PATRICK MORRISON: The goalkeeping arc

By Patrick Morrison

ONE of the most important aspects of goalkeeping in Gaelic football is being able to position oneself effectively in and around the crease, that is the area in front of the goals. Paradoxically, although it may be an important area, it is very rarely covered properly, if at all.

Having a good starting position is crucial for everything that the goalkeeper will be expected to do during competitive performance. If the goalkeeper does not have an optimal starting position, it will only increase the frequency of mistakes and/or the likelihood of non-favourable outcomes occurring.

Goalkeepers who never get taught positional awareness at any stage of their goalkeeping career, will always struggle for consistency in this area.

These goalkeepers will often say that they feel stranded in situations that require good positional awareness as they regularly find themselves caught out of position. Having poor positional awareness creates that feeling of being caught out of position and will often cause indecision, which in turn results in mistakes being made.

Once a goalkeeper is taught how to position themselves in relation to the ball correctly, they will see an immediate improvement in their overall game because much of their performance will be connected to their positional awareness. It will also give the goalkeeper the confidence they need to feel comfortable with where they are positioned in any given situation, meaning they can become more decisive in their actions.

It will also provide them with a solid base/foundation from which to start allowing them to reference this whenever mistakes happen. By creating a base from which to start, it allows the goalkeeper to develop this further and mould it into their own unique positioning style.

When teaching positional awareness, Morrison School of Goalkeeping currently uses a technique called The Goalkeeping Arc. To teach this technique you will need a length of rope between 30 to 50 metres long, six cones/markers and a set of goalposts (preferably to your playing code).

To set the technique up, tie one end of each rope to each goalpost, and mark the middle of the goal with one of the six cones.

To mark the middle of the goal use the heel to toe, foot by foot technique to find the total goal width and then use it again to count the middle of the goal. This will be your start cone from where you start each time.

To commence the technique the coach extends the rope out from the centre of the goal as far as it will allow. They will stand facing the centre of the goal with the rope around their waist behind them. The ropes represent the scoring angles of the shooter. The goalkeeper will stand in the centre of the goal, feet shoulder width apart either side of the start cone.

The goalkeeper then walks out towards the goalkeeping coach until the point at which they feel they would be able to deal with an attempted lobbed shot comfortably, but at the same time be able to touch the rope on both the left and right sides with a dive covering the shooting angles. This allows for all of their angles to be covered.

Once they reach that point, they stand with their feet shoulder width apart. The coach should be able to see the start cone in the centre of the goal between the goalkeeper’s legs.

The keeper then places a cone down between their legs where they are standing.

The coach must ensure that this cone is in line with both them and the start cone in the centre of the goal behind the goalkeeper. If the coach needs to manoeuvre the keeper left or right to position the start cone between their legs, they should do so.

Once the first cone has been set the coach then moves right until the rope on the coach’s left side is positioned over the top of the cone the goalkeeper has just marked down. Again, the goalkeeper begins at the start cone and walks out towards the coach until the point they feel they have all of their angles covered (lobbed/rope touch left and right).

Again, the keeper places a cone down between their legs and the coach ensures that the cone is in direct line with themselves and the start cone behind the goalkeeper. The second cone has now been set.

To set the third cone the coach moves around again to the right-hand side until the rope on the coach’s left side is positioned over the second cone the goalkeeper has marked down. Again, the goalkeeper begins at the start cone and walks out towards the coach until the point they feel they have all of their angles covered (lobbed/rope touch left and right).

Again, the keeper places a cone down between their legs and the coach ensures that the cone is in direct line with themselves and the start cone behind the goalkeeper. The third cone has now been set.

To set the fourth and fifth cones the coach returns to the first cone position in the centre of the goal and repeats the processes for the second and third cones but moves to the left-hand side this time. Once the last two cones have been placed there should be a very distinctive ‘Arc’ left with the cones that have been placed.

Between the two goalposts and the five cones that have been marked out the goalkeeper will now have been given a visual dimension of what their Goalkeeping Arc looks like. It is this arc that will be the base/foundation of their positional awareness during competitive games.

This arc is to be used as a positional guideline for whenever the opposing team enters the goalkeeper’s half of the field. The goalkeeper will use the arc to provide a general starting position in terms of where they are in regard to the ball at any given time. The goalkeeper will move around the arc as the ball moves across the pitch in front of them.

It is also important to remember that the goalkeeper should always be ‘In the Line’ of the shot and always move ‘Down the Line’ of the shot when closing attackers.

Goalkeepers should rarely, if ever, be rooted to their goal-line because by doing this you only give more of the advantage to the attackers when they are through on goal.

By starting in this more advanced position the goalkeeper will lessen the advantage of the attacking team while also allowing them to have a more prominent presence within the game.

If you would like to discuss anything within this article or would like to have more information regarding to other goalkeeping areas, please do not hesitate to contact me on any of the avenues below.

Email: pmgoalkeeping@hotmail.com
Facebook: @MSoG11
X: @MorSchGk