I was out watching one of the players I am coaching where she was playing indoor league. She is a sophomore goalie and I was there to get video for our next session. It was quite enjoyable to see all of the young players working on their game and enjoying their time with their teammates and sticks.
While there, I was asked to work on a few sticks. I reviewed what the players were seeking and reached into my pocket for my trusty pliers. I have big hands, so going after those small knots is a little problematic. So, I tightened up some shooting strings and leathers, all the time reminding the players and parents on the need to keep certain strings/laces tight.
While there, a father approached me to ask if I knew anywhere his daughter could get her stick restrung or fixed up. I offered that, since my wife has come to the point of calling it my sewing, I can help. He did not have the specific stick, but he did bring me a stick his older daughter had and we talked about the runner and the lacing on the stick and how to keep the sweet spot high with the wide plastic runner. This plastic is not my favorite runner. I cannot keep the ball in the sweet spot. I will pick up the stick next week.
Then another parent approached me about his daughter’s stick. I had loaned his daughters one of mine to try (Crux300 with ECD runner), and he noticed that I did not have the ball seated way down in the pocket so that the ball was just barely peaking over the top of the sidewalls. He told me that he and his daughter (she is an excellent player) had been used to having a very deep pocket. They believed that this gave them more protection from checks and could offer a better launch. Four years ago, I would have agreed with him. Today, not so much. Though I like a deep pocket, I am less concerned about the depth as I am in giving the ball a high sweet spot that has relatively tight leathers to keep the ball seated snugly between them. If we can limit the ball’s ability to move in the head, we are far more successful making accurate shots and passes. It also helps with checking, as the ball has a far smaller sideways area to go before meeting resistance within the leathers. Nothing can be done about a check from above the face.
What I have noticed with the balls seated in a loose pocket is that there are a number of issues that reduce the player’s ability to repeat a tight pattern of throws and shots. First: to do this properly, one has to loosen the leathers. This allows for more side-to-side roll of the ball in the pocket. Second: the loose stringing creates a larger release area down into the center of the stick. The lower release area increases the time it would take to get the ball out of the stick toward the target. Remember that this is a game of nano-seconds. Third: because the ball is, in essence, rolling around the middle of the pocket, the player has reduced their ability to accurately hit their target. They will get shots off, but the spray pattern is far wider than if the ball was sitting tighter in a high sweet spot and ready for the pass/shot.
Having said that, I do like to have the ball sitting more than half way down into the pocket, but I am not worried whether the top of the ball sits just above the sidewall. With a high sweet spot, we have pretty much done that with the angle at the top of the stick.
These were good conversations and I enjoyed listening to their needs and thoughts and comparing them to what I have learned.
Queen City Girls Lacrosse - from the coach's perspective 