Comments on: Lacrosse Practice Priorities: Scrimmage Vs. Drills http://laxallstars.com/lacrosse-practice-priorities-scrimmage-vs-drills/ Lacrosse Media Outlet / By Players, For Players / Grow The Game Sat, 18 May 2013 01:54:00 +0000 hourly 1 http://wordpress.org/?v=3.5.1 By: Sandpointlax http://laxallstars.com/lacrosse-practice-priorities-scrimmage-vs-drills/#comment-20902 Sandpointlax Tue, 23 Oct 2012 23:27:00 +0000 http://laxallstars.com/?p=42818#comment-20902 I have found that drills are most effective when they are 1) Gamelike.  They must take a snapshot of a game scenario that is clearly communicated to the players.  2)  Fast Paced.  No stopping to talk, or waiting for the field to clear off, rotate guys through as quickly as possible.  3) Involve as many players as possible.  The less players standing around watching lacrosse, the better.  4) Competitive   Who doesn’t work hard in a drill when winning means watching the other half run a few gassers?

I have also found the tough thing in scrimmages is keeping everyone focused all the time.  So I walk the field with a bunch of balls, and anytime a ball goes out of bounds I randomly toss out a new one.  It could go anywhere.  This keeps everyone paying attention and looking for the advantage off of a ground ball.  I also add points for things we focused on in that practice; say two points for a goal off of a fast break.  Or two points resulting out of the two man game.

This is a great opening to discuss, not so much which is better, but ways players and coaches have found to get the most out of their time in practice.  As a coach, I am always looking for ways to improve both drills and scrimmages. I am also always looking to hear from players about what things in practice they have the most fun with and from what drills/scrimmage scenarios they learn the most 

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