Get Outta Here
A lightning 1v1 game — score and you stay on, get scored on and you're back in line, and a ball out of bounds sends both players sprinting off as the next pair flies in.
A very fast-paced small-sided game — dribbling, passing, and scoring packed into a format that never slows down.
Starting at Core — your team is set to mixed.
20 min tonight · Two teams, 1v1 on the field (you serve)
- Ages 9+
- Two teams, 1v1 on the field (you serve)
- 20 min as the drill is written
- Cones, pinnies, balls, practice sticks or small goals
Grab Cones, pinnies, a supply of balls, and practice sticks or a small goal for each end.
Build Build a 15-by-25 grid — size it to the age and skill in front of you — with a goal on each end.
Place Assign each team a goal it defends all game. Both teams line up, one on each side of you, at the sideline where you stand with the balls.
- 1
Organize the players
Divide into two teams and assign each a goal — the same goal all game. Line the teams up on either side of you at the sideline, with the ball supply at your feet.
“Your goal is your goal all game. Two lines, one on each side of me — first players, get ready.”
- 2
Show the jobs
Walk the rules — you play a ball into the grid and the first player from each line goes 1v1. Score, and you stay on while the player who was scored on returns to their line. Ball out of bounds, and both players are outta there — they sprint off the field back to their lines while a fresh player from each team races in. Play the next ball in immediately, to the team that scored.
“Score, you stay. Get scored on, back in line. Ball goes out? You're BOTH outta here — sprint off, next two, GO!”
- 3
Play
Keep the balls coming instantly — the speed is the whole game. Promote good moves to beat the defender and shots taken, and in the bigger rounds, good small-group passing and early support.
“Next ball's coming — no rest! Take them on and get your shot off!”
Look for The move to beat the defender — a player taking their opponent on and getting a shot away instead of waiting.
- 4
Switch and repeat
Grow the game — increase the field and progress to 2v2, then 3v3. Limit touches in the 2v2 or 3v3 — you pick the number — to encourage passing, or require beating a player before any pass to encourage take-ons.
“Bigger field — twos on! Limited touches this round, so make every one count.”
If the 1v1s drag on with nobody scoring, walk the grid in smaller between serves — closer goals end the fights faster — then grow it back.
Go deeper · 2 notes
Why it works
Every rule feeds the pace — a winner stays on, an out ball clears the field for the next pair, and your next serve comes immediately — so dribbling, passing, and scoring all get played at full speed.
What they learn
The small-sided game — good skills to beat defenders, taking shots, and small-group passing with early support.
Where does this come from?
SoccerXpert — their published drill library.
A published drill library. Useful and widely used, but not a governing body — so it fills gaps rather than leading.