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📋 Session Plan

U11 Width and Crossing

A 60-minute session on using the full width of the pitch — wide positions, crossing delivery, and the central movements that make crosses count.

Duration60 min AgeU11–U12 Players12 FocusQuality, decision-making, and
ABCDE

⏱Session timeline

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▦Session blocks

1

Wide Passing Triangle

0 min

Three players in a wide triangle (10m × 10m × 15m). Ball circulates: always passed to the widest available player before going back through centre. 10 minutes. Establishes the principle of finding width before playing centrally. No coaching points yet — just the pattern.

2

Wide Position and Cross — Delivery Technique

0 min

Wide player receives the ball, drives to the byline, and delivers a low cross into a target zone (6-yard box). No goalkeeper, no striker — just delivery. 8 reps each side. Key coaching: drive the ball, don't loft it. A grounded cross at U11 is more useful than a floated one. Correct delivery: non-dominant hand pointing at the target as the ball is struck.

3

Switch Then Cross — 4v2

0 min

4 attackers vs 2 defenders. Attackers must switch the ball to the far wide player before crossing. The wide player has 3 seconds to cross after receiving. Central players time runs. Defenders can only defend within 5m of the cross — can't follow the ball across. Goal from cross = 3 pts; possession maintained for 5 passes = 1 pt.

4

7v7 — Width Bonus

0 min

7v7. Bonus scoring: goal from a cross = 3 pts, goal from play that went through a wide zone = 2 pts, any other goal = 1 pt. Wide zones are cone-marked channels 5m from each touchline. Coach calls bonus points aloud. If no goals from crosses after 10 minutes, pause: 'who is making runs to meet crosses? Two people should always be moving into the box when the ball is wide.'

◆What you'll need from yourself

Clear demonstrations and high energy. Keep the session moving with minimal queuing, and reinforce one or two key coaching points rather than overloading players with information.

!Common problems

Players standing in queues (set up enough stations to keep everyone active) and the session running too long on one activity (keep blocks tight and move on while engagement is high).