NFHCA COACHES ACADEMY DAY 2!

DAY 2...
We arrive back at the Pennsylvania Convention Center for Day 2, bright and early.  The first session started at 8:30 and there were definitely some coaches who were very sleepy!  

We began our morning with Helen Knull (Michigan State) discussing a balanced attack in the circle.  She gave us some awesome advice and told us that our players really need to have a great shot selection and to use different types of shots.  She also said, “the first touch needs to go towards the goal and have your hands already prepped.”  Lots of repetition and one on one practice are needed for your forwards to feel confident and comfortable using different shooting techniques.

The next presentation featured Jennifer Stone, coach at Lafayette College, who discussed how to adjust to a player up or down situation.  What does your team do in this situation?  Do all of your players know when you are in a numbers up and/or numbers down situation?  How do you relay this information to your team?  These are the first questions that need to be answered to be successful on either end of the play. 

The last presentation of the day was a coaches choice.  You could either listen to Jennifer Stone discuss 3D skills or Beth Gottung (Montclair State) describe ways to maximize your practice time.  Jennifer gave us some great strategies on how to incorporate 3D skills into your players game and the most important piece is your footwork, your feet and body have got to go with the ball to be successful.  She broke it down piece by piece and we saw a great progression from basic to advanced.  Beth discussed the preparation needed to plan your practice.  She mentioned that you should name your drills so that you can use them again later in the season and the players will remember what it was.  She gave us a copy of her practice plan which really outlines and organizes her and her assistant.   


All and all the Coaches Academy was a success and we really took a lot of great information with us.  Coaches, if you have never been to a NFHCA event, we recommend that you go, you will definitely enjoy it!  We are looking forward to the next one! 

ASTRO TURF/NFHCA COACHES ACADEMY RECAP DAY 1

On January 11th and 12th the Xplosive Team crossed the bridge into Philadelphia to attend the AstroTurf/NFHCA Coaches Academy.  With so few opportunities for professional development in the sport of field hockey, it was awesome to see so many coaches dedicate their weekend to the sport we all love.  The clinic was just want we all needed to get us back in the hockey mood.  The topics were all applicable to the high school level and the Xplosive team is can’t wait to add some of these concepts to camp this summer.  Here’s a synopsis of the topics covered: 

Keith Waldman, the director of Optimal Performance Associates started Saturday morning off with 45 minutes of team building activities.  It was hands on and we had a blast.  If you ever want to bring someone in to do team building with your team, Keith is your man.  He has worked with numerous high school and collegiate field hockey teams and since his daughter plays, he understands the sport more than most.  

We heard from UDel’s Rolf van de Kerkhof who talked about ways to incorporate your goalie into practice.  He gave us the great idea of using different types of balls for the goalies to use to work on clears and get those hips open.  A soccer ball, an inflatable and various sized plush balls work and they can even practice without their pads on if they are using those. 

Next is was Helen Knull for Michigan State who discussed building team defense through individual defensive tactics.  Her advice was spot on and told us how important footwork drills are and that we should be doing them everyday.  She also said that every defensive drill should incorporate an offensive, forward movement, so that when the defender wins, they are reinforcing the need to transition quickly into attack.  How many times do defenders win their 1 v 1 grid and then just stop playing?  

If you didn’t want to listen to a defensive talk, you could have seen Joanie Milhaus from Villanova discussing Lateral Ball Movement, a transition from defense to attack.  She gave us different formations for the backfield and passing drills to work on both.  Don’t forget to add in a timed component to increase the speed and urgency of the change of fields! 

We broke for lunch and walked to the Lowes Hotel.  They had a fabulous spread set out for us and it was a great chance to meet new coaches and discuss new strategies! 

After lunch we got to hear from UPenn’s Colleen Fink describe some specific, situational drills.  You know how frustrating it can be when you can’t get the ball out of your defensive end, well Colleen provided us with some ideas and drills to get your team confident in getting the ball quickly out of the back field.  She also showed us some great small grid, decision making drills.  These are a must for the 2014 season! 

Afterwards, Montclair State’s Beth Gottung explains ways to take advantage of the self-start.  She gave us 6 decision makers to consider on an offensive self-start and how important it is to get your team thinking about these before they approach the ball and decide what to do with it.  She did let us in on one little secret... after a defensive corner, it’s best to exit the 16 with a self-start.  Why?  The other team is still bummed that they didn’t score and if you get the ball out quickly, you can get it down the field. 

The last session of the day gave coaches the option of hearing Laurel Martin from Stevenson University discuss the “Basics” or Delaware’s Rolf van de Kerkhof give a live demonstration of the drag flick, sweep, reverse hit and reverse chip.  Laurel’s basic skills taught us the importance of 30 minutes of basic skills everyday.  You know what they say, “you can never get enough of the basic skills.”  On the other field was Rolf, demonstrating how you can break down each hit and teach your kids these skills.  He gave us the progression of starting on your knees, then on one knee, then standing, then approaching the ball and finally full throttle, no holds bar, going at it with speed and intensity.  Lots of videos were taken at this session and everyone was excited to get out there and try these skills.

Day 1 was awesome and we learned a lot... we couldn’t wait to get back for Day 2... that’s for another post!