By Matt Carroll –
While this is something that can definitely be seen as a technical workout, the high level of physical work players will experience will ensure that your player’s in-game physical shape will improve. In this drill, you will want to create a grid appropriate to the number of players available, taking into account the smaller the grid the more chaotic the game will be and the longer players will be stay “in”. On each side of the grid place a pug goal, the smaller the goal the higher level of difficulty and conditioning. Each player should be paired up 1v1 with one player on the ball and the other without.
The game starts on the coach’s signal and immediately the player with the ball attempts to score on one of the four goals. The defending player attempts to win the ball and then score themselves. Any ball that goes out of bounds is a turnover and the player that did not touch the ball is allowed to dribble into the grid from wherever the ball initially left the grid. If the player scores they then leave the grid and now get recovery time.
The player that was scored on now needs to find a pair and that pair becomes a triad where the same rules apply as before. If one of the players scores though it goes back to a pair with the player that has been in the group the longest starting with the ball. The game ends when there is only one player left in the grid who has not scored.
By Matt Carroll