Goalkeeper Hurdle Footwork
Quick feet over a line of hurdles, straight into keeper work — a ball at the hands, a dive right, a dive left.
A keeper's saves start in the feet — fast, clean steps with no crossing put the hands where the ball is going to be.
Starting at Core — your team is set to mixed.
10 min tonight · One keeper at a time (coach serves)
- Ages 9+
- One keeper at a time (coach serves)
- 10 min as the drill is written
- 5–6 small hurdles, balls
Grab Five or six small practice hurdles and a supply of balls.
Build Set the hurdles in a straight line, about a yard apart.
Place You stand about 5 yards past the last hurdle with the balls. The keeper starts at the first hurdle.
- 1
Organize the players
Send the keeper to the first hurdle and take the ball supply about 5 yards past the last one.
“Start at the first hurdle. Eyes on me — I call the footwork.”
- 2
Show the jobs
Name the four footwork calls — single-leg steps over, single-leg hops, two-leg hops, or shuffling in and out of the hurdles — and the finish that follows every one of them — off the last hurdle, feet set, knees slightly bent, hands up.
“Whatever I call, that's your feet. Off the last one — set, knees bent, hands up.”
- 3
Play
Run the sequence — drop-kick a ball at the keeper's hands to catch and return; roll one to their right side for a dive; roll one to their left. The keeper returns each ball, resets to ready, and walks back to the start after the last dive.
“Quick feet! Catch, give it back, get set — next one's coming.”
Look for Quick, clean footwork — on the balls of the feet, never crossing, hips pointed at the ball the whole time.
- 4
Switch and repeat
Rotate keepers through and change the footwork call each trip so every pattern gets worked.
“Walk it back and breathe — new pattern next trip.”
If the dives fall apart, strip them out for a while — footwork plus the first ball to the standing keeper only — then add the dives back.
Go deeper · 3 notes
Why it works
The hurdles make the footwork honest — speed and quality, no crossed feet — and rolling straight from the last hurdle into a catch and two dives makes the feet serve the save instead of living as their own exercise.
What they learn
Goalkeeper footwork — quick steps on the balls of the feet, feet never crossing, hips pointing to the ball at all times — plus handling and diving.
What's next
Scooping Ground Balls — the same quick feet, now sprinting the grid and scooping.
Where does this come from?
SoccerXpert — their published drill library.
A published drill library. Useful and widely used, but not a governing body — so it fills gaps rather than leading.