2v2 Plus One Keep-Away Grids
A short keep-away game in 10 x 10 yard grids: two pairs compete for the ball while a neutral player always plays with the team in possession. It warms up the whole body while building passing, getting open, and reading open space.
How to play
- Set up five 10 x 10 yard grids with cones and form groups of five: two pairs in different colored pinnies plus one neutral player without a pinnie.
- For the first 2 minutes, all five jog lightly inside the grid and pass the ball by hand with no defense, just to get warm.
- On the whistle the keep-away starts: the pair with the ball plus the neutral (3 vs 2) try to string passes together; every 5 passes in a row scores 1 point.
- If the defending pair intercepts or the ball leaves the grid, they become the attackers with the neutral and the pass count resets.
- Play 90-second rounds with 30 seconds of active rest; at each break a new player becomes the neutral so everyone gets that role.
- After four rounds (about 8 minutes), the class shares which ways of getting open worked best.
Rules
- No dribbling or traveling: one pivot step at most after catching.
- Defenders stay an arm's length away; no ripping the ball out of hands and no pushing.
- The neutral cannot pass the ball straight back to the player who just passed it.
- If a ball rolls into another grid, walk to retrieve it.
Variations
Easier
Make the grid 15 x 15 yards and score a point after only 3 passes in a row.
Standard
Use a 10 x 10 yard grid with a point every 5 passes and the neutral helping the offense.
Harder
Shrink the grid to 8 x 8 yards and require the fifth pass to always go to the neutral.
Adaptations
- Students with limited mobility: serve as a fixed neutral on one side of the grid and receive passes to the hands.
- Shy students or students with autism: keep the same pairs every round and explain rotations with a picture card.
- Lower fitness level: extend the rest between rounds to 45 seconds and allow one dribble.
Learning goals
- Create passing lanes by moving away from the defender into open space.
- Decide quickly who to pass to based on where the defenders are.
- Cooperate with a changing teammate, the neutral, to keep possession.
Equipment for a class of 25
- team handballs: 5
- pinnies in two colors: 20
- cones: 20
Teacher tip
Remind students that getting open means moving away from the defender, not toward the ball; if they bunch up, pause the round.
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