The Singapore National Team are currently in third place in Group E of the Asian Cup 2007 qualifiers. The 2007 Asian Cup will be held in Malaysia, Indonesia, Thailand and Vietnam during July 2007.

The following warm-up was performed by the Singapore National Team on 11th Oct 2006 at Khalifa Bin Zayed Stadium, Al Ain, UAE prior to their game against Iraq.

* The warm-up begins with a “general” phase and progresses to include the ball and ends with players being placed in functional crossing / shooting activities.

Game Time 9:30pm

8:46pm
Team appeared on pitch to begin warm-up. Players mingled freely for 3 minutes.

Note: The Goalkeepers arrived early at approximately 8:40pm – their warm-up routine is NOT included in the following notes.

Phase I: 8:50pm
The 10 “starters” jogged across the pitch with the Assistant Coach as shown below.

Notes:
Players performed various movements while jogging back and forth.

Movements included –

• Arm Circles forward
• Arm Circles Back
• Skipping
• Heel Flicks
• Carioca
• Lateral side-to-side shuffles

Total – x4 across pitch.

8:53pm
Players formed a half-circle around the coach as shown below and performed the following movement / dynamic stretching routine.

Notes:
The following movements / stretches were performed –

• Knee bends/circles
• Groins Turn – In
• Groins Turn – Out
• Hip Circles
• Standing Hamstring stretch – legs spread wide
• Trunk Rotations
• Hip-Flexor Stretch
• Single-leg Hamstring Stretch
• Calf Stretch
• Side Lunges
• Standing Quad Stretch
• 1/4 Squat into Jump

*The above “stretches” were all performed in a ballistic format – no long periods of static stretching were performed.

A bouncing motion was included in the majority of stretches – if a pause was present it was only for 1 – 2seconds.

8:58pm
Players were arranged as shown in Diagram (c) below.

Notes:
Players performed the following movements over the 15-yard distance –

• Backpedal – then 3/4 speed to return to starting position
• Carioca – then 3/4 speed to return to starting position
• Quick-Feet – then 3/4 speed to return to starting position

Players then performed x2 build-up sprints across the full width of the pitch.
*9:00pm – Players were given time on their own – most players performed static stretching exercises.

Phase II “Ballwork” 9:02pm

(A) All 10 players moved freely on the 1/2 pitch as shown below – 2 balls were introduced.

Notes:
Players were encouraged to move the balls quickly using one and two-touch play. Passing was crisp, movement was sharp.
Total Time – 90 seconds

(B) Players paired off with 1 ball. Players stood approximately 5-7 yards apart as shown below.

Notes:
Players performed the following techniques –

• 1-touch passing on the ground
• Volleys with inside of foot
• Chest control and volley
• Headers

*Each player performed 8-10 reps of each technique before switching the server.
Total Time – 90 seconds

(C) Partners moved approximately 30-40 yards apart as shown below in Diagram (f).

Notes:
Players knocked the ball back-and-forth using various passing techniques.

Techniques included –

• Driven pass
• Chipped pass
• Curved pass

Total Time – 2 minutes

*During this exercise the Assistant Coach distributed different colored bibs for the next activity.

Phase III “Playing / Functional Warm-Up” 9:08pm

(A) A 5v5 was organised as shown below in Diagram (g).

Notes:
Players were limited to two-touch play. Quick / sharp passing was encouraged.
Total Time – 3 minutes

(B) Players were organised as shown in Diagram (h) below. Four players were designated as “crossers” and positioned in wide areas of the pitch as shown.

Notes:
One player from the central group passed a ball to any wide player. The wide player took one preparation touch before delivering a cross to the central player. In the Diagram above, Player (A) has passed wide to Player (B). Player (A) must now get in the box for the cross.
Crosses were alternated from the right and left sides.
Total Time – 2 minutes

(C) Players were orgainsed as shown in Diagram (i) below.

Notes:
The main group of players worked on “finishing / shooting” – A pass was made to the player just outside the 18-yard box. The player ran forward to receive the lay-off before shooting on goal.

*The Assistant Coach (c) worked with the central defenders on heading high balls in the center circle.

Total Time – 2 minutes

9:15pm – Players begin to return to the locker room for pre-game preparations.

General Observations:

• All equipment was in place prior to the players arriving at the pitch.
• Each activity flowed seamlessly into the next activity – no periods of standing around.
• No long periods of static-stretching were performed.