Setting Tactics

When we talk about setters and setting we often talk about setters’ creativity and their ‘hands’.  I have written before that I don’t even know what ‘creative’ means in the context of setting.  And I have seen plenty of middle blockers with better ‘hands’ than top level setters.  So what do great setters actually do?

According to Julio Velasco setters must “Play volleyball, not with the volleyball”.  To me, that means to use tactics to achieve the desired outcome (a spike point).  Simple tactics that setters can use include:

• Set to the best spiker
• Set against the worst blocker
• Use time differential attacks.  This is, two or more spikers attack the same part of the net at slightly different times, the setter then sets one of those spikers, often incorporating individual technical tricks.
• Use isolation. That is the first tempo runs in one part of the net so the opposing middle moves, the setters then sets in the opposite direction.
• Individual technical tricks (including hand and body fakes)
• Dozens of variations on the above
• Any kind of combination of the above

Many setters sort of fake their way through do some of these things unconsciously, or sometimes consciously or falling back to number 1.  Sometimes you can see setters who have complete mastery of a match by their use of tactics.  One match that sticks out for me and that I have often shared with other coaches as an example of the highest level of tactical setter play was the final of CEV Champions League in 2011-12.  The match was played between Zenit Kazan and SKRA Belchatow.  The setter in question was Valerio Vermiglio playing in blue.  One of the coaches with whom I shared this video made an edit in which he added explanations along the way.  Thanks, Hugh.  I think it is worth sharing.

Read about the great new Vyacheslav Platonov coaching book here.

s