox versus Yankees. U.S. versus Mexico? That’s right, for the 54^th time since 1934 (Mexico leads the series 29-14-11, however the U.S. has won the last 9 of 13) the U.S. Men’s National team took on the Aztecas of Mexico in what lived up to the hype of one of the best rivalries in sports. The match, played February 6^th at Reliant Stadium in Houston, was rift with everything that soccer fans have come to expect from a U.S. versus Mexico match: hard tackles, skillful play, passionate fans and end-to-end action.

The lineups for both teams contained an eclectic mix of players, both young and old, and provided the coaches an opportunity to experiment with personnel and chemistry in the buildup to this summer’s World Cup Qualifiers. In goal for the U.S. was Tim Howard, the starting goalkeeper for the English Premier League side Everton, while Mexico started the relatively new and untested Guillermo Ochoa. While both goalkeepers turned in fairly respectable performances, this article is intended be overtly critical and makes an attempt to analyze many of the seemingly insignificant moments of the game. Just as we preach at camp, it is important to keep in mind that a good goalkeeper is not validated by the number of saves that he or she records. Instead, it usually comes down to the intangibles, the things that a goalkeeper does to prevent a scoring opportunity from happening.

For those of you who utilized the ussoccer.com live video feed of the team’s warm-up, you were able to see how important a goalkeeper’s warm-up truly is. Howard’s warm-up was systematic: light jogging and skipping, easy stretching, simple handling, more advanced shot handling and, finally, crosses. Howard made sure to prepare himself for virtually every situation that he may encounter in a game, all the while focusing on the game ahead of him.

Once the whistle blew, it did not take Howard long to find himself in a precarious situation. Just 16 minutes into the game Howard was faced with a bouncing ball that had been played into his box and was being chased down by both a Mexican forward and his center back, Carlos Bocanegra. Howard immediately made the decision to come for the ball and, while he presumably called “keeper,” he could not avoid making contact with Bocanegra. Although Bocanegra was temporarily shaken, Howard should be commended for making a quick decision to come for the ball in spite of the onrushing players. In this situation Howard did very well to simply concentrate on the ball and not what was around him.

The thing that impressed me the most about Howard on this night was his footwork and positioning. I always knew that Howard was a very athletic goalkeeper, but after watching him on Wednesday I am now convinced that he has raised his game to the next level, because he now has the ability to cut down on a shooter’s angle and make saves appear much easier. The Mexicans had several quality opportunities between the 20^th and 25^th minutes, and on each one, Howard was able to make the play easily because of his excellent vertical positioning. Moreover, Howard’s ability to move with the ball and stay on his ball line allowed him to make virtually all of his saves appear routine.

The U.S.’s first goal transpired after a string of errors by Ochoa. With Oguchi Onyewu setting up to take a throw from the right side, everyone knew that a long throw was coming. As the ball was heaved to the middle of the penalty area, Ochoa made the decision to come and, subsequently, missed making any kind of contact with the ball. Although Ochoa may have erred in coming for the ball, his greatest mishap occurred when he failed to regain his concentration and reset his positioning. Had Ochoa immediately made his way back to his line and found the ball, I believe that Onyewu’s follow-up would have been easily saved.

Mexico answered just five minutes later off of what turned out to be a recurring theme for the U.S.: free kicks in the defensive third (thanks, in large part, to the poor play of the outside backs). While the Mexicans played an excellent ball into the box, some may argue that Howard should have come for the ball and at least attempted to affect the play. I understand Howard’s decision to stay on his line, as there was a great deal of traffic in front of him and, to a lesser extent, he may have been a bit thrown off by the collision he had had with his own teammate when coming for a similar ball earlier on. If I’m going to be especially picky, I would fault Howard’s reaction to the shot and the fact that he went down when the ball went up.

From the time that Mexico scored their equalizer until the half, Howard continued to do well coming off his line and challenging the shooter. Howard did an excellent job of cutting down the shooter’s angle while using his footwork to get to the balls that were played just wide of his body. In fact, there were several instances when I considered Howard to be a bit too far off of his line. However, Howard once again proved that he is well aware of his excellent footwork and long body and that he uses those assets to maximize both his vertical and horizontal positioning. In fact, there was only one blatant mistake by Howard at this point in the game when he was played a ball back from his outside back and received the ball so poorly with his first touch, that he very nearly gifted the Mexicans a goal. This just reiterates the importance of goalkeepers need to play with their feet in the modern game.

The second goal that Mexico scored to tie the game at 2-2 was simply a result of poor marking by the U.S. defenders off of yet another set piece. Howard was in no way at fault for this goal, and it is something that every goalkeeper must learn to brush off and continue on. Additionally, it should be noted that part of the blame for the U.S.’s ineptitude on set pieces falls on the fact that the entire team rarely trains together and is thus easily flustered when faced with the task of organizing a wall and picking up runners. That being said, Howard’s obvious frustration with his teammates during free kicks was certainly warranted.

After several forays to end the first half and begin the second, Howard did not see a great deal of action until added time. This is yet another quality that all top-level goalkeepers must possess: the ability to remain absent from the play, yet still focused enough to perform if and when called upon. Howard exemplified his sharp concentration when the action finally picked up in the 92^nd minute and the U.S. faced yet another free kick. This time, as the ball was played in, Howard did not hesitate and was quick off his line to easily secure the ball in moderate traffic.

Although Howard conceded two goals in the draw, I was very impressed with his performance. He did an excellent job of positioning himself so that he could make most saves look routine. While this article may have been a very critical analysis of Howard’s play, closely studying top level goalkeepers is one of the best ways to improve your game. Make an effort to watch their every move, taking careful note of how they are constantly adjusting their positioning in relation to the ball. Although on the surface it may not appear that Howard had a busy night, often times those are the best games that a keeper can play.
 

Howard: Winning the ball through Bocanegra.
Photo Courtesy of US Soccer

RetroLine (originally published June '91, Issue 72):
Coaching Goalkeepers to Succeed
By Tony DiCicco, at that time, Goalkeeper/Assistant Coach Women's World Cup Team, SPGS Founder/Director

As I travel around the country doing goalkeeper clinics for coaches at all levels, I am asked many questions involving who should train the goalkeeper, and how often and when.

The best possible scenario, of course, is to have a designated goalkeeper coach, as many of the top college and club programs often do. This person – most often a former keeper – is responsible for the technical, tactical and psychological training of the keeper during the season.

However, most programs lack the luxury of a keeper coach, and thus either neglect the keeper, or must devise a special schedule so that the keeper gets trained. Here’s what a coach and keeper can do if they do not have the luxury of a special goalkeeper training.

First, sometime before the season begins, a coach should sit down privately with the keeper and discuss strength, weaknesses, plans for the off, or pre-season, etc. This not only gives the keeper direction, it also opens the lines of communication between the coach and the keeper that can be vital once the season starts.

Remember, the goalkeeper position involves mental tests of skill just as much as physical tests. Mental skills coaching – to build confidence, commitment, and poise – is an absolute necessity. And it starts with an open, basic line of communication.

As the team comes together and the season draws near, the coach and keeper must develop a training schedule. Before or after practice, the coach should take part in one-on-one training sessions with the keeper. Most often these will be technical in nature; the workload and intensity will be high. The sessions will be as short as 15 minutes (after warm-up) or as long as one hour.

But the key factor here – as in all training sessions – is that there be a high level of concentration, resulting in great psychological advantages for the keeper, and excellent “carryover” effect into matches. At the end of each session the keeper should feel “I’ve worked hard. I’ve earned the right to play well!”

A second training methodology also takes place before or after practice: coach-goalkeeper-player training. As this implies, one to four field players are brought in to train the keeper. The field players need not know they are there to work out the keeper, if they think they themselves are getting special coaching, that’s great.

However, beyond making a couple of field points, the coach should focus his entire attention on the goalkeeper. The coach should be positioned in the net, behind or to the side of the goal-not out at the 18.

An example of this type of training: A flank player serves crosses into the box. Two strikers organize runs into the box; the keeper makes a decision on each serve - while being observed and coached.

This type of training is excellent, because it’s both match-related and an efficient use of time. (After warm-up, it takes about 30-60 minutes; if done after practice, obviously little warm-up is required.)

A third training methodology takes place during team practice. Coach-goalkeeper-team training allows full integration of the keeper as a team player. The tactical carryover to the match is excellent, while the coach simultaneously gets a complete look at the keeper. Communication, positioning, distribution and poise under pressure – among other elements – can all be coached in this type of training.

One example is to create a 3-v.-3 situation on a very short field (30 yards or so), with full goals. All balls start with the server positioned on the midfield touch line. The server serves the balls that are difficult for the keeper to resolve – serves that will probably end up with breakaways, shots, etc. the coach must position himself or herself where goalkeeper evaluation and coaching can take place – in the net, behind it or on the goal line.

A common pitfall of coaches is thinking they are training the keeper simply by putting him in goal during practice. This is not goalkeeper coaching! Even if you have don’t eh exercise mentioned above three days earlier as a finishing exercise only when the coach observes and evaluates the keepers – and lets them know they are being coached.

Remember: Keepers play better technically, and make better tactical decisions, when they have been coached. The coach-goalkeeper line of communication is vital. Goalkeepers who are coached, and who have open lines of communication with their coach, develop strong mental skills. A good goalkeeper can often be determined by the impact of his coach – even if the coach is not a specifically-trained goalkeeper coach.

Good Luck!
 

Tony DiCicco training the Women's National Team Goalkeepers in the early 90s.

Tony's Bookshelf:
The Winner Within by Pat Riley

In The Winner Within Riley writes:
Before day one with the Knicks, I scouted the team's attitude. All the sources said, "They just don't like each other. There's a lot of cliques" The deeper and more important point was that they didn't respect each other. But none of it was out in the open.

As it started to boil over, Riley called a team meeting in which he had the players sit in chairs, in the cliques had defined the team's reality. The whole reason for this chair-shifting exercise was to define reality. I was holding up a mirror so they could see what they were making of themselves: human islands in a hostile sea, linked only by their gripes. Three here, four there, two over there...this led to a discussion and an understanding..."A House divided against itself surely could not stand."

Not only is Pat Riley one of pro basketball's winningest coaches, but his speeches before hundreds of corporations, from ARCO to AT&T to Toyota, have earned him the title of "America's Greatest Motivational Speaker." The Winner Within is his formula for success. It is a book about winning, leadership, mastery, change, and personal growth, based on understanding and controlling the shifting dynamics of a team - any team, whether it is a small company or a giant corporation, a family, a city, or a group of athletes. How does a struggling team form a covenant to work together instead of separately? How does a successful team battle complacency? How does any team overcome the thunderbolts that strike out of the blue?

Drawing upon the great teachers and his own experiences in and out of sports, interweaving them with dozens of parallels and stories from business and society, Riley shows how to ride the cycles of team change, balance role players and stars, build solid foundations, break through self-imposed barriers, create change within continuity, and nurture cooperation within competition. "All of my contacts and experiences have proved to me, over and over again, that the complex inner rhythms of teamwork - flows of ambition, power, cooperation, and emotion - are the keys to making dreams come true," says Riley, and in The Winner Within, he provides the tools, insights, and plan of action to help master those rhythms. It is a book of universal power and scope - a new classic of the literature.

QuickSave: Shoe Tying
wire reports

Bayern Munich could be down to 41-year-old Bernd Dreher in goal against Aberdeen in a UEFA Cup game in Scotland today after starter Oliver Kahn was shipped home with flu and backup Michael Rensing injured his back tying his shoes.

Yes, tying his shoes.

Still, Coach Ottmar Hitzfeld remained confident Rensing could play, telling reporters, "In an emergency we'll find someone to tie his laces for him."

Goalkeepers, there is a lesson here. Be nice to your defenders so they will help you by tying your boots for you (you won't even have to take off your mitts).

Rensing: Careful. Don't hurt yourself.