There are many fun drills but heading a ball over the net is probably one of the most popular.
I like to involve this soccer drill as a part of my team’s warm up. However, it is up to you to decide when to use it.
You may for example add it at the end of your session as well. There’s nothing that says you have to do it as your team’s warm up.
After all, you know your team best. If you want to use it at the end of a hard driving session, by all means do so.
I’d love to see how it affects your team’s overall performance – drop me a line if you’re willing to test it out 😉
Heading a Ball over the Net
Purpose
Improving ball control.
Drill Set Up
Set up two poles or similar and put a net over it. You could also use a badminton net which is pretty cheap (15$).
The field of play should form a quadrate and you can decide for yourself how big it should be.
However, the bigger the field, the better it is. Every team should consist of 4-5 players.
Performing the Drill
Players may use all parts of their body to play the ball (beside their hands of course :).
The team that fails to keep the ball in the air is punished by a penalty point. The team with the highest score at the end of the drill is the winner.
Equipment Required For This Drill
Cones, poles for keeping the net up, a net, Balls.
Variants on This Drill
A variant is to only allow players to use their heads for playing the ball over the net.
The starting formation of the drill.
One of the players kicks the ball into play by sending it over to the other side.
The team that fails to send, the ball over the net is punished by a penalty point.
Summary
This drill is one of my favorite. You may apply it to all ages — players really love it!
I know also that many professional teams like to implement this drill in their regular soccer training as a part of their warm up.
If your players are new to soccer they may find this drill to difficult and complicated.
However, it is up to you to decide whether your players have enough skills to participate in this drill or not.
