Build vs. the Wave

Objectives: Execute the Zone 1 build structure against a live press; make the short/long decision by counting the press; rehearse the escape hatch. Serves 2.2 entirely.
Field: Half field, full width, halfway-line end zone plus two counter-goals for the press team. Equipment: full goal, two pug goals at halfway, bibs, balls with GK.
Organization: Build team: GK + back four + double pivot + one striker checking in (8+GK). Press team: 6 pressers. Build team scores by dribbling/receiving into the end zone (1pt) or hitting the designed long pattern to the checking striker with a controlled second ball (2pts — rewarding the rehearsed escape, not the panic clearance). Press team scores in pug goals within 8 seconds of winning it.
Coaching points: (1) Count the wave — if they press with 5, our 7+GK means someone is free: find him; (2) bait one side, break the other (the pivot's disguised switch); (3) courage clause is live — giveaways following structure get "again," nothing else.
Progressions: Press adds a 7th (now numbers are honest — long pattern becomes correct more often) → press may trap on the "wide receiver" trigger → full 11v11 build-to-goal.
Regressions: Press limited to walking start · build team +1 neutral pivot · start every rep from GK with press passive for 2 passes.
Common mistakes: Players: CBs splitting too shallow (no angles); pivot showing on the same line as the presser's cover shadow; GK rushing — he sets tempo. Coaches: punishing the long ball when it's the right read — the model kicks long by design when the count says so.
Timing: 25 min. Expected outcomes: Clean exits rise across rounds; players verbalize the count ("they're pressing 5 — short!").
Variations: Press shape mirrors Saturday's opponent (scouting integration, U15+) · overload flipped 8v8 (dominance no longer numerical — positional only).
Diagram description: Half field: GK in goal, back four wide/split, two pivots staggered, striker between press lines; six pressers in a 2-3-1 wave; end zone shaded at halfway; two pug goals on the halfway line facing back at the build goal.