Volleyball drills · Match play · Attack · Blocking

Full rally six on five

The longest of the six-against-five drills: the rally runs on through the second counter-attack, block and defense included. Because the five are always at a disadvantage, the ball comes back more often than a team is used to and the six have to finish two or three times in a row. That is exactly where most teams let their concentration slip.

11 players 12 phases ± 30 min 6 balls, full court From U19 upwards

Phase 1 of 12Six players in serve receive, five ready on the other side; B serves

The six (P = outside hitter, M = middle blocker, D = opposite, S = setter, L = libero) The five 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

Extended match drill: a complete rally with serve receive, attack, block, defense and a double counterattack.

Getting block and defense to work together in a rally that will not end.
Finishing two or three attacks in a row without dropping off.
Keeping talking when the rally lasts longer than expected.

Coaching points

The block would rather touch the ball than stuff it.

A touch that takes the speed off hands your defense a playable ball. Blockers who only play for the stuff are the ones who let through the balls that could have been dug.

Call out after every block touch that the ball has been touched.

The back-row players react differently to a slowed-down ball than to a full swing. One word is worth a handful of points in rallies this long.

The hitter who has just finished does not block the next ball.

He is too far off the net and gets there late. Agree who takes his place, otherwise you have half a block up on the second attack.

Count how many rallies contain more than two attacks.

That number says more about your team's resilience than the final score does. If it is low, players are switching off too quickly after the first attack.

Variations

Easier: No block, so that every attack can be dug and the rally lasts longer by itself. The coach starts with a free ball.
Harder: A point only counts if the rally has had at least two attacks per side. Shorter rallies are replayed.
With twelve players: Six against six with the same task, and one player per team who is only allowed to block and dig, not attack.
As a game: Play to 21. Every block point counts double, and the five get a bonus point on top of every point they win.

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: blocking: footwork, timing and hands · does a block count as a contact? · measuring block points