Italy's expert use of the break side and setup of FMPs and MMPs paved the way for a bracket run at WUC
November 6, 2024 by Sion "Brummie" Scone in Analysis with 0 comments
2024 saw the long-awaited return of the World Ultimate Championships, on hiatus since 2016, and it was a thrilling week for spectators. Some windy conditions added an element of the unknown, and some interesting differences in playing styles were on display.
One team that caught my eye were Italy Mixed. While they couldn’t play at a consistent enough level to medal, elements of their game are worthy of note. Here are some elements you will see repeated in their play:
- Horizontal stack with male matching players (MMPs) handling and female-matching players (FMPs) cutting had the effect of removing defensive MMPs from areas where they might be able to poach off and play help defense, or else risk leaving a handler open.
- Single step cutting: a quick jab step is all that’s required to get the slightest separation for breakside movement. Italy were able to get open without having to work too hard, an under-appreciated skill.
- Quick releases: Italy are all extremely skilled at catching and releasing the disc in one smooth motion, minimizing the time it takes to move the disc. The advantage this brings becomes very apparent when they break the mark (or play against a zone) and move the disc at a blistering pace.
- Italy’s use of breakside continuation allow a number of easy goals with little to no defensive pressure. This owes just as much to the timing of their continuation cuts and use of space as it does to the throws themselves.
- Diagonal scoring cuts: the majority of the scoring cuts begin on the open side and head towards the break side, that far back corner of the field. This is particularly noticeable when they play in a horizontal stack and/or throwing deep to their FMPs.
- Isolating their FMPs in the deep space for quick goals.
I’m going to focus on two of them: the way they isolated and scored through their FMPs with deep throws, and how they generated movement and continuation on the break side to gain yards before their opponents could adjust.
Throwing Long to FMPs
Italy have a lot of trust in their deep throws and receivers. It seemed like every time they had an isolated cutter going away, they would put the disc out for them to make a play. In particular, I noticed they preferred to throw deep to their FMPs, which not all mixed teams are so comfortable with.
In the first example, Italy are in a diagonal vertical stack following a stoppage. The moment the disc is checked in, #5 Francesca Sorrenti throws deep to #14 Nicole Lafiata, despite Lafiata not having much separation. Sorrenti knows Lafiata is a great receiver and has confidence she will catch the disc in a 1-on-1 situation, a perfect demonstration of a trust throw. And Lafiata rewards the trust, expertly taking a position to make the play:
Starting with the disc on the sideline, Italy set up a very deep horizontal stack consisting of three FMPs and one MMP. The MMP gets the disc underneath, leaving three FMPs downfield. The two towards the break side of the field cut under towards the open side, isolating the third cutter, #37 Elena Benghi, who cuts from the open side to the break side. Seeing the isolation, #26 David Barzasi floats the disc up for Benghi, who skies her defender for a goal:
I’m a big fan of the shape on the assist here; flat throws can hang in the wind, something that must be avoided when there’s a risk a poach could get involved. This blading forehand from #32 Carmen La Gala loops over the defender’s head – she has no play on it – and drops perfectly into #18 Irene Scazzieri’s lap before poaching defenders can get involved:
A missed layout bid from a defender usually affords a thrower an opportunity to huck without a mark. Spotting an isolated Lafiata downfield, La Gala doesn’t hesitate, launching a perfectly weighted deep throw for a goal:
It is quite rare to see situations where teams decide to throw over cutters directly in front of the disc, but I saw several examples where Italy would ignore a shorter – and sometimes more safe-looking option – in favor of throwing to an isolated deep cut.
In the first example, an out-of-position marker gives the thrower a chance to look towards the break side; #77 Andrea Fantini could have thrown a short lead pass, but instead opted to throw over the top of other cutters to hit Scazzieri for the score. Notice how Scazzieri starts moving to the far side of the field at the start of the play (hint: look for her shadow!):
Here’s a similar example versus the USA in quarters, where La Gala ignores Fantini and throws a looping backhand to Scazzieri, who expertly boxes out and skies her defender. It’s worth watching Scazzieri’s cut – she loops from the openside under space to the breakside deep space:
This final example shows a beautifully executed pull play, with all of Italy’s FMPs as cutters in a horizontal stack and the MMPs avoiding the active cutting space. Italy use a windmill to generate the initial movement, quickly reverse the direction of play to get the disc to the break side, then immediately throw deep to an isolated Scazzieri. Scazzieri again uses her trademark cut to the far back corner to get open for the goal:
Converting Short Hucks
Italy were also bold when they caught hucks just short of the end zone, converting short hucks with ease. Some teams are guilty of overcomplicating their offense, and of being afraid to take any risks. Very few teams consistently score in the red zone in a 7-on-7 situation, so when you’re playing against elite defenses and you know this isn’t an area of strength for you, why not try to score when you have a 2-on-2 or 3-on-3 situation instead?
In the clip below, Italy huck immediately from a dead disc to Lafiata despite the presence of two poaching MMPs. Lafiata made a comfortable catch then immediately threw the assist. Let’s look at that throw; it isn’t flat but instead thrown with a definite outside-in curve towards Lafiata, making it impossible for France’s #22 Benjamin Fenrich to make a defensive play.
The final aspect of the play is equally important as the deep throw: faced with a 1-on-1 endzone situation, Italy like to score quickly while the end zone is uncluttered. Their ability to quickly identify and hit cutters after catching a deep throw short of the end zone helped them to rack up some easy scores. #36 Giovanni Flamini makes an easy catch for the score because she worked hard to get into position when the huck went up, highlighting why you don’t watch hucks but get into position to support your teammates.
Lots of teams will huck downwind for yardage, hoping a receiver gets on the end of it. But not many mixed teams shoot to their FMPs, especially not when there are MMPs in the vicinity. Again, Italy go for the throat when they have isolated receivers:
One major strength of the horizontal stack is how close everyone starts to the disc. As #11 Gaia Pancotti catches the disc, the other three cutters are almost in line with her and there are no other players deeper. This makes throwing leading passes much easier; the throws are shorter and the entire field is open. Setting up these easy long throws is a fundamental aspect of an effective horizontal stack offense, and Italy convert the short huck immediately:
This next example oozes confidence, Lafiata flipping the disc over the marker to hit Fantini in stride for the score. It’s also another example of how close the continuation cutters can be with a well-spaced offense: Fantini is level with Lafiata when she catches the disc, making the assist short and relatively easy. The other Italian cutters do a great job of staying out of the way; look how they are all bunched to the far side of the field, leaving Fantini and Lafiata with half of the field to work with:
Breakside Continuation
One of the first things I noticed was Italy’s ability to work the disc up the break side of the field, chaining together multiple throws to take advantage of one break throw, each player moving the disc before the defense can recover. Defenders are often left chasing shadows, and I can tell you from experience that this style of play is extremely frustrating to play against!
Italy used dish moves to great effect, generating break side continuation at every opportunity. The pass immediately prior to the assist sets up the score, something often called a “hockey assist”; in this case, it is a dish to #13 Arturo Laffi, who catches the disc in power position and immediately throws a breakside continuation into the end zone.
Keep an eye on the goal scorer, Scazzieri: as soon as she sees the disc swing off the sideline, she turns and starts heading to the far side of the field, anticipating the break side movement. It is easy when watching footage to only look at what’s happening near the disc, but this type of anticipation from the cutter is a key part of why Italy were so successful at working the break side:
In this next clip, a short break pass to an upfield handler leads to a whopping four continuation passes and a goal. It’s worth watching this clip back several times, each time looking at a different cutter, to spot the nuances that make this offense so impressive:
- Quick jab step to get open for the first three players involved
- Timing cuts as player 1 is releasing the disc to be already open as soon as the player 2 is ready to throw
- Cutting towards the deep break side of the field; most defenders are positioned to defend the open under space
Let’s break these down; they all start with a dish to a handler who starts behind the disc, but who moves downfield during the initial phase of play.
La Gala begins this passage of play right next to the camera, on the open side. She moves diagonally to the back corner of the field, scoring in the breakside deep space. While a lot of emphasis is rightly put on the throwers when looking at quick movement offenses, handlers are equally reliant upon cutters being in the right place at the right time.
While we’re talking about cutting, notice the footwork from Barzasi on the assist: three quick jab steps wrong foot his defender and allow him a free deep throw to the break side of the field, for barely any effort:
Take a look at this; there’s very little effort in the cuts here, most of the movement comes from a quick jab step. Take one step downfield, turn and get the disc. We also see three players fake an around then throw an inside pass to an offset cut using the undefended channel. The timing on these cuts is crucial: the cutter wants to be moving through the undefended channel in time for the thrower to hit them with an inside backhand. This requires them to wait for the thrower to fake an around, shifting the marker slightly to create a throwing window.
Don’t underestimate the importance of reducing the amount of work required to score a goal. If you can score quickly and efficiently on offense, you’ll save your legs for late in the game and be less likely to make errors due to fatigue. Over the course of a week long tournament, this can make a big difference.
Italy were confident their FMPs could match up against any in the world, and they constructed an offense that maximized their ability to set those players up with great chances to do what they do best – score.
