Make a break with a quickly taken throw

The throw-in is a much underrated means of creating chances in soccer at any age or ability level.

But we don’t just mean handing the ball to a long-throw expert, even if it is an excellent weapon to have in a team’s armoury.

There will undoubtedly be some players in your team who can throw further and more accurately than others. But resist the temptation to turn to these players whenever the ball goes out of play.

Calling upon your strongest throwers may mean them coming out of position, holding up the game and allowing the opposing defence to regain its shape.

At grassroots level, having every player confident enough to pick up the ball and take a quick throw can be useful.

And if mistakes are made, referees are often more lenient at younger age levels and may allow a foul throw to be taken again.

If this happens, ask the player to try again, with a quick reminder of where they went wrong – you need all your players to be confident enough to take a quick throw.

The most common cause of a foul throw in young players is the failure to keep both feet planted firmly on the ground.

In the excitement of a game, the desire to project the ball as far as possible can be overwhelming - but often what is actually required is accuracy, to a team-mate or into space.

"Throwing into space rather than directly to a team-mate is good as it turns defences..."