Reception loop with libero

Five servers fire them in one after another, and on the other side stands a full serve receive with the libero at the back. What makes this drill different from an ordinary passing drill is the fixed rotation of three kinds of balls: wide to the outside, short in the middle and deep into the libero's zone. The libero talks the zones together, including on the balls he does not play himself.

11 players 10 phases ± 20 min 2 balls, full court with net From U19 and seniors

Phase 1 of 10Five servers ready, six receivers in formation with the libero at the back

The servers The receiving team (P = outside hitter, M = middle blocker, D = opposite, L = libero, S = setter) 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

Serve receive: five servers fire in turn, six receivers pass and the libero calls the zones.

Passing three different kinds of serve back to back: wide, short middle and deep.
The libero steering serve receive with his voice, not just with his platform.
The short ball in the middle — the spot where players hesitate most often in a match.

Coaching points

The libero says who takes the short ball before the serve goes up.

A short ball in the middle falls between the middle blocker, the setter and the libero. Sort that out only once the ball is in the air and either nobody goes or all three go at once.

On a deep ball the libero turns his hips toward the setter while he is still moving.

Running backwards and only then passing gives you a ball that flies backwards with you. Turning your hips toward the target while you are still moving is the difference between a playable ball and a lost one.

On a short ball you go with your feet, not with your arms.

Reaching forward gives you a platform that points up and a ball that ends in the net. Two quick steps first, then the arms.

Serve deliberately at the zone that went wrong last match.

A passing drill without a plan mostly trains your best passer. If you know from the last match which ball cost you points, that is the ball that should come most often here.

Variations

Easier: The servers call their zone out loud beforehand, so serve receive knows what is coming. Serving is allowed from the three-meter line.
Harder: First a set of balls in which the libero is not allowed to say anything, then straight away the same set with his voice. The difference shows the team what talking in serve receive is worth.
With eight players: Three servers and five receivers without the opposite. The libero then covers a bigger zone and has to steer even more.
As a game: Fifteen balls per set. Two points for a pass the setter can run everything off, one for a playable ball and zero for the rest. Under twenty points and you run another set.

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 the player who touches every ball · aiming your platform without swinging · rating serve receive with passing grades