“Hi again to all you keepers and keepers’ parents!” says Eddie Johnson. “I want to try to get across the massive importance of having a great set position with good balance…”
“The Importance of a good balanced set position”
By Eddie Johnson – Reactions Goal Keeping Coaching
From the easiest catch to the most athletic top corner save everything emanates from a great set position so if ever you see a keeper standing ready, arms outstretched in a classic W position catch style, arms well out at chest height but flexed, knees flexed, chest and chin high and proud with his/her weight balancing over the core, not standing on their toes but having that “ready to spring into action” look about them you can be sure they are either text book natural or well coached. So often I see good keepers struggle to make relatively easy saves or make hard work of simple catches because of a poor set position!
I would go as far as to say that a good set position is one of THE most important things for a young keeper to adopt as it starts everything and develops good habits. Whilst there are no real absolute rules to an individuals’ set or start position, as everyone’s body shape and weight distribution is totally different, there is a “better” and worse scenario.
If we start with balance: I like to see the weight distribution well forward of the centre of the core (centre of gravity) without getting too technical, that equates to “being on your toes” rather than standing “flat footed”. To clarify, this does not mean literally standing on your toes but merely having all your weight leaning forward so the heels are barely making contact with the floor, easily achieved by standing tall, reaching the arms out at chest height and lifting the chin high and proud. You can test this easily by having someone push you at shoulder or chest height and resistance to the push should be easy, without much effort, but if pushed in the back you will fall forwards easily and be virtually unable to resist the push!
In this position a keeper is ready to spring into action, and most of the desired actions will be forward or sideways – so a head start is immediately gained by getting this poised, set position. The knees need to be flexed for balance and in readiness to compress for rapid movement, springing or diving etc. The arms are, at this point, outstretched in a slightly flexed catching position with palms ball shaped, facing each other. Obviously, they are not required to stay at chest height all the time, as when the game goes quiet a relaxed, arms down, similar stance is OK but at action stations ready to resume at a moment’s notice.
Possibly the most important thing if a keeper is not catching “easy balls” is, after making sure their gloves are not wrecked and slippy, look at the set position as it hides a multitude of problems. Poor set position creates excessive unrequired hand and arm movement and hinders small necessary movement such as moving into line. We can discuss fast feet another time, but no matter how quick your feet are, if your hands and arms are poorly set you will always struggle with catching hard shots, as too much movement of the arms tends to create a parry rather than a catch. It is this optimum position that allows hand movement to be minimized and concentration can be centred on “the catch” rather than just getting to the ball!
Here are some pictures to demonstrate my ‘ideal set position’.
Any questions, please check out our website at www.reactionsgk.com or send us an email on info@reactionsgk.co.uk you can also follow us on twitter and Facebook – all listed as reactionsgk.
SHE KICKS – the online community for women’s football
