Switching Play & Timing Runs
Switching Play & Timing Runs is a great drill thats all about crisp incise passing, good control and timing the run.
The wide players must make sure they do not get ahead of the ball at any point, otherwise the drill will fall apart and passes will start going behind players stopping the flow.
Players in the middle should be looking to control the ball on the back foot, to open their body up and play a first time pass out to the other runner.
If you are unsure about back foot control, check this drill
Switching Play & Timing Runs – How it works
Yellow Player starts with the ball, takes a couple of touches and plays a crisp right footed pass to the feet of the Red Player.
Red Player controls with back (right) foot, steps in the ball and plays the pass first time into the path of the Blue Player with their Left Foot
Blue Players controls with their Left foot, gets their head up and times a left footed pass into the feet of the Pink Player.
Pink Player controls with back (left) foot, steps in the ball and plays the pass first time into the path of the Yellow Player with their Right Foot
Yellow Player controls the ball with their right foot, gets their head up and plays a crisp right footed pass to the feet of the Orange Player.
Orange Player controls with back (right) foot, steps in the ball and plays the pass first time into the path of the Blue Player with their Left Foot.
Blue Player controls with the left foot, gets their head up and passes to the feet of waiting Green Player.
Green and White Players then set off in the opposite direction with the players in the middle changing which feet they are using to control and pass.
Switching Play & Timing Runs – Coaching Points
There are 3 main factors that will determine how well this drill goes.
- The Timing of the Runs – If the players get ahead of the ball they will be forced to check their runs and the flow of the drill will stop.
- The Quality of the Pass – If the pass isn’t accurate or too slow it will effect the players ability to control the ball and move it on in good time, then causing the timing of the runs to be impacted.
- Control – If a players doesn’t control the pass properly and needs to take more touches to sort or get back on track, it will impact the runs causing the flow to be disrupted.
Start off slowly at first, building up the pace after a few goes. Let the players get familiar with the control aspects and the timing of the runs.
Switching Play & Timing Runs – What to expect.
It might take a few runs to get it right but when they do it will really flow. The control methods will help move the ball faster with less touches and using both feet will enable your players to control and dribble better.
This drill linked with our “Dribbling & Passing Interchange” will really help your team move up the pitch with style.
If you combine these drills with short sharp passing drills such as Double Rondo – Head to Head they way your players can control the game will increase massively.
Free Downloads – Small Sided Games (SSG
Sign up for More
Join our Team and get new drills emailed to you as soon as we post them.
Stay ahead of the game and sign up for FREE
Follow us on Social Meda
Share the Love
If you appreciate these drills, the please hit a button below and give us a share.
