Defend Your Castle

Introduce defending fundamentals — positioning between the danger and the target, when to stay home and when to attack — wrapped in a castle siege.

Mark a 20x20 yard box. Spread tall cones evenly around it, one per player, each with a ball balanced on top — these are the castles. Each player guards their own castle and dribbles a second ball.

1. On 'SIEGE!', players dribble their ball around the box and try to knock OTHER castles' balls off with a pass, while protecting their own.
2. If your castle ball is knocked off, rebuild it fast (10-second rebuild) and play on — count how many times you got raided.
3. Score: +1 every castle you knock down, -1 every time yours falls.
4. Play 2-minute rounds; lowest raided count is Castle King/Queen.
5. Rotate castle positions between rounds so corners and middle castles are shared.

• Stand side-on between the raider and your castle — don't hug the cone.
• Watch the raider's ball, not their eyes.
• Pick your moment to raid — when your nearest enemy is far from home.
• Knock and go — shoot at a castle, then sprint back to check yours.

• Players camp on top of their cone all round — the one-yard rule forces them to defend with body position instead of blocking.
• Guards chase raiders miles from home and get counter-raided — coach the look-over-the-shoulder habit before committing.
• Raids are wild toe-pokes from distance — dribble close, then a firm side-foot pass at the castle.

• Raiders must knock castles with their weak foot.
• Allow pairs: one guards, one raids, swap every minute — adds defending communication.
• Shrink the box so raids and recoveries are quicker.

• Bigger box and more space between castles.
• No score for being raided — only count your knockdowns.
• Coach plays as a slow, theatrical raider while players learn to guard.

• You cannot stand within one yard of your own cone — guards must defend the space, not park on the castle.