OBO

Recently there's been a thread on the Community section on throat guards and I'll throw my two cents in. Wearing a throat guard has nothing to do with vanity and everything to do with protection. Drag flicks, deflections and point blank chip shots make it difficult to predict how you'll be able to react and where you're going to get hit.

As has been noted, the collar type and dangling throat protectors offer protection. In my experience I've found the acrylic ice hockey throat guards to be the most protective. Whether you wear a helmet and mask combination or a face mask, the throat guard ties to the bars of the wire cage on the helmet or mask. Because they tie at three points, they're not prone to flipping up when you dive like some of the dangling throat protectors. In addition, when it's properly fitted and secured the hockey throat protectors sit at the top of your chest protector. This prevents the throat guard from being driven back in to your throat when you're hit.

Ice hockey throat guards do take a while to get used to. With the movement of the field hockey goalkeeper, how the protector is affixed and the contact between the acrylic and the metal cage there is some clanging/rattling. When you way that against the possibility of a crushed larynx and a tracheotomy, it's a small price. I play a lot of indoor and a fair bit of outdoor hockey and I've had three protectors break as a result of shots to my throat. At twenty US dollars a piece, I can rationalize their replacement. I don't want to imagine the cost of playing without one.

Good luck,

Jon

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Please note that OBO together with Jon O’Haire hold copyright over any material appearing on tips pages. We welcome the printing and distribution of these tips, provided that they are not sold, or used for financial gain. This paragraph must appear on all printed or distributed copies. The photographs above must not be used in any form without express permission from Jon O’Haire.

Starting with reaction training, please check Rachel’s Tips on the OBO website. She has a good tip on REFLEX TRAINING. I do a lot of work with tennis balls in place of hockey balls in reaction drills but obviously that’s pretty tough on your own. I like to work on aerial saves with just a helmet, hand protectors and a stick and having someone hit tennis balls with a racquet. You can further add to the reaction element by facing your back to the hitter and turning on their call be fore the shot so you have to find the ball first.

In regards to working on your own, one device that’s pretty cool is called a reaction ball and I believe it’s available through Just Hockey in Australia and specialty stores for strength and agility training. Reaction balls are rubber balls that have knobs so they’re not round and when you through them off a wall, they’ll take irregular bounces (hence the reaction part). You can work on reactions by throwing the ball off a wall and trying to catch it or keep it in front of you. If you have a training partner, try this drill. Stand five to seven meters from a wall facing it. Your partner stands behind you with the reaction ball. As you face the wall, they stand behind you and throw the ball. You have to catch or stop it.

As far as reaction work for feet out of pads, I like to use a size three or smaller soccer ball and work on kicking off a wall. I’ll set up cones 1.5-2 meters apart and work on footwork by going around a cone in between kicks, i.e. make a kick, go around a cone, have to kick with appropriate foot, go around the other cone, kick, etc. Start ten meters away from the wall. By varying the distance you are away from the wall you can mix the emphasis between reaction and technique work. Even better, if you have access to a racquetball court or a corner with a two sided wall or a narrow hall way you can work off the different walls and focus on changing the angle of the ball.

Good luck,

Jon

e-mail Jon

Please note that OBO together with Jon O’Haire hold copyright over any material appearing on tips pages. We welcome the printing and distribution of these tips, provided that they are not sold, or used for financial gain. This paragraph must appear on all printed or distributed copies. The photographs above must not be used in any form without express permission from Jon O’Haire.

Selections, mention the word and the reactions for keepers competing for a spot on a team range from a rise in pulse and butterflies the size of basketballs in his/her stomach to nerves of steel and a confidence that says “bring it on.” Whether it’s a club first eleven or a National team, making and selecting a team can be a challenging experience for keepers and coaches alike.

In the world of competitive sport the selection process is a necessary component in trying to find the best players for a team, but unlike sports like track and field finding the best goalkeeper isn't simply a matter of finding the fastest or strongest athlete. Fast doesn't always translate to smart. Strong doesn't necessarily mean quick. A keeper needs to be fast, strong, quick, smart and more. The best goalkeeper for one team may be the wrong keeper for another depending on his/her personality, a team's style of play, the demands of a coach and the players on the squad.

As a player and a coach I've been involved in the selection process many times, with varying successes. I can remember my first selections more than 20 years ago. I was one of six keepers trying out for two spots on a regional select team. The trials consisted of three games with players split into teams. I played two halves for two different teams and saw two shots, allowing no goals and thought to myself I was sure to have made the team. At the end of the games we were told we would be receiving a call if selected and I'm still waiting for that call. Fortunately, I’ve received other calls since then.

Looking back at my first trials from my perspective as a player I considered the process unfair and arbitrary. I had no idea what I was being evaluated on and though I know now there were good reasons for me not making the team it would have been good to know what coaches were looking for. How to make a team shouldn’t be a mystery. The goal of selections is to pick the best keepers for a team and the more prepared keepers are, the better they’re likely to perform. In this tip, we'll examine some of the attributes of goalkeepers and ways to evaluate them as well as looking at the roles and responsibilities of coaches, selectors and keepers. 

The Selection Process
There is a wide range as to what constitutes selections depending on the type of team being selected, facilities and the quality of keepers competing for the position. Selection length can be anywhere from a game, an afternoon, to a week or more. They can consist of a game, a series of games, physical tests, skill tests, drills and even written exams. Selections for an Under 12 team are going to be different those of an Olympic team, but whatever the skill level, it's important to have a solid idea of the attributes of the position regardless of whether you're trying out for a team or selecting it. 

In my experience I've had the opportunity to see and experience selections around the world and from those have drawn some common criteria. I've listed them below in no particular order and provided some examples of each: 

Physical — Physical attributes include height, weight, body type, strength and flexibility. While some physical components like strength and flexibility can be developed, physical attributes tend to be what the keeper brings to the position naturally. 

Athleticism — Athleticism is a broad category and includes fitness, agility, speed, reactions and ambidexterity. While there are physical components to athletic attributes, athleticism is more trainable (a 25-year old keeper can run faster through training, but he/she isn't likely to get taller). Measures of fitness can range from a 5km run, a BIP test, to a series of 25-meter sprints. Agility incorporates balance and movement. It includes planned movement and reaction movement. Speed is the ability to move from point A to point B and in the context of the position includes covering distances from .5 meter to 15 meters, and directionally (forward, backwards and side to side). Reactions are the ability to stop a ball regardless of speed or distance with the appropriate body part. Ambidexterity is the ability to use either left or right side of the body (hands or feet) to save and clear a shot.

Skills — In the broadest sense, skills are trained reactions that allow the keeper to save and clear the ball. A goalkeeper is more than a shot blocker and skills allow him/her to play a shot successfully to safety. Depending on the speed and location of the shot, skills can include kicking or deflecting with either foot, actively deflecting with legs or hands and tackling from an upright or sliding position.

Mental — A goalkeeper must be able to think the game. He/she must be able to position a defense and him/herself accordingly. A keeper needs to read situations and make decisions regarding appropriate skills and position for him/herself. Presence is a word that’s frequently used when describing keepers and it speaks to an aura of confidence and composure. Keepers with presence seem to play bigger and faster than they are. They have the ability to settle a rattled defense with the key save or right words at critical times in a game.

Coachability — How does a keeper respond to feedback? Does he/she try to make the changes or is there a “but” to every comment? Is he/she self-motivated? Are they on time? Are they prepared? Do they work well with others? Sometimes the most talented keeper isn’t worth the drain he/she brings to a team.

Selections may have specific formal protocol or simply consist of just observing. Selectors may be asked to be anonymous during the process. They may be asked to discount previous experiences with keepers involved in trials and consider their play only in the context of the current selections. Protocol usually follows the significance of the team being selected. If you're responsible for designing a selection you are responsible for that protocol as well as determining how you're going to evaluate keepers.

There are a number of elements to consider when designing trials: How many keepers are trying out? What is their age and experience? What kind of facilities and equipment do you have? What are you trying to assess? What skills are you looking to see? Are you looking to measure technical or tactical ability? What measures are you using for evaluating keepers? Are you accounting for variables? It would be great if there were a universal one-size-fits-all selection process, but there's not. Just as there isn't a universal one-size-fits-all goalkeeper the process used to select keepers will determine the keepers selected.

As a coach and selector, I like to see keepers in as many settings as possible in trials. I want to get a sense of a keeper's overall fitness, his/her position specific fitness, his/her technical skills and how he/she performs in games. If there's general fitness testing for field players, I want to see how keepers perform (as long as that testing doesn't severely impact their ability to perform in other parts of the trials). I like to use drills where keepers have to play a variety of balls (i.e. hard drives, chips, flicks, crosses) from a variety of locations to targets. I want to see how a keeper thinks. I like decision-making drills where a keeper can use a variety of skills to be successful. How does a keeper play with strong and weak players? Depending on the needs of a team, those areas may have more or less emphasis. The selection process used goes a long way towards determining the type of keeper you select.

For Selectors/Coaches
The type of team being chosen usually dictates who does the selections. At the club level, coaches are usually responsible for picking their team. At the regional level, local associations might leave the team's coaches to select their squad or appoint neutral coaches to choose keepers or assist the coach in his/her selections. Selection committees tend to be the norm at the national level and governing bodies usually have defined protocol for input from the coach and the responsibilities and qualifications of selectors.

Depending on the type of team selected, being a selector can carry a wide range of responsibilities. At a minimum, a selector should be an impartial observer and evaluator. At the national and regional level selection criteria may be issued and the selectors' responsibility is to adhere to it. At the club level the job may entail establishing criteria for evaluating keepers and/or administering drills. 

Whether it be a coach or a selector, it’s important for those picking the team to have a concrete idea of the ideal keeper. I’ve mentioned some of the attributes I feel are important. Depending on the needs and abilities of a team, the importance and emphasis on another selector/coach's attributes may vary. I’ve seen trials where selectors are given evaluation forms to rate and rank goalkeepers with specific criteria for grading attributes. At the other end of the spectrum, selectors might be sent out with the vague instructions, “pick the best one.” Either way, selectors should come in to the process with an open mind and a clear of idea of what they're looking for.

It's important that selectors are well prepared and have evidence to support their selections. If I'm selecting, I like to get to sessions early. I like to see what keepers do when they're left on their own to warm up. Do they cool down after a session? I like to see how they interact with other keepers and those they play with on the field. How do they respond to feedback? I keep my own notebook for selections in addition to any criteria I may be given to evaluate keepers at a trials. I find the more I have written down, the better the frame of reference I have when comparing keepers and writing evaluations.

Part of being selector is giving keepers as fair an opportunity to show their talents as possible. It may be impossible to see every play a keeper makes at a trial, but a selector should give his/her undivided attention for the times he/she is observing. As I mentioned, I like to see keepers play as much as possible and in as many settings as trials allow. How does a keeper train? How does the keeper play? Does the keeper make the flash save and then allow the ordinary goal? How does the keeper stand up under pressure? 

While a coach/selector may not pick a keeper for their team, they can aid in the development of the keeper and the team by giving specific feedback on why a player didn't make the team and what they need to work on. Those keepers may come back to help the team in years to come with good feedback. Exit interviews for all keepers trying out for a team are an excellent way to review performances. 

For Keepers
As a player, preparation was key to my success. I found the more I knew about the selection process, the better my chances for success. Others might just be able to wing it. Good things to know are: How long are selections going to be? Are they a couple of hours or days? What do the trials consist of? Where are the trials? How long does it take to get there? Are the trials simply playing games or are there drills? Is there physical testing? What are the drills and testing? I always performed better in drills or testing if I had the chance to practice them beforehand and the more I knew, the more confidently I performed. 

Details like making sure kit is in good working order are important. The last thing a keeper needs to worry about is a loose screw on a helmet or a broken kicker strap when he/she is playing for a chance to reach his/her dreams. Bring sufficient and appropriate clothes and shoes for the weather, type of facility and activity. Control the controllable. Bring a water bottle and food like energy bars or fruit. Be self-sufficient. As a selector I'm impressed by younger keepers who don't require their parents as personal servants. 

First impressions are important. Be on time. Know where the trials are and allow travel time. Dress the part. I've seen keepers show up at trials sporting beer t-shirts, cut-off shirts, shorts and bare feet, and I wonder if they've thought about the message they're sending. How do you respond to feedback and surprises? Do you "freak" or do you roll with the punches. Getting noticed is important in selections, but what are you getting noticed for? I've seen keepers go out of their way to make a basic save seem extraordinary. Knowledgeable coaches are more impressed by effective play.

Be professional. Know the schedule. Bring a notebook and pen. Write things down. Drills, times, dates, and expectations are important. Take care of yourself. If you need extra time to warm up, make sure you arrive early enough to take care of yourself. Ask questions where appropriate. If you're not sure about a technique or a drill, ask.

Finally, enjoy the process. By their nature selections are stressful. You're putting yourself on the line as a player, but stress shouldn't be a burden. Selections are a test just as games are a test. If you didn't enjoy the challenge of games you wouldn't play the position. Don't get caught up in how other keepers play. The only performance you can control is yours. While your ultimate goal is to make a team, it never hurts to have your own goal of improving with every selection experience. Progress can be measured by performing better every time you play regardless of the outcome and a keeper can and should take satisfaction in that.

Selections can be challenging for those making the decisions and those putting themselves up for a team. Players may have invested years of training and personal sacrifice to make a team and are likely to be disappointed when they're not selected. I've experienced that disappointment in my career as a player, but I always felt better if I understood the process and was told where I fell short. As selectors and coaches it's satisfying to see the players you pick warrant their selection with great performances. They should take equal satisfaction from the player who was inspired by not making the team and came back to be a better player the next time around.

Good luck,

Jon

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Please note that OBO together with Jon O’Haire hold copyright over any material appearing on tips pages. We welcome the printing and distribution of these tips, provided that they are not sold, or used for financial gain. This paragraph must appear on all printed or distributed copies. The photographs above must not be used in any form without express permission from Jon O’Haire.

In the ideal world every goalkeeper is a starting keeper. You play every minute of every game and never let in a goal. Reality tells us this isn’t true. The world is filled with keepers with a wide range of skills and a limited number of teams. Not every keeper gets to play, but that’s not to say that every keeper can’t have an impact on his or her team’s performance. How goalkeepers work together on a team is an important dynamic on and off the field.

While field players can play in a number of positions all over the field, the nature of field hockey is that there is only one keeper that plays. That can be a tough pill to swallow for keepers who have invested time, effort and money in the pursuit of a spot on the field. Team success isn’t always just a measure of what happens on the playing field. Often, what happens on the practice field, in the locker room, on the track, in the weight room and in the social circles that are part of every team impact performance. Keepers, coaches, and players all play a part in shaping that performance.

As a player, I’ve had a variety of experiences in a number of roles on a range of teams. At the club level I started as the second keeper on a second team before I became a starter for the firsts. At the international level, I trained as a member of a national development squad, had a run as the starting keeper on the US national team and finished my career as the “dependable reserve” keeper. On the in between, I’ve had the privilege of playing for a variety of select teams around the world. Perspective has allowed me to see that while I may not have handled each situation as well as I would have liked, there were opportunities for me to play a positive role in the team’s performance whether I played or not.

Being a starting keeper isn’t usually a hard position. You know you’re going to play and you typically have the support of your teammates and coach. Your commitment is to helping your team win. Practices and warm ups are geared to a starting keeper playing well. That doesn’t have to be the complete scope of the starting keeper’s responsibilities. As a leader on the team, a starting keeper has an opportunity to be a mentor and a role model to other keepers on the team or in the club.

Athletes are naturally competitive, but as a competitor it’s critical that keepers bring out the best in each other. Too often, I see keepers who try to stay on top by keeping others down. They take all the shots in training or warm ups. They treat other keepers with indifference or contempt. They’re quick to point out the deficiencies in others. As a starter, a keeper needs to be confident enough in his or her abilities to see the big picture. Yes, I want to make sure that I get the time and repetitions to make sure I give my best performance, but I also need to make sure that I’m being inclusive when possible. Words can go a long way when circumstances don’t allow that, especially before a match. Keepers usually warm up and stretch together before a game. By including a second keeper in your preparation, you help prepare them in case of the unforeseeable injury.

In a club setting, you may train with keepers on the other teams. While you might not want to think of yourself as a role model, you are. The other keepers aspire to your position and you play a role in their development. Do you model good work habits? Do you share what you’ve learned through experience? The big keeper shares insights, the small keeper keeps secrets. Do you share time in drills? Do you do the little jobs like collect balls or get water? What do you want to be known for?

Being a reserve keeper on a team might be one of the hardest jobs in sport. You train as hard as you can and there might not be much separating you and the starting keeper, yet one keeper plays and the other sits. Not playing can be a crushing blow, but how a keeper handles the situation can turn a personal setback into a positive for the team. Do you work hard in training or simply go through the motions? Some keepers are happy simply being a part of a team. Not everyone aspires to a World Cup or an Olympics. There’s nothing wrong with that if you’re honest about your aspirations, but realize the effect on others. Apathy and a lack of effort and intensity are contagious, especially at higher levels.

Do you support the starting keeper? Support doesn’t mean that you have to be best friends (though that helps), but you should be working partners. Solid partnerships are built on trust and respect. Cliques can be especially divisive in a team and there’s no quicker way to start them than by lobbying for sympathy as to why you should be playing. Be honest in your relationship with your teammates and fellow keepers.

Team members need to respect their goalkeepers, both starting and reserves. Respect shows up in variety of ways. It’s not taking a full-blooded chip shot from seven yards out in training. It’s saying well done and keep at it to the third keeper as well as the first. It’s knowing that no one deliberately makes a mistake and intentionally allows a goal. It’s not supporting people when they’re being petty or complaining. It’s recognizing that every player is important.

As a coach, I try to reinforce the concept that while there is only one keeper who plays, the position is a reflection of the collective effort of all the keepers on the team. Most players only reach their full potential when challenged and pushed by their teammates. Depth at the goalkeeping position is vital. An injury can happen at any time and every player needs to be ready to step on the field at any given moment. How do you prepare the other keepers on your team? Do you give them specific feedback on the things they need to work on? Do you encourage them in training? Are you honest with them in their position on the team? All of these things go a long way to making all keepers feel they’re part of the team.

When faced with the challenges of a talented opponent, goalkeeping can be a hard enough position on its own. It doesn’t need to be made more difficult by playing against the enemy within. We’re all in this together.

Good luck,

Jon

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Please note that OBO together with Jon O’Haire hold copyright over any material appearing on tips pages. We welcome the printing and distribution of these tips, provided that they are not sold, or used for financial gain. This paragraph must appear on all printed or distributed copies. The photographs above must not be used in any form without express permission from Jon O’Haire.

Recently I got a question asking about books on goalkeeping. I looked on my bookshelf and quickly realized that most of the titles I’ve accumulated on the subject are long since out of print. Books may not yet have gone the way of the vinyl album, but increasingly other media is replacing them. Video and computers help make the printed word come alive and open a completely new library that everyone can access. The Internet can be a tremendous resource for the resourceful coach or keeper.

Once upon a time, there was a logjam of information trapped at the highest level of the sport. Unless you went to an Olympics or a World Cup, it was difficult to find out what the top keepers in the world were doing. You could read articles in the newspapers or if you were lucky, maybe talk to a friend of a friend who knew someone who was there. Information was often third hand, subject to interpretation and frequently inaccurate. Satellites and video have changed much of that. With the right technology, anyone, anywhere can watch the best teams in the world play live, or within days of the game or read about new skills and techniques.

Before I became a coach, I was a student and then worked as a librarian for nine years. This was great preparation as I went about researching field hockey and goalkeeping. I can tell you that I spent more than a few hours leafing through card catalogs and library stacks in search of such elusive titles as Horseshoes and Hand Grenades (yes, its about field hockey goalkeeping) and any other book that might have more than a paragraph about goalkeeping. Often, it was like looking for a needle in a haystack. While I don’t spend as much time in libraries, I do spend a lot of time on the computer and on the Internet. In this tip, I’d like to share some of my favorite sites as well as some advice for your own searches.

First and foremost, this tip is not intended to be a definitive list of sites devoted to goalkeeping. Like books, Internet sites disappear and new ones emerge every day. Whether its news from around the globe, video highlights from the Champion’s Trophy, the latest equipment on the market or what’s going on in my area, it’s all up there on the worldwide web. The biggest trick is finding it.

Search engines play a critical role in finding websites. They are today’s card catalog, but they can come at a price. The GOOGLES and YAHOOS of the world will provide you with results for any search, but recognize that most search engines give priority listing to sites they do business with. Worse, in this day and age, people have found ways to hack into search engines and manipulate listings. If you’re really interested in getting the best information on the Internet, prepare to be patient and thorough. If I’m looking for new sources, I’ll often use a variety of engines and a wide range of search terms. I can’t tell you how many times I’ve found great sites on the 50th hit of a list. Patience and persistence are good things when it comes to searching.

One of my favorites news websites is www.fieldhockey.com. Managed by George Brink in England, the site is a daily collection of hockey related articles from around the world. Another news related site is www.planetfieldhockey.com. The site features many of the same articles as fieldhockey.com, but also offers readers the opportunity to post comments. Though not strictly news-related, one of the best new sites I’ve come across is www.fieldhockey.tv. The site features video of top international tournaments and games from the Dutch Men’s and Women’s First Division league.

Obviously if you’re reading this tip, you’re familiar with the OBO website and virtually every hockey manufacturer has their own site. In addition to manufacturer sites, there is a wide range of vendors who feature equipment from a variety of brands they often have their own sites. Rather than list sites, you can find many of them under the search heading HOCKEY; EQUIPMENT. The better sites offer more than a listing of items and prices. Several of them have links to other sites of interest, as well as technical information about their products and tips for using them.

I’ve mentioned before that I came to field hockey from ice hockey and while the sports are different, there is much we can learn from the common perspective of stopping a shot when a game is on the line regardless of the sport. One of my favorite websites that’s ice hockey based is found at www.promasque.com. Promasque makes custom ice hockey masks and like the OBO site, they make educational use of their site. Promasque has a HOCKEY FACTORY section that features tips from Fred Quistgard. While Fred’s background is an ice hockey coach, there are many good tips for dealing with pressure, winning a starting position, coaching strategies and many other relevant topics. If you’re looking for new ideas about the position, it never hurts to be open and to look outside the field hockey box.

The Internet can also be a great way for getting connected to events in your local area. Many national hockey associations maintain their own sites and they’ll post information about coaching and player clinics as well as news about their respective national teams. In addition, many of them provide contacts for local leagues and clubs. This can be invaluable, especially when you’re moving or thinking about playing somewhere else.

Finally, there are user groups or chat rooms that are keeper specific. I’m afraid that I’m not enough of a computer person that I regularly check these but if you’re looking to chat online with someone with similar interests, they can be entertaining and educational. The great potential of message boards and chat rooms is the sharing of ideas and information. I’ve discovered new sites through postings. If you know of a good site, I’d love to hear about it.

The Internet can be a valuable resource. One of the most important skills required for success at any level of hockey as a keeper is the ability to process information. A keeper needs to be discriminating. Just because something is up on the web doesn’t mean that it’s gospel and that you should absolutely do something because it’s on someone’s site (even ours). Read, think, try and then assess whether you’re getting the information you’re looking for. As we continue to develop as keepers, we develop with new technology and new ideas. The Internet is great tool for finding them.

Goalkeepers are amazing people!!!

Good luck,

Jon

e-mail Jon

Please note that OBO together with Jon O’Haire hold copyright over any material appearing on tips pages. We welcome the printing and distribution of these tips, provided that they are not sold, or used for financial gain. This paragraph must appear on all printed or distributed copies. The photographs above must not be used in any form without express permission from Jon O’Haire.

In the quest to become better players, goalkeepers train thousands of hours, burn millions of calories and spend hundreds of dollars on equipment. Yet when it comes to the difference between becoming a good keeper and a great keeper, the answer may lie between their ears. The mental game can be a critical part to success.

It’s always interesting to talk to keepers about the mental side of the game. There are many great keepers who succeed on their athleticism and instincts. They can simply go out and play well. For others, training and playing are only part of the equation for success. Visualization, mental imagery, relaxation techniques, breathing exercises, focus and confidence are every bit as important as weight training and skill work.

How effective sport psychology may be in your game can be influenced by how open you are to change. For many, the mere mention of sport psychology and a mental game implies weakness of the worst kind, the mind. Somehow, it’s easier to say you’re going to the weight room to get physically stronger than it is to say “I’m off to a quiet place to visualize.” In reality, one is no different than the other.

I’ll confess to being a convert to the value of the mental game. Early on, my experiences were jaded by my prejudices and perceptions. When I encountered problems with my game, my answer was more practice but there’s only so much you can physically practice. Like it or not, the nature of the goalkeeping position is goals will be scored, mistakes will be made and games will be lost because of them. There are internal and external pressures to succeed in hostile and distracting settings. How do you practice dealing with problems like these? In time I figured out all the physical training in the world didn’t help if I couldn’t let go of the goal that was just scored. I needed to fix how I thought and how I reacted and I needed help.

As a player and a coach I’ve had the opportunity to see a number of sport psychologists at work at the team and individual level with players ranging from high school to international standard. Their work can be invaluable as these specialists draw from their education and experience to bring out the best in athletes. Unfortunately, not everyone has access to a sport psychologist. While complex problems are best left to experts, there are common problems that keepers can improve on their own by using sport psychology techniques.

Time, energy and resources often limit how a player can work on a specific skill or situation. Mental imagery, or visualization, is a sport psychology tool used to simulate physical training or game situations and is proven to be effective in improving performance. Essentially, mental imagery is the practice and repetition of a skill in the mind. Through internal repetition the mind trains the body.

In visualizing, detail is important. You get best results by being clear and specific about the skills or situations you’re training. When it comes to skills, video can help in establishing a clear picture of mechanics. For a skill like kicking a cross ball with the left foot, visual details could include: the left wing coming down the side line; the keeper establishing position off his line; the player striking the cross; the keeper pushing off his right foot getting solidly behind the kick and clearing safely and powerfully to a teammate. Replay each part of the skill in your mind, see your body explosively moving to the ball and executing the skill, replaying that perfect clear.

When visualizing a new skill, start by seeing the skill in slow motion so that you can begin to establish a link from the mind to each part of the body that’s involved with the skill. While you’re not physically moving when visualizing skills, try to “see” and “feel” the movements you’re trying to master. As you become more comfortable with visualizing a skill and had the opportunity to physically train the skill on the practice field, you can speed up your mental video to game speed.

Mental imagery can also be used to visualize game scenes, especially pressure situations: the big save with time running out and the match on the line, getting on with the game after allowing a bad goal and tuning out trash talking opponents and hostile crowds. It’s difficult to physically recreate the feeling of these pressures on the training ground, but mentally you can train for these types of situations. Whatever you can imagine, you can train and prepare for.

An important part of any mental training is creating an environment for work. For the mind to work best, the body needs to be comfortable and relaxed. Loose clothes, a clear mind and a cool place where you can lie or sit comfortably are a good start in creating that setting. Avoid areas where there are distractions like noise and activity. Mental training is like physical training in that you improve with repetition. Mental training does require energy and sessions are best-kept under 30 minutes. Many athletes use visualization around the time of their events, the morning of afternoon games or the afternoon of evening matches. Mental imagery can be practiced before sleeping, but training should be built around times when you’re not tired.

It’s one thing to be psyched up for a game, it’s another to be psyched out. Picture a game, the keeper hasn’t seen the ball in his circle for 20 minutes. The ball enters his 25 and he’s screaming to organize his defense. The ball is played in to the circle, the keeper is ready for the bullet shot and the forward hits a medium paced ball just to his left. The keeper explodes and the ball goes under his foot. Was the keeper ready? If anything, the keeper was too ready. Extreme anticipation and over arousal are terms used to describe what happens when athletes are too keyed up.

Athletes perform best in an aroused state. The aroused athlete is alert, aware and ready for action. Arousal can be confused with anxiety, though. While the aroused athlete is alert and composed, the anxious, or over aroused athlete is alert to the point of panic. It’s natural to feel a rush of adrenaline in pressure moments of a match, but it’s critical to manage that rush of energy. Often it’s wasted on nervous movement, excited communication or hyperventilation. Many sports psychologists point to breathing as one way of managing arousal.

Simple breathing exercises focus on controlling the breath. It starts with practice before the match. Typically, the breath is used to center the athlete. The practice is drawn from yoga and is built on using the inhalation to draw oxygen, or energy, into the body. The goal is to build to full, deep inhalations and complete exhalations. By focusing on the breath an athlete is drawing energy into the body through the intake of oxygen. Obviously breathing isn’t a keeper’s sole focus while the ball is in his circle, but he can use breathing to relax and re-energize when play doesn’t involve him in a game and practicing breathing does train the body to stay relaxed in pressure situations. Breathing is often used to establish a setting for visualization away from the field.

Focus is concentrating on what’s important in the context of the game. The game can be filled with distractions. Focus is filtering those distractions out and taking in the important information that’s critical to reading play. It’s recognizing scoring opportunities, reading passing lanes, positioning defenders and anticipating situations. Athletes talk about being in a “zone” where they know where the ball is going before it’s shot. That “zone” is the direct product of focus.

An important part of managing focus is recognizing when you have the opportunity to relax. A keeper can mentally and physically exhaust himself by being too focused. 100% concentration isn’t required when the ball is in the other team’s circle. Take those moments to breathe, stretch, and relax.

One of the most frequent mental problems I hear from keepers concerns confidence. How do you find confidence when you allow a soft goal or get in to a run of bad play? Confidence can be precarious, especially when the stakes are high. Many keepers are their own worst enemies. Every keeper has let in a bad goal and sometimes a team loses because of it but it’s important not to dwell on goals that are already on the board and create self-fulfilling prophecies of disaster. Don’t use a past event as a projection of what’s going to happen. A keeper’s ability to play well doesn’t just disappear (barring injury). The good keeper treats history for what it is. Yes, I want to think about what I might have done differently on a goal immediately after it’s scored, but I need to be ready for what’s coming next by the time my team takes the push back. Confidence should allow a keeper to be secure in the knowledge that whatever comes, he’s probably seen it and saved it.

When assessing your game, what are the things that give you confidence? For me, a big one is the knowledge that I have played well before. Success isn’t a fluke or an accident. It is the product of preparation and opportunity. When I get in a good groove playing, I try to stay consistent in my training, my sleep patterns, my diet and my pre-game warm up. By the same token, if I’m not playing well I try to look at those factors. Success is a habit and I find that I play my best when I’m consistent. Having said that, it’s important to not get married to routine. There will be times that I have to deviate from my routine, but that’s where the knowledge that I’ve been succesful before comes in.

Competitive sport is challenging, physically and mentally. Two teams are playing to win and sometimes a team is going to come up short. The challenge is how will a keeper respond, what changes will you make? Sometimes the answer lies in a skill; sometimes it lies within, literally. As I mentioned, I’m not a sport psychologist. The techniques I’ve talked about are ones that I have experience with. Newspapers and books are filled with stories of athletes from a variety of sports who’ve benefited from working on their mental game with trained professionals. Read about them. You can learn a lot from their experiences, whether it’s in a magazine or on the Internet. If you genuinely want to improve your game, leave no stone unturned. It isn’t crazy to work on your mental game; it’s crazy not to.

Goalkeepers are amazing people!!!

Good luck,

Jon

e-mail Jon

Please note that OBO together with Jon O’Haire hold copyright over any material appearing on tips pages. We welcome the printing and distribution of these tips, provided that they are not sold, or used for financial gain. This paragraph must appear on all printed or distributed copies. The photographs above must not be used in any form without express permission from Jon O’Haire.

I often receive questions such as this:

Hi Jon,
The thing that I really need help with is two on ones! When I’m up against two forwards with no defenders I really struggle with my decision, as to whether to go out to the player with the ball or whether to hold my ground? People tell me there is nothing I can do but surely there is something I can do to prevent them scoring? Any advice would be greatly appreciated!
thanx
Jen

Whether it be two forwards going to goal with just the keeper, or virtually any other situation that results in a goal, there is the question, “What could I have done differently?” Depending on the situation, the answer could be nothing. The answer could be positioning you or your defender in a different place. It could be playing the shot; it could be playing the pass. Most frustrating of all, what worked in one situation, might not work in another. The good news is that whatever the scenario, there is a way to defuse dangerous situations if a defense can play together as a team. Team defense requires players to think as a team and that’s essentially decision-making.

Good decision-making may be one of the most critical elements of successful team defense. It can also be one of the most difficult elements of the game to learn. The longer you play hockey, the more you realize there are very few absolutes. Hockey is a game of options, attacking and defending, and while a goalkeeper may be the last defender, he is a defender with options as long as he can play with and off his teammates. Good decision-making especially as it applies to team defense depends on assessing those options, developing a plan of defense, communicating the plan and executing the needed skills, usually in less than five seconds.

We’ve stressed that hockey is not a black and white game in terms of absolutes. Having said that, it’s critical that a keeper and his teammates have an understanding of the attacking situation if they’re going to be able to defend it. To understand attacking situations, it’s important to have an understanding of defensive principles, especially as it pertains to your team. Whatever level you play at, you and your teammates need to have a common understanding of these principles if your team is going to be successful.

That understanding becomes the crux of decision-making and as such, your coach is the person responsible for shaping your decision-making. While teams may play similar styles and use similar skills, each team is unique. Good coaches recognize that and will play the systems and skills that draw on the best of their team and players. For that reason it’s important that your coach is your first resource when you have questions about defensive principles.

This tip started with a question about what to do with two on the keeper. My best recommendation is to not let the situation happen, though sometimes that’s not possible. In my own personal experience, two attackers bearing down on a keeper don’t just happen. Usually there’s a breakdown up field and a chain reaction that leads to the keeper’s ultimate problem/nightmare. Early identification of a potential problem is critical for effective decision-making. Who identifies those problems on your team will depend on where the ball is on the field, the position of your opponents and the system your team plays. If you’re not sure, that’s usually the start of the problem becoming your nightmare.

Once a problem area is identified on the field, the next component is dealing with it. Essentially that’s a matter of positioning the available defenders to take away the most dangerous passes or penetrating runs and once again that will depend on the systems your team uses. A team that plays man-to-man defense will position themselves differently than a team that plays a zone defense. Some teams play a combination of zone and man-to-man. Regardless of the system, it’s important that all players have a common understanding of the situation and know their roles within it.

While systems may differ, there are common defensive principles and roles that all successful teams use. In a situation where a defender has been eliminated up field, there are a number of things that need to happen. First off, it’s up to the remaining players to reorganize. Positionally, players may not need to physically move, but their responsibilities in those positions may change. We talked about taking away dangerous passes and that’s marking. Going back to marking, that means that a defender has to position himself, or be positioned, to deny the opponent the pass if he’s in a direct line to goal.

If a defender is beaten and his player is going to goal with the ball, channeling and delaying are important concepts. Channeling is taking away the straight line run to goal and allowing/forcing the opponent back or wide with the ball. Delaying is often a successful tactic in the early stages of a fast break and can take the form of a player fouling to stop the play. We’re not advocating deliberate fouls, but a spoiling tackle by a defender, or a loose ball put out of play, allows an outnumbered team the time to get back in to the play and match up even numbers. Where ever the ball is on the field, the beaten player has got to work their way back in to the play and that’s recovery. A defending team will always be numbers down unless they accept the responsibility of working themselves back in to the play.

We’ve talked a little about understanding and executing roles in a team defense. Understanding and execution can be two different things and most problems with break- downs in team defense come from misunderstanding. Typically communication, or lack thereof, is the biggest culprit when it comes to breakdown and misunderstandings. As we mentioned before, who identifies problems and communicates them, will depend on where the break down on the field is and how your team is set up. Once again, it’s important that players have an understanding of who communicates what as play develops.

What is communicated is also critical. Players need to understand what they’re being asked/told to do. Quick, direct, effective communication is critical, especially in the early stages of a breakdown or as the ball moves closer to your circle. While there are common things teams try to do in defending, the terms used to communicate them might be different. Know the language and terms your team uses in communicating and make sure all players understand what is being said.

It’s important for a keeper to have a style of communication that is effective. That starts with identifying the player you’re talking to; call a name. Next, let that player know what you want to do, especially as it pertains to the urgency of the situation. There’s usually not a reason to get hysterical screaming at your right back to move two meters when your team has the ball in the opponent’s circle, but if the ball is in your circle and you’ve asked him to do the same thing three times, a little volume might be warranted. Communication is not personal. Make sure your teammates understand that if you are yelling, it’s only to stress the speed needed for them to respond to what you’re saying.

Finally, it’s critical that a keeper has an understanding of his responsibility in the team’s defense and is able to execute the skills required for the role. Just as a defender may need to mark or channel, a keeper may need to mark or channel. If a team plays with an up field forward, you may be the player responsible for denying them the ball. In a breakaway a keeper can win the time to let his teammates get back into the play by forcing the ball carrier wide, the same as a defender channeling. That can happen simply by stepping up and putting pressure on the player or taking him wide where he has a poor shot or passing angle.

This tip started with a question about two forwards on the keeper. I’ve played this game for over 20 years now and probably the biggest lesson I’ve learned in this game is there is not a definitive answer for everyone. There is an answer for you and your team if you can put your heads together and work as a unit. As situations come up, talk about them. If they’re not addressed in training or in a game, write them down. Sit down with your coach and your teammates and make sure you’re on the same page. I can’t promise that you’ll find an answer that will work every time, but I can promise you that if you and your teammates don’t talk about problem situations, you’ll get the same results. Finding answers can be frustrating. It can also be so rewarding when your team works through these situations together.

On a personal note, we recently celebrated the Thanksgiving holiday in the States. I’d like to give my own thanks for what I’ve received through hockey, to OBO for making the best goalkeeper gear I’ve ever used and allowing me the opportunity to share my experience and to all the goalkeepers I’ve had the chance to learn from through playing or coaching. I hope you all had a Happy Holiday.

Goalkeepers are amazing people!!!

Good luck,

Jon

e-mail Jon

Please note that OBO together with Jon O’Haire hold copyright over any material appearing on tips pages. We welcome the printing and distribution of these tips, provided that they are not sold, or used for financial gain. This paragraph must appear on all printed or distributed copies. The photographs above must not be used in any form without express permission from Jon O’Haire.