More Than Just a Position: Helping Young Players Find Their Place in the Game
🧲 Small Tools, Big Impact: Teaching Positional Understanding with Magnets
Understanding positioning is one of the most vital – and often most overlooked – aspects of a young player’s development. While fitness and technique can be coached on the pitch or court, helping players see the game tactically is a different challenge altogether.
That’s where magnetic pitch and court boards come in.
🔄 Visual Learning for Young Athletes
Children (and adults!) often learn best when they can visualise a concept. A magnetic board transforms a confusing explanation into something simple, visual, and interactive. Whether it’s showing how a wing attack should create space in netball, a fly-half’s options in rugby, or how a forward presses in hockey, magnets allow players to see movement, understand space, and connect the dots between positions.
This visual, hands-on method ties in with the principles of the Learning Pyramid — active learning, such as moving magnets or explaining a role, leads to greater retention and understanding.
🧍♂️ Build Identity Through Position
When a player sees their position marked out with a magnetic icon, it gives them more than just instruction — it gives them identity.
- “This is your space.”
- “This is your role.”
- “This is what the team needs from you.”
Young players start to take pride in their place on the pitch or court. They understand their responsibilities and feel more like a key part of the team.
It’s not just learning tactics — it’s learning who they are within the team.
👣 Movement, Responsibility, and Growth
Using magnets helps young athletes understand both positioning and transitions. Coaches can demonstrate:
- Pressing and defensive shape
- Attacking movement and overlaps
- Rotations and cover
- Positional awareness and discipline
It turns theory into something real. Players can visualise plays, ask questions, and even test new ideas — all without the pressure of live play. It’s a safe space to learn and grow.
💬 Confidence Through Clarity
When players understand the why behind their position, they gain clarity and confidence. And when they play with confidence, they enjoy the game more and develop faster.
You’re not just teaching them where to stand — you’re helping them become smarter, more self-assured athletes.
🛠️ The Right Tools for Every Sport
At Dry Wipe, we believe every young player – no matter the sport – deserves access to high-quality learning tools. That’s why our magnetic boards and overlays are made for coaches and players in football, hockey, netball, rugby, basketball, lacrosse, and more.
Our goal? To make it easy for grassroots coaches to deliver pro-level understanding in a way that sticks.