Off the Line

The keeper as a spare defender — starting position that reads the danger, sweeping in behind the last line, and being the calm plus-one who starts the attack again.

Gaelic football
Goalkeepers · Any age
60 min
1–2 keepers + 4–6 outfield helpers
1 coach
Effort 3/5
The goal out to the 45m line
goalkeeping
sweeper-keeper
positioning
reading-the-game
playing-out

The PitchPlans coaching teamGAA Award 1 & 2 coaches

Kit: One goal, 12 footballs, 14 flat cones, bibs

Warm-up10 min

Feet, Scan, Handle

Setup: A ladder of cones from the goal out to 20m and a ball each. The sweeper-keeper lives on quick feet and a busy head, so the warm-up wakes both before any sprinting out is asked for.

How it works: Footwork first: quick steps through the cones, side-shuffles, forward and back, keeping the chest up and the eyes forward rather than down. Add a scan on every change of direction — a coach holds up a number out wide that must be called. Then handle on the move: jog out, receive a rolled ball, scoop it clean and play it back, mimicking coming off the line to a loose one. Build the tempo in gears so the first real sprint out is into a warm, switched-on body.

What to say

“Chest up, eyes out — a sweeper reads the pitch, not the grass.”
“Small quick steps — the ready feet let you change your mind late.”
“Scan on every turn — call what you see before you get the ball.”

Easier

Slow the footwork and drop the scan until the feet are comfortable.

Harder

Two coaches show numbers on different sides so the head is always working.

Activity14 min

Start Position

Setup: Place a ball on a cone out near the 45 and mark an arc of cones from post to post at the top of the small square. A helper walks the ball across the cones — left, centre, right. Keeper works the arc.

How it works: This is the quiet, unglamorous skill that makes everything else possible: where to stand. As the helper carries the ball across the top, the keeper slides along the arc so they are always on the line between the ball and the middle of the goal, and a few steps higher than a shot-stopper would stand — high enough to sweep, deep enough to save. Walk it, then jog it, then let the helper vary the depth of the ball so the keeper steps out as danger recedes and drops as it comes. Get them to freeze on a call and check their own position: ball, me, goal, all in a line.

The technique, step by step

Find the line between the ball and the centre of your goal.
Set your depth a step or two higher than for shot-stopping.
Slide along the arc as the ball travels — shuffle, do not cross the feet.
Read the depth of the danger and adjust your height with it.
Freeze-check on a call: ball, me, goal, all in one line.

What to say

“Ball, you, middle of the goal — stay on that line as the ball moves.”
“Higher than a shot-stopper — a step or two off your line buys you the sweep.”
“Danger comes, you drop; danger recedes, you step up — never planted.”

Easier

STEPR: the helper walks a slow, predictable path so the keeper grooves the slide along the arc.

Harder

STEPR: two helpers pass the ball across quickly so the angle jumps and the keeper must re-set position fast.

Activity14 min

Sweep and Clear

Setup: A defensive line of two cones marks the last line 25m out. A server plays balls in behind it — some rolling through, some chipped over. One attacker chases each ball. Keeper starts on the arc.

How it works: Now the keeper reads the through ball and acts as the last defender. The rule is decisiveness: come and claim it or clear it, or stay and set for the shot, but never that fatal half-yard of hesitation that gets a keeper caught in no man's land. For a ball rolling into the space, attack it early, get the body across the attacker's line and either gather clean or clear first time and safe. For a ball chipped over, judge whether you can win it or must recover to the goal. Ten reads, alternating rolling and chipped, then swap keepers. Coach the decision as hard as the action.

Common mistakes

The half-yard of hesitation — starting to come, changing your mind, arriving late for both.
Clearing without looking — a blind first-time clearance straight to an attacker is a gift.

Rounds: 10 reads per keeper — rolling to sweep, chipped to judge

What to say

“Decide early and go all the way — the half-committed sweep is the one that costs a goal.”
“Ball across the ground: attack it, body between attacker and ball, gather or clear safe.”
“Ball over the top: honest call — if you cannot win it, recover to your line fast.”

Easier

STEPR: only rolling balls into obvious space, no chase, so the read and the decision are clean.

Harder

STEPR: mix rolling and chipped with no pattern and a live attacker at full tilt, forcing a genuine last-line judgement.

The rest of this session is free — along with 3 more this week.

PitchPlans coaching team

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