Passing
Continuous Third Man Box
Coach the third-man run and the pass that sets it up
Passing
Possession
Attacking
Premium
Continuous Third Man Box is a 18-minute passing drill for 6-16 players, suitable for Under 9 to Adults at beginner, intermediate, advanced level. You need balls, cones, bibs. Below you will find the objective, the set-up, how to run it, coaching points, common mistakes, progressions, regressions and variations.
Back to drill libraryPassing
Possession
Attacking
Skill Practice
Beginner
Intermediate
Advanced
Full Squad
Minimal Equipment
Youth Friendly
Adult Suitable
Repetition
Duration
18 min
Players
6-16
Pitch size
26 x 22 yards
Ability levels
Beginner / Intermediate / Advanced
Pitch diagram
Continuous Third Man Box — Y-shape combination · 26 x 22 yards
Step 1 of 5Play in to the front player, who sets back to a supporting team-mate.
- 1. Play in to the front player, who sets back to a supporting team-mate.
- 2. The third player then receives the forward pass beyond the defensive line.
- 3. Sequence resets from the opposite end line.
- 4. As soon as one sequence ends, the next server plays in without waiting.
- 5. Run 4-minute blocks and count total completed sequences as a squad score.
- Cones mark the area
- Dashed lines = zones / thirds
- Ball
- Cones mark each station in the shape
- C = coach / server
- Solid arrow = pass, thick = shot, dashed = run / dribble
Objectives
- -Coach the third-man run and the pass that sets it up
- -Improve timing between the set and the release
- -Break lines with a forward pass
Setup
- 1A box with a target player on each end line in a 26 x 22 yards area.
- 2Load a ball at each starting station so the next rep can begin immediately.
- 3Balls at both end lines, bibs for the middle defenders.
Coaching instructions
- 1Play in to the front player, who sets back to a supporting team-mate.
- 2The third player then receives the forward pass beyond the defensive line.
- 3Sequence resets from the opposite end line.
- 4As soon as one sequence ends, the next server plays in without waiting.
- 5Run 4-minute blocks and count total completed sequences as a squad score.
Coaching points
- -Set the ball firmly, not softly
- -Third runner times the movement late
- -Forward pass in front of the runner
- -Reset fast — the value is in the volume of good reps
Common mistakes
- -Third runner going too early
- -Set pass played into feet with no angle
- -Long queues while balls are collected
Where this drill fits
- More football passing drills
- More football possession drills
- More football attacking drills
- football drills for U10s
- football drills for U12s
- football drills for U14s
- football drills for U16s
- Football session plans built around this theme