The theory behind how to handle defensive pressure is simple. Just like in soccer or football, your team's Time of Possession means you have more time to score, and your opponents have less. That being said, Rocket League is a fluid game comprised of fast-moving rotations and plays on the ball. Even if you control the ball 60% of the time, that means you only have 1 more minute of possession than your opponent. But, in Rocket League, that can be all the difference.

This topic stuck out to me this past weekend of RLCS where we saw Dignitas take a close series against TSM. They utilized the ideas I'm going to speak about very well. For reference, check out Dignitas' first goal of Game 1 and Game 2. Although they used this theory several more times throughout the series, these were the most prominent to me.

In Rocket League, we can be very tempted to hit the ball as hard as we can for a clear. It looks good, it buys time, but it just gives possession to the other team most of the time. It has its place, but the best tip I can give to help clear defensive pressure is to take your time. Let's discuss three ways to buy time and initiate counterattacks.

1) Slow It Down

When you have a team bearing down and you are low on boost, try to settle the ball. This is a rather simple way of letting your team dictate the pace of play. When you take a soft touch on the ball, it gives your teammates time to gather some boost before initiating a counterattack instead of just hitting a hard clear to the opponents and giving them an easy shot on net. While your teammates are grabbing boost, your opponents are forced to make a decision. They can either try and continue to hard press you or give you space. Usually, they won't give you much space in Standard, but in Doubles and Solos, you can utilize this time to grab boost yourself while handling the ball. In Standard, or any mode, when they begin to pressure you, they will likely be using their boost resources. But, you're in control, remember? This play is in your house. You have plenty of different options here. A flick, a low 50/50, or taking a touch up the wall are all ways to help control the play. At this point, even if you weren't able to beat the opponent yourself, your teammates with have the resources necessary to launch a counterattack. Take note of those Dignitas goals and whether or not they were given space, and how they handled the situation.

There is a wide variety of skill sets you can use to slow down the game. Dribbling, however, is the most crucial to this. Setting up for a flick, ground-to-air dribble, and simply taking it up the wall all require dribbling. Being able to dribble well will help you here on defense greatly, not just on offense. It's also very easy to practice. In Solos, Free Play, and any other mode, once you start to get the hang of dribbling, start to use it for in-game situations and you will realize even simple dribbles open up choices for you to beat your opponents.

2) Look for a Pass

Oftentimes when playing on defense for a while, you will get low on boost. Even if you see an opportunity for a solid clear, you might not be able to. At this point, it's great to look for a pass. When both you and your teammates are low on boost, a pass might be the only way to get enough momentum behind the ball to buy your team time. Besides its value as a time-buyer for your defense, it can often lead to offensive opportunities when you can then cage in the opposing team's defense.

This is something we often see at higher levels of play, but in lower levels of play it can be just as devastating. If the opponents aren't used to passes, they will likely be caught out of position or simply not expect one and create a great scoring chance. Passing plays are most easily created on defense when you are able to hit the ball to one of your corners where, like mentioned before, a teammate who just picked up boost can slow down the play and take command of the field.

Because the pass is often unexpected or, even if it is, hard to read what the player receiving the ball will do, it creates a large opening for your team to counterattack. When the opponents are caught out without intercepting the pass, they will either give your teammate time, allowing him to make a move, or try to close the gap, where your teammate can beat him with another pass back or a clear downfield.

Remember that it is dangerous to pass across goal though. Ideally, the passes should be to the corners or high on a wall for a teammate to get a hit downfield. Passing across goal is risky because, if intercepted or pinched, can lead to awkward and unexpected shots on net by your opponent.

3) 50/50s Are Your Friend

The ability to force a good challenge is extremely underrated. Learning the physics of how the ball reacts to a head-on-head challenge can drastically change your team's outcome. When you are low on boost, the opponent is likely to try and force a play on to you. When you completely counteract the opponent's momentum without spending much of your own boost, it creates a quick swing in who has pressure on the field.

50/50s can be dangerous if you position awkwardly, but when used correctly, they not only buy your team time to gather boost and return to position, but they can spark an attacking opportunity as it often takes an opponent out of the play. This one challenge can create a small window of time where your team has a 3v2/2v1 power play.

Defense isn't viewed as being flashy, and often gets neglected when looking to improve. But when you learn to handle difficult situations and turn them into attacking chances, you'll see your win count begin to rise. I hope these ideas can help you as much as they've helped me. With a little bit of practice, those Overtime losses will become commanding wins!