A novel on-field training intervention improves novice goalkeeper penalty kick performance

This study developed an on-field anticipation training intervention with the aim of improving novice goalkeeper penalty kick performance. Eighteen participants were allocated to either one-player (OP); or three-player (TP) training. The OP group faced “traditional” practice, with one player running-up to execute each kick. The TP group faced three players in a form of variable practice; two players stopped their run-up approximately 1.2m from the ball with the third-player executing the kick. Following training, results revealed that TP made significantly more saves when facing non-deception kicks in comparison with OP. An implication for applied practice is that there are potential gains to be made through training anticipation skills via new on-field practices rather than the current research focus on video-based training.