QUICK REACTION TIME AND A GOOD EYE

You’ll hear people talk about goalkeepers making a reflex save. That’s when the keeper-without having time to think— gets his hand, arm, fist, or foot in front of the ball fast enough to prevent a goal.

Sharp reflexes and quick reaction time are crucial attributes for a goalkeeper.

Sharp reflexes enable goalkeepers to save close-range shots and to get their hands on balls that they see at the last second (e.g., when their view was blocked by other players). These are the saves that make the shooter wonder, How’d he get a hand on that? And if you asked the keeper, he probably wouldn’t have an answer, because the save came thanks to lightning-quick reflexes. The moves that the keeper made to block the shot appear to be the product of an almost supernatural instinct.

Instinct and inherent ability aside, there are many ways to test and train reaction time and tracking ability. One method is to have keepers catch balls of various sizes. Start by tossing a golf ball to the keeper. Then throw a tennis ball, which will seem like a beach ball compared to the golf ball. When you follow up by throwing a soccer ball, the ball will seem enormous to the keeper. By throwing balls of any kind or size from close range, you can test and improve the goalkeepers’ reaction time and focus. You can also incorporate different sized soccer balls. Start with a tennis ball, then move to a size 3 soccer ball before going to the size 5 ball. The players eyes and hands have to work with different sized balls while the players’ reaction time is being challenged.

A number of training exercises help develop reaction time as well as foot-work. Almost any game played with a ball can be adapted for this purpose. For example, a coach or teammate can use tennis balls to play dodgeball with the keeper: The keeper stands in front of a fence or wall and tries to dodge balls thrown directly at him. The idea isn’t to peg the keeper in the face, of course, but to give him a chance to work on seeing the ball and reacting to it quickly.

Goalkeepers like exercises that involve the use of various kinds of balls because these exercises mix up the keepers training routine while offering them a chance to hone their skills and work their fast-twitch muscle fibers (these muscle fibers generate short bursts of power and speed).