OBO

Question:

I am a keeper at Rugby School in England. In a week’s time, I am going to South Africa for a month and I was just wondering if you could advise me on a type of acclimatisation training programme I could do before I start training properly when I get back in August from South Africa.

Answer:

The key to acclimatisation training is trying to recreate the conditions you’ll be training in. There are a lot of variables, time, temperature, humidity, etc. I don’t know that you can reproduce them all. The key is to reproduce what you can. If you know generally what the temperature is going to be like when you get back to England, try to train at a time of the day where they’re comparable. Obviously time is going to be a tough thing to replicate. With jet lag and time differences, it may not even be worthwhile. The other thing to take into consideration is how long you’ll have to acclimate when you get back, specifically when you’ll start to play games again. On particularly long trips, acclimatisation is noble thing to take on, but simply training while you’re away could well be enough.

Question:

When I make an initial save from a shot and end up on the ground, I find moving for a rebound shot very difficult. What I mean by this is that shuffling around quickly to cover another angle on the ground I find very little traction, bearing in mind that I don’t want to expose a path to goal underneath me when moving. What I would like to know is whether there is a technique for this, the best I can come up with is to push rather unsuccessfully with the edge of a kicker.

Answer:

I don’t know that there is a technique as much as a mind set in staying with the play once grounded. Depending on the side that you’ve gone down to, you can use your hands to help get yourself up slightly and scoot over to stay with the play. The problem you’ve noted is that if you get up completely once you’ve gone down to make a save, the opponent pushes the ball under you. If you are going to use a foot to slide over, you’re probably better off taking your top leg (when you’re on your side), getting it behind your down leg (so as to not lose a saving/blocking surface on the ground) and pushing off with that to shift towards the rebound. In a lot of these situations, pretty isn’t a concern, effective is and doing whatever it takes to block the rebound.

Question:

I enjoy reading your tips on the Obo website. I have questions about two specific topics: 1. Opponent dribbling up the baseline. If an opposing forward is dribbling the ball on the baseline and heading for the goal with speed, how should I defend? I’m assuming that I have one defender back and the forward has the option to pass to someone near the penalty flick spot. Should I try to tackle the ball carrier myself? If so, how long should I wait before going out to get him? Otherwise, if my defender is to tackle the ball carrier, how should I defend against the centring pass? 2. "Soft" short corner hits. The short corner striker (deliberately) hits the ball at medium pace. I lie down in anticipation of the direct hit. Usually if the ball is hit hard, it has enough power to be deflected safely out of bounds by either my stick or LHP. However, if is hit softly, then it just hits my stick or glove and sits near the goal just out of my reach (but maybe close enough for an opposing forward). In this situation, should I try to control the ball so that it stays closer to my body?

Answer:

In regards to endline balls, there are a ton of variables you need to consider. Where is your defensive help on the ball? If there is a player at the penalty spot, is he marked? How much speed, vision and control does the ball carrier have? Finally, what side of the circle is the attack from, left or right? All of these have an impact on what’s going to allow you to be successful.

First off, there are no absolutes. Sometimes staying at the post works, sometimes taking the ball works. Having said that, there are guidelines for giving yourself a better chance to be successful. If you’ve got a defender in good position on the ball, i.e. . he’s even with the ball and keeping the player pinned to the endline, let the defender take him. Communicate that. The attacker at the penalty spot is the danger player, but only if he’s not marked. If he’s marked, then everything’s under control.

I think the most important thing in endline balls is everyone having a common understanding and that comes through repetition and talking through the situation in practice so it’s automatic in games. Typically problems come when the defender on the ball isn’t in good position or has been eliminated and there’s confusion between the keeper and the other defenders who’s taking the ball. The defender who has the player at the penalty spot goes to the ball and the both of you are done as soon as the pass goes.

Depending on where the cover defender is, he may be able to take the endline ball, especially from the attacker’s left side, your right. If the defender on the ball is beaten from their right, you’re left, you’re better off taking the ball. What taking the ball means, goes back to speed, vision and control. Look at the OBO tip on slide tackling. I think the principles are there. You give yourself the best chance to succeed when taking the ball when a forward has the ball with speed, the ball off their stick and their head down. By the same token, you set yourself up for failure when you go out at a forward who has the ball on their stick, their head up and the time and space to slip the ball past you. Hopefully that gives you some ideas.

As far as medium paced hits on corners, they can be a problem. Depending on your strengths, there are a couple of different ways to handle them. If the ball is between your chest and head as you’re down and can control the shot close to you and can clear the ball yourself, that’s one option depending on the defence the team is playing. Medium paced hits play on the gaps in a defence. They’re not designed to score, they’re designed to create rebounds between defenders. If you can control and clear the ball yourself, that’s one way of eliminating the rebound.

The other way you can handle the problem is using body angle and position to take the ball to safety. For balls hit at your legs, you can either angle your leg to take the ball around the post by bringing your knee forward and feet back. You can also bring your feet forward to angle your legs to take the ball to a safe space. By the same token, you can also angle your body with your feet slightly forward and upper body slightly back. You can use the same mechanic for well hit balls. It gives you a better angle for taking the ball around the post on your stick side.

I think one of the best ways of dealing with medium paced balls hit at your upper body is with your LHP. For balls from chest to head, angle your LHP so that the palm is way forward and your fingertips back. For balls between your waist and chest, you want to bring your palm/bottom edge around to the turf so that your fingertips are to your feet. This creates a sweeping motion that allows you to angle the ball out to your right. With either skill, you’re starting with the LHP at your chest as you’re down and are adjusting as the ball is coming in.

Obviously the most important thing with medium paced balls is saving the first shot. You look pretty silly setting up to a complicated save/clear and then have the ball just deflect off you and into the goal. It may be just a matter of repositioning defenders to better help you to clear rebounds.

Question:

I’m a 17 year old keeper currently playing A reserve level in Australia. I’ve been playing at this level for 2 years and a couple of weeks ago played my first full A grade game. I think I’ve been playing reasonably well, except there is one part of my game really letting me down. I keep letting the ball go in between my legs. It used to happen a couple of times a season but this year it has happened an embarrassing amount of times. It seems to occur mostly on flicks or hard hits, and I somehow manage to get completely tangled around what used to be easy. It happened in my first A grade game from a penalty corner drag flick straight at me.

Answer:

I think we’ve all had a few go between the legs. In ice hockey terminology it’s called the five hole and it’s called a hole for a reason. There’s a hole, or gap, between your legs. To be able to extend to the sides to make saves, a keeper needs to have a base to push off from. If your legs are together, you have no base to push off so by the very nature of you’re ready or saving position you will have a gap.

Please take a look at the tip on the OBO website for the ready position. If nothing else, it will give you a frame of reference. In looking at the goals I’ve allowed between my legs, my biggest problem area has actually been between my thighs. I’ve generally been successful with shots between my legs below my knees by pushing off my plant/non-saving leg, opening up my instep and coming forward to make the save with either my kicker or the inside of my leg guard. Using this technique, I’m able to save and clear at the same time. Some keepers try to make saves on this type of shot by bringing their legs together and with fast shots, often still have the ball squeeze through their pads or leave bad rebounds.

Regardless of technique, there are factors that make it harder to make any save. Not being set is a common problem. If I get caught between steps and don’t have my weight balanced, any save is going to be hard. The problem you talk of, getting your legs tangled, often happens when I’m set up with my weight on one leg and the ball is hit at that leg. What should be my saving leg, is now my plant leg and I can’t do anything with it. . I risk getting wrong footed if my weight is back. If I can’t come forward with my weight on my save, it’s going to be difficult to put a positive skill on the ball.

As I mentioned, the ball between the thighs can be particularly troublesome. I’ve been ripped pretty well on reverse stick hits (the pace and unpredictability of the shot leave it as one of my least favourite). Going back to the placement, I’ve been reasonably successful making that save by closing the gap using my left hand. A lot of how a keeper sets up, depends on where the ball is, the shot that he’s expecting and his own particular strengths. With shots like a drag flick or a reverse stick hit, I keep my left hand about waist level and outside my body with my fingers forward. I can take the hand across my body to save shots between my thighs while still having the ability to take my hand up and back to make saves well to my left.

There’s a school of thought that says if you don’t know what shot to expect, make yourself big. Internationally, some keepers do this by extending their arms well outside their bodies, taking up a lot of space. The question becomes in making themselves big, do they take away space at the cost of save ability? The answer can be different according to the keeper’s abilities. You need to recognize your abilities and assess the balance to make a decision. The simple fact of the matter is in playing at your current grade, you’re probably seeing more shots at pace from a greater number of players. Shots come where you don’t expect them. Expect them. It may take some time to adjust, but if you consider positioning, save ability and the elements of your game, you’ll make the adjustments.

Question:

Can you please advise on the interpretation of the obstruction rule with respect to playing marking (standing on/in front of the goal keeper) when play is intense inside the circle. Also if a player passes behind the goalkeeper and across the goal line and the keeper "steps" back onto them what would the correct decision be. On the weekend my son was playing and the umpire allowed a player to mark the goalkeeper actually pushing the keeper out of position. At the end of the game I was told there was a new rule that allowed this. I have my Queensland junior umpiring badge and umpired at the U13 Boys Queensland championships and I was not aware of this rule. Thanks for your advise in advance.

Answer:

In the interests of tracking down an authoritative answer to your question, I checked with a friend of mine who is a badged FIH umpire. The following is his answer:

“In hockey, obstruction still exists. There is a bit of a new interpretation around to deal with this type of situation, but it actually protects the goalkeepers ability to see the ball, not the opponents “right” to obscure it. At the 1996 Olympics, the Dutch, and later other teams, used a field player on attack penalty corners to run down the line of the shot to block the goalie from seeing the ball. This became very dangerous as the Asian teams felt this was unfair, so they sent their “flyers” out with their sticks up – which led to a very bad injury to a Dutch player at a Champions Trophy in India. It was decided that the attackers WERE obstructing, and that type of run wouldn’t be allowed. Obviously, an attacker STANDING in front of the goalie, especially with the intent to shield the view of the ball, would be even more of an obstruction. For the attacker to actually interfere with the goalie is clearly outside the rules.

Unfortunately this gets into the realm of goalies having to protect themselves, and pushing players out of their way, or giving them a “gentle” kick in the butt. Remember that the retaliation is usually spotted by the umpire.”

Players have a right to position only if they’re attempting to make a legitimate play on the ball. Marking the keeper solely for the sake of obstructing his view or ability to make a play on the ball is obstruction. It is the umpire’s responsibility to prevent the game from becoming “argy bargy” when the tactic is used. As my umpiring friend notes, retaliation is usually what gets called as umpires usually only see who did what last. If a keeper is being obstructed, mention it to the umpire early and in a pleasant way. It’s not being a cry-baby and it’s a lot better than the yellow card you risk by taking matters in to your own hands.

Question:

My daughter indicates that some turf in more "sticky" than others. Are there shoes to address this problem? In general is this a problem in sliding?

Answer:

“Sticky” turfs are either water-based turfs that are played on dry or sand-filled turfs. Sliding can be a problem because of the friction created when your body hits the turf. Water lessens the resistance. There’s not a lot you can do about it other than make sure you’re generating speed when you slide. Otherwise, it’s like sliding on fly paper. The bigger issue is footwear when playing upright. Water based turf shoes have lots of little grippy knobs on the bottom, something that’s not usually necessary when playing on dry turf. Flat, rubber soled shoes (like an indoor soccer shoe) typically allow the keeper good traction, without getting stuck while extending to make a save.

Question:

I understand that I cannot redirect the ball with my hands when the ball is in the air, but I am not sure if I can use my left hand to swat the ball away on the ground. At the camp I went this summer my coach said it was okay but I don’t know if she was correct. Can you clear this topic up for me?

Answer:

Please check the Aerial Balls tip on the OBO website. The rules of hockey specifically allow a keeper to deflect, or redirect a ball in the air. You can do that by angling your hand or body to take the ball to safety, even to the extent of being allowed to deflect the ball over the endline or over the crossbar. You cannot propel your hand forward to bat the ball away, while either in the air or on the ground. Umpires usually look to see how you’re moving your arm when redirecting the ball. If you’re angling your hand or body, moving with the shot, you’re usually alright. If you’re using your forearm and pushing at the ball without moving your body, you risk being called for batting the ball. The penalty for batting the ball away is a penalty stroke. Depending on the level you play at and the standard of umpiring you might have different interpretations of deflecting/redirecting aerial balls. It never hurts for you or your coach to check with the umpires before the game to make sure what their interpretation is. Better safe than sorry.

Question:

Firstly I read a q&a about obstruction and having had that problem in a match where a attacker was "camping" in front of me through a whole game and after repeatedly complaining to the ump I preceded to push the attacker and when penalised with a p stroke I pointed out why I had infringed in a relaxed manner and also listened to the ump. He overturned his decision after hearing mine and my sweeper’s side and gave the offending attacker a yellow card. This is not encouragement to take matters into your own hands, especially South African keepers as we tend to play a "rough" game of hockey. My question Jon is during games I can, when called on to pull off amazing saves, do so with ease. But my problem comes with my left post, all goals I concede are around this post and generally are soft, I am pretty sure that it is my positioning that is problem but I always revert my positioning back to my old one when trying to change it. Can you suggest any drills that would help to improve my positioning or to able me to cover my left post.

Answer:

The obstruction issue is an ongoing one and I’m sure will continue to be a recurring one. I’ve had a number of keepers who I know have taken matters in to their own hands and been successful (i.e. being physical back). I will say that I’m surprised that an umpire reversed a penalty stroke decision. It takes a confident umpire to review what’s happened and reverse a decision. An umpire is supposed to make their decisions based on what they see, not what’s explained to them. I’m assuming the trail umpire was able to offer what they saw and that’s how the game should work. I’m not advocating that a goalkeeper let a forward run all over him or her. I think you need to have a number of ways to deal with the situation. Start with the umpire, next is playing in front of the camper and lastly is playing through the “camper.” If a camper is making no effort to go to a ball that’s played at goal, you have every right to go to that ball. There’s nothing in the rules that says that the goalkeeper has to be a sitting duck, but there’s a difference between playing hard and playing dirty. At the end of the day, I can live with hard, dirty has no business in hockey.

On to the ominous left post. I’m assuming you mean your left post as your facing out from the goal, which means that these goals are to your left foot. Whether it’s left foot or right foot, the mechanics of the problem are basically the same. Typically, when you’re allowing a majority of goals to one side it’s because you have a dominant/strong side. For most keepers, their right foot is the stronger foot. I’d ask where you’re allowing these goals from, as far as what the lead up to the scoring shot is. . Are the shots coming from straight shots at the top of the circle, are they from balls passed from the right to the left, or left to right? The answer will affect what you need to work on. For straight shots at the top of the circle, I’ll point you to the tip on Basic Positioning: Ready Position. I think the big problem keepers have with having a majority of goals scored to one post from the top of the circle is not being balanced in their ready position. As a result, they end up throwing a foot out to make a save, rather than pushing off their non-saving leg as well as throwing the saving foot out to make a save. If your having problems with a change of angle, i.e. a pass from one side to the other, please check the tip on Basic Positioning: Angles. I think a lot of keepers have troubles with shots on balls passed from right to left as you look out. First off, we’re concerned about covering the right far post (the place where most forwards shoot). As a result, we have a tendency to anticipate/cheat. In addition, many keepers move along the line of the pass. As a result, they’re not square to the shooter when the shot’s taken. Square is shoulder and hips perpendicular to a line between the shooter and the goal. Another problem could be not being balanced as the shot is taken. If you’re getting caught with your weight on one leg when the shot is taken, you’re going to have a hard time pushing off to get to a ball.

What you can do to fix the problem is going to depend on the type of goals you’re allowing. First focus on mechanics and situations. You should have some ideas on things to try. Next, use drills that address the situation. For change of angle, try setting up on a cone as you might with a ball on the right and set up a shooter on the left. On their call of “go” you move across as they put a ball to the left post. A couple of things about drills. Check the Training on Your Own Tip. In the beginning, drills should be to develop a weakness, but don’t cheat. Most keepers can figure out a way to make a drill work when they know where the ball is going. The game isn’t played that way. Shooters should be able to help you work on your weakness while challenging you to be honest in playing a situation and all it’s variables.

Question:

I have been involved in coaching for numerous years now, especially goalkeepers. I have had many ‘keepers pass through clinics and courses, that our institute has run, and been exposed to many differing levels of ability. Over the years I have developed methods, some probably a bit obscure, for ‘keeper coaching and training, but the one thing I have never been able to get right is developing the stick hand (right hand) of a ‘keeper. It seems some people either have it or they don’t. I hope that is not the case. The reason I am writing to you is out of frustration. I have seen many people pass through our clinics, but to this day I have not yet seen a keeper with the ability and potential as one recent keeper. She has something I have never seen before. As much as I tell her I am not sure if she believes me, so that is part of the reason I am corresponding with a proven professional as yourself. There is only one thing from holding her back. And yes you guessed it, her right hand. I have tried everything I know. I believe she could be something extraordinary with 20% improvement in stick hand. Please can you send us some extra methods and/or advise to help this kid develop into the star she can be.

Answer:

Stick saves can be an awkward issue because there are a lot of variables. Stick saves tend to be of the last resort variety, but how you play will dictate when and how they’re most effectively made.

As a frame of reference, I’ll point you to the OBO tip on Aerial Balls. Hand protectors have made a huge difference in the stopping surfaces available to the keeper on the right side. I started playing in the days of gloves and poorly timed stick saves were usually pretty disastrous, i.e. broken fingers. Mercifully those days are over.

Back to our frame of reference, the Aerials Tip, I’ve been very successful playing with holding my stick short and forward. A lot of coaches have different ideas about hand positions and where to hold the stick. You need to think about the style you want. A big part of coaching is knowing what’s successful for your keepers. If a keeper is unsuccessful making saves with their stick, why are they unsuccessful? As long as a keeper is successful, there’s no right or wrong way.

Typical problems I’ve encountered are that keepers don’t set themselves up to make a stick save. It’s looked at as a last resort save, so they just throw a stick out at the ball. As I mention in the tip, you set stick saves up with your legs. When a ball is well outside your body to your right and above your waist, you need to push off with your left leg to take your body to the ball. Going back to hand protectors, where I line the ball up to make the save will depend on how close the shot is to me. In a best case scenario, I want to take that ball on my RHP. By taking the shot on my RHP, I allow myself the biggest margin of error. By holding my stick short, I allow the stick shaft to be an extension of my forearm. In effect, I’m giving myself a four foot (130cm) forearm to make a save on my right.

I’m left handed. When I first started playing my stick side was significantly weaker. To say it was uncomfortable is just a tad understated. My coach taped my left hand to my body and hit tennis balls at me. I don’t know that you need to tie anyone’s arm to their body, but tennis balls are excellent. Set your self up with a racket and a ton of balls and as long as you’re reasonably accuracy hitting, you can effectively work the left and stick side.

Hand position will depend on where a shot is taken from. As shots come from closer distances, I don’t have the same reaction time, I have to make myself bigger so I’ll carry my hands farther outside my body. I like to look at things from other sports to see what I can learn. Going back to tennis, look at how players set up to return serve. Typically, they have both hands forward to take the ball on either their forehand or backhand. With the ball at the top of the circle, you have the most reaction time and the best opportunity to dictate how and where you want to play the ball. You can use that reaction time to set your body up to make saves and with aerial balls I do that more effectively with my hands more forward. With both hands forward, a keeper has a longer time to track the ball on to their stick or hand and equally important, has the opportunity to drop their shoulders and angle the ball to the side.

It’s great to have a keeper with talent and potential. It can also be frustrating. In our minds eye we see a finished product while the foundation is still being laid. There is no one way to develop talent or skills. As coaches we share our experiences. What’s worked for me, may not work for you, just as what works for one keeper may not work for the other. We learn from each other. The only thing that effects our ability to learn is our willingness to try new things and be open to change. Here’s to always learning.

Question:

I’m a goalie for my high school and since we don’t have goalie coaches we’re in charge of warming ourselves up on our own. I know a few drills that we’ve been doing to warm-up, but I was wandering if you could tell me any others. We do things like agilities, figure eights, and drop stepping near the net, but they get old and repetitive. . If you know any others that would be great.

Answer:

Being in charge of yourself for warm-ups can be a good thing, you get to customize your warm-up to your specific needs. Please check the OBO website for ideas, particularly my tips for Training Programs and Off-season training programs, as well as Rachel’s Tips for the same and Big Game Preparation. A big part of a good warm up is knowing exactly what it physically takes for you to be ready to play your best. Much of that will depend on your own physical abilities, athletically and skill-wise. I try to allow at least 15 minutes for my physical warm-up out of pads. Typically that includes 2 laps around the field, one a straight jog, the second a mix of different footwork, stretching and a variety of plyometrics (skips, bounding, lunges, etc.). I might do additional work depending on the time I have for my warm up. If I have the time, I’ll do some of the catching games from my Training Programs tip. If you have two keepers, that’s all you need. I also like to do some kicking out of pads using a size 3 soccer ball. You can also use a regular ball, but the size 3s are good because they have a smaller area of control. I’ll do kicking stuff once I get into pads also. To start off with, I’ll kick back and forth with the other keeper over a variety of distances, 10 yards, 15 yards, 25 yards and try to work to a specific target, i.e. their left foot, right foot, within one yard to their right, etc. Kicking should not be just kicking at something, you’re kicking to a target. Finally, I’ll take shots. Shots to the keeper should start off slow with the speed gradually building up. Too many times, warm-up shots end up being forwards blasting balls at a keeper from 10 yards out. Your warm-up should be carefully planned. Know what you want to do, know how much time you have to do it and track the results. A good warm-up should get you to play well. Your warm-up may be repetitive, but if the results are that you play consistently well, I’ll take repetitive. A final note about making your own warm-up, make sure you run it past your coach. You need to fit things in for yourself, but your coach plans warm-ups for the good of the whole team. You might have to adjust some of the things you want to do for the good of the team.