Before The Session
Agree what the observation will focus on: instructions, questions, interventions or player involvement. Ask the coach what they want to understand and which part of the session will provide an opportunity to observe it.
Neil ConnorDevelopment
Coach development
Coach observation, feedback and development planning, supported by articles and real session examples.
01 In Practice
Make Feedback About What Happened In The Session
An observation is more useful when the coach and mentor agree a question beforehand. If the focus is questioning, record when the coach intervenes, what they ask and how players respond. That gives the follow-up conversation something concrete to examine.
In the worked example, the coach and mentor interpret the same intervention differently. The next step is a small trial: allow players time to read the pressure, use a question at a natural restart and observe the subsequent choice. The review checks the effect of the change, rather than simply whether the coach followed an instruction.
How I Can Help
Mentoring Grounded In Your Coaching
Start with your role, players and the question you want to investigate. Support can include a session-plan review, agreed observation or video review, feedback and a practical development plan. Confirm the scope and review points before work begins.
Explore Coach Mentoring ↗02 Practical Examples
Use Observation To Improve Your Coaching
During The Session
Record specific actions and the player response rather than relying on general impressions. Note the question or intervention, its timing and what happened in the next passage of play.
After The Session
Compare the coach’s reflection with the observations and choose one change to trial. Explore where the interpretations differ and agree what evidence would help judge the effect at the next observation.
03 Document Examples
Coach Resources
The observation document records the session evidence and feedback conversation. The development plan carries the agreed trial forward, so the next observation can examine what changed for the players.
Coach Observation & Feedback
Structure the evidence and the follow-up conversation.
Agree an observation question with the coach before the session. Record specific instructions, questions or interventions alongside their timing and the player response, so the feedback conversation can refer to what actually happened.
Ask the coach to explain their intention before comparing interpretations. Use the discussion to choose one change to trial, identify an opportunity to observe it again and agree what would count as useful evidence at the follow-up.
View The Pack ↗
Coach Development Plan
Record the development focus and next review.
Turn the observation conversation into a manageable development focus. State what the coach wants to improve, where they can practise it and what support or feedback they need. Connect the action to their actual coaching schedule.
Use the review to examine the trial, including what did not work as expected. Bring session notes and examples of the player response, then decide whether to continue, adapt or replace the action. The plan remains a working record of the coach’s learning.
View The Pack ↗04 Related Blogs
Articles For Coaches
These articles examine how coach assessment and professional learning can inform the everyday decisions made on the training pitch.
Coach Development
Coach Assessment in Practice: Building Structure, Clarity, and Progression in Coach Development
Coach development is widely discussed within football, yet in many environments it remains inconsistent in practice. While significant attention is placed on player development, the systems used to evaluate and develop…
Read Article Coach DevelopmentProfessional Learning and Raising Coaching Standards
Why qualifications matter most when they deepen reflection, improve decision-making and raise the quality of the everyday development environment.
Read Article05 Further Reading & Listening
Support The Practice
UK Coaching’s guide and podcast support reflection on the relationship between coaching intentions, session delivery and player experience.
Guide · UK Coaching
Understanding Your Coaching Practice
Supports reflection on communication, practice design and the decisions a coach makes.
Open Resource ↗Podcast · UK CoachingReflective Practice: Alignment In Your Sessions
Chris Chapman and Brendan Cropley discuss whether session delivery reflects coaching intentions.
Open Resource ↗