Defense - The Clam


In Ultimate, as the thrower has up to ten seconds to make a pass, most players develop much more slowly. As the receivers remain open for a longer period of time, most throwing decisions can be well planned. The Clam attempts to make the Ultimate field look like a crowded football field. Receivers will break open, but only for a second, thus forcing the thrower to recognize the situation instantly as to whether to throw to the receiver or not.

Theoretically, the are always six potential receivers. At any given moment only one or two are viable threats. These threatening receivers have a limited number of specific cuts available. The Clam attempts to systematically shut down the most likely and most threatening cuts, leaving the low percentage and short yardage passes open. At the heart of the strategy, is a person to person defense, but which defensive player covers which offensive player isn’t determined until after the cuts have started.

Particular assignments are only valid as long as the offensive player is the most viable receiver in the defender’s area. It’s not unusual for one defender in the Clam to cover three different offensive positions during a ten second stall count. It’s also not unusual for a well-positioned defender to not cover anybody (and still be doing the job), since players often won’t cut into an area where this is already a defender.

Clam Strategies

Many variations of the Clam exist, but all require teamwork to succeed. Conventional person to person defense means there are seven offensive players matched against seven defenders. Most teams use either middle, sideline, forehand, or backhand force against the thrower. This is the first step toward reducing the area in which each defender has to cover.

With two players of comparable abilities, it is virtually impossible for the defense to prevent the offense from getting open. A cut is a foot race to a particular spot on the field, except that the offensive player doesn’t tell the defender which spot he or she is racing toward or when the race starts. The offensive player can change his or her mind anytime during the race.

When part of the field is blocked by the marker or the sideline, the defense doesn’t have to worry about covering the whole field. But there is still a lot of space left to cover. Using the Clam, a group of offensive players is assigned to a group of defensive players; each defender looks for certain cuts to guard. The defensive players are positioned so that for almost every race offensive players want to run, there is a defender already there who has a head start.

The simplest form of the Clam is the "two-person Clam". This is illustrated below.

Offensive players A and B are in the stack waiting to cut, they are covered by defenders 1 and 2 respectively. Imagine the only cuts available to A and B are hard cuts back to the disc (e.g. the disc is on the goal line, the offensive player never throws deep, the offensive player always starts the flow with a cut from the stack). Defenders are on each side of a cutter. As soon as either A or B cuts, (A) is picked up by the nearest defender. The remaining defender picks up the other offensive player (B) while repositioning to take into account the force.

This concept can include three or more players. Each player is responsible for cuts in a particular direction. It is important that the defenders are "face-guarding" the offense. This means facing the front of whoever is cutting.

The "Basic Clam"

The "Basic Clam" has four defensive players sandwiching the last four offensive players in the stack. The front players play a more conventional person to person.

Note: that forehand really means for a right-handed person’s forehand; force a left-handed person’s backhand.

Why Force Forehand?

1. The inside out forehand usually has a greater margin for error.

2. Few people can throw a long forehand well.

3. The forehand is a lower percentage throw, in general, than the backhand.

When to Force Backhand?

1. When the thrower truly has a great hammer and uses it to beat the Clam.

2. When the offensive player who starts cutting is left-handed

True mastery of the Clam requires the ability to stay in the Clam for several passes; for the full point, if necessary. Players must be extremely comfortable with the concept of switching and playing defense.

In the full field Clam, 0/1/2 always cover the three players closest to the disc, and whoever is the closest to the disc becomes the marker while the other two cover the handlers. If the receiver cuts away from the disc or cuts long, then 0/1/2 passes the receiver off to 3 or 4 (depending on which side) and picks up the next available person. This rotation continues as long as the Clam is being played. The Clam will often shut-down five cuts during eight seconds of the stall count. The offense will find the open receiver when 3 or 5 get caught out of position, allowing the offense to score. When this happens the defense must accept that occasionally the Clam will look foolish and easy goals will be scored.

Shown on the next page is an illustration of what might happen during a typical Clam point. The play begins during a typical Clam point. The play begins with 3/4/5 close to the stack to hide the defense. Remember, one of the keys to success is surprise. As players cut from the middle or back of the stack, 3 and 4 flare out to pick them up, and 5 subtly shifts to whichever side needs covering in case another cut immediately follows. Players have to decide whether or not to cover that cut and leave the middle open. As passes get completed, players reposition themselves to take into account the new disc locations.

B is shut down on a handler cut, E cuts to the forehand side but is picked up by 3, and D has just begun to cut to the backhand side. Note that 5 has moved slightly to the forehand side.

A has just caught a swing pass, G and 0 begin to clear to the middle, B clears long, E returns to the stack, D cuts to an open area far from the disk, and C and F move up in the stack. 3 Moves between B and the disk, 6 moves to the near side, 2 and 5 pick up C, and 4 keeps and eye on D and F.

B and G are making handler cuts and are being covered by 0 and 2. E cuts again to the forehand side and 3 picks him up again. D clears long, 5 moves closer to F as the stall gets high, and 4 gets close to C. There are no passing lanes open, everything is clogged. Note that in all three frames, 3/4/5 have surrounded the last four offensive players in the stack.

Steps to Learning the Clam

To use the Clam effectively, the team must be comfortable with the concept of switching. Many players thing poaching is a sign of laziness, but limited, intelligent switching can have devastating effects. Learn the Clam by practicing the two person Clam in a drill. Have a marker force forehand; place two offensive players in a stack about 15 yards away from each other; but two defenders in a Clam, and allow only comeback cuts. This will help defenders learn to watch more than one move at a time.

Choosing the right players is important to the success of the Clam. Defensive handlers 0/1/2 should be tireless since they will always be near the disc. When playing the "Clam for 1" the 0 position should be played by an excellent marker. Strong marking is important because a broken mark will often leave all defenders poorly positioned, which can result in an easy goal. Veteran poachers who know how the offense cuts and who have experience in switching and poaching should be positions 3/4/5. The biggest and most agile person who can cover a lot of ground and sky for the desperation huck, should be the number 6 player.

At first it might be easier to institute the "Clam for 1". Later, add the option to play it for 3 to 5 passes or for the whole point. Teams can make this decision while on the line, before the point, or while on the sideline, to ensure they have the appropriate players. Once players decide to use the Clam, they will let players on the sideline know so that they can shout a code word to remind the team to switch to force forehand. In the event of a bad pull that does not allow for the defense to set up, the Clam should be called off. If this happens, it is important for players to know who they are matched against on the opposite side of the field.

References

Jim Parinella World Ultimate Magazine, May 1997, Pages 22-26 http://www.cranfield.ac.uk/public/ca/ad943925/clam.htm