Brett Matzuka
As cliché as it may be, it is true that the sideline can equate to the eighth
man (woman) for a team. However, I would say the sideline can mean much more
than just an eighth man. The sideline can be a symbolic representation of the
morale and demeanor of the game.
Most speak of the sideline and the tangible benefits of using your voices to
motivate and push your teammates in the heat of battle on the field. Everyone
that has run track or cross country, or even a conditioning practice with your
team, knows how much harder you work when you are being encouraged by your
brethren. The benefit of taking your mind off the pain, struggle, and fatigue
you are facing and being granted a mental distraction to refocus all of that
defeat into a positive- that you are doing it for your teammates. This has
immediate benefits and is the very least a sideline can do to influence the
success of their team without stepping on the field.
The next most advantageous aspect is still more constructive. Unlike many
other sports, we are blessed to be able to give active coaching throughout the
entire point of play. We are not limited to coaching areas during the point as
in basketball, punished for helping as in golf, or limited by time as in
football. We are able to have players along the whole perimeter giving advice
to players throughout the entire point. I find the best way to optimize this
benefit is to allocate one sideline player to each on-field player so they
have one voice to listen for. This is especially important in zone as a player
can often get contradictory, or at least conflicting, advice during a point.
Next, it isn’t about giving them trivial advice, information they already
know, such as the force or who they are marking, but about invaluable info
they are not able to obtain. For instance, on the mark, if they are correctly
forcing forehand but the only real threat is a backhand, informing them to
switch the mark for 1-2 seconds to the ‘technically’ wrong force. Because you
are able to see the entire field much like the thrower, you are aware of the
likely option the thrower wants to take and can inform your mark of this
information to give them a level playing field. The ability to have a
knowledgeable enough sideline to do this is usually worth a few Ds a game.
However, though the previous was tangibly effective, the most advantageous
aspect of the sideline is attitude. Although it is the least tangible, the
best thing a sideline can do is be positive, optimistic and supportive of
their players and each other. Most good teams are waiting for the opportunity
to step on the opposition’s throat, which is keyed in on when they seem down
and discouraged. If you never give them this opportunity, not only do you keep
your team’s environment a positive and unified one, you can potentially leach
the opposition’s confidence, giving your team an edge late in the game when it
matters. A good example of this is Seattle’s Sockeye. They keep their mental
state on the sideline positive and encouraging, keeping their players focused
on the points ahead instead of mistakes that might have occurred that could
lead to future mistakes.
Brett Matzuka
Preface: Ever since I started playing competitive Ultimate, I have been on
the D team. So, receiving the pull isn’t something that I have partaken in
very often. That being said, I have done it and can give a viewpoint from a
defensive standpoint.
Most important and crucial part of receiving the pull is the reception. I mean
pure and simple, having someone there to initially catch the disc. From an
offensive standpoint, catching the pull is where the offense begins. This is
analogous to the inbounds pass in basketball; if you can’t confidently,
successfully inbound the ball, you are going to have some unnecessary
turnovers. The offense wants to catch the disc and get it moving right away
whether for a set play, or string, or just to gain easy ground before the
defense sets up. Whether due to miscommunication or a lack of confidence in
catching, a pull hitting soil is starting off on the wrong foot for an
offensive team.
In terms of how many should be back for this procedure and where they are
positioned is determined by what offensive structure your team uses. For a
horizontal, I would typically have one back to receive the disc and then two
secondary handler options which form a triangle from the initial reception.
Behind this, downfield, would be the normal horizontal stack. Procedurally, I
would have an outside handler receive the pull, hit one of the two upfield
options, and fill in to the outside of the person they had just thrown to
(figure provided). The main purpose of this is get the disc to the center of
the field to help open up space. This also gives the handlers, and offense, a
routine to follow. Psychologically, this is a good way to forget what has
happened in the game up till now and get refocused on the current point; watch
any professional tennis player before he/she serves and notice that they
bounce the ball the same number of times before each serve, or watch a
basketball player before a free throw.
For a vertical stack, I would maintain have one handler back to receive the
pull and a handler upfield, in the middle, as a first option. From here, you
can either fall into the offense, or follow the string called.
Lastly, I remember a quote from my previous captain, Jonathan Potts, that is
meaningful in this circumstance.
“A good puller is worth 2-3 breaks a game.”
If your offensive team can work out a system to make this statement irrelevant
to your team, then I would say you know how to receive the pull.
Brett Matzuka
The most common mark you see on the frisbee field is what I would define as a
preventative mark. The mark has each arm extended out fully, explicitly placed
to take away a specific throw. This is a useful mark as it does prevent the
intended throws and it is seen at every level of frisbee (see photo 1).
However, though it is useful, it has certain disadvantages. It allows the
thrower to know which throws you are trying to take away before they even
attempt to throw or fake. This will allow the thrower to find the gaps in the
mark and exploit them. Looking over the Japanese mark, you can see that the
thrower has yet to initiate a throwing motion, or fake, and the mark already
has her arms fully extended. The thrower can now find the gaps and use these
for release points in her throw.
Photo 1
What I find helps to apply more pressure to throwers on most levels is what I
would call a deceptive mark. Instead of fully extending your arms out in a way
that gives the thrower knowledge on what you are trying to prevent, keep your
arms closer to your sides, ready to pounce out once the thrower has committed
to a throwing motion. As can be seen, Thomas Ward of NC State, and Ring of
Fire, has his arms close to his sides and ready to strike once the thrower has
committed to an option. Since they are tight to his side while the thrower is
not in a throwing motion, this does not allow the thrower to find holes and
gaps in the arms to exploit as before. While it does not guarantee that you
will prevent the respective throw you are trying to stop every time as the
previously mentioned mark will (having your arm constantly up to prevent a
high release will certainly stop it, but may give up other throws), it will
force the thrower to work harder to get a throw off (they may try to throw a
inside break backhand and your hand appears, which makes them work harder by
faking multiple times to get the option they want).
Photo 2
In general, a foot block is not earned by constantly holding your foot in the
air where you think they will release it, but by executing right when they
enter into their throwing motion. This same idea can be utilized with your
arms, and is useful, to apply more pressure to the thrower.
Brett Matzuka
I usually try to write on the presented topic from a objective and scientific
viewpoint, however, due to the nature of this topic, this will be rather
subjective and opinionated. Also, much of this is a comparison to tennis since
that is where I have participated in the highest levels of competition prior
to frisbee.
Growing up learning the sport of Ultimate in Australia, my viewpoint of SOTG
comes from a more global perspective of competition. Now playing for Ring of
Fire, I feel I have witnessed a large spectrum of viewpoints on the topic of
SOTG, from nonexistent and unnecessary to dressing up to the theme of the
team, uncontesting any questionable calls, and giving out gifts at the end of
the game.
For me, personally, I find that Ultimate and tennis share a lot of the same
competitive features. SOTG really just refers to competing at the highest
level presented while still retaining the utmost respect for the competition.
How you define retaining respect is now the key feature and how that is
displayed is at the crux of the issue. In tennis, even at the highest levels
(pre-professional), you make your own line calls. Whether in a heated battle
for break point in a match to make the final, or blowing some chump off the
court, 99% of the tennis matches I was a part of consisted of the players
doing their best to make the right call at every opportunity, whether or not
it cost them the match. From Hawaii to Australia, this phenomena is consistent
in every tennis match I participated in. It is true that 1% (1 match in every
100) of the time there was a match where this was not the case and the
opponent tried to take advantage to obtain a victory, but people are human and
this trait will appear (see below), so moving on.
I found the reason that this high level of respect and sportsmanship was
consistent in tennis is because each match, not just was your game on display,
but your character, valor, and nobility as a person was on display. It seems
to be understood amongst tennis players that it is better to challenge
yourself to become a better player and improve every shot, than to make a bad
call at the expense of the opposition just to win a single point. It may not
be due necessarily to respect for the opposition as much as a desire to become
the best you personally can be, and a respect for the sport, a game based upon
a struggle with oneself mentally and physically to overcome all adversities.
However, because all players seem to take this to heart, a respect for the
opposition is inherent since each player knows that the other player is also
challenging themself to be the best they can be in the face of every
adversity.
This respect can be seen even at the professional level of tennis when a
player claps when his opposition betters him on the field of battle, or when a
player wins on a technicality (let court) and holds his hand up
apologetically. This is the heart of SOTG; it isn’t about goofing around or
giving your opposition the edge every opportunity, or so on, but about
respecting those that share the field of battle with you and displaying it
appropriately. Making the right calls no matter the circumstance,
congratulating someone on a great play whether they bested you or not, playing
at your highest level even if you are bageling a team, these are ways of
showing respect, and inherently, SOTG.
I find that this is the world view on how SOTG is perceived. For example, at
the World Ultimate and Guts Championships in even the tightest, most
significant games, teams came together afterwards in a circle to show
appreciation for the fight that each team put forth.
I think this is consistent with the top teams and lowest level teams in the
US; they would rather expect more from themselves, improve their personal
games and win on their own accord, than take advantage and obtain victory
through false means. For example, at ECC, when Ring was playing Furious in the
game to 5, Andrew Lugsdin gave up his bobbled catch in the end zone when we
called it down and a player on the sideline with the best view also called it
down. He easily could have sent it back or even argued it up, but he respected
us, the sport, and himself enough to expect more from himself and his team
than take advantage of the situation. This, to an extent, is what makes the
top teams the elite teams, they don’t make excuses but expect the best from
themselves.
It is true, there are still a few guys on each elite team that abuse SOTG and
show no respect to the opposition (much like that 1% of tennis matches),
however, they are usually the minority in the elite ranks in the US. For
example, playing Boston at ECC, there was a foul call on a catch and it was
contested and sent back, a single Boston player on the sideline started to
yell, swear, and berate our player for the call, though all the players on the
field, and the sideline, had already respected the outcome and accepted it.
This sort of outburst never resorts in any benefit for either team (can you
remember a time your teammates verbally assaulted another team and the call
and game went smoother?), but can find one player of this sort on each team.
However, as stated, this is the minority on the elite teams.
Much like the elite teams, the low level teams also exhibit a high level of
SOTG. This again is due to their focus upon improving themselves than worrying
about a questionable call. The one place where SOTG seems to lack in the US is
in the second tier teams. The teams that feel they deserve some recognition
and praise for their work, that are always a few spots from making nationals.
I find that they take a call as a personal gesture of disrespect and an insult
directed at their game. They are the ones that have lost perspective about why
they play the game; they don’t expect the best of themselves, but find excuses
why someone got the better of them. A call cost them the game, or their pride
gets in their way, they no longer play with the expectation of perfection from
themselves, but have deluded themselves into believing that they have worked
as hard as they can and no one deserves to ever beat them. This is where SOTG
fails to be present because these players have already entered the game
without respect for the opposition. They believe victory is all that matters
and that they deserve it irregardless of play. This is where SOTG falls short.
With regards to how teams I have been a part of dealt with Spirit, the younger
players would always refer to the respected players on anything questionable.
Brett Matzuka
Usually being the shortest guy on the teams I play on, catching 50/50 (jump
ball) discs from my perspective is a different game altogether. There are two
situations you can encounter with a 50/50 disc. Either you are in the eye of
the storm, in which case you were the initial receiver or your the first
defender to get into the play, and a multitude of others are collapsing down
upon you from all places.
This case is the hard one for people of my stature as you will get caught up
in a group of people obviously taller than you. In this case, there are a few
steps you can take to maximize your chances of getting a play on the disc.
The two most important parts to me can be summed up with: play smart, play
tall.
Play smart just means don’t try and out jump or play a game of 500 with a
group of people who already have a huge advantage in height. Instead of
attempting to sky Shaq, try and get to the position where you believe the disc
will first be playable. This is especially important as most packs of people
are rarely in the spot the disc will first be playable, but will stumble there
as the disc floats by. This is your chance to take advantage of all those
trying to battle for immediate position on one another to get a good chance to
get into position for the disc. Getting in position for the disc is defined as
getting to the point which maximizes your personal chance of making a play on
the disc, while getting position on an opponent is defined as getting in a
position to minimize your opponents chance of making a play on the disc.
Defensively, this second definition is important since for someone short like
myself, you can lure your opposition out of his best position to make a play
on the disc to a less advantageous position; this may not immediately benefit
you in terms of making a play yourself, but it does cut their chances of
receiving the pass which is realistically your real objective on defense. For
our sake, we will be trying to catch the disc at all times. With that, once
you have got to a position you believe is best for you to play the disc, next
it is time to play tall.
For someone like me, this means one simple thing: Go up early! Like I said
before, you are not going to sky Shaq, but you can catch him off guard before
he begins to make a play. If you go up early, not just will that give you a
better chance, but it also will increase your chances of getting fouled. A
taller guy thinks he can take another second to set up as he already has the
height advantage. By going up early, you have already established your
position in the air. If the opponent then jumps later and into you, there is a
decent chance his contact will result in a foul which results in your
possession. Since this is your overall goal, taking any advantage to
accomplish it is worthwhile.
The second case that comes up is the group has already formed and you are
running in to join the pack. In this case, being my height, it isn’t about
joining the giants as much as predicting the final outcome. Most likely, the
disc will get mac’d (mac = mid air correction) around, and your job is to
predict where it is to finally finish its flight. This is more advantageous
than joining the pack because 1. you will probably not be able to follow the
steps from case one which is probably your only chance of realistically having
a play, 2. because jumping from outside the pack into it almost always results
in a foul whether you accept it or not, and 3. the best outcome personally
from your position is being the scrapper.
So, for this second case, instead of joining the mayhem, read the disc flight
pattern, the wind, the group and try and place yourself outside the pack in a
place the disc most likely will finish if no one explicitly catches it. This
sounds easy enough, and it is, but you will be surprised at how many times a
few players join a pack with no realistic shot at receiving the disc just to
watch as it gets mac’d to where they were before they decided to jump in. If
you watched Rhino’s highlight videos from Regionals 2 years ago, they got 3-4
completions/goals by having players stand outside the pack and make plays on
the scraps after large numbers of big men mac’d it.
All in all, when the disc goes up and you think you can make a play, whether
you are the intended receiver or the dump for that throw that jump went up,
put everything you can into making it a completion. Whether it is a complete
jump ball, or a one on one contest, if you play smart and play tall, you will
surely come down with more discs than before.
Brett Matzuka
First and farmost, attitude is everything. If you don’t actually have 7
players who believe you can actually win, then this isnt worth reading and the
rest of your game isn’t worth playing.
Most teams I have played on, in this situation, would try and load the
Defensive line with the top defenders. However, your goal isn’t just to stop
the offense and gain possession, but to actually catch the disc in the
endzone. So loading your defensive unit with pure defenders might not be the
best way to make the comeback a reality. Instead, I would put a majority of
the top defenders on, but also 2-3 of the smart offensive players (most likely
handlers). In club, players are more experienced, more versatile, and more
confident, so this doesn’t apply quite as much, but for college, this seems to
be an important component.
The main justification for placing a average defender, but good offensive
player, on at a crucial point of the game is that having the normal defensive
unit doesn’t seem to have been working so changing things up is a necessity,
let alone, scoring now has more weighting on the d line than before. The
oppositions O team is probably playing loose and in their element having a
substantial lead late in the game, so putting some breaks on the board is
necessary to make them tighten up and lose some confidence. Also, having 2
solid offensive handlers step onto the D line will give some patience and set
the pace upon getting the disc. The D-team may be feeling the pressure to put
breaks up which will cause the Defensive O to not play their game. Placing
some offensive players changes the psychology, mentality, and attitude of the
line and can help get them out of the rut they may previously have been in.
Overall, you have to change a losing strategy. Whether it be on offense or
defense, you always have to adapt to help make the team play to their
potential.
Brett Matzuka
This is a skill that many of the top defenders possess which generates lots of
lay out blocks. There are 3 key components to a successful baited block.
1. Knowing the offense (thrower/cutter)
To many, this is just knowing how far away you can let your player get before
you can’t make up the ground in time to get a bid on the pass. Knowing how
much ground you can make up on your player when the disc goes up is the most
important part to knowing the offense; if you can’t regain the ground when the
disc is thrown, you surely won’t get the block. However, also knowing the
current offensive circumstance and the thrower will be the icing on the cake.
A good thrower is patient and confident with the disc and will look off an
even slightly questionable pass for another option, or if they choose to throw
it, are more likley to place it far enough away to prevent the opportunity for
a bid. An average thrower, however, will be more likely try to unload the disc
quickly, which should give you the opportunity for the baited block. Other key
factors to consider are: Did the thrower just receive the disc with a zero
count, or is the count high? are they trapped on the line or at center field?
Is the there offensive flow currently or not? All these questions will have a
big affect on whether the bait and bid is successful, or whether you may
overcommit and expose your defense to a devastating blow.
2. Be on your toes (literally)
If you are baiting for a block, be ready to actually get the block. Too many
times a defender has given up a few steps unintentionally, sees the impending
throw to their man, and actually manages to make up the ground but doesn’t get
in position to convert the block. To turn this from a run past and expose your
defense to an unmarked man to a lay out D, you have to prepare a few steps
before you are within striking distance. Simply put, when you are 3 to 4 steps
away from making a play, get low and maximize the amount of spring you can get
from your legs, (much like a lay up in basketball) take your 2-3 short step
routine to prepare to explode, and then execute. If you don’t prepare to bid a
few steps before, it will pass you by.
3. Desire
This sounds cheesy and much like a cliche, but it is honestly the truth. You
can have both of the above and still not manage to get the block. This last
part completes the package. You give the offensive player enough steps to look
like a viable option while still maintaining enough distance to make a bid.
The throw goes up and you make up the ground while preparing for the bid by
getting low and going through the lay out routine. However, if you lack the
passion, determination, or desire, you will hear a lot of people
congratulating you on a nice bid, and just that, bid, not D. Desire here isn’t
just defined as your thirst for the disc, but as the focus and attention to
any inconsequential detail or deviation that might potentially prevent the bid
from becoming a block. That millisecond that you explode horizontally into the
air, you have to be so focused and hungry for the disc that you keep your eye
locked onto the disc (where it is going, where the offensive player plans to
catch it, etc.) and position your body, limbs, and hands in a way to
deflect/catch the disc while accounting for any deviation from your initial
preparation that has occured along the flight path. This, simply put, is
desire. Not letting any hiccup prevent you from making your lay out eventuate
into a D.
If you can manage to learn these 3 components, hurling yourself through the
air will be the easy part that puts the icing on the cake.
Brett Matzuka
Lets step away from Ultimate, and assume you are playing a card game in which
there are five random cards face up on the table and you will get dealt five
cards randomly; your job is to pair each one of your cards up with one on the
table. There are many ways of doing this (five to be exact!).
Example
Presented on the table: 7 J 3 9 K
Your cards: Q 10 5 4 8
Leaving this as is works perfectly fine.
However, lets say you have an overall objective that you have to pair them up
such that more of your cards are of higher value than those already on the
table. Your job is to maximize your cards effectiveness at beating the other
cards in value.
Using the previous example, if you arrange your cards up so that your high
card is against their high card, you will get the following:
You will only manage to win one matchup, while losing four of the other
matchups. Now, if you choose your matchups carefully, you can manage to win up
to four of the matchups, out of the five:
Ok, so lets step back onto the frisbee field and apply this abstraction. The
point of this is that matching up your best against their best is not the
optimal use of your resources. A defensive unit should utilize their strengths
to maximize their impact on the opposing teams offense.
So, the next question is, how does one do that?
Well, assuming you have an understanding of their offense (vert, horo, etc.),
how they run it (in vert, are they breaking the mark to create flow or jamming
it open side; in horo, do they look to the middle pair or try and hit the
wings), and who is having the biggest impact in keeping it going (is the main
handler anchoring the offense or do they rely on a stud cutter to open up the
downfield), it is a matter of matching up your players to win more of the
matchups.
For example, if they have a standout handler that is the anchor to their
offense, trying to shut them down with your best defender is probably not the
best allocation. A dump is probably still a 90% completion rate with your best
defender on them and if the handler is doing his job, the disc will spend more
time downfield in the flow of the offense, leaving your best defender out of
the play more often than not, minimizing his chances of getting a block.
A better allocation might be a tall defender who’s reach can interupt the
handlers first and second options, slowing the offense down. Also, putting
your best defender on a cutter who seems to get a lot of touches would also be
a good option as your best defender will be more involved in the play (can
poach, help easily on deep looks, etc), increasing his chances of getting a
block (downfield cutter getting 3 touches a point with your best defender who
might get a block 10% of the plays he is involved in, means he should get a
block once every 4 points).
This also has a residual effect that the handlers might second guess using
this cutter causing them to use second and third options downfield which will
get higher stall counts, more pressure on guys who may not get the disc as
much to play a more active role, and elongates play, giving your top defender
more chances at a big play downfield.
Just like the card game, you are very rarely going to be able to win every
matchup, and in the cases that you can, you don’t need to worry about
defensive matchups. Putting your worst defender on their best player, while
having better matchups on 5 or 6 of the other players may seem
counterintuitive, but can play into your team’s hands. You know your team, its
how you use your team’s resources that will decide the outcome of the game.
Brett Matzuka
Breaking the mark is key to scoring against solid defense and an important
factor to any offense. Here are 5 ways to dictate play and gain an advantage
over your mark:
1. Expanding your options early (become more threatening)
Since at the beginning of the game the defense is trying to figure out your
strengths and weaknesses to properly apply pressure, this is your opportunity
to take advantage and become more threatening. A good defender will start with
a standard mark by trying to stop two primary breaks, the ‘inside-out’ and the
‘around’. As play goes on, your mark learns from the options you take and
changes their mark accordingly to make it harder on you. Having the disc, and
knowing this, you have a chance to take advantage and become a bigger threat.
If you use a throw, potentially less conventional (high release flick,
scoober, push pass, etc.), you aren’t as confident in early when there isn’t
much pressure being applied to that throw, you condition the defender to
consider this a threat to their mark. With this, the defender will consider
this option a potential break and adapt their mark to incorporate this. This
will shift pressure off of your more confident throws, allowing you to use
them effectively later in the game.
2. Minimize Pivots
Every time you pivot, you are changing the downfield offense’s point of attack
(break side or open side), reestablishing your balance, and wasting a stall
count. An average pivot takes 1 stall count to perform, so if you pivot 3
times in one possession, you only have 1-2 stall counts to look up field
before you will need to dump. This gives little time to set up and execute a
break efficiently. By pivoting less, not just do you maintain better balance
over the possession, but you make the pivot more valuable as the defender will
not know when you’re going to pivot. This can catch the defender off balance,
get them to over commit to an open side look or lure them into a false sense
of security, increasing your chances of executing a successful break.
3. Fake only what you can throw
Good defenders are dynamic and are using every possession to get a better
understanding of what you want to throw. Your mark is using every piece of
information to hone in on what you prefer, and how to use this to generate
turnovers. Faking a throw you don’t have not only wastes a stall count but
also lets the defender know their pressure is working, gives the defender
knowledge on what options you use and which you don’t, and encourages them to
clamp down even more. Also, unnecessary fakes can become patterns to your
throwing routine which good defenders can also catch onto. Maintaining
composure and confidence during possession, instead of faking unnecessarily,
will keep you focused on executing your throw and keep the defender from
pinning down an optimal strategy for applying pressure to your throws.
4. Don’t force it
All of us have done the 3-man mark drill. One person throws, one person
receives and the last person puts on a hard straight up mark trying to prevent
the pass (usually starting on some high stall count). In this drill, a
defender will usually feel successful if they can manage a certain percentage
of blocks/turnovers. In turn, the defender will clamp down on the strategy
they have used that has been successful and apply more pressure and intensity,
making it hard to dictate to the mark as you would want. In a game, this is
much the same. By attempting to break unsuccessfully, your defender gains
confidence in their marking strategy, and increases intensity and pressure. If
you can manage to attempt less breaks but succeed a much higher percentage of
the time (only take the option when you are 99% confident), it forces the mark
to respect this option more by making them understand that any look to the
break side, if thrown, is going to be a success. This will keep the defender
reactive to you rather than vice versa.
5. Make open side throws devastating
This one seems to be the most overlooked, and also most important. A good
defensive unit is going to prevent offensive flow and make your offense score
using their least favored options. For example, a good hucking offensive team
will be forced to work the disc under against a good, smart defense. This idea
is seen in tennis most often. A good tennis player will play to his opponent’s
weakest shot the whole match. An opponent with an incredibly strong forehand
but average backhand will be forced to hit 85% of this shots as backhands in
order to win. Any big tennis fans will refer to Wimbledon ‘08 where Nadal
defeated Federer. If you look back at this match, you will notice that Nadal
played at least 80% of his shots to Federer’s backhand. This was not only
because Nadal’s forehand is his weapon but because Federer’s least threatening
shot is his backhand.
In this regard, the best way to make the break easier is to make your open
side throws seem even more threatening than your break throws. If you can
continue to deal out devastating throws on the open side, a mark will
eventually start to inch over to hinder this option in an attempt to create a
turnover opportunity. When this happens, the defender has exposed the weak
side and you should have an easy break option.
Brett Matzuka
Understanding that each player is an integral part in the defensive machine
precludes all other aspects of defense. Getting everyone on the same page is
of utmost importance as 6 players playing together and fulfilling their
responsibilities does not equate to a block. So, this is the initial step in
teaching team defense.
From here, it is a matter of understanding the defense we are running (zone,
man, clam, junk, etc.) and the duties of each player in the defense
thereafter. It is also important to understand the purpose of the defense. Is
it containment-based or high-risk-high-reward? What are we taking away and
what are we giving them? Questions of this order are important because they
give each player an understanding of the overall objective and their personal
responsibility.
For example, you can play man defense with a one-way force, but do you want
the downfield cutters to be pushed away, under, both?
From here, I would set up an offense and put a defense on them, and walk
through the different forces/defenses and what they give and take away from
the offense. Let the defense see what the offense sees, what options are
available and which are not, and what options are more rewarding to the
offense than others. After walking through, let the two teams play for
sometime and try things out. Give them a chance to see what works and what
doesn’t, and improvise a little.
After they played for a while, I would bring it in and let the two teams talk
about what they found to work and what didn’t. This would lead into drills,
which would emphasize these specific traits. For example, if we were working
on forcing straight up and having the downfield cutters push their guys out, I
would run a drill with a 1-on-1 cutting situation where the cutter has 5-stall
counts to get the disc, getting rewarded for beating the defender under,
nothing for getting the disc long, and defender getting rewarded for a block.
If the team is working well and understanding everything, I would then move on
to try and show switching and poaching; I would not introduce this, however,
unless they were confident with the defensive tactics up to this point.
Switching and poaching can be extremely useful and advantageous, but only
under the confines of a well-executed team defense. The advantages of poaching
or switching are nullified if the defense is not playing together as a single
unit; ie a well-timed switch or poach with everyone on the same page can lead
to a team block, however, a well-timed switch or poach without everyone
together can lead to a quick offensive point.
Brett Matzuka
From an elementary basketball analogy (sorry readership to those that know a
lot about basketball), if everyone is doing their job, the point guard is
keeping the ball alive and getting it into the post when available for the
forwards and center to finish off. Much like this, in open field, the handlers
are keeping the disc alive and looking to get it to the cutters whenever
available. To this end, the cutters are the primary workhorses during this
phase of the offense by getting the big gains and opening up the downfield.
Once the disc is within the red zone, it is then time for the handlers to earn
their keep.
Back to the beginning, as a cutter, I am getting into my position in the
endzone structure my team uses (vertical or horizontal) as quickly as possible
to get my legs/breath back. I am assuming of course that we don’t have a
fastbreak opportunity or offensive advantage in running the disc quickly. Now,
most teams I have played with like to use some sort of endzone play to score
as it seems, and can be, effective. However, this is likely to correlate to
something pretty or conventional. Pretty usually entails a dump-swing followed
by some options from cutters followed by another dump-swing and repeated. Now,
I am tired so my cut is unlikely to be at 100% which makes it more difficult
to get open, let alone, there is a not-too-small probability that if I do get
open, there will be a poach. This leads to me becoming more tired, and the
endzone offense taking longer to score, which is contrary to my initial hope
and team goal of an efficient endzone offense.
Lets look at this mathematically speaking (extremely simplified but hopefully
understandable). Assume:
Probability of completed dump or swing = 95%
Probability of completed upfield throw = 90%
Let’s also assume that these events are independent of one another, and an
upfield throw equates to a score.
Now, our “pretty” offense dumps and swings, and that option isn’t on so we
dump-swing again and then get an upfield option, the probability of this
endzone offense scoring is:
(.95)(.95)(.95)(.95)(.9) = .733 probability of scoring.
If our endzone doesn’t score on that dump-swing, and has to go again, that
makes probability of scoring equal to .666.
So, our pretty offense can quickly lead to a turn with our tired cutters,
which will make our cutters even more tired once we get the disc back due to
their previous defensive responsibilities.
Back to the original topic, I have gone to my position quickly to rest and
watch the offense. Instead of sticking to our pretty offense where I might
make a power cut on my turn to cut, I am going to rest and wait. I will let
the handlers earn their keep as I said before by letting them move the disc
quickly and get the defense shifting around. Then, once I see a thrower I know
well, and have a connection with, get the disc with his defender tailing or
out of position, I will look to make my move. I will look to see where my
defender’s momentum and the thrower’s defender’s momentum is going, consider
what my thrower is willing to throw and what he prefers to throw, and try to
match all of these conditions.
By this I mean, find the space in the endzone, opposite my defender’s
momentum, that opens up the throw my handler prefers to use (no matter how
ridiculous or unconventional).
Personally, my favorite endzone is a vert stack that is stacked 1/3 of the
width away from open side sideline, leaving 2/3 of the width of the field
breakside, and letting the handler throw a scoob, high release, or low release
into that space for any cutter to run onto.
Back to our (extremely simplified) mathematical analysis, if you choose the
throw the handler prefers (which should increase probability of success) then
this can lead to a higher probability of scoring in a more efficient manner,
which is what the cutter wanted from the beginning.
So, this isn’t pretty, but can get the job done in a more efficient manner
with an equal to higher percentage of scoring. Assume:
Probability of getting disc to middle of field = 95%
Probability of unconventional throw into endzone = 85%
(.95)*(.85) = .8075 probability of scoring.
In conclusion, as a cutter, I want an offense that is extremely efficient so I
don’t have to risk a turnover and more running, let alone, I want to score in
as little effort as possible for my sake and my teams. Letting the disc get to
the middle and then giving the handler room and time to break the mark makes
it easy on me as a cutter, and is a throw we practice time and time again.