Objective
Connect wide delivery with penalty-box movement: pick the right type of cross, time near-post and far-post runs, and finish first time on the attack.
Setup
Area
One half attacking a full goal, wide channels marked on both flanks
Players
Wide servers, two attacking runners and a keeper, in rotating lines
Equipment
A full goal and keeper, Balls stocked in each wide channel, Cones marking the wide start and the near/far post runs, Bibs for the runners
Duration
18–22 minutes
How it works
- 1
Build the wide-attack shape
Mark a wide channel on each flank with a ball supply, place two attacking runners on the edge of the box, and put a keeper in goal. A crosser starts the rep by driving down the channel to a marked delivery spot near the byline.
- 2
Deliver a driven cross
The first cross is a firm, low driven ball across the face of goal between the six-yard line and the penalty spot. The near-post runner attacks it first time; anything driven hard across that zone only needs a touch to redirect it in.
- 3
Time the two runs
Coordinate the pair: the near-post runner darts across the front defender late and sharp, while the far-post runner holds, stays behind the flight and attacks the ball if it clears the first man. Runs must be timed to the crosser's head lifting, not before.
- 4
Whip it to the far post
Switch to a whipped, bending cross aimed beyond the penalty spot to the back stick. The far-post attacker now heads or volleys down and across goal, meeting the ball on the move rather than waiting flat-footed under it.
- 5
Add the cut-back option
Finally the crosser reaches the byline and pulls the ball back to the penalty spot for a runner arriving from deep to strike first time. Rotate crossers and finishers, and alternate flanks so both feet and both posts are trained.
Coaching points
Get your head up before you cross and pick the delivery to match the runs — a driven ball for near post, a whipped ball for far post, a cut-back for the late runner.
Cross away from the keeper: balls dropping into the corridor between keeper and defenders are the hardest to deal with.
Attack the ball on the move — a striker arriving at pace beats a defender standing still every time.
Near-post run is late and quick; far-post run stays behind the ball and heads it down and across into the far corner.
Deliver with the correct surface: laces for the driven ball, inside-foot wrap for the whip, cushioned instep for the cut-back.
Variations
Second-ball overload
Add a third attacker crashing the penalty spot for knock-downs and rebounds off the keeper. This trains the striker's instinct to follow every cross in and turns half-cleared deliveries into chances.
Live full-back pressure
Put a defender in the wide channel so the crosser must beat their man or manufacture the yard of space before delivering. The added 1v1 forces a decision between crossing early first time and taking the byline.
Build it in Coach Board
In Coach Board, draw the wide channel and a curved arrow for the whipped cross bending toward the back post, then animate the near-post and far-post runners breaking on staggered timing as the ball is struck. Build a second version for the driven cross and cut-back so players can watch how each delivery pairs with a different run in a single looping sequence.
Open Coach Board