“Call for the ball” • “Keep your eyes on the ball” • “Use the inside of the foot to cushion and stop the ball”
Set up three 2ft triangles set out 3 yards apart in a larger triangle. Put a player in each small triangle and give one a ball.
When you say “go”, players pass from triangle to triangle trying to control the ball inside their own triangle – you may need to experiment with the size of the triangles if their control is poor.
Players have to receive the ball and cushion it using the side of the foot, then make a half turn to pass to the player on their right.
Don’t expect miracles when you first start using the activity, there will be lots of misplaced passes and balls that are not stopped by the players. Once they have used it a few times, though, they will be stopping the ball in the triangle and getting passes away.
Use the Call Out phrases as they are receiving to remind them what they should be doing.
How many players do I need?
Players worked in threes in the activity I ran but you can change it to suit the numbers available.
I was out walking on the local golf course where I live this week and in the distance I saw a child running from what seemed miles away at top speed. As the child got closer I realised that it was someone dribbling a ball. Of course on the fairways it was like being at Wembley on a well cared for football pitch! It was great to see a child enjoying dribbling a ball, chipping over the bunkers and swerving around the patches of heather that catch out an unwary golfer. MORE
Turning with the ball has always been a skill that draws names from the great players through the ages – think of the Cruff turn or Zidane spin turn. It used to make me wonder how players like Lionel Messi, Andrés Iniesta, Zinedine Zidane or Johan Cruyff could turn their opponents inside out, game after game – I now know it needs practice and from a young age. MORE
