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The "Four and Two" (four spikers and two setters) - Part 2

The objective of the "Four and Two" system is to provide both power and deception in the attack by keeping two spikers in position to hit on every play. Deception may be greatly increased by use of:

1. Varying types of sets—high or low; close or deep; toward center court or wide at the side line.

2. Varying types of spikes—power and "change-up"; different angles; hitting over the block; and deliberately playing the ball off the blockers' hands.

3. Setting direct to the spiker on the first pass.

4. Use of the setter as a spiker—usually on the first pass and occasionally on a set when another player is forced to play the second pass.

Note: Effective use of these variations, particularly #3 and #4, requires exceptional ball-handling skill.

The dream of many coaches is to field a team of two right-handed spikers and two "lefties." With this lineup every spiker is in his best power position in two of the three net positions. Since this dream rarely comes true, a majority of teams are lined up so that their two strongest spikers hit from the left forward position twice and from the right for­ward position once in the rotation order. However, several of the top teams have experimented in recent years with the opposite order, to keep their stronger spikers in the more difficult right forward position a majority of the time. There is no set rule to follow at this point. Every team must de­termine the best alignment of its own personnel.

One advantage of the "Four and Two" system, in addition to added power and deception, is that first passes are always made to the center forward position. This makes for fewer errors in passing and puts the setter in better position to recover bad passes. An inevitable disadvantage of this system compared to the "Three and Three" is that it puts more pres­sure on each setter. Where the "Three and Three" calls for only two attack situations in which to set to one spiker, the "Four and Two" demands that the setter familiarize himself with three attack situations and four different spikers in two different positions. The right set to the right man at the right time requires a high degree of judgment and skill.

For the past six years the "Four and Two" has been used almost exclusively by the better teams across the country. There is no indication at present that its popularity will not continue.

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