Drills to Build an Elite Team Defense

Set Up

This drill starts with the offensive players on a high wing, and a defender on the crease, about 8-10 yards away. A coach will have the ball and will start the drill by throwing a ball into the offensive player. As the ball is in the air, the defense must approach the offensive player and take a good angle to keep them away from the middle of the field. The offense must catch the ball, and make 1 quick move to get their hands free for a shot. Try to limit the play to 5 seconds

Coaching Points and Principles

Defense

• Focus on your angle of approach, we want to take away the middle of the field, where a shooting angle is higher
• get your inside foot, top side to help with that approach  and take short choppy steps so you stay balanced, trying not to lunge forward
• Lead with your stick and get to the players hands, hole the topside as best you can’t and drive through shoulders during the dodge to prevent shots

Variations

• Goal Line Extended – https://lacrossedrive.com/general-drill-gle/
• 2v2 General Drill – https://lacrossedrive.com/2v2-general-drill/
• 3v3 General Drill – https://lacrossedrive.com/3v3-general-drill/

Progressions

• Use tennis balls if you want to keep it lighter for your goalies

Set Up

On one end of the field, put 5 offensive players and 5 defensive players out, with 4 perimeter and 1 crease player. Use cones to create an 5×5 – 8×8 house area in front of the goal. The offense will move the ball on the perimeter, and the defense will work together to approach the ball, and off ball players working to sink in to help the house. Defenders 2 passes awat should be all the way inside the house, with the adjacent teammates with 1 foot in the house. Have the offense move the ball around so the defense has to constantly move on and off ball to maintain position.

Coaching Points and Principles

• Defensively
  • Players approaching the ball should break down with their stick out, thinking about the angle of approach, keeping ball carriers away from the middle.
  • Off ball defense get you sticks up in the passing lanes
  • Communicate “Ball” “1 slide”, “2 Slide”
• Offense
  • Move the ball quickly, and think about spacing make good 8-10 yard passes

Progressions

• Shell Motion Drill – https://lacrossedrive.com/shell-motion/
• Shell Exchange Drill – https://lacrossedrive.com/shell-exchange-drill/

This drill shown by Lars Tiffany, is a great one to work on approach play, and splitting 2 when playing off ball

 

SET UP

Put goals at each retraining box. Put 1 line of players on each side of the cage, and start with 3 attack and 3 defense inside the playing area. The game starts with goalie outlet to line, and A/D need to rush in to the hole and get to their spots. Play until a goal is scored, goalie makes save, or missed shot. As soon as that happen, goalie outlets to a new player, and the 3 A/D need to rush to the opposite side of the field, and prepare for the 4 v 3. They do 3 reps, then change out A/D

PRINCIPLES & COACHING POINTS

• Get to your spots on O and D
• Defense communicate
• Small area play, protect ball, move it fast, and find the best shot

A great drill that works on the chaos on trying to get organized from a defensive and offensive perspective during an unsettled 4v3 transition scenario

Set Up

Place 2 attackmen behind the goal, add 1 defender guarding 1 of them. Use a trash can or a token offensive player on the crease. The defender will guard the 1 attacker not letting them get topside, and force them to make a pass to their teammate deep at X. They will then sprint over to the other attacker that received the pass, and guard them at they go to the goal.  That attacker must dodge the oppsite side of the coage from the previous teammate. As defenders, we need to sprint to the new ball carrier, meet them at GLE and sit down (Take the charge), not letting them get topside. Force inside rolls or under neath dodges

Coaching Points & Principles

• Good on ball defense, force the ball carrier back under Goal Line
• Arriving at GLE – We want to get in a good firm position, sit down and force the offensive player back or under. We dont want them getting top side

Set Up

We will have 4 offensive and defensive players in this drill. They will be set up in the shape of a Y with 2 Groups a X, another on the crease, and 1 up top. This is a 1v1 drill, so the off ball offensive teammates can only be an outlet, they cannot go set picks. The focus is for the defender to play tough 1v1, with the backside help on the crease. We want the off balls defenders learning to support the crease off ball when a slide is necessary, and continue to slide/recover out of it

Coaching Points & Principles

• 1v1 Defense, use angles to force players away from the middle of the field.
• Slide and Support – Crease defender will be the slide help if their teammate gets beat. We need the backside defender to fill in and cover the crease
• Backside crease support, needs to hold crease coverage until recovery teammate gets back, especially when ball is at X.. slow to go
• Communication – Everyone should talk and know who is the 1 (slide) and the 2 (Backside help)

Set Up

Create the shape of a T using 4 cones. The player starts at the top cone in a defensive position, and will backpedal tin athletic position to the cone behind them. Once they reach, they will plant and shuffle to furthest cone at either direction. They will then plant, side run with their stick up all the way to the opposite low cone. Plant, shuffle back to the middle, and they approach and break down at the top cone where they started

Coaching Points & Principles

• Body Position – Player need to stay balance in a low athletic position the entire time
• Stick – Keep stick in a read position at all times.. never drop hands
• Speed – Try to work through as fast as possible without sacrificing the efficiency of your footwork

Progressions

• Level 2 – https://lacrossedrive.com/t-drill-for-defense-level-2/
• Level 3: https://lacrossedrive.com/defensive-t-drill-level-3-w-reads/