Week 20

Outcomes

• ✓Players can deliver a firm push-pass over 15–20 yards without losing accuracy
• ✓Players can roll a soft pass to a stationary teammate's feet
• ✓Players can adjust pass weight for a moving receiver
• ✓Players can self-assess whether their pass was too hard, too soft, or correct

Equipment

• 12 size-4 balls
• 24 disc cones
• 2 full-size portable goals or 4 small goals
• bibs

Run of show

1. 1. Arrival Ball Mastery

   8m

   Set up: One ball per player, solo work.

   How to run it: Players pass ball against a wall from varying distances — 3 yd, 6 yd, 10 yd — and assess whether the ball returns at comfortable control pace. Adjust foot speed and contact surface to vary power. Players call 'too hard,' 'too soft,' or 'perfect' after each rep.

   • ›More power = faster backswing and firmer ankle lock
   • ›Self-assessment: build the habit of judging your own pass

2. 2. Dynamic Warm-Up

   10m

   Set up: Lines at 5, 10, and 20 yards from a cone target.

   How to run it: Players pass from each distance trying to stop the ball on a target cone — using only pass weight, not direction. Three reps at each distance with each foot. Clapping and encouragement when the ball stops within 1 yard of the target.

   • ›Accurate weight to a stationary target — no running needed
   • ›Firm ankle, smooth contact, follow through toward target

3. 3. Technical Practice

   15m

   Set up: Pairs at four distances: 5 yd (soft), 10 yd (medium), 15 yd (firm), 20 yd (driven). One ball per pair.

   How to run it: Each pair passes for 90 seconds at each distance. After each distance, coach asks the group: 'Thumbs up if you had to take more than one touch to control your partner's pass.' Thumbs up = too hard. Players adjust. Rotate distances every 90 seconds.

   • ›Receiver's reaction tells you if weight was correct
   • ›Short pass: use a roll — not a kick
   • ›Long pass: follow through and lean slightly forward

4. 4. Skill Game

   15m

   Set up: 5v2 rondo with a 'weight zone': inner 6×6 yd (soft passes only) and outer ring (any weight). 12×12 yd total.

   How to run it: When a player is in the inner zone, they must use a soft pass to a teammate in the outer ring. If defenders intercept a misweighted pass (too hard to control), defenders swap with the player who passed. Track consecutive passes.

   • ›Read where your receiver is — inner or outer zone?
   • ›Soft pass to feet; firm pass into space
   • ›Defenders read the weight zone to anticipate

5. 5. Small-Sided Game

   17m

   Set up: 4v4, 25×18 yd, small goals.

   How to run it: Normal match. Coach introduces a 'misweight penalty': if a pass is so heavy the receiver loses control, play pauses for 3 seconds (counted aloud) and possession turns over. This makes weight a high-stakes skill without stopping flow too much.

   • ›Anticipate the receiver's movement before releasing
   • ›Short, sharp pass to feet in traffic; driven pass into space
   • ›Goalkeeper distributes — use a roll to the nearest player

6. 6. Cool-Down & Review

   5m

   Set up: Circle.

   How to run it: Hip-flexor and spine stretches. Coach rolls a ball softly to each player who traps and rolls it back — emphasising the feel of a correctly weighted soft pass.

   • ›Weight control is an art — it comes from practice and feel
   • ›Watch professional players: almost every pass is the perfect weight

Outcomes

• ✓Players can execute a well-weighted pass even when a defender is close
• ✓Players can choose a soft or firm pass based on distance and pressure together
• ✓Players can receive a misweighted pass and recover it quickly
• ✓Players can stay calm and technical under the stress of opponent pressure

Equipment

• 10 size-4 balls
• 24 disc cones
• 4 small goals
• bibs

Run of show

1. 1. Arrival Ball Mastery

   8m

   Set up: Free grid, pairs.

   How to run it: Pairs pass freely — but one player acts as a shadow defender who closes within 1 yard before every pass. Passer must still deliver a well-weighted pass before being touched. Partner defends but cannot steal — only shadow.

   • ›Don't rush — controlled, weighed pass even with someone closing
   • ›Use your body to shield slightly as you pass

2. 2. Dynamic Warm-Up

   10m

   Set up: 3v0 passing warm-up, groups of 3, triangle formation, 8 yards per side.

   How to run it: Quick passing around the triangle. Every third pass is a long driven pass across the triangle (16-yard diagonal). Focus on the weight transition: short-short-long. Add movement: players rotate clockwise after each pass.

   • ›Short passes: gentle and accurate
   • ›Long pass: commit with full follow-through

3. 3. Technical Practice

   15m

   Set up: 3v1 in an 18×12 yd box. Passive then active defender. Small target goal at one end.

   How to run it: Three attackers combine to score. Constraint: they may not shoot unless the shot comes from a pass that was the correct weight — i.e. the shooter took only one touch before shooting. Coach calls 'yes' or 'no' after each shot attempt.

   • ›Weight the pass so the shooter can shoot first time
   • ›Under pressure: roll the short pass, don't stab it
   • ›Shooter: set your feet before the ball arrives

4. 4. Skill Game

   15m

   Set up: 4v4 with a 'long pass zone' at each end (4 yards deep). 28×18 yd.

   How to run it: Teams score by playing a long driven pass from their own half into the far long-pass zone where a teammate receives and controls. The key metric is the receiver's control — one clean touch = 2 points; two touches = 1 point; can't control = no point.

   • ›Long pass requires a firm, low trajectory
   • ›Receiver: anticipate the ball early and prepare body shape
   • ›Don't force the long pass — wait for the moment of space

5. 5. Small-Sided Game

   17m

   Set up: 5v5, 30×22 yd, small goals.

   How to run it: Free match. Coach does not intervene on weight this session — let players self-manage. After the match, ask: 'Give me three examples where pass weight made the difference — good or bad.'

   • ›Pass weight is your responsibility as the passer
   • ›Read the distance and your receiver's movement before striking
   • ›Even under pressure: take the millisecond to commit to the weight

6. 6. Cool-Down & Review

   5m

   Set up: Circle.

   How to run it: Adductor, calf, and shoulder stretches. Players share examples of good pass weight from today. Coach adds one observation per player.

   • ›Mastering weight takes thousands of reps — every session counts
   • ›The best passers make it look effortless — that is pure practice