Decision Making drill
Seven v Four Continuous
Make attacking decisions while genuinely fatigued, which is when they actually fail.
- Time
- 25 minutes
- Players
- 8 to 14 players
- Intensity
- High
- Equipment
- Ball, cones
- Space
- Half field
- Positions
- All positions
Setup
Half or full field, one ball, seven attackers against four defenders. The attack starts inside their own 22.
How to run it
- The seven attackers run and pass at the four defenders using miss-passes, decoys and scissors to exploit the overload, and the moment you score you turn immediately and attack back the other way with minimal rest - that lack of recovery is the entire point.
- Play touch first and add contact once it is flowing, doing 4-6 lengths per block across 2-3 blocks.
- Resist the urge to stop and coach constantly, because the conditioning stimulus is what makes the decisions realistic.
- Decisions slow down straight after a hard effort, not only as tiredness builds, so also run a short version: a 20-second maximal shuttle followed immediately by one two-on-one rep.
Coaching cues
- Turn and go again immediately - no rest
- Use the overload, don't just run at them
- Don't over-stop it; the fatigue is the point
Common mistakes
- Stopping constantly to coach, which removes the fatigue that makes it valuable
- Reverting to lateral passing when tired instead of attacking the space
Session plans that use this drill
Related drills
- Two v OneCommit a defender and release at exactly the right moment - the foundational attacking decision.
- Opposed Two v OneMake the two-on-one decision in a confined grid where the defender can genuinely win.
- Chain Grid SupportLink continuous decisions across multiple contacts rather than one isolated rep.
- Three v Two ExitUse an overload under pressure with no fixed pattern to fall back on.
- Them Us Ball ScanningBuild the habit of scanning continuously, which is what separates good decision-makers.
- GladiatorReact to a sudden cue and win a one-on-one from a standing start.