Position · Ages 13–18

Full Back training

Full backs defend the wide channel and then go. Defending and speed lead your week. In Spatrian a player who sets their position gets these skills ranked first in every session, a drill for each of them that changes every week, and the puzzle that trains the position’s decisions.

Leans on
Defending, Speed and agility, Passing
Drills
24 with steps and coaching points
Daily puzzle
Close the Door
Ages
13–18 (U14–U18)

Defending

Jockeying, steering and recovering, with or without a ball.

Defensive Shape Drill

Practice maintaining defensive line and shifting as a unit.

4 to 8 · 20 min · 66×66 ft · Intermediate

Channel Duel — Steer to the Line

Defend a narrow channel by showing the attacker sideways instead of diving in.

2 · 12 min · 50×26 ft · Intermediate

Zonal Sliding Screen

A defending line shifts across together to shut whichever side the ball is on.

3 to 6 · 15 min · 66×66 ft · Intermediate

Recovery Run and Angle of Pursuit

Chase back from behind on a curved line so you arrive goal-side rather than alongside.

2 · 12 min · 82×50 ft · Intermediate

Steering to the Outside Gate

Defend a central goal by making the attacker take the side gate instead.

2 · 12 min · 40×33 ft · Intermediate

Jockey and Recovery Challenge

Back off under control, then turn and match them the moment they go.

2 · 12 min · 50×33 ft · Intermediate

Jockeying Shadow

Defensive shuffling with no ball at all — the shape a defender holds before the tackle.

1 (solo) · 10 min · 15×15 ft · Intermediate

Recovery Run: Turn and Track

The ball is lost up the pitch: turn on the first step, sprint back goal-side of an imaginary attacker, and settle into a defending stance.

1 (solo) · 10 min · 45×15 ft · Intermediate

Cut the Angle: Goal-Side Position

The ball moves round a fan of cones; the defender moves each time to the line between the ball and the goal, two steps off it, side-on.

1 to 2 · 10 min · 25×20 ft · Beginner

Shadow 1v1 Reactions

A defender's reactions in a box: the parent, or a timer's calls, is the attacker, and the child shifts, jockeys and pounces on the call without a ball being struck.

1 to 2 · 10 min · 12×12 ft · Intermediate

Speed and agility

Footwork, acceleration and changes of pace.

Passing

Weight, angle and timing, against a wall or with other players.

The daily puzzle: Close the Door

Shut every lane of the day's attack. One a day, two levels, a few minutes, for the decisions the position makes before the ball arrives.

Greats who played it

From the Legend of the Week: a sourced story from each career and the move they were known for, with the drill that trains it.

Other positions

StrikerWingerMidfielderCenter BackGoalkeeperDrills for DefendersAll drills

Train as a full back, week by week

Set your position in Spatrian and each week leads with the drills for it, read aloud by the Audio Coach and kept on your own training record, which your coach or personal trainer can read. The beta is opening to a small first group of players, coaches and families.