Speed Dodging & Sliding

Speed Dodging & Sliding
Please Note:The practice is designed to bring value across multiple age levels. You can use this as a foundation to build and develop your own practice. With that being said, we highly encourage you to adjust the drills based on your team’s age and skill levels. Lacrosse Drive should always be used as a starting point — you can make drills easier or harder by changing the constraints.	To make a drill easier, you might Increase the playing area, reduce the number of defenders or rules, add time or space to make decisions	Activities Partner Passing – Inside Out 1v1 w/ 2 Goals 2v2 with Slides 3v3 Two Sides
Partner Passing – Inside Out - Link to Drill	Set Up	Focus Points
A good drill to build on partner passing that included a hand exchange Set Up Put players in lines, about 5-8 yards away. They will run while passing the ball back and forth keeping their hips upfield, it’s not a shuffle. Players will catch with their inside hand, exchange to their outside hand to make the pass. One line is catching R and Throwing L, and the other is doing the opposite. Have them run the width of the field as 1 rep. Complete again so players can work on their opposite hands Coaching Points & Principles		Keep your stick up as a target for your teammate when you don’t have the ball Try to keep the stick in tight during your hand exchange for a quicker release Passing – Make good passes keep the ball in the air so your teammate can make an easy catch
1v1 w/ 2 Goals - Link to Drill	Set Up	Focus Points
A fund drill to work on offense and defense positional skillsets Set Up if you have 4 small goals, use those. You can also use cones/gates as an alternative if you don’t have those. Split the field in half using cones, and add a line of players on each end they would be defending. Start with 1 side, a coach rolling a ball to the offensive team. The defense must run and approach the player scooping the ball. The objective is for the offense to score on 1 of the 2 goals, but they can’t shoot until they get past the midline. Once a player commits to one side (goal) they must stay attacking that goal. (They cannot run towards 1 goal, and then run to the other) Coaching Points & principles		Offense – Uses dodges to attack space Defense – Try to stay on offense hips. Once they choose a direction, think about driving them rather than taking the ball away
2v2 with Slides - Link to Drill	Set Up	Focus Points
Add in more decision making, by having the defense slide early or later		Defense – On crease, make sure you are IN BETWEEN your player, and the ball carrier. You should be a stick length away ready to slide. When you slide, make sure you are taking s good angle of approach attacking the offense hands and front shoulders Offense – Ball Carrier should get hands free with a small step away if needed, to make a quality pass. Player on crease should show or follow the slide calling for the ball!
3v3 Two Sides - Link to Drill	Set Up	Focus Points
Add in More Speed with adding in early and late slides, forcing the offense to read		Spacing – Give the dodger space to attack Defense – Communicate through picks/coverages Offense – work on coverage solutions

Jump to a Section

Partner Passing – Inside Out
1v1 w/ 2 Goals
2v2 with Slides
3v3 Two Sides

Please Note:The practice is designed to bring value across multiple age levels. You can use this as a foundation to build and develop your own practice. With that being said, we highly encourage you to adjust the drills based on your team’s age and skill levels. Lacrosse Drive should always be used as a starting point — you can make drills easier or harder by changing the constraints.

To make a drill easier, you might Increase the playing area, reduce the number of defenders or rules, add time or space to make decisions

To make a drill harder, you might: Shrink the field or add boundaries, add defenders or touch restrictions (e.g., “one-pass before shooting”), or Limit time or space to force faster decisions

Small adjustments to field size, player numbers, and rules can significantly change the challenge level while maintaining the same core learning goal.

Partner Passing – Inside Out

Set Up

Put players in lines, about 5-8 yards away. They will run while passing the ball back and forth keeping their hips upfield, it’s not a shuffle. Players will catch with their inside hand, exchange to their outside hand to make the pass. One line is catching R and Throwing L, and the other is doing the opposite. Have them run the width of the field as 1 rep. Complete again so players can work on their opposite hands

Coaching Points & Principles

Keep your stick up as a target for your teammate when you don’t have the ball
Try to keep the stick in tight during your hand exchange for a quicker release
Passing – Make good passes keep the ball in the air so your teammate can make an easy catch

1v1 w/ 2 Goals

A fund drill to work on offense and defense positional skillsets

Set Up

if you have 4 small goals, use those. You can also use cones/gates as an alternative if you don’t have those.

Split the field in half using cones, and add a line of players on each end they would be defending. Start with 1 side, a coach rolling a ball to the offensive team. The defense must run and approach the player scooping the ball. The objective is for the offense to score on 1 of the 2 goals, but they can’t shoot until they get past the midline. Once a player commits to one side (goal) they must stay attacking that goal. (They cannot run towards 1 goal, and then run to the other)

Coaching Points & principles

Offense – Uses dodges to attack space
Defense – Try to stay on offense hips. Once they choose a direction, think about driving them rather than taking the ball away

Beginner Defensive Positioning & Footwork Defensive Stick & Body Contact Dodging & Escapes Game - Live Play Intermediate Men’s Lacrosse Positional / Tactical Small Area Games Transition U10 U12 U14 U8 Women’s Lacrosse

View Drill Page →

2v2 with Slides

Add in more decision making, by having the defense slide early or later

Set Up

Create a small area to play, with 1 offensive player and 1 defensive player on each end. We have the players split into two teams, so every player gets experience on both the offensive and defensive side. Both sides will work at the same time for maximum reps. We are using cones to split the field in half, so the players can get an idea on spacing knowing where to be as a defender or crease offensive player. The drill starts with a midfielder dodging the alley guarded by a defender. As they approach a scoring area, the defense on crease will slide to the ball. The ball carrier must recognize, and we want the areas offensive play to call for the ball or follow slide to receive a pass and finish with a shot. The Players on crease will move to the opposite line, and the players who just ran down as midfielders, will become the crease players

Coaching Points & Principles

Defense – On crease, make sure you are IN BETWEEN your player, and the ball carrier. You should be a stick length away ready to slide. When you slide, make sure you are taking s good angle of approach attacking the offense hands and front shoulders
Offense – Ball Carrier should get hands free with a small step away if needed, to make a quality pass. Player on crease should show or follow the slide calling for the ball!

Progressions

Put 2 players of each on crease, choose 1 to slide to the offense has to read the right look!

3v3 Two Sides

Add in More Speed with adding in early and late slides, forcing the offense to read

A small area game that works on the 2 & 3 player game and specific action designed by Jim Mitchell of Princeton Lacrosse

Set Up

On both sides of the field, put offense and defense personnel. You will play 3v3 on side until a dead ball, and then the opposite side will play. Here are the rules:

Playing space – Each side can attack as far as the far side crease tangent. You can put 3 defenders there as shown in diagram, and if the players get too close, they can disrupt
Offense must work on a specific Action
1. Picks, Give and Goes, Ram Picks
2. Younger players can work on just creating space with shallow cuts

Coaching Points & Principles

Spacing – Give the dodger space to attack
Defense – Communicate through picks/coverages
Offense – work on coverage solutions

Progressions

play 4v4, 5v5

2-Player Game 3-Player Game 3v3 4v4 5v5 Advanced Attack College Defense Game - Live Play High School Intermediate Men’s Lacrosse Midfield Off Ball Defensive Play Off Ball Offensive Play Offense & Defense Principles Offense Spacing Principles Small Area Games Small Area Games Team Systems & Conceptual Play U10 U12 U14

View Drill Page →