SCORES Coaches Send In Their Favorite Practice Drills

We asked SCORES coaches to send in their favorite soccer practice drills. Here are some of the best:

Fong Ngo, Redding Elementary Girls :

"My favorite game/drill is 'Follow the Leader.' The reason why I love this game so much is because it gives each girl to a chance to be the leader. We personalized this game a bit. Each leader has to do one soccer move, one dance move, a fake charlie brown kick, and end with a goal kick. There are sides of the field (or for us our yard) that we can be super loud so we chant, and there are sides where we have to be super quiet. This is a great way to get the girls to pay attention to each other and have fun as a team.

Rudy Osorio, Hillcrest:

"My favorite drill is a rock/paper/scissors game. Two group of players in each corner, they run and meet and they play one round of rocks/paper/scissors. The winner keeps going, loser goes back to their group. The goal is not to let the other group cross your end line. The first player to cross the other end line wins. This drill is good for speed and resistance."

Coach Rudy with his Hillcrest Jrs.

Alberto Gallindo, Marshall Jrs:

"My favorite game hands down is 'Snake Blob Tag'. It's an awesome game that gets the children dribbling while the 'Snake' works together to move from one direction to another. The 'Snake' grows as it knocks players' balls out of the grid. Players without balls join the snake. Keep playing until there are a few players left dribbling. This game is a nice medley of technical skills, teamwork and communication." 

Manny Anaya, ER Taylor:

"We call it 'Triangle Overlap'. I set up 3 players in a triangle formation and have them move the ball around with just 1 touch. They are to be moving around and not stay in the same position after they pass the ball. After a player passes the ball, they have to move to a new position, and so does the other player who doesn't receive the ball. It's a really fast drill and very effective once the kids get the hang of moving the ball with just one touch and not stopping it. It's a little different than the regular overlap drills done by other teams."

Mikka Kelley, Rosa Parks Jrs:

My favorite drill is the protect your castle game. Divide the field into two halves and two teams. Create a few castles for each team by placing soccer balls on top of cones. Each team tries to protect their own castles while knocking down the other team's castles. You can play by making the teams stay on their half of the field, or by letting players go anywhere. This game works on aim, teamwork, defense, control, timing, and perseverance. The kids love it and do not realize how it helps while playing.