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The Jailbreak
by Charlie Reznikoff
For most zones, the vulnerable spot is ten yards behind the cup (or front wall). To get there you can go through the cup, over the cup, or around the cup. Through and over involve risk. Around requires patience and planned cuts. Ideally after the swing, before the cup is reset, the handler has two cutters available for the next throw, one a continuation to the line and the other a throw to the middle. Most zones will stop the continuation, force you to throw back to the middle, and hope the cup will get there to stop or defend that throw. As the cup tires, the window for throws to the middle opens. Once the disc is behind the cup, that player (a popper) should have continuation cuts to the middle of the field. These come from the other popper or the wings. Any reasonable throw, even for a minimal gain, should be thrown. Each throw forces the scrambling defense to readjust yet again. The throw to the middle, and the resulting jailbreak, is the most desirable outcome of the swing, and the best way to beat a zone.
If offensive players hang out too deep, they will miss the continuation cut after the swing, and more importantly, they will miss the jailbreak. If these players stay nearer to the disc, they will draw the deep defender in and, when the jail break happens, a cutter can blow by the deep D for an easier huck.
I would practice zone starting with a swing and with the cup out of position. Practice splitting the D after the swing and flooding the middle. This will help your offense learn to coordinate their jailbreaks and also teach the defense to recover after a swing.
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Tuesday, May 12th, 2009 |
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