By Keith Scarlett
This activity works on 1v1 defending, pressure, cover, recovery and defensive communication.
Set-up: The playing area is 25 x 20 metres. Only one ball will be in play at a time. There are two-lines on either end of the pitch, the end-line; which is at either end of the playing area and the ball-line; which is 3-metres inside the playing area; per the diagram.
To start this activity, one team starts with possession of the ball, at random. This team’s (the attacking team), players need to pass or dribble past their opponents to reach the “ball-line.” The ball MUST be stopped ‘DEAD’ on the “ball-line” for the attacking side to win a point.
Once the ball has been brought to a complete halt, the attacking player who stopped the ball now becomes the defensive player who has to keep running on towards the edge of the playing area, touch the end-line and come back in to defend with their teammate.
The other team, who was previously defending, now takes possession of the ball as soon as it is stopped on the “ball-line” and must restart as quickly as possible to take advantage of the superior numbers.
This can become an extremely high-intensity game, so be sure to rotate teams on and off every 90 seconds-2 minutes allowing them recovery time.
By Keith Scarlett, Former Assistant Women’s Football Coach – Perth Glory FC, Australia, former U.S. Soccer National Staff, follow him on Twitter @keithscarlett and catch his personal blog, "An American Coach Down Under:" http://keithscarlett.blogspot.com
