Young Goalkeepers Challenging for Balls

"Over the last couple of weeks, especially within the U-7 group, I have noticed that the goalkeepers are coming out and collecting the ball. I have no concerns with this, however, when the goalkeeper picks up the ball, what I see is the opposing player kicking at the ball and just missing the goalkeepers face, which could result in an injury. ...should we be instructing young goalkeepers to 'collect' the ball with their hands or 'clear it away' using their feet and avoiding injury?

As coaches, we always have to be concerned with our players' safety, at the same time, we want to teach our players the fundamentals of the game. With this issue in particular, it is very important that young goalkeepers learn to come 'off their line' and collect the ball as much as possible. An important part of developping a goalkeeper is teaching them the timing of when to 'come out' and collect the ball and when to hold and try to make a save. Any time a keeper comes out and challenges for a ball, there is a risk of a collision with opponents trying to score.

Rather than limiting our goalkeepers for fear of injury, it is more important that we teach our players about dangerous actions that may CAUSE injury to other players or themselves. In the same manner that we teach players not to slide tackle with two feet or swing their arms when challenging for a ball; players must be instructed NOT to kick at a goalkeeper who is in a vulnerable position and NEVER when the keeper is in posession of the ball.

Think in terms of high-sticking in hockey. There is an inherent risk involved in giving players a stick to play with, however, from a very early age we teach the players about 'controlling their stick' so as not to put teammates and opponents at risk. Also the same as throwing the bat in baseball.

In any sport, players are inherently putting themselves at risk of injury, it is our job as coaches to help minimize the risks. Teaching our goalkeepers how to play the position properly is important; to do this, we must teach our goalkeepers and players how to challenge for the ball safely.