Smells like...victory

I'm sure Tien was thinking: way to be like Napalm, Hounds.

A solid win against a team that had to confident, given their win last week over Wasabi, we staked ourselves to a lead, held off their charges and then asserted ourselves down the stretch. I found that we had a lot of success swinging the disc (which we wanted to do) and breaking their force (which was a result of consciously trying to swing more...yeah baby). On defense, we had quite a few interceptions (including Tien's Callahan), many of which were caused by good team defense and late-count throws.

We still have to win this Sunday to ensure a spot in the 2nd vs 3rd game, but I think we should use the game to work on some strategies on offense and defense to get ready for the playoffs.

Offense: Horizontal

This is the offense that the Sofa Kings ran against us (called out as "3-3"). This allows for a lot of open space to complete easier passes. It is set up with three handlers back with the disc (we want the disc in the middle of the field), with 3 cutters lined up 15-20 yards downfield. This allows for room for the side handlers to set up dumps should the downfield pass not be there.

The centre cutter "drives the engine" as they react to what their marker gives them: either the short or deep cut. If they go deep, then the sides offer a short cut, but if the centre makes an in-cut, then the sides should go downfield and make a cut-back to continue the flow (or continue to the end-zone if the play is there).

There is much more to it, so please go to http://www.ultimatehandbook.com/uh/strategy_horizontal.html to prepare for Sunday. Be aware of the difference between 6's and 7's, as in our game the three cutters will most likely be working as singular pistons (up and down, side cuts opposite to the centre cut), rather than in pairs.

Defence: Fronting

This is very useful when facing a vertical stack. Fronting defence controls where the cutter goes by standing where you don't want them to go (taking away the lane). Defenders on the first first 2 or 3 cutters on the stack should be positioned on the "inside" of their mark to force them to cut either breakforce or deep. The breakforce throw must be contained by the mark, and the deep throw will be handled by the deep defenders (so we should put our tallers players deep). In order to deal with the deep cuts, the last one or two defenders in the stack should position themselves behind their marks. By doing this, the offence will be forced to make a risky pass into crowded space, or to break the force. The other element that is very important for this defence is to switch checks when necessary.

Switching is like zone defence, you cover a player within a designated area and then let them go once they move out of this area. In relation to fronting defence, it's important that defenders covering the players at the front of the stack do not follow their players on deep throws. Instead, they should follow their marks until they have reached the deep area and let the deep defenders pickup their checks (and then pick up the deep defender's original mark). The same applies to the deep defenders, they should only cover their check in the deep area and switch off once their mark has cut in far enough. This is necessary when fronting, and communication is extremely important so everyone knows who their responsibility is.

Any questions, post a comment or use the message board on the side. Let's really try to use this on Sunday.

Release the Hounds.