Field Hockey: team formation

I am preparing a team of boys for a six-a-side outdoor tournament. Any advice on a good training programme and the core skills to be worked on? Suggestions on set pieces and team formation would be helpful indeed.

Playing a team who is beating every other team 10+ 0 each game. Is there a defensive formation we could adopt to be competitive ?

FORMATION HELP NEEDED! What formation would be suitable for a mixed gender team aged 16-18!? Most of the players have not played anything other then 442, but i want to attack with 3 forwards. any suggestions?

Is there an application on sportplan to select a team from a squad of players and organise the formation of the players selected?

Would anybody like to give me a diagram of 3/4 press and half court please ?

I am coaching 1,2,3,5 formation in an U16 Girls team but I am having trouble getting my Halfbacks connecting with my Inside Forwards - Any suggestions

I am looking for 6 a side hockey formations. We have been playing 3-1-1-1. Worked very well, however sweeper was so good, goalie never touched the ball. I want to move sweeper to goalie/ sweeper but our mid field player is too good to just play right. What to do? 2-2-1-1 or 1-3-1-1?     

I coach a team of U18 Boys. The team consists of the typical skill level variations but we manage that by modifying the formation to support those that need support. The team has performed well and they are on the top of the ladder. We are half way through the season and there seems to be more individualism in the team than I would have liked. Some of our more skilled players are failing to utilise the entire team which has a negative impact on the game plan. What strategies do you suggest we engage to bring the team together for the run to the finals?

when looking at the formation 5-3-2 I would like to get the responsibilities PDF file

Hi Im new to coaching hockey want to know what position do I play some of my weaker players without them losing interest and there confidence.

Hello,Does anyone have any tactics/suggestions to use when trying to protect a lead? My team were 2-0 on Saturday, and although we ended up winning the match 3-2, we'd obviously still prefer not to concede!Thanks.

How do I get young hockey players to learn to play in their positions? I often tell them what their position details are but they never seem to stick to their positions and end up bunching Asked using Sportplan Mobile App

Hi, last season after asking here, we played the 4-3-3 formation. We took the field in this formation and played the whole game this way. This worked really well for us last season, we got promoted and finished 3rd in our new grade. However we came unstuck in the semi finals where the team we were playing identified what we were doing and played the same formation against us in the second half, leaving us unable to make any inroads for the remainder of the game.Our team is from a small school, made up of year 7-13 boys playing against larger schools of year 9-13 boys, though i would guess we played against teams at the older end of the range. We can't match others teams in age & size or depth of experience yet, so we must play smarter.What are possible alternative formations and how would the team identify the need to switch between formations?David Smith

hello everyone.i would like some advice on the following: I coach a mixed u19 and u16 team because i do not have enough players. players always have excuses for training so i can never practice set pieces. I have a strong backline, strong CL and CF but that is it.. none of my players play in a form, i have practiced 2vs1 and passing to a player and receiving again whilst going forward a hundred times... my u16s have very little knowledge of the game and skills. my u19s are more experience.

For some reason, I am unable to open the pdf, just send me back to the homepage? Is there a new link for this as this would be perfect to help me introduce this formation to my team. Any help would be appreciated.

what is the best formation

hi there I'm using 4-4-2 and on sometimes 3-1-4-2 with a lower level hockey team.I've chosen this over other formations, simply because the hockey experience and ability of my players is not of a high level (and most people have an approximate understanding of 442). Also, I believe that one must choose a formation based on players traits and what they can deliver. For example, I'd ideally prefer to have 3 forwards, to help with more height and width but then would have to either play 3 in the middle or 3 at the back... and my player strengths don't permit this. In short, I simply don't believe I have a strong enough CH / CM to handle 3 in the middle and I'm not convinced that the off-the-ball support from other players is strong enough to allow 3 in the middle. OFFENSIVE PLAYS Anyway, I'm not 100% where to get my centre mids to stand when we have a 16 yd hit to take (i.e. our possession). Obviously one of the CMs comes deep to offer a potential direct outlet from the centre backs or offer an overload option if the ball goes out to the sides (which is more likely, since I've pretty much banned the high risk play of releasing up the middle - we've had far too many turnovers in our final third or quarter because we tried to play up the middle). My players are 'aware' of posting up and leading runs. However, I'm not sure about the 2nd CM. On the one hand I'd ideally like the 2nd CM to come deep as well, in order to potentially help break up the opposition press but by doing so, I distort the midfield and if we do manage to get the ball to one of the CMs, he won't have the 2nd CM in a higher position to release to, etc. DEFENSIVE POSITIONING Can someone suggest, again, about midfield positioning using 4-4-2 or 3-1-4-2, when we are setting up a general press? I have traditionally encouraged man marking, simply because our general positional awareness is weak (which makes zonal play a no-no IMO) + our tracking and attitude to committed defending (i.e. you don’t give up if one tackle fails) could be better! However, looking at suggested presses on Sportplan, some zonal positioning seems a necessity and I think if I can help my players make the step, success will come because they've been forced to become more aware of their pitch positioning, etc. Also, looking at some of the presses, it looks like the midfield can go 'flat' to create a barrier... and as I encourage a diamond shape in midfield, I need to explain to my players what to do and when. Sorry for the wordy question. I hope this all makes sense. Regards, Gary

I'm new to coaching, I have played at a high level for over 10 years. The team I'm coaching often has no goalie but has enough players. Looking for the best formation to play a full game with no goalie, we usually play a 3-4-3.

I really have a big problem with my u/15 girls.  They just can't play as a team. Any advice please. There's always a fight between someone. Mariette

I have a week defense JV team. I have few to no subs. Interested in advice or comments about both a 4-2-4 formation and a 2-3-2-3 formation. Suggestions appreciated