Skills Circuit: 1st day of practice U15

[jmsaway]

Any suggestions on the best group of drills to set up as a circuit for the first few practices that would help rate the players?

[cololax]

I would go with triangular passing lines. This will allow coaches to see their players' passing accuracy as well as catching while on the run. Have the players start with the right hand and after you've seen each player 3-5 times, have them switch to the left. This is also a good drill to observe ground-balls.

Once the line drills are finished, observe the players in one-on-one situations. Make sure you have a goalie in net so players are forced to shoot accurately, at corners and pipes. Have each player start their one-on-one drive from the top right, left and X positions. You can get a lot of information from this drill like: off-hand proficiency, quickness, shot accuracy and speed, stick protection, defensive abilities, etc.

Finally, I'd have the players run 3-on-3. 3vs3 allows you to see each player's knowledge about how to play offense. Be especially aware of how each player moves without the ball. Are they able to find space and then position themselves to best receive a feed? Are the players with the ball able to find the open man and deliver crisp accurate feeds? Are the players setting effective picks? Which players are able to catch feeds in traffic and get the good quick shot off? How tenacious is each player while going after ground-balls, and are they using basic "Man-Ball" techniques?

Here are a few odds-and-ends drills you may want to run:

1.)Man-down/EMO offense
2.)Clears and rides. Are the players able to execute long passes effectively?
3.)Ask who the face-off guys are. Take them aside and have them face-off against each other. Observe their technique, aggressiveness, strength and quickness.
4.)You may want to set up a 3 vs 2 drill to specifically evaluate how well the players execute on the fast break.

Make sure you have an evaluation form for each coach. Decide all of the categories you want to evaluate. As you watch drills. rank each skill on a 1-5scale, 5 being the best. It's important to have as many coaches observe players as possible so you can compare notes and take in all opinions. Try to take notes about what stood out for each player. Once the practice/tryout is done, sit down with all the other coaches and compare your evaluation forms. Which players stood out for all the coaches? Discuss the players that were ranked similarly. If need be, reevaluate some of the players. Match them up against each other. Things usually become pretty clear at this point.

This should get you started. The first three drills I listed should take care of at least 90-95% of what you need to know. The evaluators for Team-Colorado and Select used these exact drills during their tryouts.

Hope this comes in useful!

[jmsaway]

I would go with triangular passing lines. This will allow coaches to see their players' passing accuracy as well as catching while on the run. Have the players start with the right hand and after you've seen each player 3-5 times, have them switch to the left. This is also a good drill to observe ground-balls.

Once the line drills are finished, observe the players in one-on-one situations. Make sure you have a goalie in net so players are forced to shoot accurately, at corners and pipes. Have each player start their one-on-one drive from the top right, left and X positions. You can get a lot of information from this drill like: off-hand proficiency, quickness, shot accuracy and speed, stick protection, defensive abilities, etc.

Finally, I'd have the players run 3-on-3. 3vs3 allows you to see each player's knowledge about how to play offense. Be especially aware of how each player moves without the ball. Are they able to find space and then position themselves to best receive a feed? Are the players with the ball able to find the open man and deliver crisp accurate feeds? Are the players setting effective picks? Which players are able to catch feeds in traffic and get the good quick shot off? How tenacious is each player while going after ground-balls, and are they using basic "Man-Ball" techniques?

Here are a few odds-and-ends drills you may want to run:

1.)Man-down/EMO offense
2.)Clears and rides. Are the players able to execute long passes effectively?
3.)Ask who the face-off guys are. Take them aside and have them face-off against each other. Observe their technique, aggressiveness, strength and quickness.
4.)You may want to set up a 3 vs 2 drill to specifically evaluate how well the players execute on the fast break.

Make sure you have an evaluation form for each coach. Decide all of the categories you want to evaluate. As you watch drills. rank each skill on a 1-5scale, 5 being the best. It's important to have as many coaches observe players as possible so you can compare notes and take in all opinions. Try to take notes about what stood out for each player. Once the practice/tryout is done, sit down with all the other coaches and compare your evaluation forms. Which players stood out for all the coaches? Discuss the players that were ranked similarly. If need be, reevaluate some of the players. Match them up against each other. Things usually become pretty clear at this point.

This should get you started. The first three drills I listed should take care of at least 90-95% of what you need to know. The evaluators for Team-Colorado and Select used these exact drills during their tryouts.

Hope this comes in useful!
Why reinvent the wheel - Make sure you have an evaluation form for each coach. Does anyone have a document all ready?

[cololax]

Yes, I have one. PM me with an e-mail address and I'll send it to you.

[picknroll]

Yes, I have one. PM me with an e-mail address and I'll send it to you.

Been through the same discussion with many people. My conclusion (from experience) is that the best form has two columns: Player Name and yes/no.