Catch and Throw in Four
Catch a ball and throw it out to a teammate breaking wide inside four seconds: the futsal goalkeeper's job of turning a save into a counter-attack before the other team can recover.
Hear the coach on this drill
Every line the Audio Coach says in this drill, played back to back; the time beside each is when it comes in the 10-minute drill. No account needed.
Set-up
Two cones a big step apart make the keeper's goal at one end of the floor, and two target cones sit out wide about eight steps away. The parent serves the ball in and then runs to one target. Under FIFA's Futsal Laws a goalkeeper may control the ball in their own half for only four seconds.
What you need
- 1 futsal ball or soccer ball
- 4 cones
The ground: 30 × 15 ft (about 9 × 5 m). The space and equipment check lists every drill that fits the ground you have.
How to run it
- Set up. Two cones a big step apart make the keeper's goal. Two target cones sit out wide about eight steps away.
- Ball in. The parent rolls or tosses the ball at the keeper, who catches it cleanly in both hands.
- Look and count. As the ball is caught, the parent runs to one target cone and the keeper counts four.
- Throw out. Before four, a bowled roll along the floor or an overarm throw into the runner's path.
- Both sides. Five throws to the left target and five to the right, then mix them.
- Count it. Ten catches, counting the throws out inside four seconds that reach the runner in stride.
Coaching points
- Look for the runner while the ball is still coming in
- A bowled roll stays on the floor and is easiest to control on a hard court
- Throw into the runner's path, a step ahead of them
What to watch: Holding the ball too long. Under futsal's Laws a goalkeeper may control the ball in their own half for only four seconds; a keeper who looks around with the ball loses the counter and the ball.
Common mistakes
- Holding the ball and looking around after the catch
- Throwing to where the runner is rather than ahead of them
- A bouncing throw that is hard to control on a hard floor
- Catching with straight arms, so the ball spills
- Only ever throwing to the stronger side
What good looks like
A good target: 8 of 10 throws out inside four seconds reach the runner in stride.
Progressions and variations
Making it harder
- Level 1: Catch and bowl to a still target, no count
- Level 2: The four-second count to a still target
- Level 3: Throw into a walking run
- Level 4: Eight of ten in time and in stride
- Level 5: Two runners and the keeper picks the open one
- Level 6: Shots instead of serves, from a close range
Alone, with a sibling, or in a group
- Solo: wall catches and throws to a target cone, inside four seconds.
- Sibling: one serves and runs, the other keeps, then swap.
- Co-op: two runners break wide and the keeper picks the open one.
Adjusting it by age
- U14: Soft rolled serves and a bowled throw only, with the count said out loud together.
- U18: Firm shots as serves, overarm throws to the far target, and a defender chasing the runner.
For the parent running it
- A small goal of two cones at one end of the floor and two target cones out wide at the other. The parent rolls or tosses the ball to the keeper, then runs wide; the keeper catches and throws to the parent's run, counting four.
On their own: Alone, throw the ball against a wall, catch the rebound, and throw it out to a target cone within four seconds of the catch.
Safety
- Serve below head height to a young keeper
- Keep the area behind the targets clear
More on training safely at home: Safety at Home.
Why it matters
The futsal goalkeeper starts most attacks and has four seconds to do it, so a keeper who throws out quickly and accurately turns saves into goals at the other end.
Related drills
GK Handling
Basic shot-stopping: set position, W-grip, collapse dive.
GK Footwork: Shuffle and Set
Side-step across a goal-width line of cones, stop in a set position, and catch a dropped ball cleanly before shuffling on.
GK Distribution: Roll and Throw
A keeper starts the attack with the hands: bowl the ball along the ground through a near gate, then throw overarm into a far target zone.
GK Wall Reactions
Throw against a wall and catch the rebound from a set position, closer and quicker each round, so the hands react before the head has time to think.
Run it with the Audio Coach
In Spatrian the Audio Coach talks your player through this drill while they play it, and each run goes on their own training record, which their coach or personal trainer can read and, for a homeschool family, counts as PE time. The beta is opening to a small first group of players and families.