The dangers of hesitation in football
Jermain Defoe had to wait two and a half minutes before he struck his spot-kick pathetically down the middle on Sunday – straight at Tim Howard. Did he have too much time to think about it? Surely, even Jermain, not the brightest spark, could have realised in those two minutes that rolling the ball to the middle of the goal was the worst possible idea?
I have never understood hitting penalties straight. It gives the keeper a much higher percentage chance of coming into contact with the ball. A lot of the time with his legs which stay in the middle even when he does dive. I was always taught from an early age to pick a side immediately – then stick with it. However, I do have some sympathy with Jermain…
If you have to wait a long time to take a spot kick then I’m sure Gollum characteristics enter your brain. “I’m going to hit it top right. No, no top left! No bottom right – my precious! Ahhh panic!”… The resultant kick goes straight down the middle at the keeper. I speak from experience.
You get caught in two minds and what proceeds is a pitiful shot that even Peter Enckleman might be able to save.
However, if you’re running up to take that spot kick after just 20 seconds, you’ve probably not had time to enter the “Gollum phase”.
Scientists have actually proved that there is a perfect way to take a penalty, and this simple equation is all players need to remember when there are 40,000 fans breathing down their neck; the player should approach the ball at an angle of 20 to 30 degrees then strike it at 65mph – it should then sail away on a trajectory that takes it just two feet under the crossbar, not more than two feet from one of the goalposts. Simple.
It’s the same with one-on-one situations when you are clean through on goal, no-one around you – just you and the keeper. You can see the whites of his eyes… “I’ll blast this top corner. No, I’llside foot it through his legs. Actually I’ll take it round him.
CRASH! The keeper nicks it right from your feet. You dallied far too long.
Instant decision making is a lot easier. When the ball falls kindly in the box – just hit it towards goal, fast and hard. Something which the likes of Jermain Defoe is fantastic at. Something that really makes a great striker… It’s that golden ability to act instinctively.
As a goalkeeper, I would do everything I could to delay the taking of a spot-kick. I’d pull any trick to make that striker enter the “Gollum phase”.
But as a striker, I would run and get the ball, make my decision – then think about what I might have for dinner until the ref blows his whistle. At that point I’d remember Matt Le Tissier and hit the ball at 65mph into top corner…
Harry Hesp
