Q&A: Mental Alertness Important For Goalkeeping Success!

Thanks so much for coming through to Keeper Skool!

Wow, you sound like me. Seriously, did you see where I played growing up? I played for some of the largest teams in Australia and some of the best youth set-ups in Western Europe. When I run off my resume, people say "so…why are’nt you playing now?"…I grit my teeth, as it’s an all encompassing, all consuming question, that drives me to be better!

Do you know what the answer is? I lacked mental strength. Yep, there it is. I let everything, and everyone get to me. I blamed my weaknesses on other people. "It was the defenders fault, It was the manager, he doesn’t support me". Do you see where this is going?

It is easy to be spoilt as an athlete, like I was growing up, with some of the teams I played for. It’s an even stronger testament to self character when you move onto new teams and can thrive without any support. I believe the underlying problem with goalkeeper training is that there is a lack of mental preparedness from an early age. We bring alot of our insecurities growing up, into everyday life…whether it be playing soccer professionally to playing board room politics or getting angry with loved ones in our relationships

Have you ever seen guys like Buffon or Casillas? All they do is focus on the goal ahead. They shut out everything around them and just focus. The best games I ever played were when I just made my inner self quiet. I did not go into the game thinking about 1 million other problems, just the game. In that quiet space inside my mind, I would talk to myself. I used positive re-enforcement with affirmations like "No one can get past me" for example. In the week leading up to competition I played the whole game in my mind, right down to some amazing saves that I would make during the game formulated in my minds eye. And guess what would eventuate when I was calm and focused? I played great, and felt calm all the way through the game.

Other times, I let silly mistakes eat me up for months instead of focusing on the positives of my game. Another way to prepare mentally is to strive to relentlessly perfect any bumps in your game during pre-season and off season. If you can’t kick properly, search for a kicking specialist for example. If your head is not right, pay the money for a sports psychologist…there are numerous studies that show that a sports psychologist can boost your game exponentially.

Most of all, when you have hiccups it is always great to have mentors around you. Coaches and trainers, family and friends that have been where you have been before you, not necessarily soccer either, it could be any field where they excelled. It is always great to hear words of wisdom, if you can’t find them…search for them. It is even better to just let go of any insecurities and just enjoy the game. That is one of the major problems we often face in today’s highly competitive sporting arena, we forget to just love the game. It’s a game, and should be fun…so enjoy yourself. Even if it’s a serious set-up for a large club. Ever see guys like Ronaldinho? He is always smiling and calm. He clearly loves the game and enjoys being out on the field every day!