Shooting from Endline Cut-Back - 3-D

EXPLANATION:

• Player with the ball starts by attacking the endline at speed and carrying the ball towards the goal.
• As X approaches the Rebound Board/Stick/Line of Cones, he gets his body around to the endline, and lifts the ball on the move, over the Rebound Board and cutting on an angle (30-45 degrees) away from the endline, towards the stroke mark.
• Keeping the ball bouncing/moving in the air, X runs across and hits the ball at goal. This can be a forehand shot or upright reverse stick shot, depending on which side the attacker is coming from.
• X runs to the opposite side, and mirrors the drill in the other direction. 

COACHING POINTS:

• Less touches, more vision: X wants to keep his eyes up going into the circle to watch defender and GK’s position. Let the ball run and keep good low body position behind it, and stick close to the ball.
• Change the angle of the ball to lift it. This will make the skill easier and allow the attacker to keep his stick very close to the ball.
• Watch the GK: as the ball is lifted, the GK may come off his line to play the ball. If the attacker has good vision, he can see this happening, and take a quick shot as the GK is stepping out. This is a tough save for the GK as he is moving. If the GK stays in the goal, attacker can just track across and shoot from the best angle, directiy in front of the goal. 

EVALUATION:

• The change of angle off the endline is critical to get a better shooting angle. Focus the players on understanding this concept, and the distance from the post that the lift should happen. (For higher skill levels, they can get closer to the post before lifting the ball - at lower levels, players may lose control as the ball runs away).
• This skill, although seemingly more advanced, is actually quite simple to perform with the right technique. The key area is controlling the lift and moving with it. After that, the shot on goal does not have to be a hard one. It is more important that it is timed correctly.