TeloframeTeloframe
Features
For CoachesFor ClubsPricingLibraryDrills
Sign inStart free
TeloframeTeloframe
The connected football coaching platform. Plan sessions, build drills, manage teams, develop players, visualize tactics.
Product
Tactics Board3D PitchAnimation TimelineAI ToolsSession PlannerDrill EditorTeam ManagementPlayer DevelopmentClub WorkspaceExport & Sharing
Explore
Tactical LibraryFormations guideSession plansTraining Drill LibraryYouTube tutorialsBlog
For
Academy coachesFirst-team staffFederationsContent creatorsAgenciesSession Planner SoftwareTactics Board Software
Company
AboutPricingFAQContactCareersOpen TeloframeSecurity
© 2026 Teloframe (formerly FC Tactix). All rights reserved.
Privacy PolicyTerms of ServiceData Processing AddendumSubprocessorsCookie Policy
TeloframeTeloframe
Features
For CoachesFor ClubsPricingLibraryDrills
Sign inStart free
/
/
/
TeloframeTeloframe
The connected football coaching platform. Plan sessions, build drills, manage teams, develop players, visualize tactics.
Product
Tactics Board3D PitchAnimation TimelineAI ToolsSession PlannerDrill EditorTeam ManagementPlayer DevelopmentClub WorkspaceExport & Sharing
Explore
Tactical LibraryFormations guideSession plansTraining Drill LibraryYouTube tutorialsBlog
For
Academy coachesFirst-team staffFederationsContent creatorsAgenciesSession Planner SoftwareTactics Board Software
Company
AboutPricingFAQContactCareersOpen TeloframeSecurity
© 2026 Teloframe (formerly FC Tactix). All rights reserved.
Privacy PolicyTerms of ServiceData Processing AddendumSubprocessorsCookie Policy
TeloframeTeloframe
Features
For CoachesFor ClubsPricingLibraryDrills
Sign inStart free
Home/Training Drills/Defensive Drills/Win It and Keep It
DefensiveBeginner

Win It and Keep It

Turn a tackle into possession. Stay on your feet so you can play immediately, take the first touch away from the attacker rather than upfield, and find a team-mate instead of clearing it. Winning the ball and giving it back is not a defensive success.

Create your own drill
Live animationDEF
Duration
12 min
Total drill time
Players
3
Recommended
Pitch
24 × 16 m
Setup space
Level
Beginner
Skill required
Intensity
Medium
Physical demand
Age band
U9-U10
Any format

Setup & instructions

Mark a 24x16m channel with a mini goal at one end for the attacker and a gate of two cones at the other. An attacker starts with the ball and attacks the mini goal, a defender faces him, and a team-mate supports behind and to one side. The defender contains, waits for the ball to be knocked past, and wins it standing up. From that moment the repetition is only successful if the ball leaves through the gate under control, either carried or passed via the team-mate. A clearance, a kick out of play or a ball surrendered straight back all count as a failed repetition even if the tackle was perfect. Rotate all three roles every two repetitions.

Setup time: 2 min

Tactical breakdown

Watch any youth match and count what happens in the second after a young defender wins the ball. Most of the time it goes straight back to the opposition, launched upfield or out of play, and the touchline applauds. The tackle gets the credit and the giveaway that followed goes unmentioned.

The governing-body guidance on introducing defending is unusually blunt about this. Coaches are told not to praise aimless clearances or kicks out of play, because what gets cheered is what gets repeated, and a child who is applauded for hoofing it learns that the job ends at the tackle.

It does not. Defending is what a team does while it waits to attack, so a regain that is immediately surrendered has achieved almost nothing. The scoreboard treats it as a turnover either way.

That is why this practice scores the outcome rather than the tackle. The defender can win the ball perfectly and still fail the repetition if the ball does not leave under control. It feels harsh for about two repetitions, and then players start looking up before they have even won it.

Staying on the feet is what makes the rest possible. A defender who wins it standing can play the next pass immediately, while one who slides has produced a loose ball that either team might reach. Sliding is occasionally necessary and usually a last resort.

The first touch is the other half. Taken away from the attacker it buys the moment needed to find a team-mate; taken blindly upfield it is a clearance wearing better clothes.

A useful thing to tell young defenders: the tackle is not the end of the job, it is the start of ours having the ball.

How to run this drill

  1. Contain before you tackle. Stay side on and patient. The ball becomes available when the attacker knocks it past himself, and everything before that moment is containment.
  2. Win it standing up. A defender on his feet can play the next pass. One who goes to ground has produced a loose ball that either team might get to first.
  3. First touch away from the attacker. Into space, not blindly upfield. That touch is what buys the second you need to lift your head and find somebody.
  4. Look for a shirt, not for distance. Distance is the instinct and it is usually the wrong one. The nearest team-mate keeps the ball, the biggest kick gives it away.
  5. Score the outcome, not the tackle. The repetition counts only if the ball leaves under control. Players start scanning before they have even won it once this is the rule.

Coaching focus

FROM SESSION PLAN

Coaching points

  • Contain first, the tackle is something the attacker eventually allows
  • Win it standing up, a defender on the floor cannot play the next pass
  • First touch away from the attacker, not aimlessly upfield
  • Look for a team-mate before you look for distance
  • The repetition ends when we still have the ball, not when you win it

Common mistakes

  • Diving in early, so there is no ball to keep in the first place
  • Winning it on the floor and producing a loose ball either side can reach
  • Clearing it on instinct because that is what gets cheered
  • Taking the first touch straight back into the attacker's path

Progressions & regressions

VARIATIONS

Progressions

  • Attacker is allowed to counter-press for two seconds after losing it
  • Two touches only once the ball is won, so the head comes up earlier
  • Add a second attacker so the support pass has to be chosen, not automatic

Regressions

  • Attacker works at walking pace so the tackle can be timed calmly
  • Support player starts closer and stationary
  • Allow unlimited touches once the ball is won
Equipment
Cones×2
Goals×1
Markers×1
Tactical principles
youth defending drilldefending to attackwinning the ball backu9 defendingu10 defending drillfirst touch after a tacklegrassroots defendingblock tackle follow upstop clearing the balldefending small sided
Audience
U9-U10

Make it yours

Save this drill to your private library, then tweak the animation, swap equipment, or drop it into a session.

Explore more drills

LIBRARY
All Defensive drillsAll drill collectionsDefensive for U9-U10

Ready to run this drill?

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.

Library Create your own drill
TeloframeTeloframe
The connected football coaching platform. Plan sessions, build drills, manage teams, develop players, visualize tactics.
Product
Tactics Board3D PitchAnimation TimelineAI ToolsSession PlannerDrill EditorTeam ManagementPlayer DevelopmentClub WorkspaceExport & Sharing
Explore
Tactical LibraryFormations guideSession plansTraining Drill LibraryYouTube tutorialsBlog
For
Academy coachesFirst-team staffFederationsContent creatorsAgenciesSession Planner SoftwareTactics Board Software
Company
AboutPricingFAQContactCareersOpen TeloframeSecurity
© 2026 Teloframe (formerly FC Tactix). All rights reserved.
Privacy PolicyTerms of ServiceData Processing AddendumSubprocessorsCookie Policy