Goalkeeper Tips On How To Take Goalkicks

Keeperstop.com YouTube Video On Goalkicks.  

A Break Down and Suggestions On How To Take Goalkicks

Ball Placement:

• Avoid mud/dirt patches and divots.
• Find an slightly elevated area of grass to place the ball on
• By elevating the ball you increase the likelihood of striking through the ball to achieve good height and distance on the kick.

Approach:

• After you have found a good placement for the ball, place your non kicking foot directly next to the ball. Your kicking foot should be directly behind the ball.
• Now take as many strides as you feel comfortable, back behind the ball. I prefer between 3-6 strides.  By practicing with a consistent number of steps back and to the side your body becomes familair with the distance those making your stride more consistent
• Now take two strides to the left (if you are right footed) or two strides to the right (if you are left footed). These strides should be a lateral movement so in essence your have created an “L” shape away from the ball.  No more than two steps to the side.  More than that may create issues with transferring your body weight through the ball.
• Approach the ball at a slow jog concentrating on foot placement and ball contact.
• It is important not to sprint at the ball as this often leads to poor technique and in turn a poor kick.
• What gives the goalkick the height is leaning back slightly more than a shot on goal.
• Concentrate on returning your non kicking foot directly next to the ball, and lean slightly back as you aim to strike the ball with your kicking foot.

Ball Contact:

• Good ball contact is essential to achieve a good goal kick. We must make good contact on the ball but also with our foot. If we kick the wrong area of the ball or with the wrong part of our foot we will not produce a good goal kick.
• The elevated ball placement has allowed us to view the bottom half of the ball more clearly. This is the best strike zone for performing a good kick.
• We want to strike centrally on the underside of the ball. Striking under the ball provides us with height and striking centrally gives us a good basis for power.
• Now we have a good place to make contact with the ball, we must perfect our foot placement when contacting the ball. It is essential we do not kick the ball with our toes or with our instep and this will produce a poor kick and could lead to injury.
• We should aim to make foot contact with our forefoot. This is the area leading from the big toe all the way up to where our foot joins our ankle. (Follow the big toe bone all the way up with your finger to locate this area). This area usually runs parallel to the laces on your cleats.
• Angle your foot down to open up your ankle and keep it locked to achieve a good strike.

Follow Through:

• The follow through is where we achieve most of the power on our kicks. We must have a good backswing to generate momentum for the kick but striking through the ball and continuing though the ball with your leg provides your power and thus distance.
• It is important that your hips also swing through the ball to your target. Your body positioning determines the direction of the ball and also power and distance. It is important to have good strength in your core and hip flexors if you want to achieve a good goal kick. Performing sit ups and stretching well before kicking can actually increase distance and power dramatically.
• It is important to control your leg speed when kicking the ball. It is a myth that swinging your leg as hard as you can gives you the greatest power and distance. Excellent technique is what produces a good kick. This means having a controlled back swing and a controlled follow through. If you watch professional goalkeepers, most of them make goal kicks look effortless because they have excellent technique.
• A reference to know whether you have performed a good follow though is to find your ending position after the kick. If you have stopped directly on the 6 yard line you may not be getting all the power generated by your body and hip swing. If you find your self leaning or curling to one side you may find the resulting kick also curling to that side which also takes away power and distance.  If you have taken several steps through the kick and you are now several yards away from the 6 yard line then more than likely your follow through was good.

Practice makes permanent.  Practice with both feet. Through repitition and your attention to the mechanics the body will become more comfortable with the movement.