Objective
Groove clinical finishing from around the penalty spot: set the feet quickly, pick a corner early, and strike low and accurate with the side-foot and laces under a light time pressure.
Setup
Area
The penalty area, with a serving station on each side
Players
A finishing line, two servers and a keeper
Equipment
A full goal and keeper, Plenty of balls at each server, Cones marking the receiving spot and serving stations, Bibs for servers
Duration
15–20 minutes
How it works
- 1
Set the two-server station
Place a server on each edge of the box with a supply of balls, a keeper in goal, and the finishing line central on the D. Mark a receiving spot around the penalty spot where each finisher will take their touch and shoot.
- 2
Side-foot the driven pass
The server drives a firm pass along the ground to the receiving spot. The finisher takes one touch to set the ball and side-foots low into a corner. The instruction is placement first: pick a side before the ball arrives and pass the ball into the net.
- 3
Set the feet on the second touch
Progress to a touch that opens the body: the first touch pushes the ball slightly across so the finisher plants the standing foot beside it and strikes without stretching. Set feet turn a snatched hit into a clean, balanced finish.
- 4
First-time strike from the cutback
Now the server rolls a cutback across the six-yard line and the finisher strikes first time, no set touch allowed. This rehearses the most common goal in the modern game and teaches the finisher to attack the ball with a firm, side-foot sweep.
- 5
Alternate corners and add a clock
Call the target corner as the ball is served — near post one rep, far post the next — so finishers cannot pre-plan lazily. Add a two-second limit from touch to strike to build the composure-under-pressure the match demands.
Coaching points
Decide your corner before the ball arrives — the finisher who is still choosing as they strike is the one who snatches at it.
Set your feet: plant the standing foot alongside the ball, pointing where you want it to go, with the knee over the ball to keep it down.
Strike low and across the keeper into the far corner by default — low finishes are far harder to save than high ones.
Use the side-foot for placement and the laces only when power is genuinely needed; accuracy beats venom in the box.
Follow your shot in — react to the rebound off the keeper or post rather than admiring the effort.
Variations
Turn and finish
The finisher starts with their back to goal, receives to feet, then turns across a passive defender before shooting. This adds the away-from-goal reality of a centre-forward and trains the strike to follow immediately after the turn.
Two-goal reaction finishing
Add small goals or call a colour as the ball is served so the finisher must locate a target late and adjust their body shape on the move — sharpening the scan-and-strike decision under genuine time pressure.
Build it in Coach Board
Set up the box with two server markers and a keeper in Coach Board, then animate a driven pass into the penalty spot and a low finish curling into the far corner, dropping a labelled arrow for the strike path. Build a second frame for the first-time cutback finish so players can compare the set-touch strike and the one-touch sweep side by side in one looping clip.
Open Coach Board