How to kick the ball for distance?

It’s not really surprising to notice during training sessions at Keepet Skool Academy that one of the weakest parts of a young goalkeepers game is kicking and distribution.Generally passing the ball to your player and kicking the ball for distance are two wholly seperate beasts, and neither skill can sometimes be up to par. But the latter (namely kicking for distance) can’t be accomplished effectively unless there is a solid understanding of how to pass the ball to an outfield plaur in the first place.

Passing the ball

Over the weekend I focused on passing drills with some dynamic footwork thrown into each drill for good measure. The key with the folowing drills is that I was aiming for each of my goalkeepers to learn the following:

- Get a “feeling for the ball”.
- Learn how to trap the ball with their feet effectively.
- Have a “visual marker” of where they need to deliver the ball.
- learn to think on their feet.

The following drill focused on both footwork and distribution to a designated target.

(The above image is copyright of Keeper Skool, All rights reserved, 2009)

Kicking for distance

During a goalkick situation the focus for the goalkeeper is power, distance and accuracy. With this in mind there has been a handful of scientific research that points to the need for the following key elements (read this old post here);

1. Momentum (if you have read our free 10 week course, you’ll know how important that word is to goalkeeping)

2. Mass of the leg

3. Velocityof the foot at impact

4. Stabilization of the ankle

Here is another game based drill I’ve created that focuses again on handling the ball, say from a corner situation for example, allowing the goalkeeper to push their players upfield, and distributing the ball to a designated target.

(The above image is copyright of Keeper Skool, All rights reserved, 2009)

So, with the above drills and scenarios in mind there should always be an emphasis on getting a natural feeling for the ball and kicking over a short distance. Progressively the goalkeeper should then move to kicking for distance.

It must be kept top of mind that the 4 components that make up an effective long distance kick are a prevelant part of each training session, as they form the pillar for an effective kick for distance.

The above drills are examples of the forthcoming goalkeeper training guide from Keeper Skool, to be released by the end of 2009. For exclusive interviews, goalkeeper fitness articles with leading experts, videos and written training drill programs sign up to Keeper Skool Certified by clicking here.