Hockey Session (Under 12s): Three Cone Drill

Screen 1 (20 mins)

Goal:

To train your goalkeepers to quickly get on angle and clear the ball into a low, risk-free zone.

Skill emphasis:

Footwork —encourage your goalkeepers to stay off the baseline and step out to meet the ball and close down the angle

Decision-making

Variety of saves — lunges, half-highs, glove saves

Clearing — focus on clearing the ball below the orange cones, into a "risk-free" or "lower-risk" zone of the circle

Drill:

The cone pattern (which cone to run to first) is completely up to the goalkeeper — the only rules are that they can't skip a cone and they can't go to the same cone twice.

1. The goalkeeper starts in the middle of the cage (the shaded area on the graphic)

2. When the coach yells "go", the goalkeeper chooses any of the three cones to run to before getting back on angle for the first shot from the coach

3. After the save, the goalkeeper chooses another cone to run to and return from for the second shot

4. After the save, the goalkeeper runs to the cone they haven't yet gone to, returns for the final shot

5. Goalkeepers rotate

Recommended:

Switch sides after three to five repetitions per goalkeeper.

For newer goalkeepers, give them time to get set before shooting the ball, even correcting them if they are off-angle, let them check their posts and adjust. Keep the shots consistent, flat and moderate pace.

For more advanced goalkeepers, vary your shot's pace, height, and timing (sometimes shooting after they are set, sometimes shooting while they're still moving).

Be creative: use three different color cones and have the other goalkeeper yell out which color they need to touch before the shot, maybe go one-on-one with the last ball, keep score if they clear the ball below the orange cone...make this drill your own!