---
title: "Statues"
description: "Half the group stands as statues. A dribbler wakes one with a pass through its legs, and a three-second 1v1 decides who keeps dribbling."
canonical: https://hobbit.football/drills/statues
language: en
publisher: Hobbit (https://hobbit.football)
---

# Statues

> Half the group stands as statues. A dribbler wakes one with a pass through its legs, and a three-second 1v1 decides who keeps dribbling.

U6 to U9 · 8 to 12 players · 12 × 12 m · 10 min

Also called Nutmeg, Le statue.

![Diagram of Statues](https://hobbit.football/api/game-library/diagram/statues)

## How to play

1. For 8 to 12 players, mark a 12 by 12 metre square. Half the group dribble with a ball each; the other half are statues, standing still with legs apart, spread around the square.
2. A dribbler starts a duel by passing the ball through a statue's legs. The statue comes alive and the two play 1v1 for that ball.
3. Whoever keeps the ball under control for three seconds wins the duel and carries on dribbling; the other becomes a statue where the duel ended. A ball out of the square loses the duel.
4. Every duel won is a point. Play 2-minute rounds, then swap who starts as statues.

## The decision it trains

The dribbler picks the duel: which statue to wake, from which side, and where to play the ball through the legs so it stays in the square and they can reach it first. A soft pass that stops just behind the statue starts a fight for the ball; a firmer one into space starts a race. Once the statue is alive, both players have three seconds to choose: shield, turn away, or go straight in to win it.

## Make it harder or easier

- **Too hard:** a statue that comes alive must turn round on the spot before it chases, which gives the dribbler a head start.
- **Too easy:** the duel lasts five seconds instead of three.
- **Younger players:** start with the pass alone: a pass through a statue's legs scores a point and the statue stays still; add the duel once the passes go through.

## What to ask at the breaks

- "Which statue did you choose, and why that one?"
- "Where did you play the ball through the legs, and what happened next?"
- "When you came alive, how did you win the ball?"

## Where it comes from

It comes from the Italian FA's youth sector: Le statue is in the exercise manual of its Programma di Sviluppo Territoriale, first version 2018, for under-8s and under-9s, with a variant for younger children. The research found no second source with the same rules. A related mechanic appears in an Italian tag game, where a caught player is freed by a pass under the legs, but there the pass does not start a duel.

## Documented by

- Italian FA (FIGC) (Italy): Le statue
- PA West Soccer (United States): Nutmeg

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