1. Arrival · 0–6 min
Get hips, ankles and heart rate ready with quick feet and a building stride before any ball work.
A movement-first activation: through the ladder, into a stride, back to the queue — hips, ankles and heart rate ready before any ball work.
Watch for: Quick feet, eyes up and a controlled build into the final stride.
Moving on: Clear the ladder and bring the whole group to the 20 × 15 m rondo grid, with four cones at the corners, three balls and two bibs (three with seven players).
2. Development · 6–18 min
Build scanning and passing under pressure: the possession team keeps the ball while two defenders press together.
Possession team keeps the ball inside a 20 × 15 m grid while two defenders press to regain and switch roles.
Watch for: Players open their body before receiving and the player opposite the ball stays visible as an outlet.
Moving on: Collect the cones and mark out the 28 × 18 m area: a central mini goal and a wide carrying gate at each end, with space kept clear behind them. Give out three blue and three red bibs and keep two balls, one in play and one spare.
3. Development · 18–30 min
Choose between carrying through a wide gate and finishing at a central mini goal as the defensive screen changes.
Teams choose between carrying through a wide gate under control and a grounded finish into a central mini goal as the defensive screen changes.
Watch for: Is the carrier looking at the screen before the final touch, and choosing the route that is open?
Moving on: Mark out the 26 × 20 m area for Regain and Release with its outlet strip, clear the mini goals and gates, and keep the three blue and three red bibs and two balls, one in play and one spare.
4. Application · 30–40 min
Treat winning the ball as a new decision: look up, settle and play a safe first pass to the protected outlet.
After a clean regain, the defender secures a first ground pass to a protected teammate outside the pressing group.
Watch for: The regaining player does not kick the ball away under pressure but finds the secure route.
Moving on: Reset the markers: widen the area to 30 × 22 m and mark the central strip for Keep the Centre Closed. Keep two balls, one in play and one spare.
5. Application · 40–50 min
See the same ideas from the defender's side: protect the central route while allowing safe circulation in wide space.
Three defenders protect the central ground route while allowing safe circulation in the wider space.
Watch for: Defenders move together, with the nearest player discouraging the inside pass.
Moving on: Collect the balls and bibs, then start the cool-down with an easy one-minute jog.
6. Close · 50–55 min
Wind down with an easy jog and a held stretch, and use the time to recap one thing that went well and one focus for next time.
A five-minute wind-down: easy jog, then a held stretch through calves, hamstrings, quads, hips and groin while the coach recaps the session.
Watch for: Even holds on both sides and no bouncing in the stretch.
What players practise
- Players open their body to see the pressing defenders before the ball arrives.
- Players read the defensive screen and choose between carrying and shooting.
- Players treat a regain as a new attacking decision and look for a secure first pass.
- Defenders move together to close the central route and accept safe wide play.
How the session builds
After the ladder, the 4v2 rondo builds the habit of scanning and staying visible as an outlet under pressure. Dribble or Shoot Decision gives the first equal-value choice, so players read the screen rather than defaulting to one action. Regain and Release shifts the thinking to the moment after winning the ball, when the safe first pass matters. Keep the Centre Closed finishes with the defensive view of the same ideas: protect the central route and accept safe wide play. The cool-down closes the session and recaps one thing that went well and one focus for next time.
Coaching cues
- Open your body so you can see the defenders before you receive.
- Look at the screen before the final touch, then choose the option that is open.
- After you win the ball, look up, settle if you need to, then find the safe pass.
- Defenders move together and close the central route; wide play is an acceptable result.
- Reset with play stopped after each attempt and rotate roles so everyone gets equal turns.
- Keep passes and shots on the ground, secure the mini goals, never tackle an occupied foot, slide or push, and stop play when routes or players converge.
Adapting the session
- Run the whole session as one group of six or seven players. In the three games, six players play and a seventh rests off the area, rotating in every 45 seconds so everyone gets equal turns, as those drills describe.
- The rondo is recorded for four against two. With seven players, its recorded harder option adds a third defender, which uses everyone.
- To make it easier, use the easier progression a drill records, such as walking defenders in Dribble or Shoot Decision or freezing blue after a regain in Regain and Release so red can settle.
- To make it harder, use the recorded harder progressions: one touch instead of two in the rondo, changing the defenders' starting screen between attacks, or an outlet who picks a different safe angle while blue screens the route.
- If time is short, leave out Keep the Centre Closed and run the other five blocks for 45 minutes: after Regain and Release, collect the balls and bibs and start the cool-down with an easy one-minute jog. Players then miss the defending game.
