Lateral movement

Moving in shuffles is an essential part of getting around the D; staying in front of the play where you can block, rather than being side-on and turned away from goal.

Lateral movement (side to side) is the key area of movement around the circle. Think of your movement area as a mini semi-circle of the larger D you play in; this is the space you need to cover to protect your goal. By moving sideways, you can change your angle against the opposition; moving across to deal with the new attacker as the pass is made.

Shuffles

Shuffling is the essential form of movement for a goalkeeper to move across the face of goal. If you watch soccer goalkeepers, the move is very similar; basically, it is sidestepping across to the side you wish to move to. When pushing across from the pushing foot (depending on your left or right direction), make sure your keep in your ready stance, holding your hands up ready for a shot.

 

The following diagram illustrates the shuffle off the right foot moving to the right (the shuffle is a sideways movement, with you moving left or right to move into the space to your side):

shuffle2

Closing holes

With the shuffle opening up a large space between the open legs when moving, a lot of keepers (up to the pros; Stephen Lambert is a good example, and you could find footage of him actively doing this, playing for Australia in the recent Olympics). This closing off of open space when moving makes sure you have no space showing, in case of a shot; when facing a screen or in-close action when facing goal mouth scrambles, or when facing a deflection as you move across goal – more important in higher levels when shooters like to go for this area, as it is easy to expose.

When pushing across, lead the back leg into the lead leg, in order to close gaps by pushing to lock the pads together, or be as close as possible to block. This extra coverage against shots, with the security of no gaps. However, comes at the cost of movement (since it slows you down when moving to force your legs together, which can be costly when moving with speed against the play is vital). So if you’ve got to dash across the D to get back into space, then you have to balance the importance of speed, by ignoring the need to cover gaps and sacrifice coverage for extra movement.

lateral_move

Hockey OBO Apparel

Have there ever been – or thought about producing OBO clothing apparel?  Jumpers, Jackets etc?  I for one would love to have them (proud to be a keeper and proud of my sport) and show off/advertise it 🙂

Jumpers would go down well, same with t-shirts to wear under the chest guard etc…

Any one else think this is a great idea??

Cheers!

Difference Between CK , and FG helmets

Hi all I’m in need of a new helmet soon and I’m looking at either getting another CK or an FG , the CK I got now has served me pretty awesomly , but now I see there is the fiberglass one too now , whats the major differences between the two ? besides one is CK and the other is FG ( the stuff they made from)

Robo Body Armour Modifications

Next came the most painful and bloody part of the modification, yes ladies I can sew 😉 I’m domesticated.

Hey everyone this is obviously my first post on the resources (most of you probably know the username/name from FHF)

I didn’t want to write this review as part of the competition as I kind of see it as more of a rant than a review, but hey enough talk time to stop boring you people.

Right well it all started one training session when I coped a rather nasty shot on my right shoulder, the body armour did it’s job of protecting me from serious harm. However I started feeling more and more uneasy with shots in the shoulder region to the point of flincting when a ball went there.

Fearing that I had lost a lot of confidence I decided to try other brands of equipment in shops to see what felt better and a bit more solid around the shoulders. I was amazed to find that nothing on the market at the time had solid shoulder protection. I found my old ice hockey style protector (mercian shoulder caps) and thought “hey I wonder how they would work together.” Safe to say having both on was silly.

I then decided modification was the key, I then chopped off both shoulders of the Robo armour and carefully removed the shoulder caps off the mercian shoulder caps. I then removed the hard protective foam across the top of the remaining parts of the BA, making the BA look like a vest haha.

Next came the most painful and bloody part of the modification, yes ladies I can sew and I did sew the mercian shoulder caps on to the BA. Looking rather messy I made some covers for the shoulders which I later removed cos they was PANTS!

The last thing I did was resew the arm attachement velcro or whatever it is to the shoulders to allow the arms to be attached again.

Finally my mod was done, I felt like a tank but as fast as a shit off a shovel. It also gave me a massive confidence boost not only in my goalkeeping but in life as it gave me the drive to get properly creative again, which really helped my job too (web design.)

I hope I entertained you for a small amount of time, or if I bored you sorry, but you could have clicked off!

🙂

I hope that the new generation of OBO Robo Armour can be reinforced up in the shoulder department.

Anyway take care and happy keeping!

Girdles

The alternative upper leg coverage available to goalkeepers, rather than wearing padded shorts, are girdles. Rather than having main padding to the front of the short, the padding is spread right around the leg and hips, conforming to the body shape as the layering develops. High density foam is used throughout, giving you suitable protection.

A lot of field hockey companies, getting in on the act of selling goalkeeper gear, now produce girdles specific to the position; often cloning old versions and adding new sections. Unlike shorts, girdles give extra protection to the upper thigh area, conforming to leg pads to allow most possible movement, making them great for reflex orientated goalkeepers who prefer to dive around acrobatically, and aggressive goalkeepers who need to charge down a player in challenging the ball.

There are a few girdles on the market, as produced by Gryphon and Grays.

There are also older ice hockey versions that are available and work the same, such as Bauer’s. Girdles used to be, and still are, used by ice hockey players, with girdles worn as padded shorts, because of the design for fuller movement with protection in mind. Girdles are also produced for inline hockey (the type of ice hockey played on an indoor court), which can be worn for upper leg protection.

Pros

  • More protection to upper thigh

  • Specifically suited to modern goalkeeper’s needs

  • Extra movement, with padding moulding to body shape

  • Layered padding provides padding to vulnerable areas

Cons

  • Inner thigh area is missing or the protection is reduced (allowing for greater movement) – vulnerable to shots there

Review of Hi-Control RHP

hmmm so i got this Little piece of kit back in 2006 , and honestly it was not my 1st choice, i wanted the hi control robo RHP, but my current glove( yes those good old leather ones) didnt work at all and my local supplier was out of the robo hi-control ones, so i ordered the hi-rebound.(SP then)

robo-hi-rebound-rhp
At 1st after a few practices with it i really did not enjoy using it , i am a keeper who likes to slide and am rather agressive. the glove made slide takling with the stick  hard  and  logging.
That all changed after a went onto the obo site and wached some video’s or was it looked at some pictures( it was a while ago) and they explained how you need to change the style of play for this little beauty, i also found out that the inner pieace right by your hand can come out.
After removing the innner pieace and trying this new technique i was blown away…
the glove works just as well on the ground as the hi-control, but it also has the hi-rebound characteristic.
its also alot larger and on a few occasions has helped me make some awesome top right drag saves.
The glove may be large but its not a replacement for the LHP as you dont have as much controlle and you feel a hard hit ball through it alot more than the left, having said that it comes in handy (no pun intended) for those quick reflex saves.
ITs a very durable glove too iv had it for 3 yrs of constant battering and only now has the top opening started to tear. easily fixed with some glue though .

In generall its an awesome piece of kit, it takes some getting used too ,but once you know how to handel it it works really well and i more than happy with it.

Stick Choice

qna
Question:

Hi Jon,

Hope all is going well for you.

Tom’s hockey is continuing to go well – he is now 19 and studying Actuarial Science at the University of Cape Town and playing in their 2nd side. Both 1st & 2nd sides play in the Grand Challenge league, which is probably the strongest league in South Africa so he is gaining some valuable experience.

He is need of a new stick now. He has been using what I reckon is a predecessor to the Skinny, since age thirteen and it is finally now cracking slightly.

I think he should go for the Fatboy this time. His recent ability and confidence on his stick side has dropped slightly – last year it was stronger and he is trying to work out why this could be.

I read a couple of information sections about the merits of the Fatboy and the Skinny but I wondered if you could suggest which to go for?

Tom is physically quite strong and is about 6 feet 1 tall. I see there are two sizes 36.5 and 37.5 available – I presume that 37.5 would be best for him?

Any suggestions or advise would be much appreciated.

Regards,

Charlie

Answer:

Hi Charley,

Stick choice is really dependent on a lot of things, especially the style of goalkeeping Tom plays with his hands. Personally, I use the Skinny Thing Stick (37.5). I tend to play with my hands forward and about waist level so I take my stick back to make saves to my high right. This allows me to track the ball a little longer and since I’m taking the stick back most deflections off it are to the side. I like a light stick and I really like the weight and feel of the Skinny Thing. Some keepers prefer a little more weight and substance to their stick and the Fat Boy is for them. At 6’1″ Tom is best suited to a 37.5 stick, but Fat Boy or Skinny Thing is really up to him and his style. Hope that helps,

Jon

Moving around your D

Moving around your D is just as important as controlling it; if you’re not moving into position every time the ball moves, you’re not going to be into position to make the save. Shuffling is the main vehicle for moving around, for sideways movement across the D and between attackers, but don’t rule out running sideways, backwards or forwards – how else are you going to charge down the shot, or rush back to fill up space?

Moving with the play

To be able to react to the play’s development and be ready to make an immediate save when called upon, you have to constantly be moving with the play itself. With the change in pace and direction, you have to be adapting your position to match. If you are not and caught unawares, you make the opposition’s life all too easy; not being set on the angle and leaving a wide open net to shoot at.

Moving constantly to re-position in the arc (that has been talked about in previous articles; http://blog.obo.co.nz/2009/05/18/the-arc-around-goal/) will dramatically improve your shot stopping and ability to play the angles to your advantage, instead of being forced into a difficult save as the ball moves into the open space you were not ready for.

Focus on the ball

You can arrange your movements by where you are in relation to where the ball is; moving with the ball to keep up with the scoring chances and angles for incoming shots. Your head should be on a swivel, constantly checking to see where the ball is, in case a long pass or run has been made, and then moving your body to adapt to the change in play; kind of like a turkey in a farmyard!

When the ball gets past your half way line you can relax, but once it’s over the line and an attack can easily appear out of nowhere you need to be ‘switched on’ and alert; ready to spring into action.

Australia v England

The Kookaburras have concluded our nine game tour of Europe with two wins against England at Highfields in Nottingham. After playing them at the Hamburg Masters we knew to expect more tough opposition, and this certainly proved to be the case. Penalty corner scoring was the order of the day in our 5-4 win during game one, with Chris Ciriello flicking in a hat-trick and Luke Doerner adding another to his tally. Ashley Jackson netted three for England at the other end, with Australia’s Jason Wilson scoring the only field goal.

In game two we ran out 4-1 winners and gave England significantly less scoring opportunities, including only two corners for the game. They have proved that they will be difficult to beat at the Champions Trophy in Melbourne at the end of the year. Overall, the tour has been a successful one with the team establishing a 7-2 win-loss record. The two close losses to Germany in lead-up games prior to the Masters were followed up with a win during the tournament, so we return home pleased that we have managed to beat each side that we have played during the tour.

It has been great writing for OBO during the team’s travels and I look forward to contributing to the keepers resources site again in the near future.

Cheers,

Ross.

Review Your Kit Competition Winners

review-your-kit-competition

The Review your kit Competition has now closed, but we and other people around the world really value your reviews of kit; so keep sharing, contributing and enjoying. See this link to view all the competition reviews.

We requested creativity in how the content was displayed along with some straight talking on what you really think of OBO products.

After much discussion we would now like to announce the 5 winning articles;

Review: Robo Bodi Arma by CormacDC

OBO comment; Favorite quote – “It glistened like nose hair after a sneeze.”

Review of CLOUD Hotpants by Folmer

OBO comment; Good real review with good constructive criticism. Maybe we need to develop the Cloud hotpants.

Review of Robo Hi Control RHP by Kanuckkeeper

OBO comment; liked the use of video.

OBO Cloud Leg-guards Review In A Short Story by danni

OBO comment; good creative story.

OGO Kickers Review by Ozzie

OBO comment; pleased that someone thinks OGO is misunderstood.

If your review was selected as a winning review we will be in touch via e-mail.

Thanks,

The OBO Team