Steve Silverman is an award-winning writer, covering sports since 1980. Silverman authored The Minnesota Vikings: The Good, The Bad and The Ugly and Who's Better, Who's Best in Football -- The Top 60 Players of All-Time, among others, and placed in the Pro Football Writers of America awards three times. Silverman holds a Master of Science in journalism from the Medill School of Journalism.
Overview
Playing high school soccer requires dedication from the athlete to learn the skills involved in the game and also to get into top condition. While a high school player will get help from his coach when it comes to learning the finer points of the game, the player must devote himself and work hard in order to get in top condition.
Step 1
Work on your skills. Make sure that when you take the field for a practice, you can dribble the soccer ball with ease, can pass with either foot, can head the ball to an attacking teammate, can play defense and can shoot. Work on these skills in your time away from the practice field. A soccer player must be devoted to his game.
Step 2
Run conditioning drills in order to get in top shape. Start off your practice by running three laps around the perimeter of the soccer field. At the conclusion of practice, run from the goal line to the edge of the penalty box and back, from the goal line to the 40-yard mark and back, and from the goal line to midfield and back. This will improve your quickness.
Step 3
Set up cones to improve your passing. Cones should be set up at the 10-yard, 20-yard and 30-yard marks. Try to hit all three in succession by passing with your dominant foot. Then use your opposite foot so that you can become an unpredictable player.
Step 4
Practice shooting on net against a live goaltender. Have a teammate pass you the ball at the 20-yard mark and try to beat the goaltender with one-time shots. This requires a hard kick and great timing. You should be able to kick the ball on net without stopping it on at least five of every 10 shots. If you can do this, you are a dangerous offensive player.
Step 5
Watch yourself on videotape. You should keep your body low when attacking on offense. The lower your center of gravity, the better your opportunity for setting up scoring opportunities for your teammates. Staying low makes it harder for the defender to get in the way and prevent a good offensive play from developing.
