Mystery Ball
Pull a mystery ball from the bag, find out how it rolls, swap it, then play 3v3 with whichever ball comes in.
At a glance
- A 20 m square. Each child pulls a ball from the coach's mystery bag without looking: footballs, futsal and foam balls.
- Dribble anywhere for 1 minute to find out how your ball rolls and bounces. On Mystery swap!, swap with the nearest player.
- After 3 swaps, play 3v3 on each half (2v2 with 8), a goal at each end, starting with a ball from the bag.
- Every 3 minutes the coach rolls in a new mystery ball and takes the old one out.
- Progress 1: Add the small rugby-shaped ball to the bag. It bounces in odd ways.
- Progress 2: Two touches only in the games.
If it's not working: Use only footballs and foam balls.
- players
- Ccoach
- dribble
- pass
- 1in this order
The first part, everyone at once. Each child pulls a ball from the coach's bag without looking and dribbles anywhere in the square to find out how it rolls and bounces. On Mystery swap! the two nearest children swap balls. After three swaps the square splits into two halves for the games. Five of the group shown.
Full details: set up, how to play, tips and age tweaks
Set up
- Mark a 20 m by 20 m square with discs.
- Put all the balls into the mystery bag.
- Put two pop-up goals on each 10 m by 20 m half, facing each other.
- Keep bibs ready in two colours for each half.
8 to 12 children in one area of about 20 m by 20 m, split into two 10 m by 20 m halves for the match part (3v3 or 2v2 on each half).
How to play
- Each child pulls a mystery ball from the bag without looking.
- They dribble anywhere in the square for 1 minute to meet their ball: how does it roll and bounce?
- Coach shouts Mystery swap! and children swap balls with the nearest player.
- After 3 swaps, split into two games, one on each half: 3v3 with 12 children, 2v2 with 8, and in between one side has an extra player.
- Every 3 minutes the coach rolls in a new mystery ball and takes the old one out.
- Children guess out loud which ball is hardest to control.
Keeping everyone moving
Every child has a ball in the first part. In the match part, two games run at the same time.
Make it easier
- Use only footballs and foam balls.
- Make the halves bigger so each ball has more space.
Make it harder, step by step
- Add the small rugby-shaped ball to the bag. It bounces in odd ways.
- Two touches only in the games.
Three things to say
- Children changing how softly they touch each ball.
- Children keeping the ball close.
- Children trying new tricks with a strange ball.
Words that work: "Brave, trying the tricky one!", "Great effort to keep it close!", "Nice, you showed your mate how it rolls!"
Colts habit
Children give the ball they found hardest to a teammate with a tip.
Both feet
After each swap, the first three touches must be with the other foot.
Heads up
Children must call a name before they swap.
For your birth year
Pick a birth year to show the tweak for that group.
- 2020 to 2021
- Only the dribbling and swap part, plus a 2v2 or 3v3 game at the end.
- 2018 to 2019
- Full version, with a 3v3 game on each half (2v2 with 8 children).
- 2016 to 2017
- Use as a 10-minute warm-up with a futsal ball in the mix.
A young leader can run this one, with an adult coach beside them.
Safety: No hard, heavy or overinflated balls, and no beach balls or balloons, which float to head height. Remove any ball that goes above head height from the game.
Keeping score: Each child tells the coach which ball they found hardest today and whether it felt easier than last time.