Drill Specs

Drill Theme:

Ground Balls

Field Position:

All

Drill Style:

Drill

Time Needed:

5-10 min

Field Location:

Anywhere

Skill Level:

Basic, Can be progressed

 

Objective

The objective of this drill is to improve communication on ground balls and using extra players to your advantage.

Drill Description

All players can participate in this drill simultaneously, but there should be no more than 10-12 in a group at one time.

Drill Execution

  • Along the near sideline, set three lines of players – the two on the outside are the offense, and the one in the middle is on defense.
  • The first players in each line should step out with their eyes looking forward. A coach will then roll a ball out in front of them and then they will fight to pick up the ball.
  • If an offensive player wins the ball, he must pass it to his teammate before passing it to a coach. If a defensive player wins the ball, he must immediately pass it to a coach.

Drill Diagram: 

Skills Practiced:

  1. Man/Ball communication
  2. Scooping under pressure
  3. Moving the ball after picking it up

Variations/Progression/Increased difficulty (As your players improve their skills incorporate the following…)

  • This drill can – and should – be practiced using both hands. To increase the competitiveness, challenge offensive players to do 10 push-ups each time a defender wins the groundball.
  • To increase the difficulty of the drill, add an extra offensive and defensive player and station them by the goal – if the offense wins the initial groundball, they will attack the goal and play out a 3-on-2 live situation; if the defense wins the initial groundball, they must clear it to the midfield line.

Download