Home Zones Gates
Activity
Put your players into partners and assign each of them a Home Zone this is where they must go when they have the ball and must remain to score a point. The objective of the exercise is for the players to have a ball in their Home Zone at the end of the activity. Every player that has a ball in their Home Zone wins a point for themselves or for their team, the team with the most points wins. In this example the blue player are starting with the ball in the blue home zone they must try and keep the ball in the blue half of the playing grid. The green players must go and steal one of the blue players balls and get to back to the green side of the playing grid.
If a player has the ball at the end of the activity but is not in their Home Zone they do not score a point for their team. If a player dribbles the ball outside of the grid you must give the ball to the player who forced you out of the grid.
Variations & Progressions
Players can only return to their Home Zone by dribbling through one side or half of the pitch. They can still dribble or keep the ball away anywhere in either zone but to get back home they must use one side of the pitch only.
Add two wide gates when a player wins the ball and needs to get back to their home zone they must go through either if the wide gates they can not go through the middle part of the playing grid.
In this variation the blue players are starting in the Green Home Zone and need to get their ball back to the Blue Home Zone however their partners have lined up and blocking the gate back to the Blue Home Zone. The blue players must find a way to get back by trying to beat their partner through the gate infront of them or maybe dribbling across to the other wide gate that is open. You could give the blue players a 2 or 3 second head start to get this one going but make them have to go through the other wide gate.
Add one central gate, when a player wins the ball they must go through the central gate to get back to their Home zone. You can vary the size of the central gate making it smaller and smaller as the activity progresses.
Coaching Points
Dribble at speed if you can get through your gate without the defender blocking your way
When you win the ball try to keep the ball and look around first to see if one gate or the other is easier for you to attack and get back to your Home Zone
Draw the defender away from the gate or side of the field you need to go by dribbling to space so you can then try and attack them and beat them to the gate or side you need to go through