Equipment: four players and
one ball.
Setup:
Lay out a grid about twenty (20) yards wide by fifty (50) yards long. Have
two players with one ball be the attackers and two players be the defenders.
The two attackers are about ten yards apart and are facing the two
defenders. The defenders are defending man-to-man.
When one attacker has the ball the defender that is defending him (the
"first defender") must move up and mark him tightly shouting, "I Got Ball!".
The other defender (the "second defender") backs off of his man and provides
defensive depth and a back-up to the first defender in case the first
defender gets beat. If the attacker with the ball passes the ball to the
other attacker the roles reverse. The "first defender" quickly backs off his
man and becomes the "second defender". The "second defender" comes up and
marks his man (who now has the ball) tightly and becomes the "first
defender".
Note that neither defender actually tries to tackle the ball. This is
passive defense only. The attackers dribble forward and pass the ball back
and forth with "square" rather than penetrating passes. Each time the ball
is passed the defenders shift.
When they reach the end of the 50 yard grid the attackers become defenders
and vice versa and they come back down the grid. This can be a very aerobic
drill. Care should be taken to instruct the defenders that they must change
positions quickly and should never turn their backs to the attackers.
Attackers should press the attack.
Once they have done this drill several
times the instructor should request that the second defender be verbal and
always let the first defender know which way to take his man.
In game situations this allows the defenders to move the attacker away from
shots at goal and into position to be double-teamed and tackled.
This drill should be done at full or 3/4 speed. If the players are too tired
after a few minutes swap out for four new players.
Variation: After the initial
demonstration set up several grids so that all players on the team can run
the drill simultaneously - eliminating lines.
Variation: Have attackers run overlaps
so that defenders know which player is their responsibility when the
attackers overlap.
Variation: After you have successfully
run the drill several times you can now allow the attackers to use overlaps
and penetrating passes. But still do not allow the defenders to tackle the
ball. This drill is about positioning, communication and responsibility.
It's more important that the players understand when they can tackle than to
actually tackle the ball. Once you've run this drill for several session,
widen the grid to 20 yards x 50 yards and take all restrictions off
attackers and defenders. Be sure to "freeze" the drill at any moment that
you see a defender (not attacker) make a positioning or timing mistake.
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