Four corners
Why it works
Four movements chained with no stop between them is the thing a defender actually does on a play, and it is the only drill on this shelf that makes a player change direction while already moving rather than from standing.
Run it
6 MINThree laps each way round, so both shoulders lead. Six minutes for a squad of twelve across two squares. Stop when the feet start crossing, because a sloppy lap teaches the habit you came to remove.
Say this
“Shoulders square the whole lap.”
Turning the chest to go sideways is how a defender loses sight of the ball, and the square is where that habit shows.
“Do not cross your feet.”
A crossed foot on a shuffle is a trip waiting to happen and a yard given away on every change of direction.
“Step on the corner, do not curve around it.”
Rounding a corner is how five yards becomes seven and how the change of direction stops being trained.
Good looks like
- Shoulders stay pointed the same way for the whole lap.
- Feet never cross on either shuffle side.
- A foot lands beside each cone rather than a yard outside it.
- The sprint side is clearly faster than the backpedal side.
The mistakes
Swivelling into a run on the shuffle sides. Stand in the middle and tell them to keep their numbers pointed at you.
Say: “Shoulders square the whole lap.”
Galloping sideways. Slow the lap down to walking pace until the feet stop crossing, then build it back up.
Say: “Do not cross your feet.”
Drifting wide at every cone. Make them put a foot beside the cone before they change movement.
Say: “Step on the corner, do not curve around it.”
A three-yard square and walk the backpedal side. One direction only, and let the shuffle look like a gallop for a while.
Seven-yard square, and a coach throws a ball to be caught on the sprint side so the lap finishes with the eyes somewhere else.