Four Ways to Reduce Heading Related Injuries in Youth Soccer

Done incorrectly they are probably correct in their concerns, but learned properly heading is a great skill to acquire either as an attacker or defender.

Nearly 20% of all goals in the Barklays Premier League are scored from headers and often they provide the most dramatic goals. Yet here we are trying to relegate heading as a crime and especially dangerous to the health of youngsters.

Done incorrectly they are probably correct in their concerns, but learned properly heading is a great skill to acquire either as an attacker or defender.

My concerns are threefold for youngsters learning to head a ball:

1. MOVEMENT SKILLS

Sadly physical education in our schools has taken a back seat, and with it poor motor/coordination skills make the task of teaching the lead-up to a header more difficult.