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Message: [QUOTE="ImperialOrange, post: 588536, member: 362"] Mods feel free to move to OT board but wanted to make sure thread got viewed and not buried under politics threads. Long story short I am volunteering as an assistant coach for my son's U12 soccer team. My work schedule doesn't permit me to make every practice or game so assistant is all I could do. Had our first practice the other night and found out the person that volunteered to be head coach has no playing experience and this is her son's first year. I myself have never played organized soccer and am only familiar as a fan of the game so the first practice ended up with me winging it and being the de facto head coach. Here's where I need help from my SUFan.com brothers and sisters. What should a U12 soccer practice look like? What skills should we be focusing on in this age group and for how long each practice? What are good drills to increase said skills? Any other nuances I should be mindful of in coaching this age group? What formation is best to run and what is the best way to coach proper spacing? Practice's are 90 minutes twice a week and games are once a week. Teams play 8 v 8 in games but with a roster of 12 kids practice will not allow those conditions. Overall the team does have potential. We have a couple fast players, we have a couple with solid ball skills, and we have 1 or 2 we may have to try and hide a bit on gameday until we can build confidence. All players are right footed with a few that can use both. What are the best places to play lessor skilled players so that opposing teams do not consistantly single them out? Should we play the players greater skilled with their left foot down the right or down the left and why? Any experience and insight would be GREATLY appreciated to help me run things smoothly. [/QUOTE]

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