Tower Knockdown: A Passing Accuracy Game for Kids

How to set it up

• Mark a 15 by 20 metre area and divide it into lanes, one lane per pair.
• In the middle of each lane stand a "tower": a tall cone, or two cones stacked.
• Put a starting cone 7 metres from the tower on each side.
• Two players per lane, facing each other, one ball. With an odd number, one lane has three.

How to play

• The players take turns passing at the tower. A knockdown scores a point, and the scorer stands the tower back up.
• Play rounds of two minutes; the partner with more points wins the round.
• Change the scoring after a few rounds: inside of the foot 1 point, outside of the foot 3, the weaker foot 5. First to 21 wins.
• Add promotion and relegation: name the lanes after leagues, and after every round the winner moves up a lane and the loser moves down.

Why it works

A child who misses gets the answer straight away: the tower is still standing. Nobody has to say "your standing foot was pointing the wrong way".

The scoring does the rest. Because the outside of the foot and the weaker foot score more, children try them without being told, and the promotion and relegation means every round matters, at every level of the group.

What to coach

• The standing foot points at the tower before the strike.
• Strike through the middle of the ball with the inside of the foot, ankle locked.
• Head and chest over the ball, so the pass stays on the ground.
• A smooth swing that follows through towards the target.

Questions to ask

• "On the passes that hit, what was your standing foot doing?"
• "Which part of your foot is the most accurate? Which one is the fastest?"
• "Why do you think the weaker foot is worth five?"

Make it easier, make it harder

• Easier: move the starting cones in to 4 or 5 metres, use a wider tower (two cones side by side), allow a stop before every pass.
• Harder: one touch only, so the ball is struck as it arrives; dribble two touches before the pass; a longer distance or a smaller tower.

How to adapt it by age

• U6 to U7: the stronger foot and the inside of the foot only, a short distance. The tower can be a castle to knock down.
• U8 to U9: add the outside of the foot and the scoring table.
• U10 and up: the weaker foot and the laces, longer distances, promotion and relegation across all the lanes.