The ultimate defensive cheat code for grassroots football
Show young players that defending is not a chore, it's a winning advantage
It's Only Kids Football · Ben Welch and Mike Clark
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Show Notes
Every grassroots coach faces the same nightmare: a defence that’s "all over the place" and young players who just want to be on the ball.
In this episode, Ben and Mike, chat with Mac Smith, a football director and coach at Moreton City Excelsior FC in Australia’s Queensland NPL, who reveals why traditional tactical plans fail young players and how to instead build "defensive habits" that stick.
Learn the high-reward scoring game that makes kids love winning the ball back, the "Gabriel & Saliba" method for teaching positioning, and the "click moment" for stopping ball-watching.
Mac explains how to stop treating defending like a boring chore and start building a solid foundation.
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