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LOGIN8 lessons from 13 years of coaching
Coaching Adviceby Michael Loftman
Uefa A coach MICHAEL LOFTMAN shares advice picked up during his journey
In 13 years of coaching, Michael Loftman has compiled an impressive CV.
Not only does he have the qualifications, having attained the Uefa A licence and a Masters degree in sports science and coaching, Loftman has utilised it in five different countries.
He has worked with Egypt's national team for World Cup qualifiers, as well as club sides Lommel SK (Belgium), Orlando Pirates (South Africa) and Lusaka Dynamos (Zambia).
Prior to this, he coached in youth soccer in England with Dagenham and Redbridge, Tottenham Hotspur and Watford.
Loftman is also the author of Theories and Concepts for Football Coaching and Management.
Here he shares eight tips he has picked up during his 13 years of coaching...
"Nothing can replace training and match hours on the field. No matter how many books I have read or courses I have completed, I have learned far more from the thousands of practical hours. Get on the pitch as often as possible."
"I used to think the best exercises were the ones that looked great on the eye. But I quickly learned that the ones that looked the best often had the fewest learning outcomes. Success doesn’t breed development. Challenge is critical, but looks messy."
"In 2014, a Football Association assessor came to evaluate one of my academy sessions. He asked, at the end, how many minutes, of the two-hour session, I thought the exercises were active for. I reckoned roughly 90 minutes (75%). The answer was 67 minutes (just 56%). Aim to average at least 70-80% of ball-rolling time in a session."
"When I go back and look at my session plans, they were a page long, two pages maximum. Now I need two pages just for one exercise. The difference is I am now focussing on the coaching objectives, detail, likely pictures and possible adaptations needed. Plan in detail."
Not only does he have the qualifications, having attained the Uefa A licence and a Masters degree in sports science and coaching, Loftman has utilised it in five different countries.
He has worked with Egypt's national team for World Cup qualifiers, as well as club sides Lommel SK (Belgium), Orlando Pirates (South Africa) and Lusaka Dynamos (Zambia).
Prior to this, he coached in youth soccer in England with Dagenham and Redbridge, Tottenham Hotspur and Watford.
Loftman is also the author of Theories and Concepts for Football Coaching and Management.
Here he shares eight tips he has picked up during his 13 years of coaching...
01 COACHING HOURS
"Nothing can replace training and match hours on the field. No matter how many books I have read or courses I have completed, I have learned far more from the thousands of practical hours. Get on the pitch as often as possible."
02 SESSION OUTCOMES OVER IMAGE
"I used to think the best exercises were the ones that looked great on the eye. But I quickly learned that the ones that looked the best often had the fewest learning outcomes. Success doesn’t breed development. Challenge is critical, but looks messy."
03 BALL-ROLLING TIME
"In 2014, a Football Association assessor came to evaluate one of my academy sessions. He asked, at the end, how many minutes, of the two-hour session, I thought the exercises were active for. I reckoned roughly 90 minutes (75%). The answer was 67 minutes (just 56%). Aim to average at least 70-80% of ball-rolling time in a session."
04 EXERCISES VS SESSIONS
"When I go back and look at my session plans, they were a page long, two pages maximum. Now I need two pages just for one exercise. The difference is I am now focussing on the coaching objectives, detail, likely pictures and possible adaptations needed. Plan in detail."
Michael Loftman (right) during his coaching stint with Orlando Pirates
05 OUTSIDE SOURCES
"When decision making and creativity became key topics in coach education, there was limited content available. So instead I bought non-sport books to understand the topics, to then transfer the knowledge back to soccer. Sometimes, the answers are outside of sport."
06 HUMAN VS COACH
"We are coaches, but before coaches we are ordinary people. The success and failures we have as coaches do not define us as people. Remembering that has helped me focus on developing both personal and professional relationships and skills. Never forget this simple saying - you are not your job."
07 COACHING VS MANAGEMENT
"If you have any desire to be a head coach, particularly at professional level, understanding of management and leadership is a must. Coaching and management require two completely different skillsets. Both must be intentionally studied and developed."
08 FROM 3 TO 38...
"Looking back, some of the most important lessons came when coaching three to five-year-olds, and teaching physical education in schools. If you can get a child who hates sport to love your sessions, imagine what you can do with players who already love soccer..."
Related Files
Vol 2 Issue 044 - Loftman - 8 lessons from 13 years of coaching.pdfPDF, 650 KB
Michael Loftman
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