Working on support play to build the team ethic

A secondary teacher writes: "I coach a number of teams in our school. One common problem is getting guys from different clubs to play in the same way and to think and act like a team, not a bunch of individuals. Any thoughts?"

We put your question to Hugh Kenny of Wicklow. Kenny laid the groundwork for the Mick O'Dwyer reign in the Garden County, taking the county team to some very credible results before resigning in 2006. He also played for Wicklow from 1988 to 1998 and is still the Games Promotion Officer there.

"First of all you have to make sure everyone understands the way you want to play," says Kenny who had his first coaching success when leading his club, Baltinglass, to the under-12 county title, alongside his twin bother Paul, aged 14.

"If you want a different style you have to be clear what it is, and implement it through practising particular drills again and again. If things aren't working out, get the players together and make them explain why play is breaking down or why the ball isn't going into the forwards in the right way etc. Communication is key."

At the core of good teamwork, believes Kenny, is good support play.

"Make sure the player in possession has a number of options and make sure everyone attacks and defends as a team and with constant movement."

To promote this ethic, Kenny recommends a couple of drills.

You have 12 players in a square, six versus six. One group of six is in possession of not one, but two footballs. When a player receives a pass and off-loads it, he cannot receive the same ball back in the next pass, so he is constantly moving, looking for possession.

"To succeed as a team you need a ferocious work ethic, and an ability to keep possession of the ball even when under severe pressure," says Kenny. "And if you lose the ball, it's vital that you recover it by pressuring as a unit and with a high level of intensity."

Kenny recommends another possession drill where three players try to keep possession of a football against a defensive line of three who are advancing from 40 metres away. The catch is; there is another group of three behind the defenders so when play breaks down, the attackers immediately become defenders or vice versa.

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