Grow the Game®

Share on facebook
Share on twitter
Share on linkedin
Share on reddit
Share on whatsapp

Why Lacrosse Film Analysis is Important

For any developing lacrosse player, film analysis is a vital resource for elevating their game to the next level. Being able to watch yourself play is one of the best ways to understand both what you’re doing right and what you’re doing wrong. It’s especially helpful for identifying mistakes. Did you take a shot that your coach yelled at you about during the game? Go watch the film. Did you miss a back cut on a goal right at the doorstep? Go watch the film. Did you throw a clear to a defensive midfielder who got hit as soon as he caught it? Go watch the film. Mistakes are easier to spot when you can actually see them play out in real time, but where many players fail is in the analysis of that film.

In my experience, when athletes tell me they’re watching film, they’re often just reviewing their individual highlights. If they focus on their lowlights, they tend to think the issue will resolve itself now that they’ve seen what went wrong. While this approach makes sense on a surface level, true growth comes from the deeper analysis of the game. That’s where the real learning begins.

Lacrosse, at its core, is a game of advantages and reactions, like a series of falling dominoes. One action by the offense triggers a response from the defense, often creating advantages for the offense. As long as the offense capitalizes on those advantages, the dominoes keep falling, ideally leading to a goal. However, the problem with the way many athletes watch film is their tendency to just watch it without really studying it. When players make mistakes, they need to break down what advantages they had, whether the dominoes were falling in their favor, and how they either capitalized on or failed to make use of the opportunity.

In the heat of the moment, it’s easy to feel like you’re making the right play. But lacrosse film analysis gives you a new perspective, one that opens the door to a deeper understanding of the game. There must be a clear intention to truly study the film, not just review highlights and glaring lowlights. Players need to understand why things are happening the way they are. Doing drills and practicing will help with executing certain concepts, but mastering those concepts comes through analyzing film. That’s where true growth occurs.

Film doesn’t just provide the opportunity to see yourself on the field; it also lets you see what others are doing. Watching the game from a top-down, third-person perspective allows players to understand the game more holistically. It’s a completely different view from what you experience on the field. One of the biggest issues in lacrosse is spacing, and this third-person perspective clears that up. Without proper spacing, offenses can’t function, and defenses have no real opportunity to slide and make plays. Good coaches always preach spacing, but many players struggle to grasp its importance. Coaches often see the whole field and get frustrated when their players don’t understand certain concepts, but the reality is that players on the field have a very different view than their coach on the sideline. The only way to bridge that gap and work as a cohesive unit is through film study.

At the collegiate level, watching film is a given. Almost every team watches film in various ways. The best athletes are the ones who take time between classes or after practice to watch clips, whether of games or drills. But again, the key is deliberate intent. Anyone can sit down and watch their highlights, but the best students of the game can tell you why each action on the field is happening and how it fits into the larger picture.

Lacrosse film analysis is about more than just seeing your mistakes—it’s about understanding the game in a way that elevates every aspect of your play. The players who truly embrace this become not only better athletes but smarter ones, capable of reading the game in real-time because they’ve already analyzed it from every angle off the field.