Attacking Corners in Wind and on a Heavy Pitch

Check the wind at the flag, then choose the delivery

Send your taker to both corner flags in the warm-up. Throw a handful of grass up, look at the corner flag itself and at any flags behind the goal, and note which end is into the wind. You now have two different plans, not one. Corners taken with the wind behind them over-carry: an inswinger that normally lands on the six-yard line ends up in the keeper's hands or out for a goal kick past the back post. Corners into the wind stall and drop five yards short, straight to the first defender. Write it down at half time too, because wind rarely stays honest for 90 minutes. Also check the ground where the taker plants: if the corner arc is a puddle, place the ball on the firmest patch inside the arc, shorten the run-up to three steps for balance, and check studs. A slipped plant foot on a heavy pitch is the most common cause of a corner that never leaves the deck.

Make the driven near-post ball the default

A wet ball travelling fast and flat is the delivery least affected by wind, and the hardest for a goalkeeper to handle in gloves he cannot dry. Target the near half of the six-yard box, no higher than head height, arriving with pace. Ask the taker to strike through the ball with the instep rather than wrap around it — you want a low, driven trajectory, not a curl. The attacking job is then a deflection, not a header from a standing start: one runner from the edge of the six-yard box across the face of the near post, timed to meet the ball rather than wait for it. The near-post-flick-on works better in these conditions than it does in still air, because the keeper is reluctant to come through a crowd on greasy turf and any touch changes the flight completely. Accept ugly goals: a shin, a shoulder, a scramble on the line all count.

Into the wind, take the short corner instead

At the end where the wind is in your taker's face, stop trying to reach the box. The delivery will hang, drop short and be cleared by the first defender every time, and each one hands the opposition a free 60 yards. Instead, put a player five to seven yards up the touchline and one dropping towards the corner to receive facing the pitch. From there you have a low ball into the same near-post zone from a flatter angle, or a pass inside to a player who can drive a ball across the six-yard box along the ground. Defenders hate turning and sliding on a soaked surface, so a ball travelling across them is worth more than one dropping onto them. The short corner also drags one or two markers out of the box, which thins the crowd for whichever low delivery you choose next. Rehearse the two-man version so it works without a shout, because nobody hears anything in a crosswind.

Adjust the box: fewer floaters, more runners across the ball

Ditch any routine that depends on a tall player winning a contested header eight yards out — the ball will not arrive there consistently. Set up for pace across the goal instead. Two runners attacking the near-post zone from different starting points, one player on the penalty spot for a knock-down or a scuffed clearance, and one on the back post at the six-yard line to convert anything that squirms through. Keep the back post player level with the goal line, not five yards behind it, because a driven ball skids rather than loops. Start your runners a yard deeper than usual: on a heavy pitch acceleration is slower, so they need more room to build momentum. Tell them to attack in the same direction the ball is travelling, so a slight touch still sends it goalwards. Nobody stands still waiting.

Bring the second-ball line in and shoot early

Clearing headers do not travel on a wet, heavy ball. A defender who normally clears to the 18-yard line will only reach 12 to 14 yards, so your second-ball players should sit at the top of the D, not five yards behind it, or the ball drops in the gap between you and the box. Put your best striker of a low shot there and tell him first-time, along the ground, across the keeper — divers on soaked turf get nowhere, and a skidding shot from 16 yards is a genuine chance. One player wide of the D covers the clearance that gets slung out towards the touchline. On the counter side, the good news is that opposition breaks are slower on a heavy pitch, but a long clearance downwind travels a long way, so keep two back plus the keeper alert and pushed up to the halfway line rather than dropping deep.

What to rehearse in the week

Twenty minutes is enough if you keep it specific. Soak two balls in a bucket before you start — training with a dry ball teaches nothing about today's problem. Set a cone gate across the near half of the six-yard box and have your two takers hit ten driven balls each through it from both corners, keeping the ball below head height. Anything that rises above the crossbar or arrives without pace is a miss, not a near miss. Then add the two near-post runners and the penalty-spot player, and finally two defenders who are allowed to clear. Finish with the short corner from the end you know is into the wind, four repetitions, no shouting. On Saturday, give the taker one instruction per end and one hand signal for switching to the short corner — that is the whole plan.

Key points

• Test the wind at both flags in the warm-up and agree a separate plan for each end; recheck at half time.
• Default to a fast, flat ball into the near half of the six-yard box — wind affects it least and a wet ball is hard for the keeper to hold.
• At the end where the wind is against you, take the short corner rather than a delivery that will drop five yards short.
• Move the second-ball line in to the top of the D, because clearing headers travel less on a heavy pitch, and shoot low and first-time.
• Set runners a yard deeper and moving across the ball; scrap routines that need a contested header from a floated delivery.

Common questions

Should I take a short corner when it's really windy?

At the end where the wind is in the taker's face, yes — a delivery that stalls and drops short just hands over possession. Use a player five to seven yards up the touchline and one receiving facing the pitch, then work a low ball across the six-yard box from a flatter angle. At the other end, where the wind is behind the taker, a driven low ball is still fine; it is the floated one that over-carries into the keeper or out of play.

What corner delivery works best with a wet, heavy ball?

A fast, flat ball struck through with the instep, aimed no higher than head height into the near half of the six-yard box. It spends less time in the air, so the wind has less chance to move it, and a soaking ball is difficult for a keeper to catch cleanly in gloves he cannot dry. Deflections beat clean headers in these conditions, so plan for a flick-on rather than a free header eight yards out.

How many players should I put in the box on a heavy pitch?

Roughly the same numbers, but positioned differently: two runners attacking the near post from separate starting points, one on the penalty spot, one on the back post level with the goal line, then two second-ball players at the top of the D. Keep two defenders plus the keeper back and pushed up towards halfway. Counters are slower on a soft surface, but a downwind clearance travels a long way, so do not let your last two drop deep.

Why does our tall centre-half never win headers from corners in bad weather?

Because the delivery is not arriving where he can attack it. Flighted balls in wind land short, long or on the keeper, so he is jumping from a standing start against a defender who has already read it. Change the delivery before you change the player: give him the near-post zone, a driven ball at head height and a two-yard run across the marker, and he only has to redirect it.