Objective of the Practice:
This practice is designed to develop good ball possession in tight areas. An emphasis is placed on “disguise, pace, accuracy, timing and penetration”.
Field Preparation:
 Area 10 x 20 yards. 4 players. 1 ball. Cones. Colored bibs.
Coaching Points:
Use two connecting grids, each approximately 10 yards by 20 yards. There are five attacking players and one defender.
Place four attackers on the perimeter of one of the grids. Position the defender inside the same grid. Position one attacker (target man) on the end-line of the opposite grid (see diagram above). Identify defender by using colored bib.
Rules of the Practice:
The four attacking players attempt to keep possession from the defender and obtain 6 consecutive passes.
After making 6 passes the players must pass the ball forward to the "target man" at the end-line of the opposite
grid.
Once the ball has been played to the target man, players 1, 3 and 4 move to the opposite grid to support the target man.
The defender follows the play and attempts to win the ball in the opposite grid. Player 2 now becomes the new target man. After obtaining 6 passes the ball is switched back to the original grid. The practice is repeated in this fashion.
Players in possession are awarded one goal for each time they find the target man. Rotate working defender frequently to ensure high pressure. Rotate players so each player performs the role of the target man.
The coach should emphasize the following coaching points:
The supporting players must always work to offer the deepest and widest possible angles for the player in possession.
The supporting players should ask themselves two questions when supporting the player in
possession:
How wide can I get to give the best possible passing lane?
How far from the defender can I get to give the maximum time on the ball when the pass is received?
The player in possession must look to disguise their passing intentions by using step-overs, body feints and head fakes.
They must also have the discipline to hold on to the ball and commit the defender towards them.
If they release the ball too early the defender will have less ground to cover to put pressure on the receiving player.
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