Skill Acquisition Phase Program

Skill Acquisition Phase

Skill Acquisition Programs provide children aged 9-12 with the platform to develop technical skills.

Football Australia’s Skill Acquisition training program focuses on developing four core skills when in possession of the ball.

1. STRIKING THE BALL

This includes all forms of striking the ball such as short/long passing, shooting and crossing

2. FIRST TOUCH

Controlling the ball with all allowed body parts

3. 1v1

All moves, feints and accelerations to get past and away from an opponent

4. RUNNING WITH THE BALL

At speed (with a lot of space) or ‘dribbling’ (in tight areas), this includes techniques for protecting the ball and changing direction

These four core skills cover 95% of the actions of any outfield player when in possession of the ball during a game of football.

PHASE OVERVIEW

The Skill Acquisition Phase is built on:

• The coach focusing extensively on providing a solid foundation of technical skill

• If the player does not gain this skill foundation during this phase it will be very difficult to make it up later

• No amount of fitness or competitive spirit will ever compensate for deficiencies in functional game skills

At this age the children are ready for a more structured approach to training.

In every session the focus is on one of the core skills, from the beginning until the end of the session (“theme based sessions”).