The objective of this drill is to give a defender practice turning and digging a ball that has been hit behind them.
Set up
# of players : 2-4 players
Ideal : 2 players
Equipment : 1+balls
Average duration : 10-20 minutes
Description
- In this drill the athletes starts in the centre of the court with the ‘trainer’ who has a ball between them and the net.
- The ‘trainer’ throws the ball over the head of the defender into the corner of the court. As the ball is in the air the defender turns, in the direction that allows the defender to see the ball crossing their shoulder and proceeds to dig the ball back over their head to the middle of the court.
Evaluation :
# of reps (ex. 3 sets of 4-6 reps)
Variations
- Rotate between players
- Left and right
Progression
- The trainer catches the ball
- The trainer sets up the ball for the defender to attack.
- Initially the defender should know what corner the ball is to be thrown
- The trainer throws to either one of the deep corners.
- The defender can come up towards the net to make the dig more difficult.
- With 2 athletes on each side of the court this drill could be used to initiate a game.
Key points
- Ensure that athletes focus on turning with a low centre of gravity, as this will allow them to cover more ground.
- When athletes contact the ball their arms should travel from ‘sand to sky’ and direct the ball back over their shoulders to the middle of the court.
- The athletes should have permission to bend the elbows slightly during this movement to assist in getting the ball back into the court.