Dribble with control

Organisation

• Create four teams of players – one on each corner of a square
• Each player in the team takes a turn to run through the cones and collect a cone from the middle before returning to the next player in the relay race
• Each player then does the same while dribbling a ball
• Each player then does the same while dribbling two balls
• Each time, it's a relay race – be creative with different tasks and challenges
• The team with most cones wins

 Ways to make the exercise easier

• Players begin with no ball, simple running and agility challenges
• Let the players have a go running backwards

 Ways to make the exercise harder

• Increase the distance between cones and size of the square
• Add more obstacles or challenges before they reach the middle

Great questions to ask the children

• Can you show me how quickly you can dribble with the ball under control?
• Can you show me a trick where you turn on the ball when you return to your corner?
• Can you keep your head up when dribbling so that you avoid others?

Safety tips

• Only one player to go at a time from each team

Organisationa 

• Equal teams have races to score a goal
• Create a physical challenge before they can score by throwing
• Different ways to score: throwing, volleying from hands, headers from hands
• One team becomes multiple goalkeepers – it becomes a competition
• Which team concedes the fewest goals or scores the most goals?

 Ways to make the exercise easier

• Start with no goalkeepers – shoot at/score in empty goal

 Ways to make the exercise harder

• Shoot from further out
• Use a smaller goal
• Allow each team to nominate a defender/blocker

Great questions to ask the children

• Can you show me your best technique to make sure your shots are on target?
• Can you try to get your body behind the ball when you are playing in goal?
• Can you score from a rebound?

 Safety tips

• Only one player at a time from each team

Organisation 

• Organise a 5v5 game with a central goal and two wide target goals
• One goalkeeper in the central goal only
• Teams score three goals for the central goal and one goal for a wide target goal
• Encourage players to spot the best opportunities to score and where the space is to be attacked

Ways to make the exercise easier

• You could play 5v5 with no goalkeeper to start with
• One team could have more players

Ways to make the exercise harder

• Make the central goal with a goalkeeper a small target also
• The goalkeeper can try to protect each of the three goals and thus becomes a moving goalkeeper 

Great questions to ask the children

• Where is space for you to attack?
• Can you work as a team to spread the attack?
• What are your priorities when you are the defending team?

 Safety tips

• Create safe zones between extra pitches