with John Sung,
Virginia Tech Head Women's Coach;
led VT to its first NCAA Tournament appearance in 2018;
former Winthrop University Head Women's Coach;
2x Big South regular season and Tournament champions ('15, '16);
2x Big South Coach of the Year ('15, '16);
former NCAA Division I Lacrosse Committee chair;
member of the U.S. Lacrosse Convention Education Committee
If your players are unable to keep up with a conditioned team or a team that is comfortable possessing the ball, you won't win many games!
The drills included in this video from Virginia Tech's John Sung show you various ways to condition your team. You'll also get exercises that will improve your goalies' hand-eye coordination and footwork, your athletes' shooting abilities, the stick work skills of all of your players and defensive footwork reps to keep your team engaged and interested.
Conditioning & Skill Drills
The 'Manchester Run' helps stress the importance of pacing yourself as a player and actively recovering when you are fatigued. This will allow your athletes to make good decisions even if they are tired and also allows them to perform late in games when that extra burst of speed/energy is needed to secure a win.
Coach Sung shows a shooting progression drill that emphasizes good technique, body control, hand placement and shot placement without the extra added pressure of having a player on defense. If a player is comfortable shooting, it becomes muscle memory and will allow them to perform under pressure when facing an active defense. Finally, when the shooting progression moves to bump contact shooting, your players will get comfortable with feeling contact and pressure from defenders while still being able to get off a successful move/shot.
Next, you'll see the Army Line drill, which is a passing exercise that encourages quick feet with explosive cutting and footwork. Additionally, the drill calls for communication, quick hands, quick releases and efficiency of movement. Establishing these basics will help your team move the ball efficiently up the field, as well as in and around the goal circle.
What You'll Get
Sung and his assistants offer feedback to their players throughout the video, which is helpful because you'll observe areas of improvement that are needed for each player and how the staff approaches teaching them. A total of 22 drills are included, covering:
- Conditioning
- Goalie work
- Stick skills
- Shooting
- Defensive basics
Coach Sung provides several drills that work on the building blocks of individual and full field play. His drills help show how to keep players engaged at practice while stressing the use of great technique and skill execution. Coaches at all levels of play would benefit from watching this video.
74 minutes. 2020.
LXD-05661B:
with John Sung,
Virginia Tech Head Women's Coach;
led VT to its first NCAA Tournament appearance in 2018;
former Winthrop University Head Women's Coach;
2x Big South regular season and Tournament champions ('15, '16);
2x Big South Coach of the Year ('15, '16);
former NCAA Division I Lacrosse Committee chair;
member of the U.S. Lacrosse Convention Education Committee
If you establish good fundamentals with your team, your program will have a higher baseline of success. This video from Virginia Tech's John Sung provides several drills that will give your players the opportunity to work on their fundamentals both offensively and defensively. Sung's drills progress from individual play, to small sided play, to larger full field concepts. Sung demands good footwork and stick work from his players, both of which are essential building blocks to having a successful offense and defense.
Drill Work
The Teamwork 1v1 drill, and variations thereof, provide several opportunities to work on skills that are essential to the game of lacrosse. The variations of the drill (starting off of a pass, starting off of a ground ball, starting off of a skip pass) are all realistic, game-like situations that allow your attack to focus on fundamentals with stick and ball protection. At the same time, your defense can work on their footwork, their awareness of where the ball is and how they need to react to their player/ball. The exercises shown by Coach Sung give ample opportunity for correction of a player's footwork and body positioning without disrupting the flow of the drill. Additionally, his drills provide plenty of reps to all members of the team (attackers, defenders and goalies).
The 3v2 Blitz drill is a great drill to progress to from 1v1's. It includes disguised conditioning/fitness which helps keep your team in game shape. Additionally, the drill provides a competitive piece which makes players work harder and push each other, which in turn will help your team get better overall. Sung highlights certain performance aspects of the player demonstrators in the drill, which is great to follow and learn from as a coach.
'Clearing Landmines' is a clearing exercise which calls for your attacker to defend and ride your defenders, while calling for your defenders to be good ball handlers and keep their eyes down field to avoid the "landmines." This drill helps attackers reinforce their ability to defend and encourages the defenders to play through if there is a turnover. By asking the attackers to force the defenders towards cones (landmines) scattered throughout the field, you will teach them to be more reactive and to think on their feet, rather then having everything be scripted/choreographed.
Coaching Feedback
You'll see Coach Sung and his assistants offer feedback to players throughout the video, which is great for the viewer because it points out areas of improvement that aren't always identified when introducing the drill. A total of 13 drills are included and start with basic, but important concepts of 1v1's. The video progresses on to building up to 3v2 drills, introduces a sideline trap with a 5v4 drill, and finishes with full 7v7. This progression will allow you to build your practice in a practical manner, starting small and ending with larger field concepts. Additionally, each drill introduced by Coach Sung gives ample opportunity to discuss the various offensive and defensive concepts that each player needs to be able to understand.
Coach Sung shows how to build from fundamental individual concepts to larger full field concepts. The drills in this video can be simplified or enhanced to fit any level of play. Sung places a big emphasis on his on-field coaching, explanation of the drills and the importance of key components, which will help you lead your team to be more well-rounded and successful in the seasons ahead!
87 minutes. 2020.