Player Positions and Responsibilities

This section explores what to look for in terms of player strengths and weaknesses when you’re assigning positions or roles among team members.

What are the chief attack and defense responsibilities for specific positions?

What types of runs or movements are expected at specific phases of the game as well as at specific locations on the field?

These are not easy questions to answer, especially considering the fact that every team is comprised of a diverse set of talents/abilities, strengths and weaknesses.   I can only offer general guidelines here – because every team is unique in its player-composition – but once again, we can look to the top teams for guidance, good examples and for interesting ideas.

Nevertheless, it is important to know what to expect from each player when they play specific positions.  A coach’s decision to assign positions to players has to do with criteria such as:

1) the degree of competitiveness of the team - is this a premier team where expectations are high, or is this more of a recreational league?  That is, how serious do we have to be about trying to maximize strengths and minimize weaknesses so as to optimize player asset allocations?

2) the physical attributes of each player – such as height, strength, endurance and/or agility – height is more important for positions that form the backbone or spine of the team (from the goalie to the center forward), than for wings or fullbacks, for example

3) the character type of each player – is the player aggressive, does he/she like to tackle or mix it up, for example, or is the player more of a technical player that prefers to pass and avoid traffic?

We will explore these questions in greater detail in this section.