TEAM PLAY/TACTICS & MAXIMUM INVOLVEMENT TEAM PLAY/TACTICS & MAXIMUM INVOLVEMENT Level 1 Youth Coaching Course 2008 Mark Smart 2008 ‘Any team rule, game plan or set play can be successful, there is no exact science as to how the game should be played as long as it’s within the rules’

Anton Grbac 2005 GAME PLANS Mark Smart 2008 ‘ STYLE OF PLAY’ or ‘BRAND’ - Geelong v Sydney? - Developed to suit team strengths TEAM RULES - Whole Team – Coach or Players? - Playing Zones (backs, mids, forwards) TACTICS - Phases of the Game (us, them, in dispute) - Playing zones SET PLAY’S - Plans to exploit opposition PLAYER MATCH-UPS

Anton Grbac 2005 ‘Style of Play/Brand’ Mark Smart 2008 Your style or brand is determined by your players strengths and weaknesses eg. Strong midfield, key forwards, small & quick It clearly defines how your team aims to play eg. Running possession, Long & direct, Defensive, etc A pattern of play should be recognisable and be able to be applied to all game situations eg. Where and how you play when : 1. We have it 2. They have it 3. Ball is in dispute

Anton Grbac 2005 Team Rules Mark Smart 2008 Basic ‘team football rules’ that do not change: eg. Play in front, centre the ball, guard the mark, be accountable for your man Basic ‘club or training rules’ that do not change: eg. Must notify the coach if can’t make training, don’t throw your jumper on the ground, respect the facilities, tape goes in the bin etc Zone or Area Rules: eg. Backs – touch and feel on opponent Mids – accountable for man, look to play on Fwds – play in front, work hard defensively

Anton Grbac 2005 ‘Tactics’ Mark Smart 2008 Purpose: 1. Improve team/individual performance 2. Exploit opposition 3. Motivate and educate players Guidelines: 1. Must be practised frequently with all players 2. Must serve a clear purpose 3. Every player must understand the tactics, signals and roles 4. Must be shown and learnt a number of ways 5. Must be adaptable (ground, opposition, weather, timing etc) Offensive: eg. Forward set-ups, ball-ups/stoppages, running lines, kick-ins etc Defensive: eg. Hard tags, zones, man on man, flooding etc

Anton Grbac 2005 Set Play’s Mark Smart 2008 OPPOSITION KICK-INS: Basic options: 1. Play man on man (communication & discipline) 2. Play a Zone (3,4,5 = 12 players or 3,4,5,3 = 15 players) 3. Allow short possession then use option 1 or 2 (stops 2 nd phase) YOUR TEAMS KICK-INS: Against a ZONE: 1. Designated kicker (DK) needs to be a good decision-making with good kicking skills. 2. Must set players up to give DK a number of options short, mid, long, attacking or safe. 3. Players must know and play their role eg. create, block, run, defend etc Against MAN on MAN: 1. Use a huddle with designated roles of breakers, blockers, receivers.

Anton Grbac 2005 Set Play’s cont.... Mark Smart 2008 FORWARD SET-UPS: Basic Structures: 1. Open Forward 50m with 2 Talls deep & 4 up on the 50m arc Benefit: - space in corridor 2. Straight line formation from goalsquare to centre circle Benefit: - space wide and difficult to defend 3. 4 or 5 man forwardline Benefit: - space and extra players in the midfield Guidelines: Space is vital so treat the 50m arc like a basketball key (get in get out) Must continue to make multiple leads Smalls must get to the front and centre of packs and marking contests

Anton Grbac 2005 Set Play’s cont.... Mark Smart 2008 MIDFIELD SET-UPS: Basic Structures: 1. Best ball winners in (smart, strong and aggressive players) Benefit: Win the contested ball and get first use 2. Specific Roles (sweeper, blocker, breaker, receiver) Benefit: Players know their role and work as a team to win the ball 3. Use the clock numbers to describe and plan ‘hit zones’ Benefit: Predictable to all, players can identify the target area 4. Man on man (every player is accountable for someone) Benefit: Can help to stop repeated opposition clearances Guidelines: Clearly defined and well practised Early nomination of hit zone and players roles Must be developed to include BALL-UPS, BTI’S in all ground area’s Needs to include roles for players outside the square/contested area

Anton Grbac 2005 Formulate your Game Strategy Mark Smart 2008 Know your players physical capabilities. eg. Height, skill level, strength, speed, endurance etc You need to utilise the groups strengths in your style of play. eg. Good talls – utilise a long kicking game to key targets Quick mids – running possession game Tactics need to evolve and good coaches tailor their strategy to meet the changing demands. eg. Rule changes, opposition, ground size, weather, state of the game etc Sell it to your players. If they are convinced they are more likely to carry it out. eg. Show them video footage of it’s success

Anton Grbac 2005 Implementation Mark Smart 2008 “You need to make sure you cater for the different ways players learn.” AUDIO (Hear-Tell them what, when, how) VISUAL (See-Show them diagrams, videos, notes) PHYSICAL (Demonstrate-Do on the track, mini oval mat’s) Practice repeatedly at training, your drills must have purpose and define your pattern of play Involve all players – every player in your group should know tactics for each area of the ground (backs, mids, forwards) Ask players questions to check their understanding

Anton Grbac 2005 Mark Smart 2008 How do you know it’s effective? 1. ANALYSIS Stats (only specific to your strategy) Video replay Observation Scoring breakdowns (quarters etc) 2.PLAYER FEEDBACK Leadership group 3.SUPPORT TEAM Assistant Coach Runner

Anton Grbac 2005 Maximum Involvement Mark Smart 2008 Development v Winning Culture THINGS TO CONSIDER: Rotating players in a variety of positions to give them the experience of playing back, mid, forward. Giving players with lesser ability fair game time through fair rotation policy. Rotating midfielders off the bench. Adolescent players will change body shape and have growth spurts at different rates, therefore you need to be aware of developing smalls and talls equally where possible.

Anton Grbac 2005 Mark Smart 2008 Questions ??