1v1 Three Ways: A Defending Circuit for U8 to U14

How to set it up

• Mark an area 30 metres wide and 20 metres long, split into three lanes 10 metres wide.
• Lane one: a 1v1 to an end line. Lane two: a 1v1 with a small goal at each end. Lane three: a 1v1 with a feeder at one end.
• Three players per lane who rotate roles. Change lanes every five minutes.

How to play

• Lane one: the defender passes to the attacker and closes them down. The attacker scores by stopping the ball on the defender's end line; the defender wins it and scores on the other line.
• Lane two: the same start, but the attacker scores in the goal behind the defender, and the defender counters into the other goal.
• Lane three: the feeder passes to the attacker in the middle of the lane, who has the defender right behind them. The defender scores by intercepting or winning the ball and passing it back to the feeder; the attacker scores by turning and stopping the ball on the far line.
• Rotate roles after every score or ball out.

Why it works

Each lane asks a different question of the same defender. On the line: don't let them past. In front of a goal: don't let them shoot. Behind a receiver: don't let them turn.

Three lanes running at once means every player defends every few seconds and nobody waits.

What to coach

• All lanes: close the space quickly, slow down at the right distance, stay low and side-on, feel the attacker with an arm.
• Lane one: show the attacker one way and tackle with the nearer foot.
• Lane two: keep yourself between the ball and the goal and block the shooting line.
• Lane three: get tight before the ball arrives, intercept if you can, stop the turn if you cannot.

Questions to ask

• "What was different about defending in front of the goal?"
• "In lane three, when did you go for the interception and when did you wait?"
• "How close did you get before you slowed down?"

Make it easier, make it harder

• Easier: narrower lanes; the attacker must take a first touch before the defender moves.
• Harder: wider lanes; in lane three the feeder can also be passed back to, making it 2v1.

How to adapt it by age

• U8 to U9: lanes one and two only, narrow.
• U10 to U12: all three lanes.
• U13 to U14: wider lanes and the 2v1 option in lane three.