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FAQ: Why "No Goalies" ?

March 21, 2018
FAQ: Why the 'no goalkeeper' policy?

The view that there should be a 'no goalkeeper policy' in the early levels of soccer (age 9 and under) is shared and defended by both the Long‐Term Player Development (LTPD) of the Canadian Soccer Association and the United States Youth Soccer Association, with much research and experience behind the viewpoint. Following is the rationale behind this recommendation:

SAFETY: Being a goalkeeper asks players who may not have yet developed a lot of eye-hand coordination to essentially put their body in between the goal and the ball, usually while another child, who may be bigger, stronger, or faster, is barreling down on them. Young children placed in a goalkeeping role often do not actually develop many goalkeeping skills, and are more likely to be hit with the ball (or kicked or hit by another player) than to actually save it. In short, it increases the likelihood of injury and reduces the likelihood of having fun and learning something more useful.

ISOLATION: Having a goalkeeper causes one player to be isolated from the rest of the team and stand still for most of the game. The priority at this age is to keep kids moving as much as possible and to introduce the concept of teamwork. Most players that young aren’t yet able to understand how to include the goalkeeper as part of the team and it’s extremely hard for a young goalkeeper to stay engaged and focused when the action is often on the opposite end of the field. More often than not, you see young goalkeepers lying down, picking flowers or trying to see if they can hang off the top of the net!

CREATES UNNECESSARY CONFLICT: Many players that age severely dislike, if not fear, being goalkeeper, so forcing everyone to try standing in the net can be an unfair and unsafe request for those children. Meanwhile, a handful of kids prefer to be in net for the sole reason that they don’t have to run or try the skills that everyone else is learning. There can also be conflict between the children (and even their parents) who want to be goalkeeper all the time.

HARDER TO SCORE: The goalkeeper eliminates a lot of scoring at any level, and we want to encourage kids to shoot and score as often as possible. Younger children lose interest in a game situation quickly when they find it too hard to get the ball in the net. Research tells us that players will still develop the necessary ball placement and accuracy skills without a goalkeeper.

DEVELOPMENTALLY INAPPROPRIATE: Many very young children have great difficulty visually tracking a moving object, especially if that object is airborne. Most younger children are very reactionary in their movements and will duck or throw their hands in front of their face if the ball comes towards them. Anticipating where the ball might be shot is a skill that likely won’t develop until at least age 9 or 10. It is important to wait until children are better able--physically, mentally and emotionally--to handle the demands of being a goalkeeper. Introducing goalkeeping at a later age still allows plenty of time for children to grow up and be the best goalkeepers they can be; most likely keeping them engaged in playing soccer for many years to come.

Parents can be an enormous support to coaches by talking to their young players before the program begins so that they understand that there will not be goalkeepers and that they will be having fun running on the field instead!