Questions on coach evaluation comments

[Anonymous]

Son plays forward and was a top scorer last season. Coach mentioned one of his strengths is “workrate”, and one of his weaknesses was “runs off the ball”. Can someone explain it in a way more understandable? Thx

[Anonymous]

Why not just ask the coach directly?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Why not just ask the coach directly?

I will when I see him, but practices have been canceled for a while and I don’t want to text him for such trivial things

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Son plays forward and was a top scorer last season. Coach mentioned one of his strengths is “workrate”, and one of his weaknesses was “runs off the ball”. Can someone explain it in a way more understandable? Thx

In soccer, "runs off the ball" refers to the movement of players without possession of the ball to create space, offer passing options, or disrupt the opponent's defensive organization. These runs are strategic and often key to effective attacking play.

Examples of "runs off the ball" include:

Decoy Runs: A player moves to draw defenders away, creating space for teammates.
Overlapping Runs: A player runs around a teammate to offer width or support, often seen with full-backs overlapping wingers.
Diagonal Runs: A player cuts diagonally across the field to receive a pass or exploit gaps in the defense.
Penetrative Runs: A player sprints into a forward position to get behind the defensive line for a potential goal-scoring opportunity.

Good off-the-ball movement is a sign of tactical awareness and is crucial for breaking down organized defenses.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Son plays forward and was a top scorer last season. Coach mentioned one of his strengths is “workrate”, and one of his weaknesses was “runs off the ball”. Can someone explain it in a way more understandable? Thx

In soccer, "runs off the ball" refers to the movement of players without possession of the ball to create space, offer passing options, or disrupt the opponent's defensive organization. These runs are strategic and often key to effective attacking play.

Examples of "runs off the ball" include:

Decoy Runs: A player moves to draw defenders away, creating space for teammates.
Overlapping Runs: A player runs around a teammate to offer width or support, often seen with full-backs overlapping wingers.
Diagonal Runs: A player cuts diagonally across the field to receive a pass or exploit gaps in the defense.
Penetrative Runs: A player sprints into a forward position to get behind the defensive line for a potential goal-scoring opportunity.

Good off-the-ball movement is a sign of tactical awareness and is crucial for breaking down organized defenses.

good response.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Why not just ask the coach directly?

bad response.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Why not just ask the coach directly?

I will when I see him, but practices have been canceled for a while and I don’t want to text him for such trivial things

I really don't see this as trivial and it's actually a part of the coach's job to provide feedback and answer questions you may have about the feedback.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Why not just ask the coach directly?

I will when I see him, but practices have been canceled for a while and I don’t want to text him for such trivial things

Whomp Whomp. Nice excuse. You know you were never going to ask him.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Son plays forward and was a top scorer last season. Coach mentioned one of his strengths is “workrate”, and one of his weaknesses was “runs off the ball”. Can someone explain it in a way more understandable? Thx

In soccer, "runs off the ball" refers to the movement of players without possession of the ball to create space, offer passing options, or disrupt the opponent's defensive organization. These runs are strategic and often key to effective attacking play.

Examples of "runs off the ball" include:

Decoy Runs: A player moves to draw defenders away, creating space for teammates.
Overlapping Runs: A player runs around a teammate to offer width or support, often seen with full-backs overlapping wingers.
Diagonal Runs: A player cuts diagonally across the field to receive a pass or exploit gaps in the defense.
Penetrative Runs: A player sprints into a forward position to get behind the defensive line for a potential goal-scoring opportunity.

Good off-the-ball movement is a sign of tactical awareness and is crucial for breaking down organized defenses.

Thank you so much! I feel I know nothing about soccer even after watching my son play for 10+ years! Hahaha

[Anonymous]

In my son's feedback, his coach also mentioned about his high work rate so I did a little bit of reading up.

In soccer, work rate is often measured by the distance covered by a player during a match. A player with a high work rate is someone who is constantly moving and working to make an impact on the game. A high work rate does not only mean running fast and far, it also means working hard to win the ball back, pressuring the opponent, and making smart runs off the ball. It’s a combination of all these factors that make a player with a high work rate so valuable to a team.

While having a high work rate is important, it’s not enough to excel on the field. It’s important to combine that effort with game intelligence, which means understanding the flow of the game and using your energy strategically. This includes timing your runs to make the most impact, seeking out pockets of space to receive the ball and make plays, and being able to anticipate potential danger before it becomes a problem. This combination of effort and intelligence will help you to become a more effective player and make a greater impact on the game.

[Anonymous]

If your son has been playing for 10 years, he probably knows what "runs off the ball" and "workrate" means. He can also do some searching on youtube to find lots of examples.

By the way, this is something I've found lacking from most coaches around here. They identify a weakness and inform the player, but they aren't good at teaching HOW to do the thing they want to see more. Just saying "make runs off the ball" is not really going to help unless they point out in training environments and video analysis and demonstrate what could have been done differently.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:In my son's feedback, his coach also mentioned about his high work rate so I did a little bit of reading up.

In soccer, work rate is often measured by the distance covered by a player during a match. A player with a high work rate is someone who is constantly moving and working to make an impact on the game. A high work rate does not only mean running fast and far, it also means working hard to win the ball back, pressuring the opponent, and making smart runs off the ball. It’s a combination of all these factors that make a player with a high work rate so valuable to a team.

While having a high work rate is important, it’s not enough to excel on the field. It’s important to combine that effort with game intelligence, which means understanding the flow of the game and using your energy strategically. This includes timing your runs to make the most impact, seeking out pockets of space to receive the ball and make plays, and being able to anticipate potential danger before it becomes a problem. This combination of effort and intelligence will help you to become a more effective player and make a greater impact on the game.

Wow! That clarifies it. Honestly I am surprised as I thought son wasn’t working hard enough.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:If your son has been playing for 10 years, he probably knows what "runs off the ball" and "workrate" means. He can also do some searching on youtube to find lots of examples.

By the way, this is something I've found lacking from most coaches around here. They identify a weakness and inform the player, but they aren't good at teaching HOW to do the thing they want to see more. Just saying "make runs off the ball" is not really going to help unless they point out in training environments and video analysis and demonstrate what could have been done differently.

Yes he said he understood but like a typical teenager he didn’t bother to explain it to me. I am grateful I got good answers here.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Son plays forward and was a top scorer last season. Coach mentioned one of his strengths is “workrate”, and one of his weaknesses was “runs off the ball”. Can someone explain it in a way more understandable? Thx

In soccer, "runs off the ball" refers to the movement of players without possession of the ball to create space, offer passing options, or disrupt the opponent's defensive organization. These runs are strategic and often key to effective attacking play.

Examples of "runs off the ball" include:

Decoy Runs: A player moves to draw defenders away, creating space for teammates.
Overlapping Runs: A player runs around a teammate to offer width or support, often seen with full-backs overlapping wingers.
Diagonal Runs: A player cuts diagonally across the field to receive a pass or exploit gaps in the defense.
Penetrative Runs: A player sprints into a forward position to get behind the defensive line for a potential goal-scoring opportunity.

Good off-the-ball movement is a sign of tactical awareness and is crucial for breaking down organized defenses.

Thank you so much! I feel I know nothing about soccer even after watching my son play for 10+ years! Hahaha

At least you're honest

Many think they're pilots and aeronautical engineers because they've flown on planes

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:If your son has been playing for 10 years, he probably knows what "runs off the ball" and "workrate" means. He can also do some searching on youtube to find lots of examples.

By the way, this is something I've found lacking from most coaches around here. They identify a weakness and inform the player, but they aren't good at teaching HOW to do the thing they want to see more. Just saying "make runs off the ball" is not really going to help unless they point out in training environments and video analysis and demonstrate what could have been done differently.

Coaches will need knowledge and experience to teach and correct.