Quickfire Questions with Harry Hogg - Peterborough United Academy Senior Goalkeeping Lead

What's the first thing you look for in a young goalkeeper at the academy?

This is all age dependent and what phase they come under. 9-11 year olds; as well as showing they are technically competent when diving around the goal and showing understanding of the different types of catches/parres and being able to play passes cleanly to players feet or space, they need to enjoy being a goalkeeper. 12-15 year olds; they can demonstrate they our a good defender of the goal, while showing they can cope with dealing with more physical demanding scenarios, such as crosses & 1v1s. As well as this they need to start showing there tactical knowledge within in the clubs philosophy in how the build and how they use the keeper in possession. 16+; a keeper at this age in an academy environment should hopefully start to show they have a good technical foundation of all the actions for a goalkeeper both in and out of possession. The main focus in this is mentality and how much they want to maximise the opportunity and environment they are in by maintaining high standards on a daily basis. A goalkeeper at this age who is in an academy environment should be someone in my opinion has a chance to be able to make an impact within the 1st team goalkeeper department in the near future.

What's the biggest mistake academy goalkeepers make, and how do you help them overcome it?

I’ve seen goalkeepers have bad habits and make mistakes in the build up, setting early on 1v1s & positioning to high/tight to the goal line. It’s really important that goalkeepers don’t go back into default mode and we encourage them to keep trying what we have asked and they understand why. It’s important that we help support the goalkeepers on the pitch and in analysis to show them why and what could be done differently next time, and why going back to default mode doesn’t help them with there development as a goalkeeper.

What's one coaching tip that every young goalkeeper should take into every training session?

For me it’s to be open minded when going into a training session, don’t be  afraid to explore new techniques and styles, as a young goalkeeper your are trying to find what works for you. So if you can be open minded it will help in your journey as every goalkeeper coach you work with will be slightly different and when you’ve got more experience in career you’ll will know what works and what doesn’t work for you as a goalkeeper. But most of all go into the sessions wanting to learn and have fun when doing so.

How do you help academy goalkeepers build confidence after making a mistake?

When a goalkeeper makes a mistake the most important thing is to workout if they know why they made the mistake, and if they haven’t it’s our job to show them why, and most importantly help them understand what to do differently next time. It’s really important as well a goalkeeper doesn’t go into there shells and back into default mode this is our job as coaches to get them to buy into the information we are giving them and making the environment we create a safe learning environment.

What does success look like for an academy goalkeeper beyond making great saves?

Again this is all age dependent, if your a young goalkeeper aged between 9-13 your probably looking a personal success and working towards getting your contract renewed for the next season. If your 14-16 years old your working towards gaining a scholarship/pre scholarship and probably aiming to get a youth team (u18) appearance to your name. And finally if your 18+ ultimately your working towards gaining a professional contract and making your 1st team debut or gaining experience at a loan club to help gain experience in the senior game.

Bonus Question

What does "Personal Best" (PB) mean to you, and how do you encourage your goalkeepers to chase their PB every day?

For me as a coach it’s knowing that I’ve given the goalkeeper the best opportunity/support I could possibly give them on the day & them going away knowing something new or trying something different to help with there development.

As a goalkeeper it’s for them to give 100% every time there in the building training and making sure they do the right things away from the training ground to maximise there chances to getting where they want to get to as a goalkeeper.