Focus
Basic skill acquisition via closed environment trials and repetition

Content – Intro to Lacrosse

• partner passing and catching
• Intro to scooping
• Team Zig Zag mini game

Focus
Basic skill acquisition via closed environment trials and repetition progressing to a more open environment (2v1 mini game)

Content – Cradle intro

• Cradle with ball inside confined space and bump each other – 2 hands then 1 hand
• Cradle zigzag jog with pressure. Take turns on D and O
• Shooting intro – BEEF overhand, sidearm, bounce shots
• Top down shooting drills
• 2v1s – pop out, move through

Focus
Basic skill acquisition progressing to open environment trials with mini games and unsettled game play

Content – Ground ball intro – how to scoop and advanced GBs

• Partner GBs – stationary and moving
• Hungry Hungry Hippos
• Backs together – box out
• Lay down in line ground ball to unsettled play with shots on goal

Focus
Transition to game play. Less continuous repetition work and more unsettled game play situations

Content – Intro to passing and cutting

• 4 cones 3 players – pass the ball – move to the empty cone
• 3v2 fast breaks ‘I’ formation on D
• Popping out, cutting through
  3X

Focus
Tactics. Game awareness and formations finishing with a game of 4X at the end

Content – Spacing intro

• 4v3
• Defensive rotation
• Crossover initiation drill – 4v3
• West Genny 4s
• 4X

Focus
Advanced team play and tactics. Finishing the module with Olympic 6s Lacrosse

Content – Intro – Why the pick and roll?

• Pick and roll
• 5X – 3 options off ball – pop out, cut through or set a pick
• Olympic 6s

Passing
How to pass a lacrosse ball:
How to PASS A LACROSSE BALL! – YouTube

Catching
How to catch a lacrosse ball:
How to CATCH A LACROSSE BALL! – YouTube

Practice
Partner passing and catching around 5 meters apart. Focusing on control and consistency rather than distance.
After a couple of minutes people will have been frustrated by the amount of passes they’ve dropped so now is a great time to teach them how to scoop the ball.

Scooping the ball
How To Scoop A Lacrosse Ball

Start with dominant hand first. Once students get the hang of this then get them to try the other hand.
Practice: Partner passing, catching, rolling and scooping – scoop, pass, catch, roll the ball, scoop, pass, catch, roll the ball.

Mini game
Line drill with progression:
Set up cones in a zig zag pattern down the field with around 5 metres between each cone. Start with the balls at one end and a goal at the other end. The students start on the cones (one student per cone). The student on the cone furthest away from the goal starts by scooping a ball and throwing it to the next student. After they have thrown the ball they then jog to the cone they threw the ball to. The students throw the ball along the zig zag cones and follow their pass until the ball gets to the last cone. The student that is at the last cone catches the ball and throws it into the goal then runs back the the start, scoops a new ball and starts the zig zag again.
Progression points: dominant hand, non dominant hand, roll the ball, catch right pass left, catch left pass right, timer on – how quickly can we move all the balls?

SET UP MULTIPLE ZIG ZAG GROUPS SO PEOPLE DON’T SPEND TOO LONG STANDING AROUND WATCHING.

As many catches and throws during the session as possible. A good tip is the have multiple people at the first cone ready to start so you can have multiple balls moving on the zig zag at the same time.

HOW TO CRADLE A LACROSSE BALL
HOW TO CRADLE A LACROSSE BALL with Joe Walters – YouTube

Cradle practice – easy
Everyone with a stick and ball in a confined space – outdoors inside the centre circle on the football field. Indoors inside the 3 point line on a basketball court or the shooting arc on a handball court. Cradle your ball and lighting bump into the other students. Two hands right hand, two hands left hand, one hand right hand, one hand left hand. If you drop the ball then you pick it up again, exit the space, throw it up and down to yourself 3 times the resume the drill.

Cradle practice – advanced
HOW TO CARRY A LACROSSE BALL with Joe Walters – YouTube

Pair up. 1 player has a stick and ball while another player plays defense. The play with the ball will run in a zig zag pattern – make contact with the defender and then run away from contact, make contact and then move away from contact – while controlling the ball. Take turns. Two hands right hand, two hands left hand, one hand right hand, one hand left hand.
Another idea is for the defender to play without a stick and focus pushing the hips of the player with the ball.

HOW TO SHOOT A LACROSSE BALL
Casey Powell Tip- Lacrosse Shooting – YouTube

You can’t win lacrosse games without scoring goals.
BEEF – Demonstration, explanation, imitation, coaching, trials
Balance, Eyes, Elbow Follow through

Drills for stationary/ ‘time and room’ shooting
Get all the balls up the top, form a line up the top and take turns shooting. When there are no balls left, do a ball hunt and go again.

Focus on good form first – accuracy and hitting corners is more important than shot speed.

Strong hand overhand – high to high, high to low, bounce shots
Strong hand side arm – high to high, high to low, side arm bounce shots
Strong hand under hand – low to high, low to low

Off hand overhand – high to high, high to low, bounce shots
Off hand side arm – high to high, high to low, side arm bounce shots
Off hand under hand – low to high, low to low

If you want to make it competitive after a few practice rounds.
Side pipe = 1 point
Side pipe and in = 5 points
Cross bar and in = 2 point
Cross bar and not in = -1

Shooting on the run
Get all the ball up the top, one at the time run towards the goal and shoot on the run.

Add a ‘defender’ – get all the balls up the top again, one at a time run past the defender and shoot on the goal on the run. Start with a stationary defender without a stick that makes light contact as the players run past. You can also use a tackle pad – taekwondo pad to make contact with players.

Tip: Get lots of ball ready, use multiple goals if possible to increase the number of repetitions.

Mini game for cradling, moving and shooting
2 v 1 drill – YouTube

Make 3 lines of people. 2 lines of attackers start up the top and 1 line of defenders start on the side.

The defender starts the drill by moving from the front of the line into the space between the attackers and the goal.
The attackers can pass the ball, move without the ball to create space, pop out to receive a catch. The objective it to get a high percentage shot on goal.

Tips: the defender can start without a stick or with a tackle pad until players get the hang of moving with the ball, passing and catching under pressure.

Once the attackers are pros and score all the time then you can add limitations to the attacking play – must pass the ball once before scoring, can’t hold the ball for more than 5 seconds, must pass 3 times before scoring, can’t hold the ball for more than 3 seconds.

Get as many goals operating as possible during this section to increase repetitions.

End the day with 3x lacrosse
A fun, high speed version of lacrosse with lots of action. 3v3 and played on one small goal similar to street basketball. Teams are chosen by putting sticks in a pile then 1 person closes their eyes and throws the sticks out to the left and the right to distribute teams. If all the sticks are similar (a class set) then you can get the students to take off 1 shoe each and place them in a pile instead. Usually on defense you play with a goalie in goal, which gives the attacking team a 3v2 advantage. If the defensive team regains possession of the ball then they run it up to a designated ‘half court’ point, where they can then turn around and start playing offence.

Official ruleset for 3x lacrosse
Official Rules – 3x lacrosse

You’ve now had time to learn how to pass catch and move the ball around quickly. You have probably noticed that the ball often ends up on the ground. Challenging and retaining the ball is the most important factor to a winning side in lacrosse. This module will focus on how to get the ball back off the ground as fast and effectively as possible.

Reference Module 1
How To Scoop A Lacrosse Ball

Scooping Practice Easy
Individual Stationary Scooping
Each student has a ball and sets it on the ground taking a step towards the ball and bringing the ball and head of the stick up towards head in standing position. Once students get the hang of that (maybe 10 reps), Change to the opposite hand. BOTH HANDS ON THE STICK

Individual Scooping on the Run 1
Students will toss the ball 10 meters ahead and scoop the ball while running bringing both ball and head of stick up towards head after a successful scoop. BOTH HANDS ON THE STICK

Individual Scooping on the Run 2
Students will toss the ball 10 meters ahead and scoop the ball while running, bringing both ball and head of stick up two both hands and up towards their head.Make sure they focus on not missing the ball when scooping with one hand. One HAND ON THE STICK
Common mistakes are pushing the ball forward, missing the ball entirely or getting stick caught in the ground.

Hungry Hungry Hippo
Students will pair up. Place groups evenly around a large circle. Put all the ball in the middle of the circle. One student will run and scoop one ball bringing it back towards their partner. Once the first student places the ball at their partner’s feet this allows the partner to go grab another ball. Pair of students with the most balls wins.

Illustration of the exercise

Scooping Practice Intermediate
Parnter Scooping
Students partner up and have one ball. Students stand back to back and place the ball behind in between. Countdown from 3 and have the students pull away with the ball falling between them allowing them equal chance to fight for the ball as it fall to the ground.

Suggested 3 rounds per student pair before changing partners and repeating. Can be done as a knockout challenge with losing student being eliminated.

Team Scooping
Teams of 2 (or 3) will battle each other for the ball. Have 4 lines of Students, 2 on each side of the teacher. Students will lie on there stomach facing the same direction. Teacher rolls out the ball and allows the teams to battle for ground ball. Players are allowed to bump each other from the side, kick the ball or use the stick to push ball away from crowded area. Keep stick checking at a minimum to avoid hand injuries.

To make the drill more advanced have the team who wins the scoop attempt a pass to other teammate before passing back to teacher. If they are unsuccessful with the pass the play continues with more ground ball battles.

End the day with 3x lacrosse
A fun, high speed version of lacrosse with lots of action. 3v3 and played on one small goal similar to street basketball. Teams are chosen by putting sticks in a pile then 1 person closes their eyes and throws the sticks out to the left and the right to distribute teams. If all the sticks are similar (a class set) then you can get the students to take off 1 shoe each and place them in a pile instead. Usually on defense you play with a goalie in goal, which gives the attacking team a 3v2 advantage. If the defensive team regains possession of the ball then they run it up to a designated ‘half court’ point, where they can then turn around and start playing offence.

Official ruleset for 3x lacrosse
Official Rules – 3x lacrosse

Fast breaks and odd man/woman situations are crucial in most team sports. It is the ideal scenario for attacking. As is one of the fastest sports on two feet, odd number situations happen frequently. Making sure the students understand it is important to capitalize at these moments.

2v1 from the side
Similar to the 2v1 drill from before, you split the class in half. Make 3 lines on either side of the goal. Teacher can stand top center with the balls and initiate the drill with a pass to one of the offensive players on each side. Mixing it up to make the defensive player think is better.
O= Offense Line D= Defensive line

Sides alternate with 2 players attacking the goal and the Defender having to guard two people.

ADVANCED
Roll a ball out in between Defender and offensive player. Initiate a ground ball fight with the offensive player being required to immediately pass to the open teammate. The faster the pass the better. If Defense picks up the ground ball he must pass it back to the teacher as quickly as possible.

4v3 Fast Break
Great build up from the previous drill. Bring all the class above the midline, but leave 2 offensive players below on either side of the goal. Add 3 defenders in the middle set up in a triangle. Have two lines of offense up above the midline. Offense is initiated from the 2 players

Illustration of the exercise

End the day with 3x lacrosse
A fun, high speed version of lacrosse with lots of action. 3v3 and played on one small goal similar to street basketball. Teams are chosen by putting sticks in a pile then 1 person closes their eyes and throws the sticks out to the left and the right to distribute teams. If all the sticks are similar (a class set) then you can get the students to take off 1 shoe each and place them in a pile instead. Usually on defense you play with a goalie in goal, which gives the attacking team a 3v2 advantage. If the defensive team regains possession of the ball then they run it up to a designated ‘half court’ point, where they can then turn around and start playing offence.

Official ruleset for 3x lacrosse
Official Rules – 3x lacrosse 

Formation introduction – 4 v 3
Similar to the 4v3 fast break drill except that the 4 offensive players are already positioned in a square when the play is initiated
4 v 3 drill – YouTube

Defensive rotation
in a 4 v 3 you can’t cover every offensive play. The defense creates a triangle pointing at the ball and covering the left and right passes but leaving the furthest pass open. As the ball is passed from one offensive player to the next the defense rotates opposite to the direction of the ball to maintain a triangle pointing at the ball, covering the left and right passes and leaving the furthest pass open.
4 v 3 – YouTube

West Genny – with variations
West Genny Drill | Lacrosse | POWLAX – YouTube

West Genny Set up

4v4 ground balls into offense and defense
Have teams with 4 lines each side of court/field. Roll the ball into the center and have the team that gets the ball make at least 1 pass before trying to score. Team that does not get ground ball has to play defence.

End the day with 3x lacrosse
A fun, high speed version of lacrosse with lots of action. 3v3 and played on one small goal similar to street basketball. Teams are chosen by putting sticks in a pile then 1 person closes their eyes and throws the sticks out to the left and the right to distribute teams. If all the sticks are similar (a class set) then you can get the students to take off 1 shoe each and place them in a pile instead. Usually on defense you play with a goalie in goal, which gives the attacking team a 3v2 advantage. If the defensive team regains possession of the ball then they run it up to a designated ‘half court’ point, where they can then turn around and start playing offence.

Official ruleset for 3x lacrosse
Official Rules – 3x lacrosse 

Pick and roll
Pick N’ Roll – Offensive Skills Series by IMG Academy Lacrosse (4 of 10) – YouTube

Set up as many groups of 6 as possible on multiple goals.
Set up 2 offensive players at the top, 2 offensive players at the bottom behind the goal and 2 defenders up the top.

A 2v2 pick and roll situation from the top of the goal. Once the play is over (goal scored, turn over or ball thrown away) the defenders rush down to the attackers at X (behind the goal) and play defense. The attackers from X play another pick and roll to attack the goal from X (behind)

The two people that played attack from up top are the two defenders on the next round. The two players that played attack from X will attack from top on the next round and the two players that play D will play attack from X on the next round.

4x
The same as 3x but with an extra player per team.
Focus: offball offensive players are focusing on their 3 options – cutting through to create space, v-cutting and popping out to be a help pass, setting up a pick and roll

Olympic sixes
Hype video: World Lacrosse Sixes – YouTube

Olympic 6s is a small sided form of lacrosse designed solely for inclusion in the Olympics. The game is played with 1 goalie and 5 players on each team. The goalie isn’t allowed to cross over the field’s mid-line. There is a 30 second shot clock. If you shoot and miss the goal and the ball goes out of bounds it is a turnover and the other team gains possession of the ball.

There are up to 6 substitutes per team and teams sub players ‘on the fly’ during game play. All players can play offense and defense.

More information about World Lacrosse 6s including the full rule book can be found here: Sixes Resources – World Lacrosse

Illustration of rules

For this course and physical education classes in Denmark we recommend that 6s games are played with a tennis ball or other light ball to avoid injury to goalies.