Happy Friday!  I hope you’re gearing up for a great hockey weekend, getting started with this week’s Playbook.

Reviewing a fantastic highlight video from the Hoofdklasse YouTube channel : Top 5 Standout Matches of the 25/26 season this week, I came across one of the best goals I’ve seen in a long time. It demonstrates many times over, one of my favorite attacking concepts in the game.  The simple but devastating,  2 v 1!

Apart from being an outrageously skillful passage of attacking play in the context of the match, this goal was absolutely vital!   In a top of the table clash, Pinoke were 4-1 down to Rotterdam at the end of the 3rd quarter and scored a penalty corner just before the break to bring it back to 4-2.   Then with 8 minutes left, the following happens.

This was followed by two more converted penalty corners in the last 3 minutes to cap a remarkable comeback and very important victory.

But there is so much to love about this goal - let’s break it down move by move.

It starts with a fabulous line-breaking pass from defense into the forward Miles Bukkens (#11).  He then receives and spins down his weak side and completes a lightening quick reverse flick pass into the central channel for his on-rushing teammate, Jannis van Hattum (#6), to collect : the first 2 v 1 eliminating pass.

This is both executed flawlessly and 100% the opposite of what I would coach one of my players to do!  The more repeatable technical solution here is to spin strong and give a forehand pass inside, but this shows how the skill level of elite players can often transcend what is considered coaching best practice.   By spinning weak side, he takes his defender further from the central space, making a bigger channel for van Hattum (#6) to attack.

One of the most important lessons for any player watching this goal is the immediate forward movement by both players after making the pass.   Too often I see players very static after making a good pass, standing and admiring their work!  But the next forward run is always even more important and if you make it, you overload the opposition defensive structure and that is how you create good goal-scoring chances.

We see this immediately in the next frame as both players aggressively lead into the central space.  The next pass from van Hattum (#6) back to Bukkens (#11) looks very simple but what I love about it is how early it is played, shown in the image below.  Because he plays the pass so early, before contact, there is no chance of the defender cutting it out and then he is able to get really high into the circle for another return pass from Bukkens (#11) : the second 2 v 1 eliminating pass.

A few things to take note of here, the way Bukkens (#11) rotates his body to protect the ball before reaching contact, moving the ball back to a 5 o’clock position while carrying (see the image below).  This is so important as it protects the ball for an extra second to allow him to get the pass off.  

Secondly, the run ‘on the angle’ from van Hattum (#6) that changes the space he can attack.  Leading on angles almost always creates more space for attacking players and passing options for ball carriers.

Now attacking into clear space towards the baseline, but moving away from goal van Hattum (#6) delivers a delicious reverse pass, into now the on-rushing Bukkens (#11) for a simple tap-in goal : the third 2 v 1 eliminating pass.  This one taking out a defender and the Goalkeeper with its deception.   Again, Bukkens (#11) after making his last pass, keeps running forward! He gets his just reward with the goal, this is a lesson for all of us!

You won’t see better 2 v 1 pass execution than this.  The last point i’ll make, one extra dimension of this sequence that makes it so devastating is that the attack is very direct, through the centre of the pitch.  If you are technically and tactically good enough to find spaces through the middle then the rewards are often much higher.  In many phases of the game, there is more space out wide and the safe play is often there.   But fortune favours the brave and this shows the impact direct attacks through the middle can have.