Keep the ball close under control at speed. Use small, choppy touches with the inside and outside of both feet through the rings, stay balanced, then push the ball and accelerate clear.
Lay five agility rings in a line about a metre apart with a start and finish cone. Dribble through the rings with small, choppy touches, both feet, keeping the ball tight, then accelerate out through the finish. Sprint back and go again, building the speed as control improves. Work both feet and keep the head up between touches.
Rings force more touches per metre than cones do, and that is the entire reason to use them. A cone can be passed with one touch either side; a ring has to be navigated with the ball placed precisely, which means shorter, choppier contacts and a higher rate of foot-on-ball. If a session wants touch frequency specifically, this is the equipment that produces it.
Which makes the number worth measuring rather than assuming. Counting touches through a set course, then trying to beat it without losing control, gives players a target that is more useful than being told to take smaller touches. It also exposes the trade-off honestly: past a certain point, more touches means slower travel, and the right balance depends on the situation being trained.
The rings also demand balance in a way cones do not, because the feet have to land in specific places while the ball is being manipulated. Staying low with a bent knee is what makes that possible; upright players catch rings with a trailing foot and lose rhythm.
Both feet, inside and outside, is the same standard as any close-control exercise. Rings are unforgiving about it, since a strong-foot-only route through them quickly becomes impossible.
The exit is worth coaching and usually is not. After a sequence of tiny touches, a player has to push the ball and accelerate clear, and switching from choppy control to a driving touch is a genuine gear change. Ending the course with five yards of open space and a target makes that transition part of the exercise rather than an afterthought.
Save it to your private drills, then change the animation, adjust positions, swap equipment, or drop it into a session block. Or start from a blank pitch and build your own.