Tight Defence or Intercept

Focus

Defensive Systems.

Skills

Preliminary Moves & Passing, Defensive Moves, Vision & Quick Decisions.

Purpose

Defenders learn to work as an entity to intercept and also defend space.

Players

7⁺

Ages

6⁺

Balls

Cones

Distance (max)

Setup
4 attackers (A-B-C-D) must remain on 4 cones, 3 defenders roam inside a 7m square. Mark the scoring corner (D) with a small triangle.
Step 1
Start stopwatch, on 'go!' (A) starts attacking turn. Object is to keeping possession and also trying to pass back to (D), which scores them 1 point.

Attackers must keep a foot very close to their cone throughout
Step 2
One defender MUST pressure the passer. 2 other defenders have 2 choices:-

Cover the path to goal (D)

Attempt an intercept. If successful, the ball must be given back to (D) before attacking team restart
Step 3
Award a point to attacking team if 10 passes are completed, OR the ball is passed to (D).

Passing to (D) is the easy way to score, so defenders must be very conscious of this pass - someone should always cover it

Eventually, a defender will need to roll the dice and attempt an intercept to stop scoring through passing
Step 4
If an intercept is attempted unsuccessfully, attackers take advantage by performing a few quick passes around the square for some easy possessions while the defender is out of position
Step 5
Attackers continue for 2 minutes. Rotate teams and repeat with second team try to beat the points tally

Watch/timer is helpful - countdown when there are 10 seconds remaining
Step 6
Progression for added defending difficulty: stop at intervals and everyone brings their cone in 1m.