Sprinting and vertical jump performance are important skills in the game of soccer. In terms of sprinting, a soccer player will sprint every 90 s during a match. These sprints average about 2-4 seconds and can account for up to 11% of the distance covered during a match. And with vertical jump performance think of all the times a player will go up for a header, off a corner or as a keeper exploding up to deflect a ball over the cross bar. So while intuitively it makes sense that sprinting and jumping are important in soccer it would be beneficial to know how important they are. And from a strength and conditioning perspective, how important is a strength exercise like the back squat, to improving these qualities? A group of researchers looked to answer these questions and called upon a Norwegian pro soccer club to participate in the study. 17 male soccer players from Rosenborg FC, average age 25 years, were put through a number of performance tests to see how what the relationship was between the 1 RM half squat with sprinting and jumping. Rosenborg FC is a top flight team in Norway having won their league a number of times and participating in the Champions League. For the 1 RM back half squat players did barbell back squats to 90 degrees of knee flexion, adding load until a 1 RM was determined. Once they were warmed up, most players took three to six sets to determine their 1 RM. For the sprint test, players ran from 0-30 m with photocell timing gates. Splits were recorded at each 10 m and the players rested 5 minutes between the two attempts. The best sprint time was included in the data presented. And for the vertical jump a force platform was...

This is a continuation of a blog post of all the things soccer players can be doing to improve on-field performance. For part one of this blog click here. OK, now to the people that love and care about the players (your kids) the most.  I know, I’m not a parent, so what do Iknow?  I feel I’m pretty schooled in the areaof how to look after a youth/high school player. Plus, I was raised by parentswho would bend over backwards to make sure my sister & I grew up doing allsorts of sports & outdoor activities.  During my childhood, I played for afootball youth academy team, while also playing basketball (well the Englishversion anyway haha), field hockey, and tennis. Sprinkling in climbing,kayaking, hiking all over the UK, skiing the European Alps, biking, crosscountry running, and swimming. Anyway, enough about me, time to askyou some questions…  How are you helping your football playerprogress, and get better?  Do they need a forceful hand on themright now?  Probably not?! It’s beenpretty stressful for them; the game is no longer the same as it used to be.Keeping it fun & enjoyable will keep them around football for the long term. I know you work your tail off for yourkids, I see it every day, and I love it! You drop them off at training in theearly hours of the morning; you stand on the side lines freezing your butt off…I could go on.  However, ask yourself, “Is there somethingmore that I can be doing to help my child hit his/her goals, that doesn’t haveto be pitch-orientated?” It could be things like: Helping them research players who they aspire to be likeMiss a day of training (yes, I said it) to go skiing, or another activity that they enjoy. What food are you leaving around your...

Hey everyone, Coach Harry here! Yes,Coach Harry, writing a blog post, miracles can happen! This is my first one soplease bear with me! And if you have any questions, please forward them on toCoach Mlait, he loves answering all of them, and promises to get back to youwithin 30 minutes, 24 hours, 7 days a week! ;) Anyway, why am I writing this?  Well it's a crazy world out there right now, so I wanted to write one for the youth/adolescent soccer players, parents of players, and soccer coaches. I think we all agree it has been stressful in some way or another for everyone, and it is probably harder than ever for the players to progress and get better at football. I love the game, and I love coachingyouth players, especially. As an S&C coach, my goals for each player areto: Keep it fun, engaging, and educate themHelp and guide them with their goalsMake sure they can play the game wellinto their 60’s (Injury risk reduction, for my fellow S&C coaches outthere) I’m telling you this because I want you to know that I have a purpose behind everything that I do for the player, which is so important when it comes to coaching an athlete. I’m constantly asking myself why? Why am I making them do this lift? Why am I testing? etc. Hold up… just so you know I’m English(big shock right), and refuse to call football, soccer! So, from now on you’llsee football in this post, no more soccer nonsense! Anyway, back to the blog… So, I want to ask you, the player, thekid with the big dreams of one day making it as a pro , a couple ofquestions…  You all have goals, and you all havethings that you can control. So, what are you doing off...