5 COACHES GIVE THEIR BEST PRACTICE ADVICE

Maci Gian

Practice is important! We all know that, it’s what so many people tell us in our day-to-day lives when we’re trying to achieve a goal, do our job, or pick up a new hobby. While this statement is true, there’s the question of HOW to practice. Trying to take on such a huge, intimidating task with your only advice being “Just practice!” isn’t all that helpful, and provides more questions than guidance. How do you start practicing? How do you keep practicing without getting burnt out? How long do you have to practice?

The concept of ‘practice’ is one that can intimidate anyone out of doing what they love, and kill the motivation of wanting to learn a new skill. This is also true for Super League players, both old and new!

Multiple Super League coaches were recently asked what sort of advice they could give to people to help make the idea of practicing more approachable, and here’s what they had to say…

“Learn what your ‘comfort zone’ is.” - Coach Black

“There’s all this talk about ‘going outside of your comfort zone’, and while I agree with it, it’s far too vague! ‘Comfort zone’, how do you know what your comfort zone is if you spend all your time feeling uncomfortable as you practice? Aimlessly maneuvering about, doing what you can to to see what sticks with you and what doesn’t, many beginners especially haven’t yet gotten an eye to spot what they keep repeating, what methods they keep relying on, and what they’re afraid to push further.

This is why it’s important to take a step back and truly observe what you’re doing. Once you notice a pattern, this is when you should get curious and ask questions. For example… Let’s say I notice I keep trying to score goals on the left side of the field, closest to the net; what if I went to the right side instead? What if I tried kicking from a further distance? What if I didn’t try to shoot for the goal by myself, but tried passing to my teammate? Even if your execution of these ‘what ifs’, don’t end up perfect, you’d be surprised to discover what you’ve learned along the way, and you might pick up some new strategies you haven’t considered before if you had never asked yourself ‘What if…’ “

“Slowly apply the pressure.” - Del Aqua

“I find a lot of new soccer players—especially those wanting to join the Super League—jump into the deep end too quickly. In an innocent way, I find it rather silly. When you wake up, you don’t try to do your mourning routine all in the first minute, no? You do one thing at a time. So why approach practice so differently? As if you expect to master everything instantly? I feel if people took their time and approached practice the same way they do a morning routine—where they do one small step after the other—they’d soak in much more knowledge and skill that they would’ve skipped over had they rushed through.

Take Liquido, for example. New players only see the skills he displays during his games. They see his speed, his quick kicks, his fast passes, but what they don’t see is his slow build up. The stretching he does beforehand, the constant dribbling and passing he does with his teammates, the underwater training that drastically reduces his speed… It’s all these little, slower moments he does that add up to make him the star midfielder he is. Start small, pick one thing from the skill you want to get good at, and practice it. Then pick another, and weave the two together, learn how they work with one another, and before you know it, you’ll be learning more and more without feeling the crushing pressure of ‘doing it all at once’.”

“You’re practicing, not perfecting.” - Golari

” ‘Practice makes perfect’, pah! Now that’s something I disagree with! Being perfect is something no one can really achieve, we’re all still learning, and we will always learn, so to hold this idea that there is such thing as achieving ’perfection’ makes practicing feel much more like a burden! It makes people believe that perfection is somehow a guaranteed end result, and leads to them being more critical OF their practices, which should be about messing up and learning from your mistakes. What good is practice if you try to AVOID mistakes? What would be the point?

Whenever my boys are feeling down or being too hard on themselves, I remind them: ‘You’re not trying to be perfect, you’re trying to practice.’ You’re not trying to make the most flawless kick this world has ever seen, you’re just trying to learn how to pass. Don’t focus on the end goal you want to achieve, and instead focus on HOW you’re going to achieve it. Approaching practice this way removes so much stress.

“Don’t be afraid to ask for help.” - Supa Strika’s Coach

“Something I always remind my boys is to reach out to their teammates, let them know when they need help, and to work off of each other if they’re ever going through a hard time. I understand soccer can get very competitive, however that shouldn’t have to carry over during practice, whether you’re a new player or not.

It’s hard to train alone, you don’t have anyone to bounce off of, which can make problem-solving and self-motivation trickier. Remember that practicing is just that, and you’re working hard to improve your own skills, not constantly trying to rise above everyone else. The more you view practicing as a competition, the harder it is for you and those around you. You’ll put this unfair expectation upon yourself that your practice has to be better than someone else’s, and when you become so focused on comparing yourself to others’ routines, rather than asking for advice, you could end up creating habits that hold you back rather than help you grow.

Asking for help isn’t a sign of weakness, it’s how we connect and improve. If you’ve just started your journey in the Super League—or wherever it is you’re trying to get familiar with—start talking to the people around you. You’d be surprised to see what you’ll learn with the connections you make.

“Know when to rest.” - Nick Kickalopolous

“I completely understand the desire in wanting to achieve your goals, and wanting to achieve them fast. To see the end results of your labour is nothing short of rewarding, yet to constantly push yourself, to keep trudging forward even when your body is aching, will make the journey feel more of a burden than satisfactory.

There is no shame in taking breaks, to rest. Your body and your mind need the slower moments so it can soak in what you’ve been learning, then once you’re well rested, you can get back up and keep going. Not only is this good for you, it gives you time to look back and reflect on what you have done thus far. Reflecting helps you see what’s working for you, what’s not, and what you want to change as you move forward. While struggling comes with practice, practice itself should not be suffering.”