Getting In Behind: U13-U15 Final Third (85 Min)

Objective: Warm up the passing and the third-man idea together

Coach note: Keep it flowing rather than perfect. The point to plant here is the third-man idea, that the decisive pass often goes to somebody other than the player the ball was first played into, because it reframes what the runners in the later blocks are looking for. Firm passing from the first minute, since a soft pass into a combination gets intercepted.

Objective: Face the goal, and break the line at the right instant

Coach note: Turning first, because it is the enabler: a striker facing his own goal cannot see or play the run, so the turn is what makes the whole picture available. Then the run, and the fault is always the same, which is going too early. Early is offside, and worse, it tells the defender exactly where the pass is going before it is played. Coach the discipline of staying level and breaking on the pass, which feels slow to an eager attacker and is correct. Watch the offside line honestly and call it, because a run that is not actually onside teaches nothing. Water break between the two activities.

Objective: Synchronise the two, and play into the runner

Coach note: This is where the two halves become one action. On the pass, weight and timing are everything and a ball to the feet stops the runner dead, so judge every rep on whether the runner had to slow down. The passer shifting the ball from one foot to the other is the detail that opens the lane and keeps both feet available, and it is worth isolating because almost no young player does it unprompted. On the double movement, the check away is what creates the space the break exploits, so the two moves are a single deception rather than two separate runs. Water break between the two activities.

Objective: Get in behind a set defence in a full game

Coach note: The neutrals keep possession stable enough that the defence organises, which is what forces the players to solve the actual problem of breaking a set line rather than running onto loose balls. Reward getting in behind on the scoreboard, more for a chance made by a run beyond the line than for one forced through traffic, because the scoreboard shifts behaviour faster than instruction. Watch for the team that keeps trying to walk it through the middle and name it. Coach in short bursts between goals rather than freezing the game.

Objective: End calmly and fix the timing cue

Coach note: Keep this short and be honest about why it exists. Cool-down research in adults shows no effect on soreness or next-day performance and there is no children's evidence at all, so this block is here for ritual and reflection. Ask why going too early is worse than going a fraction late. The answer, that early is both offside and a giveaway of where the ball is going, is the one cue that will most improve their runs, so it is worth hearing them say it.