Blocking against coach on a box

Standing on a box, the coach has his hand above the top of the net, so the ball always comes from above and always from close range. That takes the jump out of it and puts everything on what the hands do at the moment of contact. A blocker who gets the ball to go down here will manage it in a match too.

1 player 5 phases ± 15 min 6 balls, a box or high bench, half court with a net From U15 upwards

Phase 1 of 5Coach on the box with the ball, blocker ready at the net

Blocker Coach Equipment Ball

This animation comes straight out of the Koach app. In the app you play it at your own pace and the positions carry your players' real names.

Open in the app

How the drill runs

What you are training

The coach hits from a box; the blocker reads the arm, jumps and seals over the net.

Pressing the hands over the top of the net instead of holding them against it.
Reading the coach's hitting arm and only then jumping.
Firm wrists at the moment of contact, so the ball rebounds down and not up.

Coaching points

Get your hands above the top of the net before you take off, not on the way up.

A player who swings his arms up out of the jump only has his hands above the net once the ball is already through — and catches the net on the way.

Fingers spread and firm, thumbs up.

Loose fingers let the ball slip through or bend back. Thumbs down tilts your hands toward the ceiling, and then the ball goes over you and out of bounds.

Press your shoulders over the net, not just your hands.

Laying only your hands over the top makes the block flat: the ball then rebounds up into your own court instead of down on the opponents' side.

Eyes open on contact.

Almost every young blocker squeezes them shut. Balls hit from close range are exactly the way to get rid of that, and with your eyes closed you will not see the next ball at all.

Variations

Easier: The coach throws the ball into the block with two hands instead of hitting it, and says beforehand which hand he is aiming at.
Harder: The coach chooses per ball: a drive into the block or a tip over the hands. On a tip the blocker is not allowed to jump.
With six players: Two boxes side by side, two blockers, two lines. Whoever has blocked joins the back of the other line, so everyone does both sides.
As a game: Ten balls per player. A ball that rebounds down into the opposite court is two points, a ball that goes up into your own court is zero, and a ball that goes through the hands costs a point.

Volleyball drills

4 players · 6 phases SafeVolley base round Warm-up 3 players · 5 phases Shoulder activation with band Warm-up 2 players · 6 phases Dynamic movement patterns Warm-up 5 players · 5 phases Core plank with rotation Warm-up

Read on in the knowledge base: how far you may reach over the net with your hands · blocking technique from feet to hands · reading the hitter's hitting arm