Practice Plan: Spacing and Off Ball Play Principles

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Warm Up: Chaos Keep Away
Activity 2: 3v2 with Ghost Cuts
Activity 3: Diamond Keep Away to the Goal
Activity 4: Floor is Lava Game
Activity 5: Small Field Build Up Game

Please Note: The practice is designed to bring value across multiple age levels. You can use this as a foundation to build and develop your own practice. With that being said, we highly encourage you to adjust the drills based on your team’s age and skill levels. Lacrosse Drive should always be used as a starting point — you can make drills easier or harder by changing the constraints.

To make a drill easier, you might Increase the playing area, reduce the number of defenders or rules, add time or space to make decisions

To make a drill harder, you might: Shrink the field or add boundaries, add defenders or touch restrictions (e.g., “one-pass before shooting”), or Limit time or space to force faster decisions

Small adjustments to field size, player numbers, and rules can significantly change the challenge level while maintaining the same core learning goal.

Theme Description & Objected: Spacing & Off Ball Play

Team Principles & Actions: This practice is designed to work on player spacing on the offensive end, and building in off ball play for both the offense and defense. Players will start learning how to work together to create plays on both ends of the field!

10 Minutes

Warm Up: Chaos Keep Away

Set Up

Create a small area playing field and split players into 2 teams. Both teams at opposite end of the fields, and lacrosse balls to the middle of the field. I usually like to you 1/2 balls to players.. so if there are 20 total players, use 10 balls. On the whistle, the players will run in trying to get a ball. Once they gain possession, they must run away and escape the defenders staying in the playing area. The team with the most balls at the end of 1 minute wins that round

Rules

Players can pass to teammates to escape pressure and maintain possession
If they go out of bounds with a ball, turnover to defending player
Players without the ball, can pressure to take away and flip a possession
The team who possesses the most balls after 1 minute, wins

Coaching Points & Principles

Groundballs! Winn the ground ball battles
Stick control & cradling with the ball vs pressure
Teamwork, don’t be afraid to pass to open teammates to maintain possessions

Tags

Ball Control (with the ball)Beginner Game - Live Play Ground Ball Battles Ground Balls Intermediate Men’s Lacrosse Small Area Games Small Area Games U10 U12 U14 U8

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10 Minutes

Activity 2: 3v2 with Ghost Cuts

Set Up

Create an 8×8 box using cones. Put 3 offensive players on the perimeter and 2 defenders in the middle. The offense is to play keep away. The offense must make a backdoor cut after every pass, cutting to open space. The defense must always pressure the ball and constantly sliding and recovering

Coaching Points & Principles

Offense – Moving with and without the ball, passing, and maintaining good spacing
Defense – Pressuring the Ball, sliding/recovery

Progressions

Make the box smaller and harder, or bigger and easier depending on skillset
Play 4v3 or 5v4

Tags

3v2 4v3 5v4 Advanced Decision Making Defense Slide & Recovery Foundational Skills Intermediate Men’s Lacrosse Off Ball Defensive Play Off Ball Offensive Play Offense Spacing Principles Passing Small Area Games Team Passing U10 U12 U14

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10 Minutes

Activity 3: Diamond Keep Away to the Goal

Set Up

Set up cones in the shape of a diamond in the playing area. You can make it larger to force longer passes but the stand length should be about 8-10 yards away from each other. On the sideline, set up 3 lines of each team, depending on your group size. They should be alternating (dark, light, dark, light, etc..). Coach rolls a ball into the field (doesn’t have to be inside the diamond), and the team that picks up the ball is on offense. Another teammate from the winning team will join, giving them an advantage (4v3). At this point the game-play will move to the cones, and the defense has to stay inside the diamond while the offense needs to stay out. Play keep away until coach blows a second whistle, and then its live to the goal!

Coaching Points and Principles

Ground Balls
Offense – Make good passes, a teammate should be at an adjacent cone. If the player with the ball carries, the offense should move like a carousel maintaining their spacing. In transition to the goal, find the open teammate/advantage and get a good shot on cage
Defense – Communicate, who has ball! Need no play the ball, and have backside zone since we are playing with 1 less player. One the ball is passed, a new defender should slid to the ball, and the previous defender on ball needs to get back inside for backside supper and help

Progressions

Make the groups smaller (2 lines of each color) so it turns into a 3v2 for more spacing at younger ages
if you have more than 4 players (5v4) we can put an offensive players on the crease who can rotate in and out during the keep away play

Tags

3v2 4v3 5v4 All Fundamental Team Offense & Defense Game - Live Play Ground Balls Intermediate Offense Spacing Principles Passing Small Area Games Small Area Games Transition U10 U12 U14

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Activity 4: Floor is Lava Game

Set Up

Create a small 8×8 area in front of the goal, that is the lava. The player will play a 4v4 or 5v5 game, with the rule being the offense can’t stay in the lava more than 2 seconds. If a player dodges into the lava, they must get a shot or make a pass and leave within the time window. If a teammate wants to cut through the middle for a look at the goal, they can but must get back out of the crease. The defense has NO time rule for the lava if they want to support and help other teammates

Coaching Points & principles

We are trying to keep the middle of the score field clear for our teammates
We don’t want to overcrowd each other
Players should all be moving during the entire game

Tags

3v3 4v4 5v5 Advanced Decision Making Game - Live Play Intermediate Lacrosse IQ Men’s Lacrosse Offense Spacing Principles Small Area Games Small Area Games Team Defense Principles Team Offense Principles Team Systems & Conceptual Play U10 U12 U14

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Activity 5: Small Field Build Up Game

Summary

A fun small sided game that focuses on transition play with both advantages and creating advantages.

Tags

3v2 3v3 4v3 4v4 5v4 5v5 Advanced Game - Live Play Intermediate Men’s Lacrosse Small Area Games Small Area Games Transition U12 U14

Set Up

Set up a small fair area field, we’re using the restraining box area here and put two attack and 2 defense in on each end. Set up midfielders at the midline on their defense end lined up in a single file line. The game is going start with one team have an advantage so we’re giving the dark team the ball first they go down and play three on two. Once the play ends a new offensive player from the defensive team will come in on the wing. The offensive midfielder will stay on the field and get back and play defense and there will be transition other way going 3v3. Same thing, play till the whistle and then a new player will come on and then we’ll go back down the other way 4V3. We are building this up until I get to 5v5. One team will have advantage for every rep, one team will play all even every rep. Once you finish the 5V5, start a new round and give the other team the chance to start the ball and have an advantage every rep.

Coaching Points & Principles

Transition play – recognize all even or advantages
If playing with advantage, find the 2v1 and try to get a shot off quick
If playing all even, focus on creating advantages by clearing space, dodging, drawing slides, etc..

Progressions

Add a shot clock
Play full field

Tags

3v2 3v3 4v3 4v4 5v4 5v5 Advanced Game - Live Play Intermediate Men’s Lacrosse Small Area Games Small Area Games Transition U12 U14

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