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Offense - Flow


The simplest form of offensive play in Ultimate is called ‘flow offence’. Flow offense revolves around the stack and a series of well times cuts which have the disk flowing up the pitch in a succession of throws. Almost all teams use this as the basis of their offensive style.

Stack

Wherever the disk is being played from on the Ultimate pitch, the offensive team forms a line between that position and the center of the endzone which they are attacking. The position of the stack will change everytime there is a breakdown in the flow. The players stand at intervals along this line which is effectively a ‘neutral zone’. This is where players go to rest or to prepare for a cut.

By forming a stack the sides of the field are free to cut into. If a cut is unsuccessful the player should get back to the stack before making another cut. At the start of each point, players are given "positions" which they well play throughout the point. These positions determine the part of the stack that they will occupy. There are three basic recognized positions in Ultimate: "handler", "middle" and "endzone" (or "long"). In the flow offence there are three handlers, two middles and two endzones. Depending on the position your are given your role will vary, as will the type of cut you should be making.


Handlers

Handlers are usually the more skillful throwers. They will pick up the disc at the beginning of a point or after a turnover and make the first (usually the most difficult) pass. In a flow offense, handlers set the flow in motion, as the first pass will normally be from one handler to another handler as he or she make the "first-cut". As a first-cut you should position yourself at the bottom of the stack nearest the thrower and no more than ten meters away. The timing of the first cut is easy, since you make your cut any time after the thrower has taken possession of the disc (and before the stall count reaches ten!). You don’t have to worry about being in the right place at the right time, just your ability to lose your marker.

There is a tendency to think that your fastest player should be first-cut so that they can get free easily for the first pass. However, they will often be more effective as middles or endzones where speed is a definite advantage. Also, good defensive teams will match up fast defenders on your fast players, so speed alone will not make a good handler. Much more important for first-cut is confidence and decisiveness. A good decisive cut will lose your marker ninety percent of the time, whereas hesitant shuffling is easy to mark. Decide before your cut what you are going to do (e.g. three steps up-field then a hard cut back towards the thrower – Figure below).

Having got free and caught the disc you have started the flow in motion. You should be able to look up-field and see a middle cutting out to the side in lots of space for you to make a pass to.

Middles

These players play in the middle of the stack and are usually fast and good catchers. They are sometimes called second-cuts because they are normally one of the second player to cut from the stack. The middles often have to receive fast throws or make up a lot of ground to catch a throw as they attempt to gain substantial yardage up field.

The key to this position is timing. You are a crucial link between the handlers and the endzones and if your timing is out the flow will come to an unceremonious halt. Your cut should be timed so that when the first-cut receives the disc and looks upfield you are starting to get free and heading for the sideline. If you go too early you will be running off the side of the pitch before the first-cut has a chance to get into a throwing position. A general rule should be "better late". The earliest that a second-cut should be looking to go is when the first-cut is just about to catch the disc. Again, it is important to be decisive about your cut, otherwise you will easy to mark.

A middle should also be looking to make substantial ground towards the endzone so you either need to position yourself towards the top of the stack cutting back down field or in the middle of the stack cutting up field (see Figure below).


Endzones

These players are usually fast, agile and athletic. Their work is tireless as they are the players you throw to to score a point in the endzone. Much like forwards in soccer, you do a lot of running for little reward, except the glory of scoring the points. This is a highly under-rated position; it takes great skill and timing to play this position well and a team that does not have a quality endzone player will struggle to score.

Again, this position requires timing – you need to be getting free as the second-cut gets into position to throw to you ("better late"). Don’t just hang around in the endzone hoping someone will pass to you, because they won’t. Don’t just cut straight out to the side as you’ll be easy to cover. As an endzone player you have to be decisive and cunning in your cutting as players will mark that much tighter in the endzone.

The simplest cut is to head towards the back corner of the endzone then cut back towards the thrower (see Figure below).

Don’t worry about catching the disc in the endzone – just catch the disc! Perhaps a better cut is to start by running towards the thrower and then cutting up the field for the corner of the endzone. This way you are receiving a leading pass taking you into the endzone.

Flow Offense

Putting it all together gives you the basic flow offense. So in summary, the flow offense starts when one of the offensive team’s handlers picks up the disc either from the pull or after a turnover. Even before this has happened, the rest of the team forms a stack. The handler then makes a pass to the "first-cut" (who is normally another handler). The first-cut in turn makes a pass to one of the middles (or second-cut). Finally, the middle makes a throw into the endzone to one of the endzone players, to score a point. The whole flow will normally be up one flank of the pitch. The Figure below shows the flow offense.

Adding it up, there are four players involved in the basic flow offense, but this doesn’t mean that the other three have nothing to do. The other three players are safety players who step in if any part of the flow breaks down. So if the first-cut can’t get free then the safety handler would take over and become the first-cut. Similarly for the safety middle and safety endzone.

It’s all so simple, isn’t it! The flow offense often doesn’t (flow) and there are some common mistakes that will always turn into sticky treacle;

Handlers for some reason often think they have to "help out" when the last thing that is needed is their help. If handlers do not give time and space for the middles to cut you get an effect called (wind) milling, where all you get is a succession of short passes going nowhere for a lot of effort. The same will happen if the seconds can’t nail the timing ("better late"), or if they are indecisive about their cuts. Players not clearing out (returning to the stack after an unsuccessful cut) will block the passing lanes and cause a return to the dreaded milling.

Get it right though and your flow will be unstoppable.

References

Scott Scotland World Ultimate Magazine Issue 33, April 1996, Pages 10 and 11 http://www.cranfield.ac.uk/public/ca/ad943925/bufscot1.htm