Pride Player Terms

Terms – Fall 2003

 

With possession

 

  • Tighten up – reduce the width between the attackers to open up wide spaces for the outside midfielders to fill

 

  • Have a look – take a quick glance to see if you can get off a shot.  This instruction may come from a coach or from a teammate who has a better view of the situation.  Ideally this instruction is used before a player actually gains possession i.e. when a pass is being played, a teammate might say “have a look”  so that the player receiving the pass knows to immediately look to shoot

 

  • Take her – when you have possession of the ball take on the defender 1 v. 1.  Be calm and confident and work to get the defender off balance using changes of speed, direction or ball moves to penetrate the defense on the dribble.  Do not look to pass until you’ve beaten the defender or if the defender has delayed you enough so that your only option is to pass the ball.  The key is attacking with confidence; don’t be afraid to make a mistake because if you are chances are that you won’t find success as often

 

  • Overlap – cross behind the ball carrier in a wide, bending run (towards the sideline).  This command may come from a coach, but is ideally used by players on the field.  Either by a player who sees open space and makes an overlapping run and calls out “overlap” to let the ball carrier know where she’s making a run OR by a ball carrier who is directing a teammate to make a run.

 

  • Possession – this is a reminder not to force bad passes (or free kicks) forward but instead work to maintain possession of the ball using dribbling, back passes or other means.  It is very important that the central midfielders learn to recognize when balls are being forced and begin to use this reminder command on the field

 

  • Show - get yourself into a passing lane and open up to receive a pass.  This can apply to every field player and can be combined with other directions such as: Show Flat (even with the ball), Show Wide, Show Line, etc.

 

  • Support – lets teammate in possession of ball know that they have an open passing lane backwards (into support).  It’s important that if a support pass is made that the passer immediately “Show” for a return pass to relieve defensive pressure

 

Other team in possession

 

  • Tighten up – reduce the width between the defenders to better secure the center of the field and allow the outside midfielders to defend the width.  This will be used by coaches, sweepers and GOALKEEPERS

 

  • Close in – quickly reduce the space between you and the opponent who has possession on the ball remember to sprint to cover, but slow down to defend – don’t over commit to the ball so that the attacker can run right by you.

 

  • NO SHOT!! – similar to “close in” but with more urgency.  This means ensure that you get some part of your body between the player/ball and goal so that the opponent doesn’t get a clear look our goal.  This will be used by coaches, sweepers and GOALKEEPERS

 

  • Delay – get yourself into a good defensive position in order to delay the dribbler while your teammates recover. No need to tackle or attempt a take away, just delay the attack until you have proper support.  This will be used by both coaches and GOALKEEPERS

 

  • RUNNER!! – this means to have a look around because there is an opponent breaking in on our goal readying to receive a pass or take a shot, i.e. “Eryn you’ve got a runner on your right!!”  It doesn’t mean that you need to immediately mark that player yourself, but you need to be aware of the player, assess the threat of the player and either mark her yourself or get help from a teammate nearby.  This instruction is commonly used by THE KEEPER when setting up to defend against corner kicks and other free kicks near the goal.

 

Encouragement

 

  • Well done – Don’t forget to encourage your teammates when they make a smart run or pass or execute a strong tackle or takeaway.  Simply saying “well done” recognizes a strong effort by your teammate

 

  • Unlucky – Using this term recognizes a strong effort by a teammate even though they may not have successfully executed what they were attempting.  It is important that you continue to recognize strong efforts by your teammates whether their efforts meet with success or not

 

  • Good idea – recognizes when a player did the right thing regardless of the outcome.  Similar to “Unlucky” but this term can be used even when a play is not executed towards a player that had the “Good idea” i.e. if a teammate makes a smart run to open up for a pass but you don’t see that open player until after another play has been made.  In this case you might say, “Good idea, I missed you this time but I’ll look for you next time.”  By recognizing when a teammate had the right idea, you prevent them from being discouraged from making other runs later in the match.

 

  • Shake it off – Everyone makes errors on the field, it’s vital that a teammate doesn’t dwell on a mistake, but instead gets right back into the flow of the match.  If you notice that a teammate is struggling or has made a mistake or two remind them to “shake it off” and give them a pat on the back for encouragement.

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