Patience Little Grasshopper, Patience.....

When I was young many many years ago, Jimmy Carter was President of the United States, Pierre Trudeau was Prime Minister of Canada,  Jim Callaghan and then Margaret Thatcher were the Prime Ministers of the UK. The Cold War was hot, and the coaches refrain from the touchline was "GET STUCK IN,TACKLE HIM". All players were expected to tackle and be tackled, it was our principal means of stopping the enemy.

We became focused on this as our pure and masculine means of stopping those opponents who dared cross into our half of the pitch. They were to be stopped, left for dead and their remains collected at the end of the match. It was an athletic version of Bannockburn, the Boyne and Vimy Ridge to be played out over ninety minutes.
The attackers were more than willing to oblige, like heavy cavalry, Sherman tanks, or battering rams they wanted to take the defenders on, knock them down and charge the net. Their strategic arsenal was limited because of rougher pitches, heavier boot/cleats, and balls that weighed three times what they do now.  It was hard to get around players with stepovers, and Cruyff turns when the technique hadn't quite developed, and the equipment and terrain favoured the defenders.

Then  kangaroo leather and synthetics arrived. Lighter boots meant quicker feet, and more moves. The balls weren't heavy and didn't get heavy in the rain. This too meant increased ability to perform tricks with the ball and to get around defenders.

And defenders, we kept wanting to get stuck in. The result? we started to get beat, turned to our own nets and committing fouls. It was not a happy time. Defenders who were impatient and wanted to get the job done as they did in the past were left looking the worst.

Now one kid I played with, who was given the ironic nickname of "Flash" for his tremendous lack of pace, seemed to do a little better than the "GET STUCK IN" crowd. Why? Because he was patient, he watched the ball, and jockeyed the attacker until they made the first move. I am absolutely certain he did this because he understood his limitations, not because he was an outstanding tactical thinker. He was just prudent. We were lucky to have him.

What is this discussion leading to? I would suspect most of the coaches reading this would anticipate jockeying, and they would be correct.

To Jockey, Not To Jockey, and When to Jockey?

The above video show a really simple way of explaining the art of jockeying.

1 The defender closes down the attacker and keeps her in front of her;

2. She angles her body to direct the attacker (in a game she would stay between her and the goal);

3. She maintains the angle to prevent the attacker from putting it between her legs (And if she does she blocks the attacker in any event);

4. She is light on her feet, with her weight on her toes. This allows her to quickly respond to any change of direction;

5. She maintains a distance (about arms length) between herself and the attacker. This allows space to respond to the attackers changes of direction.

In this drill she doesn't tackle, she puts all the pressure on the attacker and patiently waits for the opportunity to tackle. This keeps her between the attacker and the net, and although the attacker has the ball, the attacker is no threat.

Jockeying, in my opinion should be the first option in defending. The attacker wants the defender to be impatient and to dive in and get turned. What they don't want is to be slowed down and have all the pressure put on them. Secondly it allows the opportunity to allow other defenders to get back and help defend (look at Stoke and Sunderland in this regard), and lastly it gives the defender a greater opportunity on when to decide to tackle. This too puts more pressure on the attacker as they really don't know when to expect the physical attack for the ball, if ever.

Now one last video of Irish international and now Sunderland player jockeying the daylights out of two Tottenham attackers. This is great defending.

Walk On

Hal White