COACHING RESOURCE

Building Drills
A key part of this process is sequencing the learning process to maximise athlete understanding. This progression
should be an athlete driven process, rather than coach driven, in that through the sequencing of practice the athletes
develop the ability to execute a skill or concept independent of a coach.
Drills, scrimmages and other practice activities should progress through the stages represented below to maximise
athlete development. However this is an on-going process; athletes who have shown proficiency executing a skill in a
guarded team activity at a game-like tempo in the full playing space may still need to work on that skill in an individual
unguarded modified playing space to maintain or improve their abilities.
Components of the progressions can be mixed, for example an athlete can work unguarded in an individual environment
but in the full playing space at game-like tempo making complex decisions. Likewise it is possible for athletes to progress
through stages of this process during a single drill or training activity.

Individual

Small Group

Team

Unguarded

Modified
defence

Guarded

No playing
space

Modified
playing space

Full playing
space

Learning tempo

Controlled
tempo

Game-like
tempo

Simple decision
making

Moderate
decision making

Complex
decision making

Produced by BBNZ Coaching Department