Field Hockey: final game

How do I get my girls to show more consistency at the beginning of a game? The longer the game goes the better they get.

Hi all,I've got my level 2 assessment coming up on Sunday and I just wanted to quickly check whether there's a 'recommended' structure to the session plan.Btw, this is a level 2 practical assessment and is with juniors (U14s).One coach has suggested a 3 part approach:1) techniques and skills required2) unopposed 3) opposedThe theme I'm choosing, which is a bit of a generic one, is defending in a channel (as I'm a defender and it's pretty straight forward).I'm not really looking for info on what exactly to include (i.e. theme specific) but rather general structure or whether E.H. have an approved structure to sessions?My session's on Sunday, so a quick reply would be awesome.Thanks,Gary

Fellow Coaches.In you opinion, why do you think the England Ladies have been knocked out of the World Cup?My own view is that many of the players look mentally tired...What do you think?

Hi,I perhaps naively, expected to have most of our team from last year carry over and only have a few new comers to integrate and get up to speed with the rest. However meeting the team at our first practice last night i find I have five players still at school from last year and the rest all new comers, most of whom had not held a hockey stick at all till practice.This being only my second season coaching (year 9 to year 13 boys) has left me feeling a little blindsided, and feeling quite unsure how to prepare practices that target both groups of boys. Do i lump them both groups together, keep them separate? What drills/exercises to best bring the new comers up to speed.I don't want to neglect either group, keep practice worthwhile for the experienced boys, but also bringing the new comers up to a level were they can mix in with the others and learn organically from them while practicing as a team. David

Anybody any ideas on a conditioned game to encourage receiving the ball in a forward facing position?

Hi,I perhaps naively, expected to have most of our team from last year carry over and only have a few new comers to integrate and get up to speed with the rest. However meeting the team at our first practice last night i find I have five players still at school from last year and the rest all new comers, most of whom had not held a hockey stick at all till practice.This being only my second season coaching (year 9 to year 13 boys) has left me feeling a little blindsided, and feeling quite unsure how to prepare practices that target both groups of boys. Do i lump them both groups together, keep them separate? What drills/exercises to best bring the new comers up to speed.I don't want to neglect either group, keep practice worthwhile for the experienced boys, but also bringing the new comers up to a level were they can mix in with the others and learn organically from them while practicing as a team. David

I help out at local skill teaching children from yr 1 to yr 7 the skills of hockey. I am always looking for fun mini games which encases all skill types. This is from non hockey to excellent hockey players.

Anybody any ideas on a conditioned game to encourage receiving the ball in a forward facing position?

Hi - I need suggestions for training on Monday. Varsity high school girls, playing on grass. Last couple of games tackling, especially body position, has been weak. Anyone got any great drills? The girls know it's gonna be a hard session..! Thx

How to speed up the game on indoor hockey?

Hello all, im coaching a ladies first team and im trying to motivate them to take it a lot more seriously then they currently do. They want to train hard but are afraid of making mistakes defensively. Instead of getting back behind the ball when they make a mistake they almost seem embarrassed and stand there with their arm up. I give them as much encouragement as possible without following them round with a pillow!! Also only 2/3 of the squad come to training which is frustrating as both forwards never attend training but the captain wont drop them and come saturday, they have no clue as to what we have been working on. So im having to take 15 minutes out of my pre-game warm up with the rest of the ladies to explain whats going to happen. I get paid to coach them on Tuesday nights but i do saturdays for free. It is frustrating to say the least and i would love any help you can give pleeeaaasseee!!! Mike

Anybody got any ideas on how to get 14-15 year old girls to treat a first time coach as a coach and not just a friend?

hi there I'm using 4-4-2 and on sometimes 3-1-4-2 with a lower level hockey team.I've chosen this over other formations, simply because the hockey experience and ability of my players is not of a high level (and most people have an approximate understanding of 442). Also, I believe that one must choose a formation based on players traits and what they can deliver. For example, I'd ideally prefer to have 3 forwards, to help with more height and width but then would have to either play 3 in the middle or 3 at the back... and my player strengths don't permit this. In short, I simply don't believe I have a strong enough CH / CM to handle 3 in the middle and I'm not convinced that the off-the-ball support from other players is strong enough to allow 3 in the middle. OFFENSIVE PLAYS Anyway, I'm not 100% where to get my centre mids to stand when we have a 16 yd hit to take (i.e. our possession). Obviously one of the CMs comes deep to offer a potential direct outlet from the centre backs or offer an overload option if the ball goes out to the sides (which is more likely, since I've pretty much banned the high risk play of releasing up the middle - we've had far too many turnovers in our final third or quarter because we tried to play up the middle). My players are 'aware' of posting up and leading runs. However, I'm not sure about the 2nd CM. On the one hand I'd ideally like the 2nd CM to come deep as well, in order to potentially help break up the opposition press but by doing so, I distort the midfield and if we do manage to get the ball to one of the CMs, he won't have the 2nd CM in a higher position to release to, etc. DEFENSIVE POSITIONING Can someone suggest, again, about midfield positioning using 4-4-2 or 3-1-4-2, when we are setting up a general press? I have traditionally encouraged man marking, simply because our general positional awareness is weak (which makes zonal play a no-no IMO) + our tracking and attitude to committed defending (i.e. you don’t give up if one tackle fails) could be better! However, looking at suggested presses on Sportplan, some zonal positioning seems a necessity and I think if I can help my players make the step, success will come because they've been forced to become more aware of their pitch positioning, etc. Also, looking at some of the presses, it looks like the midfield can go 'flat' to create a barrier... and as I encourage a diamond shape in midfield, I need to explain to my players what to do and when. Sorry for the wordy question. I hope this all makes sense. Regards, Gary