Equipment Needed
- Balls
- Cones to mark lanes
Mark the clearing lanes
A set of field cones makes it easy to lay out consistent lanes for basic ride-and-clear work.
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- Split into a clearing team (defense plus goalie) and a riding team (attack) in one half of the field.
- The clearing team starts with the ball after a simulated save.
Instructions
- The clearing team spreads out and looks to move the ball upfield with controlled passes.
- The riding team applies pressure to the ball carrier and tries to cut off the easiest outlet passes.
- The clearing team's goal is to advance the ball past a marked line under this pressure.
- Reset after each clear attempt, whether successful or not, and rotate which team clears.
Coaching Points
- Spacing is the clearing team's best tool — players bunched together give the ride fewer passing options to take away.
- The riding team should focus pressure on the ball carrier first, not just spread out and hope for a mistake.
- Encourage calm decision-making on the clearing team even when the ride applies real pressure.
- This introductory version simplifies full riding and clearing systems — it's meant to teach the concept, not the complete tactic yet.
Variation
Add specific rider assignments (marking a particular clearing player) for a more advanced version, or time the clearing attempts for added pressure.