Netball backline throw-in plays: three set plays

What the rules say about a throw-in

When the ball goes out of court, the team that did not touch it last gets a throw-in, taken in line with where it went out (World Netball Rules, Rule 15). Four things in Rule 6 decide how a backline throw-in has to look:

• Where the thrower stands. Outside the court, with at least one foot within 15 cm of the line at the point the umpire shows. The thrower may not step behind an area they are not allowed in, so behind the goal circle it is a player who may play in the circle: the goal keeper or goal defence at your end, the goal shooter or goal attack at the other.
• Where the ball must go. From the goal line, the throw-in must go into the goal third. A throw from your own backline straight into the centre third is a free pass to the other side.
• The thrower stays out until the ball has left their hands, and the ball must land in court.
• The usual rules apply. Three seconds to release it, a pass long enough for an opponent to have had a chance to intercept it (the short pass rule), and a defender may mark the thrower from 0.9 m, measured from the thrower's landing foot.

So a backline throw-in is a centre pass in miniature: one player with the ball, a defending team that knows roughly where it has to go, and two or three seconds for the receivers to get free. Start from the defensive backline throw-in template to see everyone where the plays below begin, or draw your own in the netball play designer.

Play one: the goal defence breaks for the side line

A missed shot has gone out over the goal line you defend. The goal keeper takes the throw-in beside the circle. Their goal attack and goal shooter are marking in front of the circle, so the space is wide.

The goal defence dodges in towards the post to turn her marker, then breaks out to the side line. The goal keeper throws it into the defending third, ahead of her. The centre, who has waited on the transverse line, then leads out wide into the centre third for the second pass, and the wing attack comes off the other side line for the third. Two passes and the ball is out of the defending third.

The coaching point is the dodge. A goal defence who runs straight for the side line drags her marker with her, and the pass has to go over the top. One sharp step towards the post first, and she arrives with her marker a metre behind.

Play two: the centre comes back for it

When the opposition front-mark the goal defence and wing defence, both wide leads are covered before they start. So both clear wider still and take their markers with them, and the centre drives back from the transverse line into the space they leave in front of the circle.

The centre is allowed anywhere except the two goal circles, so the defending third is hers. She takes the throw-in facing up court with the whole of it in front of her, and the wing attack leads into the centre third for the next pass. Run it the moment the opposition start fronting, the same way you would answer a fronted centre pass.

Play three: the attacking backline throw-in

The defence has put the ball out over the goal line you attack. The goal attack takes it beside the post, and the defender marking her has to stand 0.9 m away.

The wing attack dodges and takes the throw-in on the edge of the circle. She may not go inside it, so the edge is where she lives. The moment the ball leaves the goal attack's hands, the goal attack steps back on court and drives towards the post, and the wing attack gives it straight back to her inside the circle for the shot. The goal shooter holds her marker on the far side, so the space in front of the post is clear.

Practising them

The dodge and drive drill is the movement every one of these plays starts with, and the marking at 0.9 m drill teaches the defenders on the other side of it. For play three, add the feeding the circle drill and the attacking backline throw-in template.

Sending it to your players

All three plays are live. Open any of them in the netball play designer, swap the bibs for your own players and send the link to the squad. For the other set piece, read the netball centre pass set plays guide.