📋 Session Plan
U13–U14 Fitness Session
A 75-minute fitness session built inside football — no laps, no cones to run around without a ball. Every conditioning block is inside a game or drill cont
A 75-minute fitness session built inside football — no laps, no cones to run around without a ball. Every conditioning block is inside a game or drill cont
5v2. Defender wins ball = sprint to far cone and back. Start with the cone at 8m, increase to 12m after 4 minutes. Enforce the sprint — no jogs. Heart rates are up within 3 minutes. Two rounds of 5v2, rotate defenders every 90 seconds.
6 numbered gates. Two players side by side — first to reach the called gate wins the point. First to 10 points wins. Change pairs every 5 minutes. Pairs competing side by side doubles the intensity — players sprint to beat their partner, not just to reach the cone. 3 rounds of 90s work / 30s rest.
90 seconds full intensity / 30 seconds walk. 8 rounds. The no-walking rule is the session. Call it firmly once in round 1, then let peer pressure enforce it. By round 6 players will be breathing hard — this is correct and expected. Don't reduce to 6 rounds unless a player has a medical reason.
Full game with the quick transition rule: team that concedes immediately counter-attacks 3v2. Keeps intensity up after the interval work. Players are already tired — the transition game rewards intelligence over pure running. Let them find their own pace. No coaching during this block — they've done the fitness work, this is the reward.
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.
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).
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Coaches tip: Post-session recovery nutrition matters as much as the drills themselves — MaxiNutrition's recovery range is built for exactly this.
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Building conditioning between sessions at home? DeerRun UK's home treadmills make it easy to keep up cardio work off the pitch.