Week 23

Outcomes

• ✓Players can recognise a compact defence and choose to recycle rather than force a pass
• ✓Players can use patience to wait for a gap to appear
• ✓Players can stretch a compact block with wide positions and long balls
• ✓Players can switch from patience to forward play the instant a gap opens

Equipment

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

Run of show

1. 1. Arrival Ball Mastery

   8m

   Set up: One ball per player.

   How to run it: Players dribble and on 'compact!', all players move to a tight 8×8 yd grid. They must keep possession in the reduced space for 30 seconds, then coach calls 'stretch!' and they expand back to the full grid. Repeat 5 times.

   • ›In tight space: smaller touches, quicker passes
   • ›In space: spread and look forward

2. 2. Dynamic Warm-Up

   10m

   Set up: 4v2 rondo, 10×10 yd, focused on patience.

   How to run it: Attackers keep possession. Defenders are instructed to stay compact (within 3 yards of each other). Attackers must circulate the ball until a gap appears, then play through it. If they force a pass through no gap, possession changes.

   • ›Don't force it — keep the ball until the gap opens
   • ›One of the defenders will eventually move — that's the moment

3. 3. Technical Practice

   15m

   Set up: 5v3, 20×15 yd box. Three defenders form a defensive block (stay in a line of 3 across the middle).

   How to run it: Five attackers must break through the defensive line with a pass. The defensive line must hold their shape — they shift laterally only. Attackers earn a point each time a pass slips between two defenders to a player on the far side. Rotate defenders every 4 minutes.

   • ›Move the ball wide to pull one defender, then play through the gap
   • ›Quick inter-pass combinations can split the line
   • ›The moment a defender steps, play through immediately

4. 4. Skill Game

   15m

   Set up: 4v4 possession, 18×18 yd. Defending team must stay in a 2v2 compact block in the centre, leaving the flanks free.

   How to run it: Attacking team must circulate to find and exploit the wide gaps left by the compact block. Points scored only when an attacker receives in the flank and plays a successful through-pass back inside. This simulates breaking compact teams with wide play.

   • ›Use the wide open space — don't play into the block
   • ›Wide player receives and looks inside immediately
   • ›Compact team: stay disciplined, don't chase the wide ball

5. 5. Small-Sided Game

   17m

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

   How to run it: One team is instructed to be 'compact' — defend with all players behind the ball. Other team must try to break them down patiently. Swap roles at half-time. Coach calls out 'patience!' when attackers force a pass into no gap.

   • ›Compact defence requires patience to break — respect it
   • ›Wide then through, or switch then forward
   • ›Celebrate great defensive compactness as much as goals

6. 6. Cool-Down & Review

   5m

   Set up: Circle.

   How to run it: Standing hip and knee stretches. Coach draws the compact defensive shape with cones and asks: 'How do we create the gap?' Players suggest: wide play, switch, quick combination.

   • ›Patience is not passive — it is an active tactical skill
   • ›Compact teams can be beaten — you now know how

Outcomes

• ✓Players can identify the moment to play a line-breaking pass
• ✓Players can time a run to arrive in the space behind the defensive line
• ✓Players can combine patience with explosive forward play
• ✓Players can recover defensively after an unsuccessful line-breaking attempt

Equipment

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

Run of show

1. 1. Arrival Ball Mastery

   8m

   Set up: Two teams, one ball, open grid.

   How to run it: One team holds a line across the pitch. Other team passes among themselves trying to work the ball past the line. No contact — just passing. When ball passes the line, swap. Fast and competitive.

   • ›Pass into the gaps, not into the defenders
   • ›Movement off the ball creates the gap for the pass

2. 2. Dynamic Warm-Up

   10m

   Set up: 3v1 line-breaker: 15×10 yd channel, one defender on a line across the middle.

   How to run it: Three attackers must play the ball through the line to score. Defender stands on the line and can only move laterally (not forward). Attackers use combinations. Rotate defender every 90 seconds. High-repetition, low-pressure.

   • ›Quick combination — pass and run before the defender adjusts
   • ›Play to the space beside the defender, not at them

3. 3. Technical Practice

   15m

   Set up: 4v2+GK: four attackers, two defenders in a tight block, GK. 25×18 yd area.

   How to run it: Attackers must play through both defenders to reach the GK. They must break one line before breaking the second — staged. First through-pass earns 1 point; shot on goal earns 2. Defenders rotate every 5 minutes. High-tempo, reward attempts.

   • ›Break line 1 with a combination, then immediately attack line 2
   • ›Runner must be in motion before the pass is played
   • ›Patience: if neither line can be broken, recycle and reset

4. 4. Skill Game

   15m

   Set up: 4v4 in thirds: 30×20 yd split into three zones. Each team has a 'defensive third,' a 'middle third,' and an 'attacking third.'

   How to run it: Teams score only by getting a player AND the ball into the attacking third via a pass (not a dribble). Once in the attacking third, they can shoot. Encourages deliberate line-breaking passing rather than individual dribbling.

   • ›Pass into the attacking third — then run to receive it
   • ›The pass and the run are simultaneous, not sequential
   • ›Defend the middle third — don't give free passage

5. 5. Small-Sided Game

   17m

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

   How to run it: Free match. Coach allows full tactical freedom. Observe how many line-breaking passes each team attempts. After the match, share the number — celebrate the attempts even if unsuccessful.

   • ›Be brave — attempt the line-breaker and trust your training
   • ›Even a failed attempt stretches the defence
   • ›The best teams attempt line-breakers repeatedly until one succeeds

6. 6. Cool-Down & Review

   5m

   Set up: Circle.

   How to run it: Full static stretch sequence. Coach asks players to rate their own line-breaking passes today: 0 = none attempted, 1 = attempted but didn't succeed, 2 = succeeded. Share scores — celebrate all the 1s as much as 2s.

   • ›Attempting the right pass in the right moment is already success
   • ›The result of the pass is secondary to the quality of the decision