Quiz: Soccer Sense #2

This quiz deals with positional sense and decision-making during games. We ask that you read a question, really think about it for a few minutes, then come up with your answer. You're welcome to have your parents help explain things - just make sure you're the one who comes up with the answers! After you answer all the questions, check the answer section at the bottom to see how you did. Good luck!

Questions:

1. You're playing as a forward. Our center mid just won the ball in the middle of the field. Should you start running down the field or back-pedal toward the sideline?

2. You're playing as a forward. You're attacking down the side of the field and get around the other team's defender near the corner flag. Should you dribble, shoot or pass?

3. You're playing as a forward. The ball goes out of bounds and will be our team's throw-in. You're the closest NASA player to the ball. Should you leave the ball and let our defender get the ball for the throw-in? Or should you pick up the ball, look to see if you can "play early" and catch the other team napping? What do you do if you look to play early, but realize the other team is already setup?

4. You're playing as a forward. What is your main defensive responsibility?

5. You're playing as the center mid ("medio-campista"). Should you stay in line with our forwards, get in front of them (a triangle pointed forward), or stay back about 10 yards behind them (a triangle pointed backwards)?

6. You're playing as the right defender. The other team is attacking on the left side of the field. Our left defender has gone to that side to pressure the ball. What should you do?

7. You're playing as the right defender. The other team is attacking on your side of the field. What should you do?

8. You're playing as the right defender. Our right forward has the ball and is dribbling down the right sideline. What should you do?

9. You're playing as our goalie. We're in the other half of the field attacking the other team's goal. Where should you be?

10. You're playing as our goalie. We're in the other half of the field attacking the other team's goal. One of their defenders wins the ball and kicks it long over our the heads of our team's defenders. The ball lands halfway between you and our defenders. Who should play this ball?

Answers:

1. You're playing as a forward. Our center mid just won the ball in the middle of the field. Should you start running down the field or back-pedal toward the sideline?  Back-pedal toward the sideline. (This is what coaches mean when they say "get wide", "open up" or "booty to the sideline".) This gives you a better chance of getting open for a pass without a defender blocking the passing lane.

2. You're playing as a forward. You're attacking down the side of the field and get around the other team's defender near the corner flag. Should you dribble, shoot or pass?  The answer depends on where the other team's defenders are positioned. If you have an open teammate in front of the goal, go ahead and pass to her before the defense can recover. (We call this pass a "cross".) If you don't have an open teammate, look to dribble the ball until you can create space for a shot or a pass, or shield the ball and wait for help from our right defender. If one of our team's defenders is supporting you, she should be in good position for you to give her a "dream ball" pass. Shooting from the corner flag area isn't a good choice, since the goal is really, really tiny from that position. But if you can dribble into the center where the goal gets bigger, shooting becomes a good choice.

3. You're playing as a forward. The ball goes out of bounds and will be our team's throw-in. You're the closest NASA player to the ball. Should you leave the ball and let our defender get the ball for the throw-in? Or should you pick up the ball, look to see if you can "play early" and catch the other team napping? What do you do if you look to play early, but realize the other team is already setup?  Pick up the ball and look to play early! If nobody is open, call your defender up to take the throw-in, hand her the ball, then find open space where she can find you with her throw-in.

4. You're playing as a forward. What is your main defensive responsibility?  Pressure the other team's defenders when they have the ball. If you win it, you don't have to go far to get a shot on goal!

5. You're playing as the center mid ("medio-campista"). Should you stay in line with our forwards, get in front of them (a triangle pointed forward), or stay back about 10 yards behind them (a triangle pointed backwards)?  Stay back about 10 yards behind the forwards (a triangle pointed backwards). This gives you the best chance to be open for a pass, and also gives you a chance to call for a "dream ball" pass that you can shoot on goal.

6. You're playing as the right defender. The other team is attacking on the left side of the field. Our left defender has gone to that side to pressure the ball. What should you do?  Our left defender is the "1st defender" in this case, so you become the "2nd defender" and move to the center of the field, behind our left defender at an angle between her and our goal. Coaches call this the "cover" position ("behind at an angle").

7. You're playing as the right defender. The other team is attacking on your side of the field. What should you do?  You become the "1st defender" - your main role is to pressure the ball. Shut down space between you and the ball ("fast to slow", "high to low"), get into your defensive posture (crouched, sideways-on) and channel the attacker toward the sideline. Stay patient and keep your feet moving to stay goal-side. Wait for a mistake, then steal the ball. This is a lot to remember. If you stay close, stay goal-side and stay patient, you've done your job well!

8. You're playing as the right defender. Our right forward has the ball and is dribbling down the right sideline. What should you do?  Push up the field to support her (coaches say "stay connected" or "support the attack"). You should be 10-15 yards behind her at an angle. If she gets into a jam and can't go forward, you can call for a "drop" pass. If you get a "dream ball", you can take a 1st-time shot and maybe score from long distance!

9. You're playing as our goalie. We're in the other half of the field attacking the other team's goal. Where should you be?  Position yourself outside our penalty area (the "big box"). This gives you a big head start if the other team plays a long ball into our end of the field. (This relates to question #10 below.)

10. You're playing as our goalie. We're in the other half of the field attacking the other team's goal. One of their defenders wins the ball and kicks it long over our the heads of our team's defenders. The ball lands halfway between you and our defenders. Who should play this ball?  You should! If you're inside the penalty area (the "big box"), use your hands. If you're outside the big box, you'll need to play it with your feet. (This is what coaches mean when they say "a goalie is a soccer player who can use her hands".) The goalie is facing the field and has the best chance of playing it away from the danger area. If you leave it for one of our defenders, she has to chase it down while facing her own goal, then turn it away from the danger area while being pressured by the other team. That's hard!