One good touch buys you a second — control the ball into space and the game slows down for you.
The First Touch
- Soccer
- U12
- 60 min
- 12–18 players
- 1 coach
- Effort 3/5
- 40x30m area
- u12
- first-touch
- receiving
- turning
- game-sense
Kit: 12 footballs, 24 cones, bibs in two colours, one wall or rebound board if you have it
Feet and Thighs
Setup: Pairs, one ball between two, about five metres apart in a 30×30m area. If you have a wall, a few players can work off it in turns.
How it works: Server throws to hands height, receiver cushions it down with the instep, then plays it back along the floor. Do a set off the right foot, a set off the left, then off the thigh. Swap server and receiver every eight. Last two minutes: server rolls it firm and the receiver takes the first touch to the side and passes back on the move.
What to say
- “Tell them: 'meet the ball, then give with it — soft hands become soft feet.'”
- “Say: 'first touch sets the picture; where you put it decides your next move.'”
- “Look for a touch that stops the ball dead, or pushes it exactly where they want it.”
Easier
Serve gently along the ground and cushion with the sole.
Harder
Serve to different heights and call left or right foot as the ball travels.
Touch and Turn Through the Gates
Setup: A row of cone gates about ten metres apart. A player at each gate, one ball. Several lines so everyone works. Spare balls at your feet.
How it works: The player passes to the partner at the next gate, who takes a first touch to turn and go through the gate the far side, then passes on to the next line. The turn out of the gate is the whole point: control it away from where the ball came from. Rotate down the line after each go. Alternate the turning foot each round.
What to say
- “Say: 'check your shoulder before it arrives so you already know where to turn.'”
- “Tell them: 'first touch across your body, into the gap, not back where it came from.'”
- “Ask for one clean touch to turn, not three little pokes.”
Easier
Bigger gates and a touch to control before the turn.
Harder
One touch to turn through the gate, weaker foot only.
Check and Receive (2v1)
Setup: A 15×12m box. A server on one edge with the balls, a target zone at the far end, one defender inside, two attackers. Make two or three boxes.
How it works: The server passes into an attacker who checks away and then shows for it. The two attackers combine to beat the one defender and dribble the ball under control into the far target zone. First touch decides everything: away from the defender, into the space to attack. Reset with the server, swap the defender every four goes.
What to say
- “Tell them: 'move away, then come to meet it — never let it hit your feet standing still.'”
- “Say: 'see the defender before it comes so your touch goes the other way.'”
- “Praise the touch that takes the defender out of the game before a pass is even needed.”
Easier
Defender starts passive and only closes once the touch is taken.
Harder
Add a second defender for a 2v2, and set a three-second time limit to reach the zone.
First-Touch Finish Game
Setup: A 40×30m pitch, a goal at each end, a keeper if you have willing ones. Five against five, bibs on. Balls stacked by each goal for fast restarts.
How it works: A normal game with one condition: a player who takes a controlled first touch before their next action earns their team a bonus — a goal from a move that started with a clean receiving touch counts double. It rewards the calm touch under pressure rather than the wild first-time swipe. Keep it flowing, quick restarts, drop the bonus for the last few minutes.
What to say
- “Say: 'when it comes to you in traffic, take it into space first, then decide.'”
- “Tell them: 'good touch, head up, then the pass or the shot is easy.'”
- “Call out the calm receivers by name so the group sees what good looks like.”
Easier
Remove the keepers and widen the goals so the reward for the good touch is obvious.
Harder
Two-touch maximum in your own half, forcing the first touch to be sharp.
Cushion and Chat
Setup: Back into pairs, one ball, five metres apart, then gather in to stretch.
How it works: Gentle soft-touch juggling between the pair, cushioning it to each other with thigh and foot, no rush. Then walk in and stretch the calves, hamstrings and hips, fifteen seconds each side.
What to say
- “Keep the touches soft and unhurried to settle the group.”
Ask the players: Ask: 'where should your first touch go when a defender is right behind you?' Listen for 'away from the defender, into space', then home.
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