Instructional Video of the Week: Shoot off Defenders Hip

Midfield tips from Pete Poillon. Using a defender to hide the stick on a shot. Good dodging tips as well.

Offensive Tips for the Midfielder

A couple of weeks ago we offered some defensive tips for midfielders. This week, we have some offensive tips for midfielders.

Midfield Offense Tips

1. Endurance.  Endurance is a midfielders best friend.  As a middie you need to be the most well conditioned player on the field.  How else are you going to make a big stop on D and than go to the O side and stick a corner?

In the off season, you should be running both long-distance and sprints every day.

Even if you aren't that great of a ball handler, if you have speed, then you have much of what you need.

2. Get GREAT at ground balls. The team that controls the ground ball game, wins the actual game.  No matter what level of lacrosse you play in, there will always be ground balls to pick up.

Just remember to get low and scoop through the ball.  Pound it into your head to NEVER rake the ball, and always scoop through the ball.

One more thing to remember with ground balls. Use two hands. One-hand ground balls are for showoffs that never get the job done. Use two hands, and be a reliable ground ball man.

Kyle Harrison after a successful split dodge

3. Become a GREAT dodger.  Don't dodge with the intention of always blowing by your defender.  To score goals, midfielders only need to be able to execute a dodge that will enable them to get their hands free for a quality shot or pass.  Getting your hands free for a shot (away from your defender and his stick) while in shooting range of the goal is the key to scoring goals.

When dodging from up top, midfielders can anticipate having to take a shot from a distance no closer than 8 yards away from the goal.  This is because there is often a defender standing right in front of the goal, on the crease area, who is ready to slide and double team if the offensive player gets close to the goal. Offensive midfielders that get too close to the goal before shooting the ball will often find themselves in this double-team and unable to shoot or pass effectively (a common mistake with young players).   As a result, midfielders should learn to shoot the ball relatively quickly out of their dodge.  A midfielder that has the ball and is within 13 yards of the goal with his hands free should shoot the ball if he has a quality shot, rather than trying to run in for a closer shot (if there are other defenders blocking his path to the goal).

Execute all of your moves in a game at FULL SPEED (Practice your moves this way too). Learn to play lefty and righty equally as well.   It does not matter how good you are at a dodge. If you make the move the same way every time, your defenseman will recognize this and you'll never get your hands free.

A player has a big advantage dodging from up top rather than behind the goal because they start their dodge while facing the goal, and therefore already have a shooting angle on the goal.  For midfielders, a basic split dodge is the dodge that will most often help you get your hands free for a shot, because when done correctly, it creates the most space between you and your defender than other dodges.  Midfielders should practice dodging and shooting drills designed to create separation from a defender within scoring range of the goal.

At the intermediate level, the split dodge is the primary dodge a midfielder should use.  It is actually better to have midfielders concentrate on this dodge because it makes them go north-south. Too often at the youth level, midfielders try to go back and forth across the field as they slowly back their way to the goal.  They either use a million face dodges or a million roll dodges and if they are lucky they get to the goal in a one-on-one situation. This is not an effective way to get to the goal in a game and it is not a dodge that any player would use at a more advanced level because he would get crushed.

Midfielders should be encouraged to make one hard move (a split dodge) and go to the goal.  Midfielders should attack their defenders “top” or “outside” foot, make them change direction, and then go to the goal. Midfielders will make split dodges from up top or from the wing but should never dodge east-west.  Getting to the goal or drawing a slide and passing is the main job for the midfielder on offense.  It is that easy.  A midfielder that understands this concept at an intermediate level will make them much better than their competition.

4. Become GREAT at shooting on the run.  Since they are learning to make one hard move and go to the goal, midfielders must also learn to shoot on the run. This is something that takes a great deal of practice and repetition. During practice, focus about 90% of the time shooting on the run. That is really the shot you will use most of the time in a game. The ability to shoot well on the run rests on the skills of snapping the wrists over and twisting the upper body.

Try to be deceptive. Try to hide your stick behind your body until the last second. And, make sure to shoot with the proper technique. Remember to:

• Get your hands away from your body - Hands and elbows high and away from your body, hands 12 inches apart close to the bottom of your handle
• Snap your stick over the top with your wrists
• Turn your shoulders and hips and uncork like a golfer
• Drive with your front shoulder toward the goal

Some players find it more effective to bring their hands closer together when shooting on the run because it gives them more torque on their shot.  Some players also find that jumping while shooting on the run gives them more power as it allows them to twist their body more as they are in the air.  This is a very difficult skill to learn and is more suitable for stronger, more advanced players.  If you are fading away from the goal or shooting off your back foot or not turning and shooting in stride, you’ll want to practice to break these bad habits right away.  A young midfielder who can learn to shoot on the run effectively will have a very bright future as a lacrosse player.

5. Perfect your quick stick. Quick sticking can be the most lethal attribute that a middie can have.  It is so difficult for the defender and the goalie to stop it, or to even see it coming.

It doesn't require a lot of power (or skill) to do. Just get out to a brick wall, and play wall ball.

It is very important that you learn how to quick stick with both hands. Doing this might make you the MVP of your team (at least for scoring and finishing).

6. Practice Time and Room shooting as well (midfielders have to be well-rounded). To learn to shoot with time and room from the outside, young midfielders should first try to catch the ball behind them.  If the midfielder can learn to catch the ball with his arms extended, his hands away from his body, and his stick behind him, then this will set him up for a great outside shot.

As he catches the ball, the midfielder wants to push off his back foot and step with his front foot, take a small cradle, and let the ball go.   Just having a quick shot at this level will catch goalies off guard.

Much like shooting on the run, catching and shooting with time and room is learned from a great deal of repetition. The more it is practiced, the greater the level of muscle-memory will come into play. Things to watch out for and avoid when practicing time and room shots are letting your hands get to close to your body, letting the head of your stick drop, using your arms instead of your wrists, stepping with the wrong foot, and attacking the ball when catching instead of receiving it behind you.

7. Learn how to play off the ball. Off ball play is an overlooked and important part of the midfielder's game. 60-70% of the goals scored are assisted by a teammate. To get these scoring opportunities however, you must know how to move without the ball.

Here are four tips to better off ball play:

• After throwing a pass, immediately cut to the goal for a return pass (give and go), Most defenseman relax after you give up the ball...make em pay.
• If the defenseman covering you goes to double or help a teammate, follow behind him and get in a passing lane.
• Always cut to the ball as hard and fast as you do when you dodge. You'll be surprised how open you get just by cutting 100%.
• Watch top level lacrosse and see how the middies and attackmen cut. Also watch and play basketball.

8. Perfect your Passing game. The key to being great at midfield is learning when and how to pass.   Of course every player wants to be the one who scores the goal, but a player who can pass when necessary is worth more to the team.  Make sure that your passes have purpose. You don’t want to move the ball just for the sake of passing.  If the recipient is no better off to make a move or shot on goal, then the pass loses its value.  After a pass, however, the midfielder should hustle down to the goal to grab a return pass if necessary. A midfielder should always be on the move to keep the defense on their toes.

For young midfielders, it's important to pass before you run into trouble, find one or two or three opposing players collapsing on you and then can't make a good pass or shoot.  Midfielders need to see the field and pass to the open man before they draw the double or triple team.  It's painful to watch young midfielders dodge to the goal directly into trouble while one or two of their teammates wait open for a pass.  Learning to see the field and find the open man comes with experience.  

9. Practice your face-off technique. Don't rely on the other guy all the time. Learn some moves and practice! Young midfielders should all practice face-offs. You may be called upon to face-off in a game and you should know how to do it and practice. If not practiced, it might be hard to discover who might be good at it as well. Face-off tips coming soon.

Instructional Video of the Week: Midfield Play - Split Dodge with Kyle Harrison

Instructional Video of the Week: Middie Defense Part 2

This little video features Benson Erwin, one of the best short stick defensive midfielders in the game.  He discusses the importance of keeping your man outside, away from the middle of the field.

Defensive Tips for Midfielders

The following are some tips for playing defense from the midfield position. Defense from the midfield position, particularly for short stick midfielders, is a critical aspect of overall team defense.

1.  Play defense with your feet.  Good footwork is a critical skill for defensive players. Good footwork means speed, agility, and quickness.   Not every player naturally possesses great speed, agility, or quickness, but every player can gain it. You can do this by jumping rope, wind sprints, shuttles runs, and playing pick-up basketball.

Play basketball a lot to help learn to play with your feet. Get your hands up in front of you.  Find pick-up games at gyms, playgrounds, schools, etc.  Play against people taller and faster than you.  The principles are exactly the same, and it's a lot easier to get a pick-up game of basketball going than a pick-up game of lacrosse.

2.  Look at your opponents waist.  What are you looking at when your opponent starts to dodge at you? (His eyes? His stick?) These are common mistakes. You'll probably get faked out. You should be looking at his waist. Wherever his waist goes, he is going.  If you ever played football this is where you are taught to look when trying to tackle someone. You can still see what he wants to do with the ball out of the corner of your eye.

3.  The main goal of a midfielder playing defense from up top is to keep his man down the side or going down the alleys.  An important concept when playing defense against an offensive midfielder is the position of your stick, more specifically the head of your stick. The proper way to hold your stick as you are covering a dodger from up top is to have the head of your stick in an “UPFIELD” position.  Upfield means that you have the head of your stick towards the midfield line and your butt end towards the goalie.   For example, if you are covering a dodger going down the field’s left hand side, the head of your stick should be to your right (hence pointing to the midfield line). If the dodger is going down the right hand side of the field your stick should be to your left (hence pointing to the midfield line).   

By having the head of your stick in the UPFIELD position you accomplish a major defensive goal – preventing a dodger from rolling back or getting to the middle of the field.  The middle of the field is sacred for a defense and needs to be protected at all costs because it is where offensive players have the best angle to shoot and greatest chance to score. When you can keep an offensive player down the sides and not the middle of the field you decrease your opponent’s shooting angle and make the job of your goalie and fellow defensemen easier.

4.  You want to dictate where your man goes, not the opposite.  Force him to his weak hand or toward a diminishing shooting angle.  Do this by slightly turning your hips and shoulders and mostly by actually being on one side of him. The key to good team defense is tricking your opponent into taking poor shots. So play your individual defense accordingly.  Once he makes a move, close the distance between you, and take a good angle so you'll meet him at a point where he becomes dangerous.

The d-middie wants to guide his man down the side of the field for three reasons.  The first reason is that the further the offensive midfielder goes down the side, the less of an angle that he will have for a shot. Secondly, the further he goes down the side, the fewer options he will have for a feed.  Finally, the defender that is sliding to the ball carrier will know exactly where he needs to slide if the d-middie gets beat by a few steps. The defensive midfielder keeps the ball carrier going down the side by using a cross check (which is gently pushing the ball carrier out with the shaft of his stick and his hands about six inches apart on the stick (if his hands are two wide or he jolts the ball carrier with his stick, then a penalty will be called).

If an intermediate level midfielder can learn to keep his man down the side, then he/she is way ahead of the game.  This does take some time to learn.  When teaching this Coach Bill Tierney always tells his midfielders, “All I want you to do is get beat. Just make sure you get beat down the side of the field and not towards the middle of the field.” As simple as it sounds, it takes a great deal of practice for youth players to grasp. Once they learn though, it makes them a great defensive player as a midfielder.

5.  Don't throw stick checks until you have perfected footwork and body position.  A check thrown when not in good foot position will almost always result in a whiff or a foul.  If you are in good position and your man is getting ready to pass or shoot, the most effective check is a lift check. Get under his bottom elbow with your stick (or glove on your stick) and lift up and toward yourself (to avoid nipping his facemask on the way up).

Never lunge at the offensive player.  As you attempt to make a stick check, you need to keep your feet moving the whole time.  Active feet are essential when you attempt to throw stick checks.  Many defensive players make the mistake of stopping their feet as they throw a check.  Doing so allows an offensive player to run right by the defenseman if they miss the check.  Keeping your feet moving allows you to recover from a missed check and not give up an easy angle to score.  Players should work on developing the ability to time their checks perfectly by going for the stick at the exact moment it may be left open.

After your check is made, it is extremely important to come up with the groundball pickup and keep possession of the ball for your team. If you are going to go for the check, then go for it hard and come up with the ball.

6.  Short stick middies job is basically one of containment - you're not there to take the ball away, thats the long stick's job. As has been said, keep him to the channels, don't get beat inside, don't rely on throwing stick checks, and don't go one-handed to throw a check.  If you do, you're already beat and 90% of the time the best you can hope for is to not draw a flag.   Nothing good ever comes from defending with one hand on your stick.

7.  Never chase after the ball carriers stick to try and take the ball away. Whenever this happens, the defensive midfielder gets beat towards the top side.

It is very important for young midfielders to learn the importance of getting back “in the hole”.  This means that when the other team gets the ball, the midfielder’s first objective should be to get back to the defensive side, within the restraining box and let the offense come to them.  Too many young lacrosse players consistently slide up field. For example, say the Tigers take the ball away from the Bears. A Tiger player has the ball in the defensive end and starts running up field towards the Bears’ goal.  At most beginner levels, the Bears’ midfielders will run at the Tiger player and try to take the ball.  This is called sliding up field and is the biggest mistake that an uneducated lacrosse player makes.   The Bears’ midfielders should just run back to their goal, break down and get ready to defend.  With the way lacrosse is played now, sliding up field rarely gets the ball back from the other team, and usually ends up in transition situations and scoring for the other team.  A great lesson for young middies to learn is as soon as the other team gets the ball, get back on defense.  It will help your team, and it will give your midfielders a good foundation for playing solid defense.

8.   If you're a D-Middie accept your role on the team. You aren't going to score a lot of points, but if you are good at defense you will have a lot of fast break opportunities that offensive middies won't.  Most lacrosse players don't get a lot of PT. You have maybe 40 guys on a team and 18 play a lot. That's just the way it is.

If you're middle of the road in stick skills as a middie, you can get more playing time if you're a good groundballer, hustle, play D-Mid, wing on face-offs and man-down defense.

9.  Communicate!  Communicating with your fellow defensemen is vital to a defense’s success. Creative and effective offenses excel at two things – picking and moving without the ball.  It is important to communicate with other defensemen during a pick play so you know whether to switch players or maintain your match-ups.  If your man is going to set a pick on your fellow defenseman, let them know that a pick is coming and from what direction, and then tell them to either “SWITCH” or “STAY ON MAN”.  YOU CAN NEVER TALK TOO MUCH OR TALK TOO LOUDLY ON THE LACROSSE FIELD.  A loud and talkative defense is an effective one. 

10.  Be the toughest son-of-a-gun you can. Never lose a 50-50 ground ball. Always run as hard as you can when out there. You'll be off soon to rest. Part of your job is to set the tone, pace and volume of the game. You want to instill fear and self-doubt in your opponent. This hurts their confidence and makes them less aggressive, which makes you more effective.

When off the ball:

There are six players on the offense, so your man will only have the ball about 17% of the time.  That means 83% of your defensive game is played when your man doesn't have the ball. So you better be good off-ball because that's most of your D game.

1. Spend most of your time looking at your man and the other players without the ball.

2. Use all your senses: FEEL AROUND, LISTEN AND TALK. Your goalie should be telling you where the ball is and what defense you are in and what formation the offense is in. This way you don't have to take your eyes off your man.

3. See the ball 10 percent of the time, just to get more info. Do this with a quick turn of the head, and then see your man again.

4. KEEP YOUR HIPS TURNED TOWARD YOUR MAN AT ALL TIMES! You won't have time to turn and find him if he is receiving a feed. If you think another opponent is behind you, reach your hand out to try to touch him without taking your eyes of your man. Be big in there, push people around.

5. If you're going to look at the ball as it's being passed around the horn, ALWAYS TURN THROUGH YOUR MAN! This means if you are playing defense against the top left middie and he passes the ball to the leftwing attackman, who throws it to the attackman at X, who throws it to the rightwing attackman, you need to move your body in a certain way. DO NOT TURN YOUR BODY COUNTERCLOCKWISE in this situation and follow the ball. You should see the pass to the leftwing attackman and then LOOK OVER YOUR RIGHT SHOULDER to see the ball at X and the right wing, without turning your feet or hips. Thus you have turned THROUGH YOUR MAN to see the ball.

6. Cover the offensive players, not spots, even when in zone. (i.e. adapt the shape of your zone to their formation).

7. As for playing team defense, when in doubt slide early, help and double often.

Instructional Video of the Week: Middie Defense