The 5 Most Common Heading Mistakes Coaches See — And How to Fix Them

Most heading problems come from a small set of repeating errors. Fix these five and technique improves faster than any amount of additional repetition.

1. Flinching or ducking

The player sees the ball coming and moves their head down or away at the last moment. The result is a glancing blow off the top or side of the head, which hurts and goes nowhere.

Fix: Start every flinching player with a soft ball or under-inflated ball at chest height. Have them head it directly back to your hands from 1 metre. Repeat until the flinch is gone before increasing height or pace.

2. Closing the eyes

Players who close their eyes at impact cannot time the header, cannot direct it, and cannot see second-ball opportunities. It is the single most common technique flaw at every level.

Fix: Use a ball with a visible marking — a stripe, a sticker, a spot of tape. The player calls out what they see on the ball at the moment of contact. Eyes open becomes the objective, not just heading.

3. Passive contact — letting the ball hit you

A player who waits for the ball rather than attacking it gets a weak, uncontrolled header. The head must move through the ball.

Fix: Seated partner headers. Sitting eliminates the jump and forces the player to generate all movement from the torso. If the torso does not snap forward, the header goes nowhere. The movement becomes obvious.

4. Loose neck at contact

A loose neck transfers force into the head rather than into the ball. It is the primary biomechanical cause of post-heading headaches, and it destroys power.

Fix: Isometric neck holds. Press the forehead against a resistance band or a partner's palm and hold for 5 seconds. Repeat laterally. Do this before every heading session until neck lock at contact becomes automatic.

5. Off-centre contact

Hitting the ball with the top of the head, the temple, or the side sends it unpredictably and increases risk. The only contact point is the flat frontal bone — the bony ridge just above the eyebrows.

Fix: Stand at arm's length from a wall, touch the correct contact point to the wall, and hold it there. Then do wall headers from 1 metre, focusing entirely on that contact point. The wall gives immediate feedback — off-centre contact bounces wrong.

For more on technique fundamentals, see how to head a soccer ball. To put the fixes into a structured session, see the drills library.