Win It Back

Tackling, tracking & transition

Gaelic football
U16
75 min
16–24 players
2 coaches
Effort 4/5
Half pitch
u16
tackling
tracking
transition
work-rate

The PitchPlans coaching teamGAA Award 1 & 2 coaches

Kit: 30 cones, 8 footballs, 20 bibs (2 colours)

Warm-up10 min

Shadow & Steal

Setup: Pairs inside a 30×30m square, one ball between two.

How it works: Ninety seconds each way: the player on the ball solos and changes direction; the shadow stays a hurley's length away, mirroring every cut without tackling. On the whistle, swap. Third round: the shadow may now flick a hanging ball — carrier protects it. Finish with both doing five press-ups any time their pair loses the ball out of the square. That's the only running you'll do tonight that isn't chasing someone.

What to say

“Shadows: short steps, eyes on the hips, not the ball.”
“Carriers: ball on the far side, body between.”

Easier

Walk-pace first round; no flicks.

Harder

Shadow starts a metre behind and must touch the carrier's shoulder on every stop.

Activity15 min

The Channel

Setup: Four channels, each 15×8m, marked with cones. One defender at the middle of each channel, attackers with a ball at one end, 3–4 per channel so nobody queues longer than one go.

How it works: Attacker solos into the channel and tries to carry over the far line; defender tracks, jockeys and makes a near-hand tackle — flat hand, knock the ball, no pulling. Attacker becomes the next defender, defender jogs to the attacking end. Two minutes, then rotate channels. Score channels against each other: a clean knock is two, holding the attacker up past five seconds is one.

What to say

“Low and balanced — knees bent, don't lunge.”
“Show them one side, then take it with the near hand.”
“Tackle the ball, never the arm.”

Easier

Wider channel; defender may only shepherd, no tackle.

Harder

STEPR: narrow to 5m; attacker must beat the tackle inside four seconds or it's the defender's point.

Activity15 min

Three-Second Swarm

Setup: Two 25×25m squares, 4v4 in each with bibs, one ball per square.

How it works: Possession game: five hand-passes is a point. The rule that matters — the instant your team loses the ball, you have three seconds to win it back while the coach counts down aloud. Win it back inside the count and the point you conceded is wiped. That swarm, over and over, is the conditioning; there are no separate runs.

What to say

“Nearest two sprint, everyone else cuts the passes.”
“Lost it? React first, moan later.”
“Win it low — strip the ball as they turn.”

Easier

Five-second count; 5v4 in favour of possession.

Harder

STEPR: two-touch passing; a turnover won inside the count scores double.

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

House session; structure follows the ICGG session template.

Free on PitchPlans — new sessions weekly.