Get in, Get out.
It's a Thursday evening, you're working with your squad ahead of that very important U9 clash on Saturday, and your full back doesn't recognise the lack of pressure on the ball, thus finding himself susceptible to the 60 yard diagonal in behind! This is it, your big chance, the moment you've been waiting for all week.... "STOP STAND STILL!"
The intervention - an opportunity for the coach to impart their invaluable knowledge and right those wrongs. But is this always for the benefit of the player? Yes we will always intervene with good intent, but sometimes we may actually be having less of a positive impact upon our players than we think. Here are a few considerations around interventions during practices:
Firstly, I'd challenge whether or not the intervention is needed just yet. Too often we jump in on the first "error" or mistake, thanks to our innate desire to help. This is great, but how do we know that the player in question was making the error we observed as a result of their lack of knowledge or understanding? Perhaps by making a mental note and standing back to observe we could find the answers we need. If the same error is repeated two or three times, we as coaches should consider using questioning techniques to delve deeper into the thought process of the player. What did he/she see? What were they trying to achieve? With this information, we may actually find that the problem which we were quick to make an assumption of is actually somewhat different to what the player is experiencing.
In addition to this, holding fire before jumping in could actually be helping our players in the long run. If we correct or provide answers for our young players every time they make a mistake, over time they will begin to depend on receiving feedback from a coach in order to correct an error. By leaving players to "struggle" and battle to discover a solution, we are allowing them to develop their intrinsic (self) feedback. Players who have an increased ability to listen and learn from intrinsic cues and act upon them will bode better in later life when external feedback from a manager or coach may be limited. It is the role of the coach to supplement and add further value, not merely act as the puppet master.
Secondly, what type of intervention is needed? The age-old trend of stopping the whole group to demonstrate the correct way of doing something may not be the most efficient way to spend your time "in the middle". After all, how relevant will the coaching point be to the rest of the players in the session? Yes they may all benefit from understanding why that specific first touch resulted in a loss of possession, but how relevant to that specific time or moment is it? It is incredibly difficult for a young player to associate points to an action that he/she has not experienced personally. And let's be honest, how many of those players (specifically in the younger age groups) have the attention span and ability to listen in a group setting, from the other side of a pitch, whilst all sorts of distractions are taking place in nearby sessions?
In this instance, let the practice continue, pull the player in question aside and spend some time talking individually. Even better, challenge yourself to have some form of dialogue with the player whilst he/she continues in the practice - pick a moment when they are not directly involved, grab their attention and be concise with your information or questioning. Then, stand back, and let them "fight for the solutions" again, being ready to offer encouragement and praise around effort and intentions, not merely outcomes.
This brings me onto our third point - time! The majority of us are not blessed with full time players, in full time facilities, with the luxury of managing our football schedules. In fact quite the opposite - we get our players for 60 minutes a week on average. For this reason, it is our duty to give this time to the players, and to hold it precious for them. Keep the ball-rolling time high, and only stop the session if it is absolutely imperative. Opt for drive-by or individual interventions as a priority where possible. If needing to stop the whole group, think about stopping on a positive as an initial means of entry as this may allow you to move through your points quicker and hence use up less of their time.
For example, if working on a playing out from the back practice your key points might be A. Dispersal of defenders, B. Distribution from Goalkeeper, C. Receiving priorities from Defender, D. Distance and positioning of Midfielders. Instead of trying to coach A,B, C and D all in one intervention, look for a scenario where A and B are demonstrated correctly and use this as your opportunity to reference, praise and then introduce points C and D. After all, not every intervention has to be to correct, does it?
Hopefully these points give some food for thought. Give them a go, let me know what you think, or even better feel free to share some of your strategies and beliefs on interventions.