Pepper (classic)

Everybody knows pepper and almost nobody does it well: usually it turns into limp passing back and forth between two players standing around talking. The value is in actually swinging. Hit, dig, set, and then the roles switch — two full rounds back to back.

2 players 7 phases ± 10 min 1 ball per pair, no net needed From U15 upwards

Phase 1 of 7Two players facing each other; the first has the ball

Two players from the same team (1 and 2 switch roles every cycle) 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

Hit-dig-set-hit in a continuous cycle; dig control and reflexes over two full rounds.

Dig control at short range, where you have almost no time to correct.
Swing control: hard enough to be training, accurate enough to stay playable.
Keeping the dig-set-hit rhythm going without a break.

Coaching points

Swing with a full arm, do not push the ball.

A pushed ball arrives with no speed. The defender then practices a contact that does not exist in a match, and on top of that stands up straight to take it.

Stay low between contacts, even after you have set the ball.

After three minutes pepper turns into an exercise in standing upright all by itself. If you do not sink back down after your set, your hands are half a beat too low on the next swing.

The set goes high enough for your partner to get underneath it.

A low set forces your partner into a swing from his hip, and then the drill turns into passing back and forth. Height keeps the hitting contact real.

Agree beforehand how hard you are going to hit.

Pairs escalate on their own: one hits harder, the other hits back. Within a minute the ball is gone and nobody is low anymore. One agreement beforehand prevents that.

Variations

Easier: Work in three contacts with a catch: dig, set, catch. Or replace the swing with an overhand throw straight down.
Harder: Increase the distance to seven meters, or have the hitter alternate between hitting straight at the body and just wide of the player.
With six players: Groups of three in a triangle: one hits, one digs, one sets. After every contact everyone moves on one role, so nobody gets stuck in a single role.
As a game: Count the number of complete cycles without an error. The pair with the longest streak wins; if it is tied, the second streak decides.

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: drills for two players · the defensive posture · building a warm-up