| Defensive Man Down Drills |
| By: Jack Kaley and Rich Donovan
Originally Published in: Lacrosse Essentials - Provided by: Human Kinetics
Purpose Neutralize an opponent with a dominant player. Setup The setup depends on the location of the dominant player. Your deny call is red plus the number of the player you want to cutoff. For example, if their playmaker is number 15 and is playing at X, the call is red 15. If their best shooter is on the crease and his number is 10, the call is red 10. When you cut off a player, put your best short-stick defender on him. This way, you still have your four long poles playing the remaining five players. Pro This creates a different look that forces the offensive team to make adjustments. Con Playing 6v5 is more of an advantage for the defense, compared to playing 5v4. MAN DOWN DENY AT CREASE VS. 1-3-2 DRILL Purpose Keep the primary shooter from receiving the ball directly in front of the cage. Setup To deny the crease player, play 4v5 on the perimeter. The four perimeter defensemen play the same technique they play in the zone defense as well as in the 6v5 drill. The man playing the ball pressures the ball, and the two adjacent men play the man in their zone and are responsible for the skip lane to the next adjacent player. The man farthest from the ball splits two players. Pro This forces less-talented shooters to handle the ball. Con Perimeter shooters will have more space to create scoring opportunities. MAN DOWN DENY AT X VS. 1-3-2 DRILL Purpose Deny the feeder at X (the area directly behind the cage). Setup Deny the feeder in the prime location for assists. In this formation, although you are playing the same technique as earlier outlined in man down defense principles, it puts a lot more pressure on the man farthest from the ball. The man farthest from the ball usually splits two players, but in this situation, one is the crease defender. It is important that the adjacent players deny the skip lanes and encourage perimeter passing. Pro It forces less-talented players to distribute the ball. Con It forces the defense to play 4v5 above the goal line extended. |
Defensive Man Down Drills
