Soccer Skills:

Shark Attack

2 votes, average: 5.00 out of 52 votes, average: 5.00 out of 52 votes, average: 5.00 out of 52 votes, average: 5.00 out of 52 votes, average: 5.00 out of 5

RATED: 5.00
2 votes

Soccer Skill: Dribbling

Ages: 6-13

Shark Attack is a fun dribbling game similar to the swimming pool game Sharks vs Minnows.  Have one person attacking while everyone else is dribbling around.  Knock your opponents ball out of the circle and have them join your army!  Last one standing wins!

  • Number of Players: All
  • Equipment: cones, balls
  • Time: 20 minutes
  • Make a circle with cones - Use the center circle as your base
  • Walk off about 10 yards from the center circle to create a bigger circle and place down cones
  • Everyone needs a ball except the Shark
  • To start the game have everyone with a ball dribbling around in the circle
  • Once everyone gets going have the Shark enter the circle and attack his opponents
  • His goal is to "cleanly" steal the ball and knock it out of the circle
  • Once his opponent's ball is knocked out of the circle that person now joins the Shark's
  • Keep going until there is only one person left with a ball
  • This person is the Jaws survivor and can be crowned Champion!
  • Have the winner start as the Shark the next round
  • A great modification is to have everyone in the middle with a ball dribbling around.  The goal is the same, to knock your opponent's ball out of the circle.  But there is no Shark this time.  This will force players to keep the ball close to them when dribbling.  However, they must choose their challenges wisely for leaving their ball unprotected can be costly!
  • You can also play this as a possession game but have more than one Shark attacking.
  • Once the Shark knocks their opponent's ball out don't have them join the Sharks but allow them to be able to help the people who still have a ball.

Tell The Team: (Remember - stay focused)

  • Make sure you emphasize the importance of body position and shielding off the Sharks
  • Encourage the use of moves that you taught in previous sessions and remind them before you start of some of the moves.  This is a great time to practice getting away from an opponet!

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Mark Thompson is your prototypical "soccer guy." A four year starter at Shippensburg University, Mark owned the defensive midfield with his awesome vision of the game and hard-nosed style of play. An avid Chelsea fan, he's left scratching his head wondering what owner Roman Abramovich will rotate through Stamford Bridge. Mark also blogs about Chelsea and the English Premier League on his site TomoTimes.

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