Defensive concepts

 

To play good defense we need to answer two questions:

 

• What things are we good enough to do?

• What things are they good enough to do?

 

Once we come up with answers to both of this questions, we are ready to start developing and designing our own defense. With this being said, it is hard to put on piece of paper something such as “Ok, this is our system in defense…and here is our backup system just in case.” I think the most important part of designing successful defense is our ability to adapt and modify defensive concepts to meet our own team needs. That really is true for offense as well, and in general, coach’s ability to develop, modify and adapt is one of key characteristic of every good coach out there.

 

Here, I will put down some of major defensive considerations, some types of defensive systems, some concepts, some basics, foundations etc…

 

Major defensive considerations

 

Home positions – Place on court where players go as soon as the ball passes to the opponents side of court. Really, these positions need to be consistent for all defenses. Critical thing here is that players get there as quick as possible and that never lose eyesight of the ball. Determining where those home positions on court should be is part of strategy and it depends of opponent offensive strength and system of play (setter dumps, tips, quick plays etc).

 

Choosing the type of defense system

 

Personally, I believe, that there is no such thing as good system and bad system. “Copy-paste” approaches where we just have seen another team playing one type of defense perfectly, and then next week we implement that system to our team (as example) is not working in volleyball! We need to develop, modify and adapt our own system designed only for our team. Another thing that I firmly believe is that team defense is mirror of every coach. Yes, you can have amazing middle that can hit .750 nights in and out or you can have world great setter, server that average 4 aces per match per season etc… But if your team plays defense with heart, intensity and knowledge – that reflects your skills as a coach. That is also, much harder to achieve in women volleyball then in men’s volleyball because of mental and psychological difference – but that is exactly why coaching Women volleyball is harder and more challengeable. That is exactly why I choose these career path 14 years ago.

 

 

 

Rotation Defense

 

The features of this defense are:

 

• Tip coverage behind the block on left and right side hits

• Middle back player swings to cover the line hits

• Off front row player comes back behind the spiking line to cover sharp angle hits

• Left and right backs move up to take tips or move over to dig the corner shots.

 

Advantage of this system is that tip and corner areas are covered. The line is also covered, but many times the players do not go all the way to the line or get there fast enough.

Disadvantages are that power angle, the middle of the backcourt, the sharp angle and the center of the court are not covered.

 

This system is excellent to defend against teams who tip quite a bit, but it leaves the middle of the backcourt open. This is area where statistically most defensive balls fall. We also moved our best defensive player to the line and the majority of the balls do not go there. It does not cover the hard down line shot or the off speed to the middle of the court either. It does cover the angle and deep corner. If we have an excellent 2 person block that seldom has gaps and teams that do not run quicks, this defense works well.

 

Man Back defense

 

The features of this system are:

 

• Angle coverage

• Line coverage

• Middle back coverage

• Sharp angle and middle tip coverage

• Corner coverage

 

Advantages of this system are that there is excellent line and power angle coverage; the middle of the backcourt is covered and that is , again, where most balls are hit. Also sharp angle and center of the court tips are covered.

Disadvantages are that far corner is often open (unless our middle back can read well and can cover that area), there is poorer tip coverage and the sharp angle is open for tips or hits.

The man back defense system has excellent hitter coverage and also takes care of balls hit through the seam in the block. This system works well against team that runs lot of quick attacks because players are closer to home positions. It is not as effective against tip coverage, unless the off blocker is adjusted to pull in and be responsible for tip coverage.

 

Defensive concepts

 

Placing players for defense

 

Your best defensive player should play middle back all 3 times she is in the back row because that is position  that takes most balls, it makes sense to use your best defensive player there (Naturally, if that does not conflicts with our offensive systems with pipe attacker, or if our block is big and solid enough to take away that area of court form opposing attacker).

Setter should play right back position to facilitate transitioning to the front row position. The opposite who also plays this position should have very quick reflexes, because there are a greater number of down the line hits form opponents best and hardest hitter. These players are also usually responsible for line tips.

Our best blocker should match up against our opponent’s best hitter on the right side of the court. Our quickest blocker should be in the middle.

Specialization allows our players to improve their consistency and to develop quicker response times, because they know which balls are theirs. Playing in the same defensive spot will also help them become more aware of their boundaries in calling balls in or out.

 

Digging hard driven balls

 

All hard driving balls need to be dug at 10ft line. It is better for the ball to be too far back then over the net to the opponents, because if it is on our side we can still play it.

 

Ball – Setter – Ball – Hitter

 

This concept is very important in defense. It benefits our defense so much.

The defensive players watch the ball go over the net to their opponents. Once the ball is in flight, its path will not change until its hit again. Because its obvious where the ball is going, the defense needs not to waste its time watching the ball but instead should direct its attention to the intended target, the passer. Learning to read that person’s actions can give an early clue as to what he or she is going to do with the ball. After the ball leaves the passer arms, the defense should look ahead to the setter. The defensive players might notice if their opponents are going to attack, back set, or tip the ball by their preliminary actions. As soon as the defensive players know where the set is going, they should move their eyesight away from watching the ball the whole flight and look hitter instead. The set is not going to change direction in the middle of the air, and they are wasting precious moments that would be better spent observing the hitter’s approach and arm action. Looking at that, can tell them the probable speed of the hit, the direction and the type of the hit, and where their opponents are going to hit from, all of which can prepare them for the attack.

Being forewarned in volleyball is everything to the defense. Outguess the attackers. To do that, the more pieces of information our team can obtain, the better the odds. This is called reading the offense and the best defenses do it.

 

Practicing defense

 

Because we practicing against our own teams attacks our defense will learn how to defend those types of hits. If our offense never hits quicks, our team will have a difficult time with the blocking skill or timing of that hit from an opponent.

One time, one great volleyball coach told me: “If you want to make your defense better – work on your offense!”

 

Installing winning attitude

 

We need to encourage our players to make an effort to touch every ball that comes over to their side of the court. They will learn quickly that if they can touch it, they can dig it. Best way to do that is system of “award and consequences”. College players are very smart and they learn quickly. But they do have tendency to forget, or to “have an off day”. With consequence as a constant reminder we can avoid that very successfully! Hustle and aggression is a must in good defensive teams!

 

Defending free balls

 

Free balls are easy passes over the net, and they usually go to the back 2/3 of the court. They can be over or underhand. They usually result from a saved hit that could not be set up for attack. They are 2 basic defensive formations we can use to prepare our team for these hits, depending on the position of the setter (front or back row).

Because free ball is easy to defend, the setter releases from defense as soon free ball is obvious. If the setter is coming from back row the middle back must move over to divide the court in half with the left back. Many teams forget to do this, so number 1 zone is excellent place to free ball it to. The front row players should back up at the same time the setter is moving in to prepare to attack. To speed up the offense a back row player should take the free ball, preferably with an overhead pass.

So, with this being said, we need to make sure that all of our players will DEFEND first, then prepare attack, and they do not ASSUME where ball is going but to be alert instead. In my experience I learn that 90% of players in these situations always assume that free ball will not come to them. Also, our back row players, middle back especially end especially when setter is back row – need to protect our setter and allow her to charge to net and organize offense.

 

Handling down balls

 

Down balls are attacks hit with a spiking motion that originate away from the net and possible from behind the 10ft line. They require different defensive positions then attacks close to the net. How different depends on our level of play and on attacker jump and skill.

The primary responsibility for passing this type of ball will be with 3 back row players. If the setter is back row she should stay back and dig, and our middle should set (or libero or any other assigned player). Front row players should not block and be alert for any down balls coming down close to our net. In this situation main thing is to maintain focus, keep eye at the ball and be disciplined in organizing counter attack.

 

Defending oversets (overpasses)

 

We have two options here: to crash that ball down or simply to swipe it down in opponent court. Many coaches would yell in these situations “crash it!” and that is understandable because hit like that and point is very often momentum changer and we can use it as a energy builder. There is only one thing that is better than that. That is to score a point! With that being said…if players at front row cumunicated whos ball are overset or overpass, next step is to have proper timing and footwork in order to crash it back. If players are not 100% sure that they prepared this action properly, an easy swipe (two handed block) to opponent court is always better solution.

 

Using the Court numbering system

 

We need to know the designations for the different zones and to make sure our players knows it as well. That will allow us to have much better communication in offense; defense, serving and serve receive. The court is divided into 6 equal’s parts with the #1 zone being back right corner, where the rotation 1 starts. The numbers follow the order of rotation (front right position is #2, middle front is #3 etc…). The areas between zones are called seems. To designate an area, easiest way to communicate with players is to use terms seam 5/6 or 2/3 etc…

 

To summarize,

 

Principals:

• The ball knows angles, so let the angle do the work

• Simple movements are better than complex movements – the simpler the movement the more easily repeatable will be

• The arms and hands respond best to unexpected events

• Keys (Be STOPPED, be READY, Ball-setter-ball-hitter…)

 

Defense is about keeping the balls off the floor. Of course in a perfect scenario we want to stay on our feet and dig the ball mid-line. However, so many times in the match other instances occur. We need to have skills so we can play those balls. For instance, pancake or tomahawk digs are not our first line of defense, but in the course of a 25 point match you may have 2 defensive save opportunities. That might be the 2 point difference between winning the match and losing.

 

Some needed defensive skills:

 

• Forearm dig

• Run to dig

• Sprawl (very big step, hit the ball very close to floor, catch yourself and sprawl on the floor. Turn your knee out)

• Pancake (very big step, helping hand. If you step with the right leg, pancake with the right hand)

• Fist

• Tomahawk, etc.

 

Behind all this concepts are many hours and days spent in scouting and observing our teams and opponent teams, hundreds of stat pages, schemes etc… To put them all here it would be probably 50 page document…

 

 

 

 

Basic blocking concepts

 

 

Blocking is a valuable asset in defense. In addition to preventing the ball from coming over the net, it defines area the back row players should defend. A good block will take out a certain part of the court that needs to be protected, allowing your players to cover other areas where the ball will probably be hit. That is why, in my opinion, is much more important that block is solid, technically correct with no gaps between players, then big and high etc….

 

Blocking philosophy

 

The following is basic blocking philosophy we need to be aware of to build a successful defense.

Blocking tactics should be based on what you know about the opponent’s offense. Offences can be designed to defeat a team that uses only one blocking system, but if the systems and tactics are interchanged, then the offense has to react to the block rather than block reacting to the offense. It is often desirable to put the best blocker in front of the most likely hitter. Matching players up this way is not a new strategy in volleyball. The basic concepts of matching up blocking are to put our best blocker in front of the opponent’s best hitter and to put our best blocker in front of the position where our opponent sets more often. In many cases these 2 principles point to same location.

 

Because we have 3 blockers at the net, it is possible to position them in several different ways. At some lower levels of completion or against weaker opponents it is often possible to simplify a very complex issue and do three things – front, trap or dedicate. The key of success of this system is scouting. In modern volleyball this system will not work in some moments and then, blocking skills, technique, agility and volleyball IQ of your blockers will be key factor in the game.

 

Key blocking vocabulary

 

Some of the key words we need to know to understand different types of blocking available:

 

• Read – The blocker read the setter and reacts

• Commit – The blocker jumps with the hitter no matter what

• Dedicate – The blocker moves slightly in the direction of the potential hitter

• Front – The blocker gets completely in front of the potential hitter

• Trap – Two blockers front and commit on the hitter

• Bunch block – The starting position of the outside blockers is about a stride and a half away from the middle blocker. The players are bunched closer to the middle

• Spread block – Players are evenly spaced along the net

 

Foundation of blocking

 

Read blocking – Ball-hitter-setter-ball-hitter. In other words, our blocker should determine where the ball is going, then glance quickly at the hitter she is responsible for blocking to see if the hitter is already approaching for a quick hit. Then the blocker should look at the setter to determine the type of set that is coming, then look to see where the set ball is heading, and lastly look at the hitter and notice the speed and angle of the hitter approach and arm swing. The blocker should also use peripheral vision to remain aware of the actions of the other attacker

 

Commit blocking – Ball-hitter-setter-ball-hitter (same as read blocking)

 

Never quit – Players should have the desire and commitment to always block, even if they are not in their desired positions. They will still take out a part of the court that the ball can go to. Sometimes is it necessary that players jump twice

 

Lead with the hands – Remind players to press their hands over the net to the ball and hold. They should not move their arms down on the net or toward the ball; their arms should be in the correct position as they go up and over

 

The better the pass, the higher the hands – To block quick effectively, the blockers hands should be higher while waiting. If the pass is right on target, blockers should expect a quick and prepare with higher hands

 

Turn hands and shoulders in – The block should be directed into the court. This will help prevent out of bounds deflections

 

Seal the net – Make sure the blockers extended arms are close enough to the top of the net that a ball won’t be hit between the arms and the net on the blockers side. Remind blockers that their arms should remain still once they are up, not come down to the ball

 

Penetrate – Have blockers reach over the net at the ball

 

Square – It is important for blockers to square the feet, hips and arms to the net. When blockers have to move quite a distance in a short amount of time, they tend to not swing their last step all the way around and square to the net, and the following things can happen: If going to the right, the blockers last step (right foot) will be further behind the centerline than the left foot. This will angle the body away from the net, and the right hand and arm will be lower and farther off of the net. We need to emphasize bringing the last foot down (right foot when going right) even, or closer to the centerline than the other foot. This will turn the body and arms onto the net.

 

Jump hip to hip and shoulder to shoulder with the other blockers – For the major types of blocking, our players need to be close enough that they have lower and upper body contact. This technique decreases the chances of having seams or holes in the block.

 

Get on the hitter soon – Remind blockers to be aggressive and to be ahead of the hitters approach

 

Do not jump with the setter – If the setter jumps sets, middle blockers have a tendency to jump with them, especially if they have attacked a time or two. For three rotations, the setter is in the back row and cannot attack the ball. However, we often see, that middle blockers will jump even then, and therefore they need constant reminder not just about setter but to communicate in general and pay attention what is going on at the opponent side of the net.

 

Identify where the offense is – Blockers need to identify the opponent’s hitters and determine whether setter is front or back row. The outside blockers must identify the hitter’s movements

 

The real key for successful team defense, in my opinion, is in connection between blocking and individual defense (floor defense). It is very important that, we do not over-train our players in “connection drills”. What do I mean by that is that we cannot connect something that we did not mastered.  Team need to feel comfortable with main blocking and defensive concepts and then to slowly start connecting those two. Start with basics, and then slowly keep adding pieces. Developing successful tem defense is a process and it does require patience. Naturally, during that process we need to keep insisting on intensity and hustle that is something we need to put accent on day in and day out with our teams.