The Skill Will Matrix

When I first entered into coaching in 2005 I was aware that it involved more than setting up a formation of players once a week and that it involved greater details than arranging a few cones but what I didn’t appreciate back then was the psychological side. I knew it existed but I thought it was only applicable to the elite adult game. I didn’t realise just how much the game on all levels was intertwined with sports psychology.

I’m not advocating that all coaches need to be Steve Peters nor am I advising that your reading material for the next 6 months be solely sports psychology based; in fact, I’d advise against it somewhat as there is little more dangerous in life than someone who is slightly read in a subject and then goes off at tangents as if they were a subject matter expert. The old adage “A little knowledge is a dangerous thing” certainly springs to mind; it is far better to be globally astute on all aspects that can affect long term player development at both grassroots and elite levels.

However as coaches we are required to give vision, support and of course to challenge our players. We need to be aware of external factors that can affect a player, their state of mind, and ultimately, how it can affect their output.

This is how I see my role as a coach; to give vision, to support and to challenge my players. I see the areas below as an intrinsic part of coaching; not just for football but for any sport, I’d even go so far to say it underpins the roles of a modern trainer or teacher.

The Skill Will Matrix

So then I’d like to introduce you to the Skill Will Matrix and hopefully it will give you some food for thought on how it could be used to analyse your players. It is however just one tool and should be used in conjunction with many others, it is not a one stop shop – fix all solution.

I certainly find it helps with the roles eluded to above; to give vision, to provide support and to challenge players especially with regards to identifying what makes players tick; what gets them to perform at that top level we’ve all seen them perform at?

So what is the Skill Will Matrix?

As you can see by the diagram it is essentially a window with 4 areas, each area is a square that represents a player’s mind set at a given point in time and some possible coaching headlines to progress the player onwards.

The end state is hopefully getting your players into the ‘high will high skill’ area but this brings its own set of challenges for the coach as he or she looks to keep their players in that area whilst searching for opportunities to give them greater responsibility. Great if you have one player in that area but what about 6 or even 7? That is the challenge not for just one coach but the entire team; always remember the words above “give vision, provide support and challenge”.

Only you have the answer on to how to motivate that one particular player you noticed recently, only you will know how to tap into their mind-set, what really makes them perform?

How well do you know your players? This model may give you an indication?

This is how I have chosen to adapt the Skill Will Matrix to my players. It isn’t the right way, the wrong way or the only way; however, it is my way and I hope you find it of use or at least find that it challenges your thought process.

The 4 cornered model just doesn’t apply to your players it also applies to you as a coach. I feel the more we use it to our benefit the more successful we can become in developing talent.

Always remember through players will fluctuate throughout the entire matrix during your training sessions and especially over 60, 80 or 90 minutes on a match day. Hopefully the Skill Will Matrix will get you thinking on how you as the coach get their best out of them.

I was lucky enough to be able to discuss this model, and my interpretations of it, with Paul Bright.

Paul is the Technical Director for The Coaching Manual and an Academy Coach at OAFC Academy. You can follow Paul on Twitter via Paul Bright Coach.

Paul asked me the following 5 questions:

1. What tools are being used to measure ‘skill’ and motivation’ as the starting point as these are very difficult to quantify?

2. Depending on the session topic and outcomes within the session, an individual’s skill level and motivation level will vary across the proposed matrix. Therefore, what strategies and systems do you adopt to determine where at player is at based on this information as this may change even within the same session, as you stated?

3. How do you adopt different coaching strategies (Direct, Advise, Motivate, Delegate) when delivering the same topic? One style has to be dominant when presenting to the whole group and how do you select which style to adopt? I understand that when dealing with individuals then varying approaches can be utilised.

4. Are you completely rigid in your approach to the matrix? (Example; a player you perceive as having ‘high-skill’ and ‘high-will’ will benefit and develop the most under the coaching style of ‘Delegate’, according to the matrix, where responsibility/ownership is given to the player, outcomes are discussed in collaboration with the player and the player is praised and endorsed by the coach. In the real world, what happens if that player with ‘high-skill’ and ‘high-will’ is an introvert and happy to follow instructions from the coach, whereas when the player is given freedom to reach his own outcomes he does not know how to achieve them and his performance suffers as a result)

5. The Skill-Will matrix suggests the appropriate coaching style to adopt based only on two factors; skill and motivation. Does it take into account a plethora of other individual differences between players other than motivation levels and skill levels? E.g. Emotional intelligence, Decision making, Mental toughness/Resilience, Game intelligence, Order and placing within the dynamics of the group, etc….

1. Great question! Skill and motivation are hard to define and that's why it helps to know your players well, as mentioned. I do believe that a good coach will know what drives his players, what factors and drivers they have for self-improvement / self-actualisation. Skill in this context is a broad descriptor. For example, I had a very very good left winger and 2 good left wingers but due to another player leaving I found myself with no left back. I decided to challenge my strongest left winger to become that left fullback. So whilst he had bags of technical ability his defensive knowledge with regards to positioning could be described as "low skill" but his will to become that LWB was very high. In order for him to become the very best he could be we sat down and identified his constraints, namely positioning. This then allowed me to praise and encourage him even when the mistakes made cost goals and even on the odd occasion games. However, sticking to the development areas and always giving that support needed he eventually migrated into a decent LWB. The SW matrix wasn't the only model used but when we sat down and identified constraints and worked together I did use this model to show him where he was as a left winger and where he would be at the start of his LWB development. This allowed us both to see where we wanted him to be. I must stress it wasn't the only way we used but he found this helpful. This will be an overriding theme that it is one of many skill sets required to be deployed :)

2. Yes quite rightly you have asked how do I determine where a player is in a session or match on the matrix. If I was to use this model during a session or match it would be very much on a 1 to 1 basis and once again it would depend on the individual situation. So if the progression challenge within the session was to "play off your other foot" I would know instantly within my squad who could do this to a higher level and who couldn't, therefore if I was to bring in this model for assessment of a player I could direct my coaching appropriately. Likewise, if I ask a player to play in a position he doesn't like but is more than capable during a session I know I could use it to think "tap into his motivators". I have found this to work when during a session I have told the CF to play CB but like any good forward he can't stand defending :) At the end of the session I was able to talk through why we did this, to give him the view of a defender, to walk 10 minutes in shoes so to speak. I think that this made him more rounded as a CF and by being able to identify that he was "high skilled but low willed" in this instance I knew how to get him going because this particular model was useful. The old way of coaching especially when I was a lad would have been to get a one-way conversation "pull your socks up - do as your told - get on with it". Would he have benefited from this? Most definitely not but by remembering the square model I was able to think quickly - tap into his drivers and teach and train - in this instance.

3. It is very much an individual basis and I would not use this as a team overview there are too many variables and not everyone would be in the same quadrant at once; ever!

4. Most definitely not rigid and I think this would be a massive mistake to be so. As with any coaching model it is only viable for one snapshot at a particular moment. It would be a very big mistake to be linear in my approach as in 'this fits all scenarios' but on the occasions I have utilised it I find, for me, it gives a good visual representation in my mind of how to translate a player into the next square and if this is a potential 'yes' I may use it.

5. Another fantastic question and one that has had me thinking. My answer is yes and no! YES because I use this as a physiological tool, the Will to do is based very much on those factors identified. Example; is the player equipped with EI to realise they are low willed or EI enough to want to move? Then for NO; it doesn't take in to account set situations for a lot of the examples you mention; social standing within the group is a big one here. For that occasion, and for many more, I would definitely not employ this model as the will / motivation would be skewed because of an external factor; as you mention above the variables are not something to be under tight constraint, this type of over use would very much stifle player development.