Football Kicking Nets: The Buying and Setup Guide That Triples Your Practice

Here is the short version. If you practise alone without a net, you spend most of your session walking. You kick a ball, you walk thirty yards, you pick it up, you walk back. Do that twenty-five times and you have spent more time fetching than kicking.

A kicking net catches the ball for you. That is the whole idea. And it roughly triples the number of kicks you get in the same hour, which is why it is the single best value purchase a kicker makes after their tee and ball.

This guide covers what to look for, six nets worth considering, how to set one up so it does not blow over, and how to actually train with it. No fluff, and nothing you need a coach to explain.

Why a Net Matters More Than You Think

Most guides list a net as a nice extra. It is not. For anyone practising alone, it changes the maths of your entire session.

Think about a normal thirty-minute practice without one. You warm up for ten minutes. That leaves twenty. Each kick takes maybe five seconds, then sixty to ninety seconds of walking to fetch the ball and come back. So in twenty minutes you might get twelve to fifteen kicks.

Now add a net. The ball stops five yards in front of you. You pick it up, reset your tee, and go again. Same twenty minutes, and you get thirty-five to forty-five kicks.

That is not a small improvement. That is the difference between a session that builds something and a session that mostly involves walking.

Kicking improves through repetition. A net does not make you a better kicker directly — it just lets you do three times as much of the thing that does.

There is a second benefit that gets less attention: rhythm. When you kick, walk, and kick again ninety seconds later, each rep is basically a fresh start. When you kick every twenty seconds, you build a groove — and grooving a motion is exactly what practice is for.

The Three Types of Net

You will run into three broad designs, and they suit different situations.

1. Portable bow-frame nets

These use flexible fibreglass or composite rods bent into a frame, with netting stretched across. They fold down into a carry bag, set up in under a minute, and weigh very little.

Best for: solo practice, travelling to fields, backyard use, anyone with limited storage. This is what most individual kickers should buy.

2. Rigid frame nets

Steel or heavy aluminium frames, often on wheels. Considerably sturdier, they take harder kicks without moving, and they last longer under heavy shared use.

Best for: schools, programmes, permanent setups. Overkill for one person, and a genuine hassle to move.

3. Ball-return nets

A net with an angled backstop that returns the ball to you rather than just stopping it. You do not even bend down to pick it up.

Best for: serious solo practisers who want maximum reps per minute. More expensive and usually bulkier.

What Actually Matters When Buying

Five things. Everything else is marketing.

Size

Bigger is genuinely better here, because your accuracy at the start is not perfect. A net that is 7 feet wide by 4 feet tall is the common practical size and catches most reasonable misses. Smaller nets mean more balls sailing past, which defeats the purpose.

Weight and anchoring

This is the one people underestimate. A light net in any breeze becomes a kite. Look for models that ship with sandbags or weighted feet, or plan to add your own. A net that blows over mid-session is worse than no net.

Netting quality

You are firing a football into this thing hundreds of times. Look for high-density polyester or similar. Cheap netting frays at the edges and develops holes, usually right where you kick most.

Frame durability

Fibreglass rods flex and survive impact well. Very cheap frames bend permanently after a season, and a bent frame does not hold the net taut.

Setup time

If it takes fifteen minutes to assemble, you will stop bringing it. The good portable models go up in under a minute with no tools.

6 Kicking Nets Compared

Side-by-Side Comparison

Setting It Up Properly

Most net problems are setup problems. Five minutes of care saves you a lot of irritation.

1. Pick firm, level ground. A net on a slope leans, and a leaning net catches less. Walk the area first and avoid soft or churned-up patches.
2. Face it away from the wind. Set it up so the wind pushes the net into its frame rather than lifting it. This one decision prevents most blow-overs.
3. Anchor it before you kick. Sandbags, stakes, or whatever came in the box. Do this every single time, not just on windy days — weather changes mid-session.
4. Check the netting is taut. A saggy net lets balls bounce out sideways. Most designs have adjustment points; use them.
5. Stand the right distance back. Five to eight yards works for most kickers. Too close and you get awkward rebounds; too far and your misses sail past the edges.
6. Do a test kick at half power before going full. It tells you instantly whether the net is stable and correctly positioned.

The Wind Problem

Almost every complaint about kicking nets comes down to wind, so it deserves its own section.

A net is, by design, a big flat surface. Wind pushes on it. A light portable frame with nothing holding it down will move, tip, or take off entirely — and a bent frame is usually a dead net.

What actually works:

• Use the anchoring that came with it. Sandbags need filling, which people skip. Fill them.
• Add weight if needed. Extra sandbags, gym plates on the feet, or ground stakes on grass all work.
• Orient it into the wind so the frame takes the load rather than the net acting as a sail.
• Take it down in strong gusts. No net is worth replacing because you wanted ten more kicks.

If you regularly train somewhere exposed, this should push you toward a heavier model. The extra weight is annoying to carry and less annoying than a destroyed frame.

Drills That Need a Net

Some of the most useful practice is only realistic with a net, because it depends on volume.

The twenty-yard groove. Thirty kicks from the same spot with an identical setup. It is the single best consistency drill there is, and without a net those thirty kicks take an hour of walking.

Slow-motion contact work. Twenty-five kicks at about twenty per cent power to feel your contact point. Short kicks, so a net right in front of you makes this almost frictionless.

Rapid-fire rhythm sets. Ten kicks in quick succession with minimal reset. Builds the automatic motion you want under pressure, and is impossible if each rep involves a walk.

Punting drops. Punters especially benefit — drop work and short punts into a net let you take far more reps than a field ever allows.

Making It Last

• Dry it before storing. Netting packed away damp develops mildew and weakens.
• Check the netting for small holes every few weeks. A small tear becomes a big one fast, and most are repairable early with a netting repair kit.
• Do not store it in a hot car. Heat degrades both netting and frame components over time.
• Inspect the frame joints at the start of each season for cracks or permanent bends.
• Take it down properly rather than yanking it. Most frame damage happens during rushed pack-downs.

Common Mistakes

Frequently Asked Questions

Net Types Compared by Situation

A second way to look at the choice — not by product, but by what your situation actually is.

The pattern worth noticing is that anchoring and size matter more than brand in almost every row. A well-anchored mid-range net beats a premium one that tips over, and a bigger net catches the misses that a smaller one lets through.

Keep Going

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