OBO

Question:

There is one answer I need to know. What kind of shoes should I wear?

Answer:

What kind of shoes you should wear depends on the surface you play on and the conditions you play in. If you play on grass, a cleat is usually the best shoe, but not one that is too grabby. Those are the kind that have 8-10 big, long cleats on the bottom. Those are only really good when you play on long, wet grass. If you play on astroturf, the shoe will depend on the kind of turf and whether the pitch is dry or wet. If the pitch is dry, or sand-filled, you can wear flats, either like a basketball shoe, tennis shoe or cross-trainer. If you play on wet turf, look for hockey shoes designed for wet turfs. They’re multi-cleated shoes with small cleat and lots of them. The big thing you don’t want to have is a shoe that you’re going to slip in when you move or stick when you extend to make a save.

Here’s a suggestion from Chris Howes in the UK: “Just a point about “what shoes to wear” – on sand filled astro, I suggest that the multi-studded (cleated?) shoes are best as the kicker straps will either fit between the studs, or the studs can be removed (with a sharp knife) to allow this. This then protects OBO’s wonderful, but rather expensive, straps from abrasion.”

Question:

I have played hockey for nine years and have played international hockey up to under 21 level. At a short corner I position myself at the usual 3 paces out from the goal line and kneel down on my right knee. This technique works brilliantly for all levels of short corner hitting I have played against. At senior club level most flicked short corners are of a mediocre standard and my current technique suffices. However, at a higher level I am concerned that my position will not allow me the time to react to a good, high and powerful flick. Should I change my technique or work on my current one until it is successful for me.

Answer:

I’m not a big proponent of the technique where you go down on one knee as a set up to logging. As you’ve noticed, the technique is good on hit shots, but drag flicks present a big problem. Your weight is committed to the knee and you’re basically rooted. You can stay with this technique and try making an adjustment to keeping your weight more on your left foot as opposed to your right knee, but with a good drag flick to the upper corners, even that will find you lacking. At the level you’re playing at, I’d suggest more of a stance where you’re in a lean, to get down.

The following is a summary of the technique. You’re starting in a position on the corner where you are square to the stick stopper and shooter as opposed to being square to the pusher outer. On the push out you’re looking to get out three to four yards. On the stop, you are set with your feet about a yard apart, your right foot is inside your right shoulder and your left foot is about eighteen inches to two feet outside your left shoulder with your knees slightly bent. These distances will vary depending on your height. The big thing is, you’re leaning to your right as you face out from the goal. To get down on a hit shot, you collapse your right. This allows you to drop down on to your side to log. To make yourself as big as possible, you straighten out your right leg and drop down on your hip. On balls that are struck to your far right, you can push off with your left foot to fully extend. When you’re down, you’re trying to do the same things as when you log out from being on a knee. You want your legs straight out, you want your hips and shoulders perpendicular to the ground or slightly forward so when the ball strikes you, it doesn’t deflect back and up in to the goal. You want to watch the ball all the way on to your body.

The strength of this stance is the flexibility it allows you on drag flicks or variations. On drag flicks, you can easily get yourself in to a balanced position by just getting your right foot outside your shoulder so that you can cover the upper corners of the goal. With that one adjustment, you’re basically back in to a set position for the shot. The same principle allows you to easily change your positioning with the changes of angle that come with variations on corners.

Like any change, it will take a while to get comfortable. You’ll need to work on footwork and getting down from a slightly higher position, but as you get more comfortable, I think you’ll find that you can cover struck shots just as well and will have more success with good drag flicks.

Question:

I was playing for a team and then I changed to a new one cause it lost all of it’s life (because of the money) and in the new team, the coach is an international player who happened to be a goalie, I was very happy at first cause I thought I’d learn a lot but it’s a year from that and he refuses to teach me anything by making himself as a fool so I’ve begged him to teach me and I don’t know what to do and I’d think I can improve my skills if he does, so have you got any ideas?

Answer:

If you haven’t already, ask to sit down and talk to him away from practice and your team-mates. I think one of the biggest obstacles to getting good coaching is communication. If you can express to him your frustration and that you look at him and his knowledge as an asset, he may be more willing to share his experience.

Question:

I have two questions, both with are a result of recent experiences indoors (I’m a great believer in the positive value of Indoor keeping).

1. Some indoor surfaces are very tacky, making sliding almost impossible, (I can usually manage about a meter on these surfaces). Do you have any suggestions on situations where you want to attack, but can not make full use of a slide? (e.g. one on ones)

2. If I don’t charge a short corner for whatever reason a get in the "set" position. However I used to play in goal for a foot ball team and I can set myself too low. A number of times the ball hits the net and the words stand tall ring round my helmet; but I think there is a more fundamental problem with my technique. When a ball comes straight at me the simplest thing to do is stand tall and let it bounce off my chest plate. Instead, and this is where football comes in, I try to play the ball with stick and glove. In order to do this I shift my weight so that I fall back and then twist my torso to bring round my hands. I know I should not, but it only happens on the fastest shots that are at my shoulders, either side of the helmet, when it is a reflex action. Do you have any suggestions/drills that will help me with these shots/my technique?

Answer:

In regards to your two questions, first about sliding on tacky, indoor surfaces. If you can generate a meter on a slide, that’s all you really need. The distance you slide isn’t as important as your position in the slide. The thing I find, when I slide on a sticky surface, is that my hip sticks and I almost end up rolling forward on my stomach. That prevents me from presenting as big a block when I slide. For that reason, the one thing I would suggest when sliding on a rubber floor is adjusting your slide so that your weight is slightly back, usually by keeping your top shoulder and hip slightly back. When you do plant and roll slightly forward, that will get you in a position where your hips and shoulders are perpendicular to the floor in your slide tackle position. The other thing about sliding, I need to be able to recover and get up after my slide tackle. That’s pretty difficult if I’m sliding two or three meters like you can on wood floors.

As far as indoor corners, I think the biggest thing you’re recognising is bigger is better. The closer you can get to the actual shot, the better your chances of getting hit with it. The problem that happens when most keepers slide, rather than going out and staying up, is that they don’t get close enough to the shot and a horizontal keeper two meters away from the shot isn’t much of an obstacle. If I’m charging on a corner, I don’t try to react to the ball if it’s going to hit me. I play with an ice hockey keeper’s body and arm pads and am very comfortable getting hit with shots straight at me, particularly the inside of my arms. That allows me a couple of things, one if I’m charging and the ball hits me in the upper body at the top of the circle, rebounds carry out of the circle. Second, the only thing I need to react to is shots wide of my body, which at that range might also be wide of the goal. I wouldn’t recommend falling backwards and trying to parry balls with your hands from close range unless you’re very good at it. It’s like swatting at flies, very hit or miss. Also, I don’t know how comfortable that makes the rest of your defence feel.

Finally, I don’t know that there are any drills per se, short of practising these situations. Work on forwards taking you on at the top of the circle. Do short corners ad nauseum. Repetition brings comfort and with comfort comes success.

Question:

I would like some help please. I am 16 and was playing for my local mens’ team on Saturday and had a ball drilled into my face from 4 yards. This shook me up loads but I wasn’t hurt. I then played in a national cup match on Sunday and played so badly. I was always on my line and wasn’t committing to take the ball and control my D. I knew what I was doing wrong but still I didn’t want to correct it. I was just wondering if you’ve had any experiences like this and if so what you did or if you have any advice for me?

Answer:

Welcome to the position! I can tell you I’ve had experience with your sensation. I started playing back in the day before head gear was required and can tell you, I was one of the idiots that played without a helmet or mask for my first two years. I thought that was the brave thing to do.

First off, don’t ever do it (play without head protection), even just knocking around in practice. The good news is your head gear works, you weren’t hurt. Still, it can be very unsettling. One of the first lessons I was taught as a keeper is “you’ve got to take the knock, son.” If you get hit, get back in goal and don’t let the last experience you have being injured. Sometimes that’s easier said then done. I think you’ve learned one important lesson, that when you play afraid, you don’t play effectively. Not only do you not play effectively, my experience has been that when I play afraid, that’s when I get hurt. Hang in there, if your equipment is good, you may get shaken up, but you won’t get hurt if you play with courage.

Question:

I am a varsity goal keeper in a high school at mass. I am a rookie goal keeper but this session I had made 13 shutouts. I was reading your articles & I noticed that its turf playing you are talking about. My high school has a wonderfully maintained grass field & all the other teams have grass fields also that I play. So I was wondering if the slide tackles or any other moves you know that would help my game on grass fields? Any information would be gratefully appreciated as I wish to play in college. Thank you very much & I love reading your articles!

Answer:

Basically all of the skills discussed on the web site are just as applicable on grass as they are on turf. I talk about artificial turf because most hockey outside of high school hockey in the United States is played on a surface other than grass. Slide tackling is certainly a skill that can be done on grass and well maintained grass fields are great. It’s when grass isn’t in good shape and you start to get adventurous bounces that technique starts to become an issue. You can try anything Rachel and I have spoken about in the different tips we’ve written on grass, you just need to evaluate whether they’re working for you on the surface and at the level you’re playing at. Thanks for reading.

Question:

I’m writing in regards to GK drills for Indoor hockey. If you have the time would you mind forwarding some to me?

Answer:

I don’t know that I have any brilliant drills for indoor as much as ideas on how to modify drills for outdoor to fit the technical and tactical requirements of indoor.

The big thing I try to emphasise with keepers for indoor tactically is the concept of defending the circle using the keeper’s privileges for using the whole body to tackle and defend. That doesn’t mean just going out and throwing yourself on the ground. Drill-wise, or more accurately situation-wise, I like a lot of forward and the keeper stuff from different approach angles in to the circle.

We’ll build on that and do two forwards versus a defender and a keeper, emphasising that the keeper has to mark as well as defend the goal. You can flip it so that the keeper is the primary defender on the ball and the other defender is marking the second forward. You can build on that and throw in a third forward with a recovering defender. Indoor is excellent for emphasising that the pass can be more dangerous than the shot. Anticipation and mobility is crucial.

Technically, nothing is more important than being able to control the shot. Rebounds and lifted saves are disastrous in the indoor game. We do a lot of repetition work with simple shots at the keeper focusing on having the skill to clear low shots on the ground and the patience to cover lifted shots by getting your body behind the ball, waiting for the ball to settle and playing it out.

I think the big thing to think about in setting up your indoor practices for keepers is the situations that happen in games that you want to recreate. Baseline balls, deflections, set pieces, odd-man situations, they’re all things that happen in games so set them up in practices. I hope that helps.

Question:

Thought you might want to add this to your penalty flicks answer – a goalkeeper passed this on to me and it works really well….always stand a little over to one side – the side you don’t want the attacker to pass to! The majority of time they will pass to the other side.

This has happened every single time for me … and I easily save the stroke on my stronger side!

Answer:

Thanks for sharing your experience. The one thing I would temper you with from is my experience has been that as soon as you think always, something else happens. I’ve seen keepers set up all the way to one post to give them the entire goal other side of the goal to shoot at and the stroker beat them going right where they set up at. Strokers like to play mind games just as well as keepers. I’ll never argue with what works, though, and if it works for you, keep at it.

Question:

I live in South Africa and am the 1st team keeper for Maties (University of Stellenbosch) Hockey Club and the Western Province U21 B side keeper. I only achieved this at the end of the past season. There is a great deal of competition between myself and the now 2nd team keeper and the Western Province (W.P.) U21 A keeper and I hear that there are a few more up and coming keepers coming to the club FOR next years season. As a result of my desire to stay in the 1st side as well as to get in to the W.P. U21 A side and maybe junior nationals, I would like to know what I can do in the off season to improve my performance for next year. By that I mean what sort of off-season training should I be doing?? Bearing I mind that I am in desperate need to get fit and lose some weight. I think that the biggest problem is not the training, but rather the motivation….could you help??

Answer:

One of my tips deals with off-season training so check out that. Everyone needs to have their own motivation. Obviously you see your weight and fitness as a problem. What you do about it is up to you. As an athlete, there are some things you can’t control. I don’t see these as those kind of things. Controlling the controllable is key to getting what you want.

As far as motivation, for me personally, I can tell you that I did struggle with fitness and I know that it did affect my selection. I took the line that no one was going to work out me. Every time I went out to train in the off-season, I went out thinking of my competition. Whether they were doing the same training I was or not, I imagined them doing it and pushed myself to work that much harder. There’s a lot in the tip about training ideas, but it starts with setting goals that motivate you and that are attainable. Work hard, there is a pay off to it.

Question:

I have always incorporated distance running into my training, especially in the off-season, but recently someone told me that extensive aerobic exercise like distance running can slow down your reactions, which is not exactly a good thing if you’re a keeper. I know that sprinters refrain from doing long aerobic exercise, as it slows their sprinting time. Do you know if there is any concrete evidence to support this claim?

Answer:

There has been research done and the basic principle is that goalkeeping is a fast twitch position and to reinforce that with fast twitch training. Longer, aerobic workouts can be construed as reinforcing medium twitch training and probably isn’t considered as productive as sprint and explosive exercises. Having said all that, I don’t think there’s anything wrong with keepers doing aerobic workouts. I actually encourage our keepers to do it. You need to balance distance work with sprints, but as long as they are done with moderation, I don’t see a problem.

If you’re looking for scientific reference, check sports medicine/training books/journals. My reference is the US Olympic Committee Strength and Condition Director.