Apr 11, 2021
Plan to Succeed - Don't Leave it to Chance
"Good luck at your trial match today."
Some might say to their child as they hope their teenage offspring has the game of their life and resurrects a football career having just been released from their former club.
Their rivals can all play or they wouldn’t have reached the level they have. The questions is how do trialists standout in the system that tends to drive showboating behaviour? We advise players not to leave a good performance to chance but instead develop a plan to succeed.
Our list of top 8 planning tips to have the best trial possible
7) Physically prepare.
Players should ensure they are match fit, have slept well, eaten sensibly and are properly hydrated.
They may get lucky and somehow it all falls into place but the trial is a hostile environment to turn in a great performance. For starters, players are either all individuals being asked to play together for the first time or they may be one of three players shoehorned into an established team. Trialists do not know how everyone plays and many will fall into the mistake of showboating with the ball, rather than delivering what scouts and coaches want to see.
Their rivals can all play or they wouldn’t have reached the level they have. The questions is how do trialists standout in the system that tends to drive showboating behaviour? We advise players not to leave a good performance to chance but instead develop a plan to succeed.
Our list of top 8 planning tips to have the best trial possible
1) Desk review and research.
Players should review and take a fresh look at their Player Development Reviews. It is surprising how the documents will make much more sense reading them again a few weeks later. Key pointers will leap off the page that didn’t sink it at the time of first reading.
Next, players should try and find out about the academy staff who are likely to be judging them and work out what makes them tick? Where did they play? What is the club's football philosophy and look for their opinions in media interviews? If players can’t find it publicly, phone up the club and ask. Being intellectually curious shows a player's willingness to learn and go that extra mile to work hard and succeed. If players engage coaches in conversation and quote some of their points of view, trailists will look more serious about learning the trade.
2) Know what a good trial looks like in your own head.
Players should have a performance plan in terms of productivity. What does "good" look and feel like? Players should think about how they conduct themself on arrival and what they can give the coaches and scouts to watch, score and tick off their checklist. In other words, how productive can players be - both on and off the ball? In one scouting report I read recently, there were 200+ data points that outlined a player's performance. Players should choose five or six performance targets and write them on their hand as reminder and tick them off in their head during the game. This ensures the core elements of their performance plan is delivered.
3) Ensure you provide an off and on the ball perfomance.
However much time players spend on the pitch, bear in mind, 98%
of their performance will be off the ball. In a typical 90-minute match, players generally have the ball at their feet for just 60-90 seconds. Let that sink in for a minute. Players have just 60-90 seconds on the ball
to do something that differentiates them
from other players .
4) Understand time and distance margins.
The small margins of time and distance are the difference between getting a shot away and having it blocked. When players make a move, the best reaction time of an opposing player is 0.15 seconds;
typically, average reaction times are slower at 0.2 seconds
but bear in mind players are taught to identify and anticipate the other player's most likely direction of travel and pass. Therefore, if players can find an extra 44 cms
of space before they are engaged or confronted by the opposition player, it is like having an extra 1 mph of speed to complete a move.
5) Creating advantage on the pitch. Everything players do on the pitch should be about creating advantage over the other side depending on what instructions are given by the coaches. Players create advantage by thinking and acting faster than the opponent (assuming it's the right decision). Players should think about where they should be on the pitch depending on their playing role. How often are they closing players down? Are they making successful tackles? Are they showing the attacking player down the line? Are they dominating an area on the pitch that prevents a passage of play?
In attack; are they running into advantageous space to receive the ball? Are they running off the ball in attack mode and taking a player with them to open up space behind or next to them? How well are they communicating with other players?
6) Engage coaches in conversation...and ask questions to demonstrate a level of confidence and maturity that may not be evident in others players. This indicates a player's willingness to learn and positions them as person who could easily fit in to the team and has a passion for learning? Put yourself in shoes of a coach. Who would you rather teach? A know-it-all or someone who is intellectually curious? Coaches want to pass on the knowledge they have accumulated and see it used by a young player with potential and see them turn professional.
5) Creating advantage on the pitch. Everything players do on the pitch should be about creating advantage over the other side depending on what instructions are given by the coaches. Players create advantage by thinking and acting faster than the opponent (assuming it's the right decision). Players should think about where they should be on the pitch depending on their playing role. How often are they closing players down? Are they making successful tackles? Are they showing the attacking player down the line? Are they dominating an area on the pitch that prevents a passage of play?
In attack; are they running into advantageous space to receive the ball? Are they running off the ball in attack mode and taking a player with them to open up space behind or next to them? How well are they communicating with other players?
6) Engage coaches in conversation...and ask questions to demonstrate a level of confidence and maturity that may not be evident in others players. This indicates a player's willingness to learn and positions them as person who could easily fit in to the team and has a passion for learning? Put yourself in shoes of a coach. Who would you rather teach? A know-it-all or someone who is intellectually curious? Coaches want to pass on the knowledge they have accumulated and see it used by a young player with potential and see them turn professional.
8) Arrive in plenty of time.
Don’t arrive on time but be at least 15-30 minutes early. This reduces stress and allows the player to stay focused on the task ahead; especially if the journey is 100 miles plus.
If having read this, you think this is a bit over the top or the work of a "try hard" just look at the profesionalism of athletes, swimmers, cyclists and racing car drivers. They all strive to create marginal improvments in every aspect of their performance. This is what marks out those that succeed and those that fail in this ever so competive world of sport.
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