The driven pass: low and firm
Transcript
A driven pass gets the ball to a teammate fast, along the ground. Here's how. Warm up first. You need a partner, a ball and four cones. Make two gates, two metres wide, fifteen metres apart. Stand behind one each. Watch. Strike it firmly through your partner's gate. They stop it and drive it back. First, stay on the grass all the way. Then, plant your standing foot beside the ball, and hit through the middle with your laces. Our target is four sets of ten, a different foot each set, with a minute of rest. Then take the free test at footballreach.com.
What it trains
Strike a firm pass along the ground over 15-20 m. England Football describes the driven pass as striking through the middle of the ball with your laces or instep: a fast pass that can thread through small gaps over longer distances.
Set up
- A partner and a ball
- 4 cones
- Two 2 m gates
- 15 m between gates
How it works
- Warm up first. On flat grass, set two 2 m gates (2 cones each) 15 m apart. Use a size 4 ball at U12-U13 and a size 5 from U14.
- Stand just behind one gate each, with the ball at your feet.
- Strike the ball firmly along the ground with your laces, through your partner's gate.
- Your partner stops it and drives it back through your gate. Stop it and go again.
- Do 4 sets of 10 passes, a different foot each set, with 1 minute of rest between sets.
Coaching points
- Stay on the grass. Keep the ball on the grass from your foot to your partner's gate. If it bounces or lifts, keep your body over the ball and strike a little softer.
- Hit through the middle. Plant your standing foot beside the ball, pointing at the gate, then strike through the middle of the ball with your laces.
Not this
Leaning back or striking under the ball. The pass lifts and bounces instead of running along the grass.
Dose
- 4 x 10 passes, 1 min rest
- Switch feet every set
Our target: 4 x 10, a different foot each set: a Football Reach target, not an FA rule. Your 20 weaker-foot passes count toward the plan's 200.
Harder / Easier
Harder
Move the gates to 20 m apart once 8 of 10 passes go through. Then shrink your partner's gate to 1 m, or play every pass first time.
Easier
Set the gates 10 m apart and strike a little softer until the ball stays on the grass.
Safety
- Flat, dry grass with clear space behind both gates, never a road or a driveway.
- Check nobody is walking behind the gates before you strike.
- Passes along the ground only, nothing lifted into the air.
Sources
- England Football Learning - different passing techniques (the drive) (opens in a new tab)
- England Football Learning - how to coach passing (opens in a new tab)
- England Football Learning - how to build a passing session (opens in a new tab)
- England Football FutureFit - ball sizes by age group (opens in a new tab)
Not sure which skill to work on first? The free Football Reach test gives you a Player Development Score and shows which of the four corners of your game to work on next, in about two minutes.
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