Field Hockey: shape

2 Indoor Hockey situations%3A 1.)Could Sportsplan have Russel lay out how to defend a free hit/push into your circle from the left,center and right? More importantly show how the team moves/shifts when a pass is made from that area of the court to another in this situation. 2.) How to play against a 1/2 court system defense. What should the team be looking to do to find space and be successful.

How should a women team,that cannot use the scoup or an overhead,do when the oposit uses a full press at a 16yd hit??Thank you...

Can you please assist me, I am coaching the 1st school team (0/18). we are playing 3-3-3-1 but there is a big gap between the forwards and links and also between the links and the backs. How can I change that. Is there any excercises that I can do with them or must we rather change the system??

How do you encourage positional play and spreading out on hockey field U9 girls level?

hi allI'm currently coaching 12 and 13 yr olds and the team has a massive problem with shape and being disciplined positionally.Any tips, ideas, drills etc for helping with / teaching this?many thanks,Gary

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

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

Hey all, I am trying to implement a new structure for next season, and I want to get thoughts of others. I have my formation - do I start with working the ball out from defence and work forward, midfield, have certain set plays and movements? Where do you start in introducing the formation and player movements - big picture as in general philosophy, position by position? Any thoughts/comments would be greatly appreciated.Cheers,Brent

HelloWhat would your view be on the shape to play for senior school girl hockey? What is the trend now? Any advice and tips will be awesome. :)

How do I get young hockey players to learn to play in their positions? I often tell them what their position details are but they never seem to stick to their positions and end up bunching Asked using Sportplan Mobile App

We practice weekly about staying in position, widening the field and using outletting to move the ball up field. They execute in practice, but when it comes time to play most players do not stay disciplined and crowd the ball on one side or another.............How do I fix this Players are U19

I am the sweeper and i need tips on how to setup the "backs" to basically force them to use zonal marking. But the problem is they commit to easily, How do I solve this?

I'm looking for a simple and basic way to teach and encourage children to press. Asked using Sportplan Mobile App

what would be advice of left wing or right wing defender defending fast dribbler because if one stays stationary defender will easily be dribbled what would advice defender to do

hello everyone.i would like some advice on the following: I coach a mixed u19 and u16 team because i do not have enough players. players always have excuses for training so i can never practice set pieces. I have a strong backline, strong CL and CF but that is it.. none of my players play in a form, i have practiced 2vs1 and passing to a player and receiving again whilst going forward a hundred times... my u16s have very little knowledge of the game and skills. my u19s are more experience.

What is the best formation and game play for 7 sides tournament in defending and attacking?

hi allI'm currently coaching 12 and 13 yr olds and the team has a massive problem with shape and being disciplined positionally.Any tips, ideas, drills etc for helping with / teaching this?many thanks,Gary

How do I get young hockey players to learn to play in their positions? I often tell them what their position details are but they never seem to stick to their positions and end up bunching Asked using Sportplan Mobile App

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

Hi all- I am 37 years old. I played field hockey for 3 years only (in high school). As you can imagine, I'm not very good/experienced. I was a competitive soccer player which made me good enough athletically to play field hockey but anyway, the point is: I never played field hockey at a high level.I now find myself in a head coaching position. (Long story-I did coach some field hockey some years ago and had a blast but it was a while back). Anyway, I have three assistant coaches who aren't much more experienced than I am. Our high school program is VERY weak and so nobody really steps up to coach there.Basically, my question is: what do I do? I have some girls who have played but not much. Then I have girls who literally don't know how to hold their stick and are quite I athletic. We barely have enough girls to field a team. As for drills, I'm trying to use this site but if you were in my position, what specifically would you be doing with these girls so they don't lose 7-0 every game? Right now, I'm focusing on body control and comfort with the ball- (we are playing possession and they are so uncomfortable they just hit the ball away because they don't have the skills to hold). Any help you can give is greatly appreciated!Brooke Asked using Sportplan Mobile App