Defensive Strategy 2: The Cup

The cup is the most common zone defense and works very well against an undisciplined offense.  It is called a cup because that is the shape the blue defenders try to form around the disc. It is important that only one defender is within three meters of the disc (XIV.B.2).  


The three players in the cup follow the disc no matter where it goes.  This means that they end up running the most and should be substituted out more often.  The defender who is marking the disc should force the throw to go past the other two members of the cup.  The middle (point) player in the cup should never mark the disc.


The mids should defend the areas where a pass can be made.  Also, the mid on the opposite side from cup should look to intercept a cross-field swing pass.


The deep defender should make sure that no player gets behind him.  Additionally, he can call "up" and "down" because he can see the entire field.


It is important to always be active when playing a zone.  It is easy to get lazy because you are not directly accountable for a player, but that ruins the strategy.