Sole Roll Turns

Set-up

Two cones about three steps apart on a hard, flat floor such as a garage, a hall or a patio, with one ball between them. The lane is short on purpose: the drill is about the turn at each end, not the travel, and a short lane means a turn every couple of seconds. A futsal ball is ideal because it bounces less, but any ball works.

What you need

• 1 soccer ball
• 2 cones

The ground: 12 × 10 ft (about 4 × 3 m). One child can run it alone in a backyard. The space and equipment check lists every drill that fits the ground you have.

How to run it

1. Set up. Two cones about three steps apart. One ball on the floor between them, and the child standing beside it.
2. Roll across. Sole on top of the ball, roll it across the body to the other foot. Small and slow to start.
3. Drag back. At the first cone, pull the ball back under the body with the sole and turn to face the other way.
4. Roll to the other cone. Roll it across the body again, still sole only, and turn the same way at the far cone.
5. Swap the foot. Lead with the right on the way out and the left on the way back, so both soles do the turning.
6. Count it. One final minute counting clean turns out loud. A kick, or the ball escaping, does not count. Write the number down.

Coaching points

• The sole strokes the top of the ball and comes off it, never standing on it
• The standing knee stays bent, so the body can move with the ball
• Both feet lead in turn, because a court gives no time to shift onto the strong one

What to watch: Standing on the ball. The sole should stroke the top of it and come away; a child who plants their weight on the ball stops it dead and tips over.

Common mistakes

• Standing on the ball with the body weight, which stops it dead and costs balance
• Locked standing knee, so the body cannot move with the ball
• Turning only one way, always round the stronger foot
• Slipping in a kick to hurry the ball along, which breaks the whole drill
• Watching the ball the whole time instead of glancing up between turns

What good looks like

A good target: 20 clean turns in 60 seconds using only the sole, the ball never kicked.

Progressions and variations

Making it harder

• Level 1: Stationary sole rolls across the body, ten each way, no cones
• Level 2: The lane at walking pace, one turn at each cone
• Level 3: One counted minute, aiming for ten clean turns
• Level 4: Twenty clean turns in a minute
• Level 5: Call out a number held up by a parent at every turn
• Level 6: Add a drag-back and a change of direction halfway along the lane

Alone, with a sibling, or in a group

• Solo: count clean turns in a minute and chase your own record.
• Sibling: two lanes side by side, and the one who turns first at each cone calls the next direction.
• Co-op: a line of lanes, with a leader calling which foot leads each length.

Adjusting it by age

• U14: Start without cones and without a timer. Let them feel the ball roll under the sole at walking pace, and praise a clean turn long before worrying about how many they can do in a minute.
• U18: Shorten the lane to two steps, insist on alternating the leading foot, and add the head-up call at every turn. Follow it with a small-sided game where every restart has to begin with a sole roll.

For the parent running it

• Two cones about three steps apart, on a hard floor if you have one. The ball is rolled and dragged with the sole and never kicked, not even once.

Safety

• A dry floor only, and trainers with some grip: a sole roll on a dusty or wet floor is how a standing foot slides away

More on training safely at home: Safety at Home.

Why it matters

None