Check The Ball First: We check ball first. This means that the first thing we do is we stop the progress of the ball by marking and delaying the first attacker.
Cover Our First Defender: The first defender must always have a supporting second defender who can cover the space behind the first defender.
Pick Up Near the Ball: Pick up 1 for 1 near the ball starting with the ball n person with the ball.
Let the Far Side Go: We let far side player go, staying just close enough to recover the space (make-up the distance and close the player down) while the ball crosses.
Tuck in: When the ball is on the wing, the outside defender on the opposite side must "tuck in" to cover the space behind the nearest inside defender.
Outside defenders stay close enough to the attacking wing player to make up the distance to the player as the ball is crossed.
The outside defender should keep a position far enough off the wing attacker so that the outside defender can be first to the nearest goal post in case the ball is crossed to the attacking wing for a shot or header.
Ball-side, Goal-side: Outside defenders play to try to be closer to the center of the field and closer to the ball than their marks.
Back Off on the Drop: Wing defenders on mark who is with ball back off rapidly and instantly when their mark drops the ball so that they can't be chipped. No ball watching when the ball is dropped!
Centers Work Together: The central defenders, stopper and sweeper, work together as central defenders instead of playing with the stopper 10 yards in front of sweeper.
Center Midfielders Track: Center midfielders track back with their mark into the top of the penalty area.
- to stop their mark from shooting from the outside on balls dropped back, and
- to stop their mark from getting the ball behind our other defenders.
Keep Our Shape: All the defenders, together, are arranged on the field in the shape of a C opened toward the center circle. Look at the picture. When the ball is switched to the other side, all our defenders must slide to the other side of the field as fast as the ball travels, so that the new first attacker has a mark when the ball arrives, and so that the new first defender has a supporting second defender.
Recover Relentlessly: We must be relentless, quick, focussed, and determined to always keep recovering our shape, no matter how many times the other team switches the ball from side to side. This requires both mental focus and physical conditioning.
- The other team will move the ball from side to side until we make a mistake that causes us to lose our shape. They only need one mistake.
- It is a mistake to ball watch, to fail to check the ball, to forget to back off from a player who has dropped the ball, to fail to track, or to be slow to slide over to the ball-side.
- It is a mistake to mark closely on the side far away from the ball, or to fail to tuck in and provide cover for a player nearer to the ball.
- If we make a mistake and don't recover our shape, we create available space for the other team. The other team will use the space to penetrate and shoot.
- When the ball is in the center, the
nearest center defender checks the ball and marks the attacker to
stop penetration and to stop the shot.
- The other center defender becomes the second defender, and takes a position to cover the space behind the first defender and to loosely mark the second attacker in the middle, if there is one.
- The second defender must instantly and rapidly close the space to the second attacker getting the ball immediately, but not dive in.
- The first defender backs off the original first attacker instantly so this attacker, who passed the ball, can not receive the ball behind the defense.
- The defenders have changed roles. This
must be accomplished
instantly and without fail, as often as needed.
- If the second
defender closes down the center attacker who gets the ball but the
original first defender fails to back off the original first
attacker, the attackers can use a wall pass, through ball, or chip
to beat the original first defender, who is now too close to the
mark to track the mark, and who is too far away to be able to cover
the space behind the new first defender.
