Tag: Coach Education

Coaching Newsletter #10 – Coaching a team with varying skill levels, older players & low motivation

by Rhys Desmond, posted in Coach Education, Masterclasses

Last month, I received a great question from a former student of mine, who is coaching their first team of teenagers right now. The players are U15, yet still don't know many of the basic skills to soccer. They just want to have fun, hang out with their friends, and they lack enough sporting experience to know how to handle losses and setbacks. I answered this question immediately, but I think it's valuable for every coach to know and hear. So with that, here is my Coaching Newsletter #10 - for subscribers of the site!

Coaching Newsletter #8 – Being the best is overrated

by Rhys Desmond, posted in Coach Education, Coaching, Subscriber Exclusives

Let me tell you a secret. I’ve worked with professional athletes across a few different sports now. (That's not the secret). There’s something that’s surprised me, fascinated me, and inspired me all at the same time. One singular thing. One singular thing that they all share in common. Every single one of them. They all … Continue reading Coaching Newsletter #8 – Being the best is overrated

How I optimize video analysis for professional players

Featured by Rhys Desmond, posted in Coaching, Masterclasses, Player Analysis

I'll tell you right off the top, nothing I say here will be groundbreaking. This article is meant to show you how simple video analysis can be, even at the high-end level of sport. Yes, you have to know the game. Yes, you should know how to positively promote other people. It even helps to know how to game-ify conversations in order to make them more intriguing. But ultimately, you can easily follow my steps here for conducting optimal video analysis for professional players. Steal it. Take it with you. It's yours. Here is my process for creating actionable insights for pros (or semi-pro players) to take back into their own environments.

Coaching Newsletter #4 – Essential traits of a successful coach, mentor or leader

by Rhys Desmond, posted in Coach Education, Coaching, Masterclasses, Subscriber Exclusives

Truth be told, there are millions of checklist items that help to form a successful coach, mentor, or leader. But at the bare bones of it all, successful leadership ultimately comes down to a focus on social relationships.

Game of Numbers #32 – Harry Kane’s playmaking at Bayern Munich

Featured by Rhys Desmond, posted in Game of Numbers, German Bundesliga, Masterclasses, Player Analysis, Striker

Harry Kane is one of the best goal-scorers on the planet. But he's also one of the best play-makers. In Game of Numbers #32, I break down why Kane has been such a perfect fit for Bayern, and why his playmaking influence should be a serious legacy of his career.

Coaching Newsletter #3 – Merging repetition & game-realism together

by Rhys Desmond, posted in Coach Education, Coaching, Masterclasses, Subscriber Exclusives

There's often a conflict between the old-school coaches who design "drills" focused on repetition, and the new-school coaches who provide actual education toward what players will encounter in a game. But in reality, the two can easily be merged together. You see, game-realistic activities around a specific session topic naturally allow for repetition toward the patterns our players will encounter in the game. In this coaching newsletter, I use my personal experiences as a part-time professional athlete in the sport of trail running to detail how game-realism and repetition can be easily combined together.

Attention to detail when coaching at the elite level

by Rhys Desmond, posted in Coach Education, Coaching, Masterclasses, Subscriber Exclusives

While coaching ideologies can generally apply across a myriad of ages and abilities, there are a few distinct differences. This includes: a greater attention to detail at the high-performance level; a greater attention to position-specific training; and more complexity when adapting activities to add challenge/intensity. I break this down in Coaching Craft – Newsletter #2 – Coaching high-performance athletes. Here is a preview of how you can focus on the finer details in high-performance environments.