Developing Variations of Catching The Ball Down For Goalkeepers of Football
Abstract
This study was motivated by field observations showing that young goalkeepers at SSB Kuda Hitam Kendal still experienced technical difficulties when dealing with low balls, particularly in hand positioning, body coordination, catching consistency, and ball security. These problems were also associated with limited and monotonous goalkeeper-specific training variations. The study aimed to develop and evaluate a systematic, progressive, age-appropriate, and practically applicable low-ball catching training model for under-14 goalkeepers. A Research and Development (R&D) design was employed by integrating qualitative and quantitative approaches. The development process included needs analysis, literature review, initial product design, expert validation, product revision, small-scale trials, large-scale implementation, and final product refinement. Participants were KU-14 goalkeepers at SSB Kuda Hitam Kendal. Data were collected through observation, response questionnaires, expert assessment, documentation, video analysis, and pre-test–post-test low-ball catching performance tests. Qualitative data were analyzed descriptively, while quantitative data were analyzed using a paired-samples t-test. The results showed that the developed training guidebook was considered feasible, safe, and suitable for youth goalkeeper training. Goalkeeper responses reached an overall mean of 62.0%, while coach responses reached 100% across all indicators. The effectiveness test revealed a mean pre-test–post-test difference of −40.625 points, t(9) = −13.619, p < .001, with a very large effect size (dz = 4.31). These findings indicate that variations in ball speed, distance, angle, movement direction, and situational pressure significantly improved low-ball catching performance. The developed model can therefore be considered feasible, acceptable, and effective for improving technical control, catching consistency, and responsiveness among youth goalkeepers.