Teaching Lacrosse to U11

• U11 players are a mix of some experienced u9 and new to the game. You need to be able to keep the more advanced players engaged while helping newer players learn basic skills.

• Patience and focus change are key for coaches as players this age have limited attention spans

• Practices should not be more than one hour and a half. Change focus and drills every five to ten minutes. Most importantly, make practice fun.

• Encouragement is important for skill development. Mistakes are ok.

• Keep the pace fast so they do not become distracted and “goof off” because they are standing around. A well organized practice plan will keep the practice focused.

U11 Lacrosse Skills• There are five critical skills all u11 players must

learn in order to enjoy lacrosse– Cradling: the most fundamental skill. The faster

they learn proper cradling, the faster they can progress to more advanced skills. Practice time should incorporate cradling into all drills. Give home work assignments for parents to help their child learn to cradle. Some u9 players will have developed 2 handed cradling with a strong hand. Have them work on the off hand and start one handed cradling.

– Ground Balls: Once a player learns to scoop a ground ball and cradle it, they can now have fun playing the game. Picking up a ball and running with it allows them to participate. Participation in a game is the key to keeping them involved and advancing faster.

– Passing and Catching: This skill set is the most difficult and requires tremendous patience for coaches. They will miss lots of balls and throw lots of bad passes. Continue to encourage them to pass and catch in games. Don’t allow a strong player to dominate a game running by everyone and scoring

– Dodging and one on one– Field awareness: Drill games are the best way to

teach field awareness. Use the drill games in this document.

Sample u11 Practice PlanEvent Time NotesDiscussion 2 minutes Set the priorities

Dynamic Stretching 3 minutes Helps get the focused

Technical Drills 30 minutes Develop individual skills

Cradling circle with the coach 5 minutes Circle players around coaches. Practice cradling with both hands

Ground Ball drills 5 minutes Use different drills to keep attention

Pass and catch drills 15 minutes Coaches provide individual help

Break 3 minutes

Fun Drills 20 minutes Develop individual skills

Pick a ground ball drill 10 minutes Musical GB, Steal the Bacon

Pick a shooting drill 10 minutes

Break 5 minutes

Field Awareness 30 minutes Drill games and scrimmaging

Drill games. Pick 2 games to do . 15 minutes Transition Drills (Duke Drill) Gauntlet Game, Ultimate lacrosse, Numbers game,

Team play and scrimmage 15 minutes Work on field positioning, simple clears, faceoff and game start play.

Skill Development Drills

• Box Out Ground Ball• Ground Ball Yo-Yo• UMass Ground Ball Pressure Drill• Line Drill• Pairs Catching and Throwing (Egg

Toss)• Three Player, Two Ball• Three Around One Passing• Ground Ball Mystery Drill• Ladders Drill• Give and Go Shooting Drill• Split Dodge Shooting Drill• Face Dodge Shooting Drill• 3 v 2 Drill• Duke Drill

Box Out Ground Ball Drill

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Two players stand back to back a few feet apart. A ball is placed on the ground between them. When the coach blows the whistle, players try and use their body (back ends) to box out their opponent and scoop up the ball.

Two Player Ground Ball Yo-Yo

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Two players. Player A starts with ball and rolls a ground ball out in front of Player B. Player B scoops ground ball with back to Player A, curls and throws a 7-10 yard pass back to Player A. Player B then runs around Player A and Player A rolls another ground ball for retrieval. After 5 repetitions players switch rolls. Ensure that players work on curls in both directions. This requires that they perform an exchange and put the stick in the non-dominant hand for a pass.

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UMass Ground Ball Pressure Drill

Three players. Player A steps out and places his stick-head over the ball on the ground. Player B runs toward the ball and drives through picking up the ball. Player A immediately upon contact of his stick or the ball aggressively chases Player B and tries to dislodge the ball from Player B’s stick. Player B must curl away from the pressure and throw a 10 yard pass to Player C, his outlet. Once the pass is completed, Player A goes to the end of the line, Player B is now the chaser with the ball under his stick and Player C is now the ground-baller.

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Line DrillDivide players into 2 lines about 15 yards apart facing each other. Start with the ball on the ground in front of one of the lines. The first player in line scoops the ball and runs toward the opposite line cradling. Once he arrives at the other line, he drops the ball for the first player in that line. That player then scoops and runs while cradling toward the line facing him.

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Egg Toss-Catch and ThrowPlayers pair up with each pair having a ball. Players start 5 yards apart and throw a ball. If caught by their team mate, they each take a small step back and then throw and catch again. The winner is the team that makes is the last to make the longest throw and catch.

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Three Player, Two Ball(aka Hamster drill or Monkey in the Middle)

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Three players evenly spaced in a line about 10 yards apart. Player throws a pass to Player B in the middle. Player B returns pass and rotates to Player C. Player C with second ball throws pass to Player B. Player B throws a return pass. Player B rotates again to Player A and repeats drill. Switch players so all get a chance in the middle.

Three Around One Two Balls

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Four players, three in a line facing player A. Player A throws a pass to one of the 3 players who does not have a ball (eg. Player B). Player D throws to Player A. Player A throws to Player C and then Player B throws back to Player A. Keep 2 balls moving. Players trade out places. Formation can change to a triangle. Use passes or ground balls.

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2 on 1 Ground Ball Mystery

Four lines, alternate jersey colors. (In this example red and white). Coach rolls out ground ball for first two lines to the left of coach. Coach then immediately calls red or white for player to join from one of other 2 lines. Players create a 2 on 1 to the goal to score.

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Ladders DrillCreate several 10 x 10 grids connected to each other. Place a defender in the middle of each grid. Have a line of players, each with a ball in their stick, at one end of the grids.Players attempt to go through each grid by dodging the middle defensive player. Defensive players must stay in their grids. Players have 5 second to make it though one grid. Players score a point for each grid they successfully go through. Play for 5 minutes. Rotate positions.

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2 lines of middies & attack outside restraining line. 2 Goals about 40 yards apart. Lines run simultaneously. First player in each line passes to coach. Player breaks toward goal. Coach returns pass. Player shoots on the run and bounce or shoot to low corner. Drill can be run for both right and left hand shots.

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Give and Go Shooting Drill

2 lines of players outside restraining line. Lines run simultaneously. Coach throws or rolls a ball to the first player in line. Player breaks toward cone cradling with the ball on the “inside hand”, then split dodges (changes hands to outside cradle) and runs “down the alley”. At 10 yards out player takes a bounce shot. Alternate lines to keep fast flow of the drill and for players to shoot with both hands. Players change lines.

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Split Dodge Shooting Drill

2 lines of players 5 yards inside the restraining line. 2 cones at 10 yards from Goal. Coach throws a ball to the first player in line. Player steps toward cone cradling with the ball on the “inside hand”, then Face dodges and steps around the cone. Player then fires a shot to the low far corner from about 8 yards out. Alternate lines to keep fast flow of the drill and for players to shoot with both hands. Players change lines. As players become comfortable with the dodge, substitute the player who shot as the cone to add realism and some pressure to the shooter.

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Face Dodge Shooting Drill

3 v 2 DrillPlace goals about 30- 40 yards apart. 3 offense players step out in front of goal. Two defense players step out and stack facing goalie. The three offense players move the ball toward goal while 2 defenders play ball and split other 2 offense players. Last offense player to shoot or touch ball goes to line. Remaining offense players become defenders. Three new offense players step out.

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Duke DrillDivide players into 2 teams. Both teams outside the restraining lines as shown. Start with one team on offense, the other defense. Coach calls out two players, a defender also comes out. The coach rolls out a ground ball. Once possessed, the offense players attack the goal to score (goalies optional). The player with the ball must draw the defender and then throw a pass to his team mate. Change the game to 3 on 2 as players advance in skill. Make the drill a competition with the winning team receiving an extra prize (snack)

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Fun Drills to Build Skill and Field Awareness

• Sharks and Minnows• Hungry Hippo• Musical Ground Balls• Steal the Bacon• Numbers Game• Ultimate • Fireball• Tag, You’re Out• Monkey in the Middle• Gauntlet Game• Blind Mans Bluff

Sharks and Minnows

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Players (the minnows) line up on one side of the restraining line (or set some cones on an open field area). Each player has a ball in their stick. On a whistle, all players run to the other restraining line (or cones) cradling the ball. Coaches (the sharks) try and check the ball away from as many players as they can as players run by. If a player drops a ball from a check while running, he stops and becomes a shark . Once all players make it to the other side (and checked balls are cleared away by a coach), a coach blows a whistle and all players run back across the field. This time trying to avoid more sharks. Keep going back and forth adding more sharks until one player is left (the winner)

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Hungry Hippo

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Players line up on both restraining lines (or set some cones on an open field area) facing each other. All balls (the more the better) are placed in the middle of the field area. On a whistle, all players run to scoop one ground ball and return it to their side and place near a home cone or a put in a ball bag or bucket. Coaches monitor results as players go back and forth retrieving balls (only one ball per time) Once all balls are collected, coaches add up the results and announce a winning team.

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Musical Ground Balls

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Players line up on a restraining line(or set some cones on an open field area). Set balls about 10 yards away and count that there is one less ball for the number of players (ex. 9 balls for 10 players). On a whistle, all players run to scoop one ground ball and return it back behind the line. The player who did not retrieve a ball is eliminated. Continue rounds by removing a ball until there is a winner. Checking to take a ball away from a player is not allowed for u9. For u11 you may want to allow checking especially when it is down to 2 players left. Encourage players to work on good technique to box out an opponent, scoop and curl away.

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Steal the Bacon

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Two sets of players line up on the restraining lines (or set some cones on an open field area). Set a ball equidistant between both lines. The coach or each teams coach will give each player a number. The coach then selects a player number to participate in the first round. On a whistle, The player selected from each line runs to the ball and tries to scoop and return to his line. Repeat rounds until all players have an opportunity to go two or three times. Encourage players to work on good technique to box out an opponent, and scoop and protect their stick.

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The Numbers Game

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Make two even teams of players between two coaches. Add a goalie to play in the goal if available. Players line up on both restraining lines (or set some cones on an open field area) facing each other. A third coach is located in the playing area with a ball. Coaches will select a number of players to go on the field and play for a shot on goal against the opposing team. The total combinations cannot exceed the number of players on your team. For instance, if you have a team of ten players, the coach may only use the numbers 1-10 once in combination per round. Each coach selects his own combination without the other coach knowing. This makes for unbalanced playing combinations (ex 3 vs 1) On a whistle, the coach on the field throws a ball out and the two team combinations run onto the field to play against each other. The team that scores a goal wins that round. A new set of combinations is organized and sent out on the whistle for the next round. Play until coaches use up all their number combinations.

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Ultimate Lacrosse

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This is Ultimate Frisbee rules for lacrosse. Make two even teams of players between two coaches. Players line up on the end lines of a field (or set some cones on an open field area) facing each other. Select one team to launch the ball down the field to the other team. Once the ball is picked up, the player with the ball must stay still and find a teammate to pass to. Teammates may move about the field to get open. An opposing player guarding the player with the ball must give him 3 yards of room and not check the stick. If a pass is thrown and caught, that player must now be still and find a teammate to pass to. If the ball is not caught and falls to the ground, each team tries to get the ground ball for possession. Once possessed, the player with the ball stops and looks for a teammate to pass to. Teams try and move the ball down the field across the opponents end line to score a point.

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Fireball

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Make two even teams of players. All players go to the center of the playing area. A coach throws a ball high into the air and players scramble to get possession. Once possession is attained, that team must execute at least one pass (add more passes for more skilled players) before shooting on goal. Opposing players may check to take the ball away and get possession. If a goal is scored, a new “fireball” is launched to begin play again. A coach may intervene anytime and stop play to throw a fireball, especially if there is a long scrum for a ground ball.

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Tag You’re Out

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Place players inside a “restricted” area marked by cones. Each player has a ball. Place one or more coaches inside the area. At the whistle, coaches chase players and try to tap the head of the players stick to tag the player out of the area. Players dodge away from the coaches protecting their sticks. If a head is tapped by a coach, the player leaves the area. The last player in the area is the winner. This drill develops stick protection and dodging skills,.

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Monkey in the Middle

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Place 3 players outside a “restricted” area marked by a square of 4 cones. One player has a ball. Place 2 players inside the cone area. At the whistle, the player with the ball must throw a pass to one of his 2 teammates on the perimeter. Teammates must be near a cone to receive a pass. The 2 players in the middle (monkeys) try and intercept or knock down the pass. One of the inside players must guard the ball. This will leave one of the perimeter players open. Perimeter players may move along the square to a cone to receive a pass. After a few minutes players trade places to ensure everyone plays along the perimeter and in the middle.

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Gauntlet GamePut two goals in an open field area about 30 yards apart. You can place between the midfield line and restraining line on a lined field. Divide players into 2 teams. One team outside the midfield line, the other outside the restraining line . Players are in a straight line evenly spaced facing the center of play. Start with one on ones. The coach can roll out a ground ball. Once possessed, the player attacks the goal to score (goalies optional). The player with the ball may throw a pass to one of the players on his team outside the lines. That player must throw a return pass back (play give and go). Change the game to 2 on 2 to teach finding the open player. Use odd numbers (2 on 1) to teach transition.

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Blind Mans BluffCoach chooses a random number of offensive and defensive players to simulate a transition or unsettled situation (4 v 3, 3 v 3, 4 v 2, etc). Put the players out in the field area and then have them walk with their eyes closed until the coach yells STOP! While the players remain standing with their eyes closed, the coach rolls the ball out and yells “Ball down”! The players can then open their eyes and play out the unsettled situation.

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