Fiveconceptsthatwillforever

changeyouryouthprogram
(andmakeyourplayersbetter)
Chuck Jaffe, BullsEye Lacrosse

LEARN. LEAD. INSPIRE.

TheBig5
Dominantmoments
Themostimportantplayeronthe
field
Playertoballratio
Sprintbytimeinterval,notdistance
Thechecklist
LEARN. LEAD. INSPIRE.

Dominantmoments
Youdontneeddominantplayers,youneed
playerswhodominatethemoment.
Adominantmomentisfleeting afew
secondsoutofalonggame butthereare
many,manyopportunitieseverygame.
Eventheworstplayercancontrolthegame
dominateit bydoingthelittlethingsright,
soemphasizethelittlethings.
LEARN. LEAD. INSPIRE.

Examples
Scoopingagroundballcleanly,thenpassingtoan
openteammate
Backingupashottoretainpossession
Protectingtheball,turningtherightway,doing
thelittlethingsrighttokeeppossession
Beinginpositiontoknockdownapassorturn
backanattackingplayerback
Gettingopenforateammatewhosintrouble
Makingtherightdecisions
LEARN. LEAD. INSPIRE.

Littlethings bigresults
Evenyourworstplayerscanhaveoneortwo
dominantmomentspergame.
Whenaplayer especiallyoneofyourlesser
players doessomethingsmallrightin
practiceoragame,talkabouthowthey
dominatedthemoment.
Havemoredominantmomentsthanyour
opponent,andyoushouldwinthegame.
LEARN. LEAD. INSPIRE.

Themostimportantplayeronthefield

Clues:
Itsnotthegoalie.
Itsnottheplayerwiththeball.
Itsalwaysthepersonwhodetermineswhat
happensnextinthegame.

The most important player

on the field is
LEARN. LEAD. INSPIRE.

 the third person to the ball.

Theplayerwiththeball orclosesttoit is
#1.
Theplayerdefendingtheball orcomingup
onthepersonclosesttoit is#2.
Thepersonwhobringstheslideordouble
team,orgetsopenforthefeedoroutletpass,
whostopstheshot orwhofailstodoanyof
thosethingswhentheycould isthethird
persontotheball.
LEARN. LEAD. INSPIRE.

Stressesoffballandteamplayconcepts
Themostimportantplayeronthefield
determineswhathappensNEXT standing,
sliding,cutting,catching,dropping,saving,
actingordoingnothing andeveryplayeris
justafewsecondsawayfrombeingthemost
importantplayeronthefield atthosetimes
whentheydoNOThavetheball.
EVERYtimetheballmoves,someoneelse
becomesmostimportant. Areyouready?
LEARN. LEAD. INSPIRE.

Theplayertoball ratio
Playertoballratio=
Thenumberofplayersinadrill
Thenumberofballsinadrill

SO.
LEARN. LEAD. INSPIRE.

 afullfieldscrimmagehasap/bratioof

20/1(24/1forgirls)
and2on1groundballdrillshavearatioof

3/1
Lowerratiosmeanmoretouchesper
player,improvingskilldevelopment

LEARN. LEAD. INSPIRE.

DrillswithlowP/Bratio

groundballpairs(toandaway,andleapfrogstyle)*
hamster drill(3players,2balls)*orperfecthamster (4players,2balls)*
1v1groundballdrills(to,away,backtobacks*,trainwreckstyle,tostationary
ball*)
2v1groundballdrills(toaway,scrumbacks*,trainwreckstyle,tostationaryball*)
2v2groundballdrills(to,away,scrumbacks*,diamondstyle,cornerofthefield)
3v2groundballdrills(to,away,tothegoal,cornerofthefield)
4cornerpassing(addcenterpostsforgiveandgo)
Musicalballs*
Scramble drills*
Fireball
Sheepandwolves*
LacrosseLand*(individual,inteams)
Fetch*

*=workswellwi thhi ghpla yer/coa chra tio(meani nglots ofkids /fewcoa ches )

LEARN. LEAD. INSPIRE.

Buildingapractice
Decidewhichskillsyouwanttoemphasize
Determinewhichdrillscandothejob
Seehowmanyplayers/coachesyouhave
Pickyourdrillstomakethemostofyour
resources
MoveyourpracticefromlowesttohighestP/B
ratio

LEARN. LEAD. INSPIRE.

Sprintsfortime,notdistance
Thewrongway:Baserunsondistance.The
teamrunsouttowherethecoachstands,and
returnstotheirstartingpoint.
X

@
+
?

LEARN. LEAD. INSPIRE.

Therightway:Everyonerunsasmanybackand
forthsastheycanduringatimedinterval.
X

@
+
?

LEARN. LEAD. INSPIRE.

Whyitworks?
Yourfastestplayerswilldomoredistance,but
allplayersputinmaximumeffort.
Allplayersgetthesamerest.
Equalizesrunningforbestandworstathletes
Allowsyoutomakesprintsapersonal
competition.Callouttimes,haveplayerspush
tomakethelatestagesoftherunaslongas
thefirst.
LEARN. LEAD. INSPIRE.

Atypicalyouthsprintpackage

EndLinetoneargoallineextended:15secondsx 4repetitions.Resttime
betweenruns:15seconds

Endlinetothenearrestrainingline:30secondsx 2reps.Resttime
betweenruns:30seconds

Endlinetomidfield:45secondsx1rep.Resttime: 75seconds

Endlinetofarrestrainingline:60secondsx1rep.Resttime: 90seconds

Endlinetofargoalline:75secondsx1rep.Resttime:2minutes

Endlinetoendline:90secondsx1rep.

LEARN. LEAD. INSPIRE.

Waystomakesprintsworkforyou
Increaseresttimesifyouarelookingtobuild
endurance
Reduceresttimes(neverlessthanthelength
oftherunitself)toworkthroughfatigueand
buildstamina
Workonexplosiveturns, whereplayershit
theline,stop,changedirection,andworkto
getbacktospeed
LEARN. LEAD. INSPIRE.

Thechecklist
Takesyourmostimportantteamconcepts
andreinforcesthem.
Haveoneextrafullfieldsprintforeach
concept.
AtthefirstpracticeAFTERagame,review
yourteamsplayineachkeyarea;ifyour
teamdidnotdoaswellastheopponents,
yourteamdoesonesprint.
LEARN. LEAD. INSPIRE.

Itemsforyourchecklist
Checklistforboys
Groundballs
Timeofpossession
Sportsmanship/specialteams
Faceoffs
Riding/clearing
Hustle
Solidplayfromthemost
importantplayeronthefield
Dominantmoments
Winthefourthquarter

Checklistforgirls
Groundballs
Timeofpossession
Sportsmanship/smartpenalties
Draws/drawcontrols
Riding/clearing
Hustle
Solidplayfromthemost
importantplayeronthefield
Dominantmoments
Winthelast10minutesofthe
game

LEARN. LEAD. INSPIRE.

Thankyou!
Ifyoudlikemoreinformationonanythingdiscussed
inthistalk ifyouwantcopiesoftheteam
checklist ordominantmoments foryourteam,
pleasegetintouch:
ChuckJaffe
BullsEyeLacrosse
Box70
Cohasset,MA020250070
chuck@bullseyelacrosse.com,7813836688
LEARN. LEAD. INSPIRE.

Dominant moments
We all watch sporting events in awe of players who take over the game, who do amazing things with the
ball or playing defense, the ones who teammates look to in the clutch to come up with the big play. Those
great, dominant players are few and far between, and having one or two on a team doesnt guarantee
success. The sports pages are filled with the names of players who put up gaudy statistics, but who play
for average or below-average teams.
So while its great to have dominant players and while wed love for each of you to develop those skills
the truth is that we dont need to have that kind of person on our team in order to succeed.
Instead, we need for all of our players to be capable of dominant moments.
A dominant moment is a fleeting thing -- a small bit, lasting for just seconds of a long game -- but each
one is critically important for the success of the team.
If you can scoop the ball in traffic, protect it, stay calm and pass it to an open teammate, during those five
or six seconds, the actions of every other player on the field depend upon you. If you put yourself in a
position where you can intercept a pass or where the opponent must change their play because youre
playing proper defense and they cant bring the ball in your direction you have tremendous influence on
how the next moment or two of the game will unfold.
If you back up a shot so that the team retains possession of the ball, you have given your offense another
chance to succeed. If a player is running unchecked towards our goal and you step in and force them to
pass the ball, you have controlled the game without ever having possession of the ball. If you go to the
right spot so that a teammate can pass to you when you are open or when they are in jeopardy of losing
the ball, you have given your team the most opportunity it can have at that instant.
If you are unafraid to be aggressive when the opportunity presents itself, but know to be cautious or
conservative when the situation calls for it, you will impact the flow of the game at its most critical times.
If you work hard during practice, pushing to get the most out of your coaches, teammates and yourself,
you are dominating the moments that provide your best learning opportunities.
Dominant moments are all about doing the little things right, and allowing the big things to take care of
themselves. They are about trusting your teammates and what you have learned in practice, and getting
the most out of both. They are about being unafraid when the fickle bounce of a ball puts you in the center
of the action, even if that is the last place you really want to be.
In lacrosse and in life, success is moving from one failure to the next without losing your enthusiasm.
When this great game gives you a moment you can dominate, try your best to force your will on the game
and to make good things happen. If you fail, dont stop trying and pushing yourself to do better; if you
succeed, remember that you are only as good as the next opportunity.
If you can dominate a moment or two, you will have made an impact on the game even if you barely
touched the ball. If we have more dominant moments than our opponent, we should win the game.
Each of you can play a part in making us a dominant team. Accept the challenge. Dominate the moment.
-- Chuck Jaffe, BullsEye Lacrosse

Nine goals to victory

Boys: There are nine facets to every game that can leave your opponent with the impression
that you play tough, smart and hard, that you honor the game, that you are relentless and that you
pursue all over the field. The more of these goals you achieve in every game, the greater your
chance of victory.
Most of these goals are self-explanatory. We must get more loose balls, kill off penalties, and
score when man-up. We must stay out of the penalty box, control more face-offs, clear the ball to
our attack and bottle them up before they can clear. We must hustle and play physically. We
need more "dominant moments" -- and we need good play from the "most important man on the
field," who is the third person to the ball on offense or defense. Last, we must beat the opposition
down the home stretch.
It's not about taking the most shots or making more saves. If we do better or tie the other team
in at least five of the critical phases of the game, shots, saves and goals all tend to take care of
themselves.
In every game, you have one full-field sprint riding on each of our nine goals to victory. Win
or tie a specific goal, and you don't run; lose a category and you run.
Opponent/
Goal
Ground balls
Time of
possession
Sportsmanship/
special teams
play
Face-offs
Riding/
Clearing
Hustle
Solid play from
"most mportant
guy on the ield"
"Dominant
moments"
Win the fourth
quarter

Nine goals to victory

Girls: There are nine facets to every game that can leave your opponent with the impression
that you play tough, smart and hard, that you respect the game and those who play it, that you are
relentless and determined. The more of these goals you reach, the better your chances; dominate
in five of these areas, and we should win the game.
Most of these goals are self-explanatory. We must hustle, capture the loose balls, control the
draws, clear the ball to our attack, and bottle up our opponents. We must possess the ball and be
smart with it; we can take penalties, but not from sloppy, dumb, dangerous or hyper-aggressive
play. We dont honor the game when we complain to officials or show poor sportsmanship. We
need more "dominant moments," and we need good play from the "most important player on the
field," the third person to the ball on offense or defense. Lastly, we must beat the opposition
down the stretch, with the conditioning and mindset to play our best when were tired and the
game is on the line.
In every game, theres one full-field sprint riding on each of our nine goals to victory. Win or
tie a specific goal, and you don't run; lose a category and you run.
Opponent/
Goal
Ground balls
Time of
possession
Sportsmanship/
smart penalties
Draws/draw
controls
Riding/
clearing
Hustle
Solid play from
"most
important
player on the
field"
"Dominant
moments"
Win the last 10
minutes