Don’t Use That Zone With Me: An Analysis of How Brute Squad and Fury Attacked Scandal’s Tricky Zone

Two distinct offensive approaches that made the difference in the battle for a 'chip.

December 2, 2024 by Alex Rubin in Analysis with 0 comments

It’s been nearly a month since Nationals ended, and I am still thinking about San Francisco Fury’s decisive title game victory over Washington DC Scandal. Fury were the best team all season long and proved it at Nationals against a feisty and talented Scandal team. Scandal made the final in part because their zone defense confounded Boston Brute Squad in their semifinal. It was the first time since 2014 that a team other than Fury knocked out Brute. While Brute Squad were not the only team to fall short against Scandal’s dynamic zone¹, they were certainly the team with the highest profile, and the contrast between their play and Fury’s helps to explain why the trophy is going back to the Bay Area instead of staying in Boston or making the trip down to DC.

The biggest differences in Brute Squad’s and Fury’s approaches is in their shape and the speed at which they play. Let’s first look at the anatomy of Scandal’s zone.

The clear goal Scandal play with is to muck up the middle. Earlier in the game against matchup defense, Brute Squad were able to score by getting open on slash cuts that started near the sideline and found openings in the middle of the field. During this point, the front part of the zone (the left side of this photo) leaves handlers open along the sideline while dissuading throws through the middle. In addition, defensive wings (such as #7 Annelise Peters in the foreground) pinch inward to the middle to deny Brute Squad open looks through the middle and force the disc into wide spaces where the defense can trap the disc in a smaller area.

1. This defense was integral to Scandal’s three point pool play comeback against New York BENT as well ↩