First drill: Put all of your players in a big circle, except for 2 players (who go in the center). Have the circle players pass the ball around or across the circle. The 1st defender (i.e., the one who is closest to the ball) goes to the player who has the ball and tries to set an angle which restricts the passing opportunities of that player.

The second defender then sets up to intercept the pass to the remaining passing options or to further restrict the options to only a player who is very close to the player with the ball. Because the second defender must make his choices based upon the choice of angle made by the first defender, he will have to watch carefully to see the probable angle to be set so that he has time to move in as support. Generally, he will want to play within 4-5 steps or so of the 1st defender so that he can get to his support position quickly. Rotate players in and out of the defender positions as they get tired, or as you want to let others get exposed to this supporting role.

Second drill: Put 4 players in a grid about 30 feet long by 15 feet wide:

Put one attacker and one defender in the middle, with the other two on the ends (long-ways) of the grid. The ball goes to one of the end players, who will become the 2nd defender. Have the 1st defender closely mark the attacker. The ball is passed in by the end player, the 1st defender sets his angle to try to restrict the passing chances of the attacker to the other end player, by moving him towards a sideline; and the 2nd defender moves in quickly to support and further cut off passing chances and/or help to steal the ball.

The main thing to teach defenders is PATIENCE. Our general rule was that the 1st Defender was the shark, and his job was to slow the attacker down and block his forward progress. The 2nd attacker was the barracuda, and his job was the finish the "kill". It is very important to get this concept drilled into their heads to avoid premature attempts to get the ball before there is good support available, because the premature attack allows the attacker to beat the defender and then have a free run towards goal or his target player. You want wait for the attacker to make a mistake under pressure. and to keep dropping back with him and keep slowing him down until help can arrive.

BTW, this second drill format is also useful for 2nd attacker training, where the end player passes the ball in; tells the 1st attacker if he can turn or needs to pass back; and then moves in to coordinate the attack.
-- Thanks to: Connie Matthies