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Archie's Drills · S1E76

React, then dribble

  • More Physical drills
  • Reaction with the ball
  • 2 players (you and a partner)
  • Age 11+
  • Video length 0:42
Download the drill sheet (PDF, 982 KB)
Transcript

In a game, you react with the ball at your feet, so train it that way. Here's how. Warm up first. You need a ball, eight cones and a partner, on flat grass, never a road. Mark a ten metre square with a gate on each side. Watch. Dribble slowly in the middle. Your partner points to a gate. Go through it fast, and dribble back. The next point comes the moment you are back. First, eyes up for the point. Then, one big touch into the gate. Our target is three rounds of six, resting a minute. Stop if anything hurts. Then take the free test at footballreach.com.

What it trains

Reactive agility with the ball: react to a partner's point and dribble fast through the gate they choose. A review found reacting to a signal is a separate skill from planned turns, and in games you react with the ball at your feet.

Set up

  • Warm up first
  • A ball and 8 cones
  • A partner to point
  • 10 m square, 4 gates

How it works

  1. Warm up first, every time: your club warm-up, the FIFA 11+ Kids (up to 13) or the FIFA 11+ (from 14).
  2. On flat grass, mark a 10 x 10 m square with a gate of 2 cones (about 2 m wide) in the middle of each side: 8 cones. Your partner stands outside one corner. Use a size 4 ball at U12-U13 and a size 5 from U14.
  3. Dribble slowly in the middle with small touches, eyes up. Your partner waits a different time each rep, then points to one of the 4 gates.
  4. Turn with the ball, take a big touch into that gate and dribble fast through it, then turn and dribble back to the middle. Your partner points again the moment you are back. (The diagram shows two reps: the right gate, then the left gate.)
  5. Do 6 reactions, rest 1 minute, and do 3 rounds in all. Mix the gates and the waits. Then swap roles.

Coaching points

  1. Eyes up for the point. Keep your touches small in the middle and lift your eyes to your partner between them, so you see the point the moment it comes. The FA asks players to keep their heads up to scan when the ball is at their feet.
  2. Big touch into the gate. When the point comes, turn with the ball, then push one bigger touch into the gate and sprint onto it. The FA says big touches let you travel quickly when there is space ahead.

Not this

Dribbling with your eyes down on the ball. You see the point late, so you react late. Small touches in the middle let you look up between them.

Dose

  • 3 rounds of 6 reactions
  • Rest 1 min between rounds

Our target: 3 rounds of 6 reactions, 1 minute rest (the age-ladder dose, our target, not from a study). The 2 m gates are our choice.

Harder / Easier

Harder

Your partner points to a gate and you go through the opposite one, so you have to think as well as react.

Easier

Your partner calls the gate out loud instead of pointing, and you dribble at a steady pace until the turn with the ball feels clean.

Safety

  • Flat, dry grass with the gates well away from walls, fences, posts and people. Never on a road or a driveway.
  • Your partner stands outside a corner of the square, never in a gate's path.
  • Under 16: if your knees or heels hurt when you run or jump, stop and tell an adult. Knee and heel pain is common while you are growing, and a GP or physio can help. 16 and over: if something hurts, stop rather than training through it, and get it checked by a GP or physio.

Sources

Not sure which skill to work on first? The free Football Reach test gives you a Player Development Score and shows which of the four corners of your game to work on next, in about two minutes.

Take the free test
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