Volleyball drills · Match play · Teamwork

Five-on-five on the clock

A short game against the clock in which the ball has to cross the net within three contacts — no fourth ball, no stalling. Because the clock is running and you are not playing to 25, every rally weighs the same and not one ball counts for less. What you train here is the decision: play what is in front of you instead of waiting for it to get better.

10 players 9 phases ± 20 min 6 balls, full court, a clock or a phone with a timer From U15 upwards

Phase 1 of 9A serves; B is in serve receive — the ball must cross within three contacts

Your own team (P = outside hitter, S = setter, M = middle blocker, D = opposite, L = libero) The opposition 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

Match: a short 5v5 game where the ball has to cross within three contacts. Making decisions under match pressure.

Making a choice inside three contacts, even when the first ball is poor.
Restarting fast: the clock keeps running while you fetch balls.
Deciding under time pressure instead of under scoreboard pressure.

Coaching points

Play six-minute blocks and simply keep scoring rally point.

Playing on the clock changes behavior: five points down with two minutes left, a team starts taking risks sooner. That moment is one you rarely get hold of in a set to 25.

A fourth contact is an error, even if the ball still looks good.

Teams drift into a fourth contact as soon as the first ball is bad. The rule forces them to make the second ball playable instead of merely rescuing it.

On a bad first ball the second one goes high to position 4.

That is the safest way out inside three contacts. Try a quick set in that situation and you lose the rally on the third contact.

The next ball is in the server's hands before the rally is over.

On the clock, every second spent hunting for balls is playing time you lose. Put three balls behind each end line before you start.

Variations

Easier: Allow four contacts and start every rally with a free ball. Play blocks of eight minutes.
Harder: The ball has to cross within two contacts, or: every rally that runs longer than five contacts per side hands the other team a point.
With twelve players: Five a side and one substitute per team who keeps the time and comes in after three minutes.
As a game: Three blocks of six minutes, switching ends in between. The team that wins two blocks wins the game; a tied block counts as half a win for both sides.

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: the three-hit rule and technical faults · scoring when the pass is not perfect · the basics of volleyball tactics