Drag Back Turn
Set Up
Activity
This activity is designed to help introduce and teach beginner players the Drag Back Turn used to change direction. There are several stages and progressions in this activity and you should follow them in order when introducing this to beginner players who are in the process of learning and acquiring this skill.
The most important rule to follow is that you should NOT move from the Blocked Practice stage until you start to see the player perform the skill with some degree of competence. It does not have to be prefect but if there are still major flaws in the technique you need to stick with it, if you move on before this the player will be learning and reinforcing the poor technique.
Blocked
The first part of your activity will introduce the Drag Back Turn. Demonstrate the turn, have all the players try the turn. Have players dribble within the playing grid and execute the Drag Back Turn as often as they can. You can have them dribble to the edge of the grid and execute it or execute every two or three dribble touches. Remind them not to execute the turn unless they have space and to dribble avoiding the other players.
Series
The next step is to incorporate the Drag Back turn with two other moves or actions in a series that remains the same. One that you can use is Dribble > Drag Back Turn > Stop > Scissor > Toe Touches > Dribble. Have your players keep repeating this sequence this will add additional info and make them have to recall and focus more on how to execute the Drag Back Turn.
Random
The next stage is to randomize the different elements you had in the previous series, this can be a challenging part of the process to design an activity that has a random order to it. In this activity you can let your players try to combine the elements into as many different series as they can or the coach can create the sequence of moves to keep it random.
Low Opposition
The next activity will introduce a low level of pressure and opposition and give the players a chance to try the Drag Back Turn with an opponent. In this example have 6 of your players with a ball and two defenders who will be trying to steal their balls. The players with the balls must dribble in the playing grid and try to use the Drag Back Turn every time they get to the edge of the grid and also when they can to keep the ball from the two defenders. Do not make it mandatory to use the Drag back Turn to keep the ball from the defenders. Consider having the defenders only walk to begin the activity.
1v1
The final stage is to give your player an opportunity to use the Drag Back Turn in a more game realistic situation and in a 1v1 situation against a defender. The player with the ball starts facing the defender. The players with the ball must use a Drag Back Turn and dribble the ball over the red line before the defender can steal it from them. Make the activity easier or harder by altering how close the players start to each other and how far the line is.
1v1
A variation is to have both the players with the ball and the defender start side by side. The player with the ball starts by executing the Drag Back Turn away from the defender, then they must keep the ball and dribble into the blue zone.
Coaching Points
Coaching Points
- Players will not roll the ball back far enough so it makes it difficult for them to dribble away in the other direction
- Players will roll the ball away too far so they do not have control of the next dribble touch and will lose the ball to a defender
Tips
- Slow the player down and have them first focus on stopping the ball with the sole of the foot and maintaining balance
- Have the player practice rolling the ball back across the body and as they do that they turn
- Have the player try and roll the ball so it goes across the body, they can turn and take their next touch in the direction they want to go