Be prepared with a well-thought-out lesson plan, it’s the foundation of all good practices.  Waiting to the last minute or making it up on the spot often leads to an ineffective practice.  I always build more into the plan than I need and have alternatives in case something doesn’t work as I expected.

Be organized and arrive early to set up so you are ready when your players arrive.  Don’t allow them to play in the goal.  It sets the wrong tone for practice and it’s the easiest way to get hurt.  As soon as the first players arrive, consider practice started.  Have a pre-practice plan.  

Be enthusiastic; your attitude sets the tone for practice

Be positive; everyone responds to correction better if it begins with a positive comment

Set clear expectations.  Setting expectations and holding players accountable for achieving them is important.  This includes expectations on behavior. 

Be adaptable.  Practices don’t always go as planned. Maybe your players need less pressure on the ball or more space to execute a move or pass.  Or maybe the game is too easy and you need more game like conditions.

​Be as game-like as possible.  Moving from unopposed to opposed to game like is a great progression for any drill, exercise or game.  Many players’ skills in unopposed situations breakdown under the speed and pressure in a game.   Much of that is due to not creating more game like conditions at some point in the training progression.