3-on-2 Cross-Over Drill
We see lots of teams using this great drill in Pregame Warm-Ups for both Box and Field Lacrosse Tournaments to work on stick skills, ball movement, and defense, all at the same time!
We originally saw this Box Drill at training camp for one of the NLL teams a few years ago. Since then, we see everybody using it. If the Pros are doing it, you probably should too. We have even seen youth teams using it in their pre-game warm ups.
Numbers-Advantage Situations happen dozens of times every game. 3-on-2's, 4-on-3's, 5-on-4's, 6-on-5's. The Pros really know how to draw the Defense and move the ball quickly. The big guys were getting a rep in about every 10 seconds. You might need more like 15-20 seconds per rep for youth or beginning players to really work this 3-on-2 to the goal.
Be Creative! Teams we watch that use this drill work everything in to each 3-on-2: Pass Fakes, Shot Fakes, a little Dodging, Picks & Rolls, everything. Let your players play!
Here's THE DRILL:
You can start this drill with a ground ball or a pass. Put one line of Defenders up top outside the box and two lines of Attackers on either side of the goalie behind Goal Line Extended (GLE).
Figure 1.) Two Defenders (Red 1 and 2) start with the ball up top. Pass to one of the three Attackers down low on either side of the Goal. The two Defenders should then drop into the "Hole" to cover the middle of the field, in front of the goal. This will teach your players to get back and play Defense "from Inside-Out." Get in between the ball and the goal first.
- Related: Use this classic T-Shirt Drill to teach your players to get back on Defense.
PRACTICE TIPS:
- Make sure your players get the chance to play both sides of the ball. Especially at the youth level, and even in high-school, developing well-rounded athletes is one of the most important things you do as a coach. Way more important than winning.
- Keep time for your drills for your players' age and attention span.
- Keep score if you need to inject some intensity. For this drill you could say one point for a goal since the Offense has the extra man, and one point to the Defense for a save, turnover, or pass out of bounds. Don't let those extra-man opportunities go to waste!
Try it out at your next practice and let us know how it goes!
