Zig zag pull
Why it works
Standing defenders take the chase out of it, which leaves exactly one thing to coach: arriving under control and taking two flags with two hands. It warms a group up because the runner is sprinting between every stop, and the queue moves fast.
Run it
6 MINTwo runs each through the line. Six minutes for a squad of twelve, which is enough for everybody to run twice and stand twice. Stop earlier if the stops stop happening.
Say this
“Break down a yard short.”
Arriving under control is what makes two hands possible. Arriving at full speed only allows a swipe.
“Both hands, both flags.”
In a game the flag you can reach is not always the one you get, so the habit has to be both.
“Pull down and through, not sideways.”
A flag comes off cleanest straight down the leg, and a sideways yank pulls the player off balance instead.
Good looks like
- The runner is visibly sprinting between defenders and visibly stopping at each one.
- Both hands arrive at hip height at the same time.
- Both flags come off in one motion on most reps.
- Defenders stay still with their hands on their hips the whole time.
The mistakes
Running through and grabbing on the way past. Stand a cone a yard in front of each defender and make them stop at it.
Say: “Break down a yard short.”
Taking the near flag only and moving on. Count a rep as zero unless both flags came off.
Say: “Both hands, both flags.”
Tugging across the body, which spins a standing defender and teaches a push in a real game.
Say: “Pull down and through, not sideways.”
Two defenders, three yards apart, and the runner walks in. Getting both flags off a stationary belt is the whole task at this age.
Let each defender take one step in any direction as the runner arrives, so the square-up has to find a moving hip.