Attacking: creating and using space
Physical Education · Key Stage 2 · The School
Space is made, not found
Defenders cover the ball, so space appears wherever they are not. Stretching the pitch WIDE pulls defenders apart sideways; playing with DEPTH — someone ahead of and behind the ball — stretches them the other way. A team that bunches around the ball has nowhere to pass; the same team spread out has three options every time.
The player without the ball decides the game
Most of a game is played without the ball. Moving into a passing line, running to drag a defender away so a teammate can use the space, or checking away and coming back to lose a marker — these create the options the player on the ball needs. If nobody moves, the player with the ball has no good choice, however skilful they are.
Pass, carry or shoot
A simple rule of thumb: shoot if you have a clear sight of goal, pass if a teammate is in a better position than you, carry if there is space ahead and nobody is better placed. The commonest mistake is carrying into a crowd when a teammate is free. Look up before you receive, not after. The playing itself belongs on a pitch with a coach; the decisions are what this lesson is for.
Two attackers, two defenders, one goal. Attacker A runs hard toward the near post, taking their defender with them. That opens the space they just left. Attacker B, who has waited, moves into it and receives the ball unmarked. The player who made the chance never touched the ball. Try it three times and watch the defenders — the run only works if it is convincing.