Footwork drill
The Step
Groove the side step - the plant, the lean and the acceleration out of it.
- Time
- 12 minutes
- Players
- 1 to 10 players
- Intensity
- High
- Equipment
- Ball, cones
- Space
- 10m x 10m
- Positions
- All positions
Setup
A 10m x 10m area with five cones: one in the centre and four at the corners. One ball.
How to run it
- Carry the ball in two hands and run at the centre cone at pace as if it were a defender.
- Shorten your stride to decelerate, land your balance foot slightly ahead of your thrust foot with both knees bent and your balance foot on the toes, then plant your thrust foot firmly out to the side and lean your body the opposite way to the planted foot - push off the right foot to go left and the left foot to go right.
- Accelerate away round the outer cone at full speed, then jog back.
- Six reps stepping right and six stepping left, 3 sets.
- Think of it as two beats: a hard step to plant and drive, then a fast step to get away.
Coaching cues
- Hard step, then fast step
- Push off the right foot to go left
- Balance foot slightly ahead and on the toes
Common mistakes
- Stepping too early or too far from the cone, so no real defender would ever be fixed
- Dropping to one hand on the ball as you step
Related drills
- Cue Cone AgilityPattern the deceleration and lateral cut that a genuine side step is built on.
- Goose Step PatterningLearn the timing-disruption step used to beat cover defence in open field.
- Shadow RunBuild continuous evasive movement with a live shadow behind you.
- One-on-One EvasionBeat a live defender in a confined space, which is the real skill cone work only imitates.
- Narrowing Channel EvasionFind the exact width at which your evasion breaks down, and then train there.
- Evading the PlayerBeat a defender inside a channel that forces you to step rather than run around.