Yesterday, I was working at my favorite school wall for wall ball, making sure my recent stringing jobs were properly set for play (one is a Christmas present). There was a goal nearby where two girls with four balls were chatting, sharing and shooting. Being a coach with passion, I approached and told them about my passion and asked if I could join them for a few minutes. I found that they are both sophomores at a school with a very solid program.
Because I believe that the stick is the most critical tool in playing, I asked to see their sticks. I traded them with the sticks I had been working on, so that they could keep shooting. As I expected, both sticks had very loose pockets and the shooting strings were too soft, so the ball, when thrown, would have no regular path out of the stick. To one of the girls I suggested she and her father could tighten her strings and I instructed her how. The other had some very creative person rework the shooting strings. So I started at the beginning and set her strings.
All during this I shared with them on new shooting ideas they had not yet tried. They worked on sidearm and 3/4 shots. They practiced while I strung and appeared to pick it up quickly and enjoy the newfound skills. I had the opportunity to use their practice to teach them about how the lower hand and upper hand both have to work together to produce more shot opportunities, how to use them both to “target” their passes and shots. After some questioning, I am confident they will be adding some more skills to their games and have more fun with a game I love.
It was a great time for a coach.
Queen City Girls Lacrosse - from the coach's perspective 