Posted by In volleyball there is often a discussion about what actually constitutes the offensive and defensive phases of the game. In most (all?) sports, offence and defence are defined as possession or otherwise of the ball. If you have the ball you are on offence. If they have the ball you are on defence. If you are not up on the debate (it is not a big one, but it still pops up every now and then) the only time you actually have the ball in your hand in a volleyball match is when you are serving. Normally this would be considered ‘offence’. But in volleyball it is considered the first phase of defence, and the sideout team is on offence because generally they have the advantage. The nature of the game of volleyball has upended the concept of offence and defence. The same applies to how we should understand errors, or more specifically what happens when we try to avoid errors**.
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In most sports If you keep the ball, you are the only team that can score. If you make an error, most often it is in the form of a turnover of some sort. Therefore, you no longer have a chance to score but your opponent does. It makes sense to some degree, that keeping the ball at all costs means that at the very least only you can score. Volleyball is different. There is no possession in volleyball. You cannot keep the ball. At some point, within three contacts, you have to try to make a point. Making points is good, but if somewhere along the way, you make an error, the opponent gets an actual point. The opponent winning a point is a bad thing (probably, maybe… check this post or this one), ergo don’t make errors. Except…
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To give the ball to the other team without trying to score is not the avoidance of error, it is actually the equivalent of a turnover in other sports. Now the other team has the ball, and with it the chance to score. A better solution to turning the ball over is to recycle it, that is play the ball into the block in order to cover the rebound and get another chance to score a point.
So to summarise, offence is defence, an error loses a point directly, avoiding errors is actually a turnover, but there is a way you can keep possession after your three contacts. Volleyball is complicated.
** There is a great article about risk and errors here. I have written some things on the topic that you can follow here. And here is a great article about other areas in which volleyball is unique.
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