Press types

We will play three different types of press in our championship matches this season.

Full, Player to Player – This is a press we will use when we believe we can win the ball high up the pitch AND when we believe the opposition can out-skill us in the middle of the pitch

Full, Zonal – This is a press we will use when we believe the opposition has weaknesses in the middle which we can exploit.

Half court (zone or player to player) – This is a press we will use when we believe the opposition has high-skill and/or we are tired and need to reserve energy (because you all moan about doing the bleep test and being fit 🙂 ).

Below are some examples to research and understand. These focus on Zone & Half court as the player to player press should be well know, though we will look at this in practice.

Zonal Press

Below are some good examples of teams playing a “zonal press”. Don’t get caught up on the references to structure, you should focus on:

• Identifying the “zones” created by the press and how they attract the in-possession team to play in to certain areas only.
• The angles the players at the front of the press cause the opposition to pass at.
• The movement needed by everyone in the press to hold the zones.
• The reactions of all out of possession players when a pass is made in to one of the zones.

Look how hard they have to work.

Think about their mindset, the discipline NOT to attack the ball immediately and the determination to win the ball when the time is right.

While watching, also look at the skills needed by the in-possession players to work their way through the press. Particuarly focus on the players who do NOT have the ball, the leads and effort they have to make.

Watch each video at least 4 times to take it in.

Den Bosch Press

Watch how the ladies at Den Bosch create a zonal defence and win the ball to create opportunities to go forward and score. Try and answer the questions that come up on screen and also

Which out of possession players (roles) are involved in this press (relate to the structure we play 1-4-2-3-1)?

Which in-possession players (roles) are trying to play out from this press?

Defensive Conflicts

This is a good example, highlighting the diamond’s or boxes the out of possession team is creating in their zonal press…… Watch how they move to “Player to Player” in their defensive third/quarter of the pitch. 

Also, look at the movements the “in-possession” team players make off of the ball. They have to make leads constantly to give options for passes.

Coach Hangout 1 Pressing 

Another good example of zonal press (don’t get too caught up in Spine/Column). You can clearly see how the out of possession team is forming boxes, encouraging the opposition to play in to certain spaces……

Its super important that they anticipate and then react when the in-possession team pass in to the spaces, they collapse on the player, forcing them to play backwards OR they win the ball.