Confidence, Week 4
Help the squad notice how far they’ve come, credit them for it, and tie it to life.
Making Confidence travel beyond football
This is the last of the Confidence work, a week for looking back. It's only been a short run, so a transformed player isn't the bar. The thing to look for is the small, specific shifts, a kid going for something they'd have shied away from at the start.
Belief sticks when a player can see their own evidence and knows they earned it. Praise that credits the effort and the choice is what makes belief hold up under pressure.
And it only carries off the pitch if someone like you names it out loud. The evidence on Confidence crossing from sport into school and life is still early, but what there is says the carry-over is not automatic. It happens when an adult helps kids see that connection.
So this week is about helping them notice how far they have come, modest as it is this early, putting the credit on them, and connecting it to life beyond football. This is where the change begins, and it carries on well beyond the month.
The Practise: Use the Full Kit
By now, the players have their full kit: they've found their hard thing, and they've got Bank It and Replay It to tackle it. This week is about using the lot and carrying it forward. The banking doesn't stop at the end of the month; the word travels to the next hard thing, and Replay It is the habit they keep for every big match from here. Remind them that the kit is theirs now and to keep it long after the month is over.
Coaching Strategies
Hold up a mirror to how far they have come, and put the credit on them.
This week, you are holding up a mirror. You are looking for the small, specific changes since week one: who quietly credits luck or someone else instead of themselves, and who lights up when they notice their own progress.
What to look for
The small, specific changes since week one, going for a thing they used to avoid, not big transformations.
Who credits luck or others instead of themselves.
Who lights up when they notice their own progress.
What to Say
Measure them against their own week-one self. Name the change and pin it to their effort. Get them to say it themselves rather than hearing it from you. And name the life link: the nerve to go for it here works in the classroom too.
"You're going for things now you'd have hesitated on a few weeks ago. That's you, that's the reps you put in."
How To Respond
Credits luck or others; hand it back: "No, that was you; you did the reps."
Cannot see their own change; point at a specific moment you saw.
Names it themselves, let it land, do not pile on.
Lights up at their own progress; ask them what they did to make it happen, so they own it rather than just hearing it from you.
Drill design
Nothing new to plan this week. If it suits your session, re-running something familiar from earlier in the month lets the change show itself.
Ideas to Borrow
Pick a drill from week one or two they will remember, and run it the same way.
Build in a moment to pause and notice: "Remember this from week one?"
Hand ownership over; let a kid lead it
Drills that suit it
Re-run week one's small-sided game or 1v1, same setup, so the difference is obvious.
A free "just play" game, step back, watch, and collect the growth to name after.
A favourite game they enjoy, with the reflection afterwards as the real work.
Penalty shootout revisited, the same pressure moment as week three, notice who stands up to it now.
Minute to Win It
Robbie Pringle, FA women’s national coach developer, shares a fast-tempo session that encourages teamwork and offers players ownership over how they play.
Tackling session: 1v1 challenging grid
Darren Grover, FA physical education and coach development officer, shares a session that helps players think about challenging for the ball.
On match day
Keep Brave of the Match running as usual, then add the look back. After the match, mark the few weeks. Point to one specific shift a player has made since week one, and tie it to life beyond football, out loud, because that carry-over does not happen on its own. Keep it honest to the timeline, a small real change, not a whole new kid.
"A few weeks ago you'd have hidden from that, and today you went for it. And that's not just a football thing."
