Goalkeeping
Combination Goalkeeper Handling Ladder
Build clean, repeatable handling
Goalkeeping
Speed & Agility
Combination Goalkeeper Handling Ladder is a 14-minute goalkeeping drill for 1-6 players, suitable for Under 8 to Adults at beginner, intermediate, advanced level. You need balls, cones, full goals. Below you will find the objective, the set-up, how to run it, coaching points, common mistakes, progressions, regressions and variations.
Back to drill libraryGoalkeeping
Speed & Agility
Technical Practice
Beginner
Intermediate
Advanced
Small Group
Foundation Phase
Youth Friendly
Adult Suitable
Goals Needed
Combination Play
Duration
14 min
Players
1-6
Pitch size
22 x 16 yards
Ability levels
Beginner / Intermediate / Advanced
Pitch diagram
Combination Goalkeeper Handling Ladder — Goalkeeping set-up — serve, save, reset · 22 x 16 yards
Step 1 of 5Server works through low, waist-height and high service in turn.
- 1. Server works through low, waist-height and high service in turn.
- 2. The keeper resets to the middle of the goal after every save.
- 3. Ten saves per set with a short rest between sets.
- 4. The first pass must go into the bounce player before the practice opens up.
- 5. A sequence only scores when three different players have touched the ball.
- Cones mark the area
- Full goal
- GK = goalkeeper
- C = coach serving, S = second server
- Ball
- Cones mark the keeper's starting positions
- Dotted arrow = rotation between repetitions
- Keeper distributes back to the server
- Solid arrow = pass, thick = shot, dashed = run / dribble
Objectives
- -Build clean, repeatable handling
- -Set the feet before every save
- -Work through low, mid and high service
Setup
- 1A goal with three service cones in an arc in front of it in a 22 x 16 yards area.
- 2Add a neutral bounce player on each side line inside a marked yard-wide channel.
- 3A supply of balls at each service cone.
Coaching instructions
- 1Server works through low, waist-height and high service in turn.
- 2The keeper resets to the middle of the goal after every save.
- 3Ten saves per set with a short rest between sets.
- 4The first pass must go into the bounce player before the practice opens up.
- 5A sequence only scores when three different players have touched the ball.
Coaching points
- -Hands early, thumbs behind the ball
- -Set before the strike
- -Attack the ball, don't wait
- -Third player movement — the pass is set up by the run before it
Common mistakes
- -Handling with the arms out straight
- -Moving as the ball is struck
- -Two players combining over and over while the third stands still
Where this drill fits
- More football goalkeeping drills
- More football speed & agility drills
- football drills for U8s
- football drills for U10s
- football drills for U12s
- football drills for U14s
- football drills for U16s
- Football session plans built around this theme