1. Tactics Standard Grade Physical Education

2. Learning Intentions By the end of this lesson you will; Understand why we use tactics in games. Understand what tactics should be used in specific situations.

3. Tactics In all competitive activities, the aim is to win. Simply, competitors hope to make the most of their strengths whilst exploiting the weaknesses of the opposition. A variety of tactics and strategies can be used to outwit and outmanoeuvre opponents. Before the activity begins, most competitors have a game plan in mind. A game plan can be adapted at any time during play.

4. Individual activities Individual activities can employ certain tactics for success. In cycling, cyclists slipstream behind one another to reduce resistance. This allows them to pedal at the same rate as the leader but with less effort as they are not cycling into the wind.

5. Individual activities In racket sports, a players tactic would be to make his opponent move in order to create space for a winning shot A player could play the tennis ball to the back of the court and the play the following shot to the front of the court so that it is difficult for the opponent to reach the ball.

6. Team activities Team activities employ different tactics than individual activities. The tactics must be planned on a bigger scale as there are more people involved. These can be in the form of a “Game-plan” or “Structure” which can be adapted to suit changing situations throughout the duration of the activity if necessary. i.e. If your team is losing or you have a player sent off.

7. Team Activities The tactics you use in an activity can depend on a number of different factors: 1) the strength of your team or your opponents. 2) The weaknesses of your team or your opponents.

8. Tactics 3) The Physical Qualities of your team and your opponents. 4) The performance of your team and your opponents team.

9. Team Activities In team activities each member will have a certain position and role within the structure or strategy. This role will be determined by their individual strengths and weaknesses. For example, in Baseball, the best catchers would man the bases and the best throwers would play outfield.

10. Team Activities We must also consider attack and defence tactics in team games. For example: Defence ‘A’ in Basketball could take the form of ‘man to man’ where each player is responsible for marking their opposite number. Defence ‘B’ could be the use of a Zone defence, where each defender marks space and not a particular player. We must also take into account width and depth in tactics.

11. Width and Depth Width in attack allows the team to spread the defence out, in order to create space and attacking alternatives. A defence marking a wide attack is less compact and much weaker. Depth in attack allows the attacking team to move the ball in many directions; across the field, forward, backwards. This varies the attacking options. A variety of passes are available.