Lines Drill 1

Groups: of 3 players
Sliotars: 2
Cones: 3
Skills: Striking, Controlling, Catching
Level of Effort: 3/5
Level of Complexity: 1.5/5

Set-up:

Arrange cones in a 70m line as shown below. Players on either end have a ball.


Description:

Player 1 strikes the ball to 2 who controls the ball and strikes the ball back to 1. Immediately player 3 strikes the ball into 2 who controls and strikes it back.

Repeat as described. Give each player 2 to 2½ minutes in the middle.

Variations:

A) Players can strike the ball

• Off the left
• Off the right
• Off the hurley
• One touch and strike without catching

B) Make this a competition among the groups of 3. How many can the group get in one turn? How many can the group get on aggregate?

C) Instead of returning the ball the side from where it came the player in the middle can continue the ball in the same direction. To speed this up make sure there are two sliotars at the side that starts. Players in the middle can either:

• Control the ball and strike it from the hand.
• Control the ball and strike it off the hurley.
• Double first time on the ball.

D) To encourage players to move on to the ball set up four cones for the middle player as below with 10m metres between the cones. Players move on to the ball and strike the ball from the outside the line of the cones.

E) To encourage players to work harder in the middle and move after receiving one ball place a bench or suspend a rope across the middle which the player must jump over before receiving the ball from the next side.

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Shooting Drill 2

Groups: 3
Sliotars: 1 per player
Cones: 6
Skills: Striking, Shooting
Level of Effort: 3/5
Level of Complexity: 2.5/5

Set-up:

Players break up into three groups. One group puts players A, B, C and D at the cones indicated and the rest (at least three) go behind the goals.

The other two groups line up at the cones shown. Each player in the lines has a ball. Spare balls can be put as shown. Players behind the goals should hit the balls to these two spots.



Description:

Player 1 starts and strikes the ball to player A 25m away. A controls it and passes back to 1 who now strikes the ball on to B, and again gets a return pass. Player 1 now rounds B and shoots for a point of his right. He then gathers another ball and lines up behind player 6.

At the same time as 1 starts, player 4 solos towards player C 10m away, handpasses him the ball, takes a return pass, handpasses the ball to D and takes the ball back off D. He then rounds D and shoots for a point off his left. He then gathers another ball and lines up behind player 3.

Repeat for three minutes and swap the groups.

Variations:

A) Have the players go in the opposite direction so that the shot off their left side is the furthest out.

B) Set-up the drill closer to the goals and have players shoot for a goal with the second shot.

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Picking Drill 1

Groups: of 3 or 4 players
Sliotars: 2 per group
Cones: 4 per group
Skills: Jab Lift, Roll Lift
Level of Effort: 3.5/5
Level of Complexity: 1.5/5

Set-up:

Arrange four cones in a straight line with 7m between each cone. Place at ball at cones C and D. Three players line up at cone A.

Description:

Player 1 starts from cone A and runs to C. He roll lifts the up the ball there, turns and brings it in to cone B. He then turns again and goes out to cone D, roll lifts the ball there, turns and drops it at cone C. He finishes by running through the starting position.

Player 2 again starts at cone A and runs to C. In this instance he jab lifts the ball at C and takes it out to D, turns and roll lifts the ball at B and takes it out to C. He turns and finishes by running through the starting position.

The balls are back in the original position and Player 3 continues by doing the same run outlined for Player 1 above. Repeat for a fixed number of turns or time.

Variations:

A) All variations of three cones and two balls work. In the above you can have players always go to the outside ball first at cone D.

B) You can have balls and B and C and have players go to either ball first.

C) You can have balls and B and D and again tell the players which of the two to go for.

The key is that the players always go to the same ball first and move it to the cone that has no ball. In the example illustrated above the players always go first to the ball at cone C (the middle cone) and take that ball to whatever cone does not have one. To finish they move the second ball to the cone that now has no ball.

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Physical Drill 1

Groups: 4
Equipment: 4 cones
Duration: 10 minutes
Develops: Anaerobic capacity
Difficulty: 4/5

Set-up:

Lay out the cones as shown below in a 12m square with corners A, B, C and D . Break the players up into four groups and place a group at each cone. Groups should have 3 or at most 4 players.

Description:

One player from all the groups goes each time. Players will run around a number of sides of the square, turn at the cone and return to their original cone.

Initially players will run one side. So the first player at A runs to B and back to A, the player at B goes to C and back, the player at C goes to D and back and the player at D goes to A and back with the four all players going at the same time. The next players in each group repeat the same run.

Then the players run two sides of the square and back to their starting point. Thus, the players at A run to B go round it and on to C. They turn around at C, run round B and back to A. The other three players do likewise. After all the players have done that run, the players run three sides and so on. For the longest run the players run all the way around the square, go around their starting cone and go back around the square again.

A useful pyramid is three sets of four sprints. One pattern to follow is 1,2,3,4, 4,3,2,1, 1,2,3,4 where the numbers represent the sides of the square ran on each sprint.

Variations:

A) The grid can also be adapted for five (pentagon) or more groups.

B) Have the next player in each group act as the cone to force players to run around then. When they begin their run the next player takes their place.

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Shooting Drill 1

Groups: 1 with 2 players on cones and a goalkeeper
Sliotars: at least 2 per player
Cones: 3
Skills: Striking, Shooting, Goalkeeper
Level of Effort: 2.5/5
Level of Complexity: 2/5

Set-up:

Place cones about 65m, 55m and 30m from the goal. Put a goalkeeper in position and one player at the cones at 30m and 55m. The rest of the players line up at the cone 65m from the goal.

Each player on the 65 has a sliotar and the player 30m from the goal has at least a ball for each player. A net in the goals and a net behind the goals are also needed.

Description:

Player 3 strikes a pass to Player 1 who controls or catches it and gives a return pass to the on running player 3. Player 3 takes a handpass and strikes the ball over the bar before the 45m line.

Player 3 continues on and takes a pass from player 2 and shoots for goal from outside the 20m line.

He then goes behind the goal and collects two sliotars. He returns out to take his place at the end of the line dropping one of the balls for player 2 on the way out.

Continue for three or four minutes. Reset the drill changing the players at the two cones and the goalkeeper if necessary.

Variations:

A) The drill can be set up at different sides of the goals to change the angle of shooting and to get people to shoot off the left and right sides. This can also be changed by how the players on the cones pass the ball to the moving players.

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Competing Drill 1

Groups: 7 to 9 players
Sliotars: 3 per group
Cones: 3
Skills: Striking, Ball, Winning, Catching, Batting, Passing, Calling, Anticipating
Level of Effort: 3/5
Level of Complexity: 4/5

Set-up:

Use two cones to form a line about 50 metres long and place the last cone in the middle. For example, place the first cone on the 45m line, the next cone at halfway and the third cone on the far 45m line.

Place two players in the middle at cone B to compete for the ball. With groups of seven place 3 players at cone A and the remaining 2 at the other end at cone C. One player at each end will be the ball striker and the other players will be running.

Description:

Player 1 at cone A strikes ball in the air so that the players in the middle at cone B, players 2 and 3, can compete for the ball in the air with both players trying to catch the ball. Player 4 runs to this contest and either picks up the breaking ball or takes a handpass from if one of the players catches the ball and solos the ball to cone B. When he gets there he passes the ball to player 5 at cone C.

As soon as the ball is moved on from the contest in the middle players 2 and 3 turn to face player 5 at cone C who strikes a ball which they compete for in the same manner as above. This time player 6 makes the run to take a pass or pick up the break and solos on to cone A and passes the ball to player 1. Player 1 strikes the next ball to the competing pair and player 7 runs to pick up the break. The cycle is repeated for between 90-150 seconds when the players change roles.

Cone B may be unnecessary and may simply get in the way. Players striking the ball must favour an attempted catch by the competing players – striking must be consistent. Players coming on to the break must time their run so as not to arrive too early or too late. They can leave the starting point before the ball is hit if they wish. It is timing arriving onto the break that is the key. If the ball is caught the running player must call the pass and come on to the ball at pace. If the ball is caught in the middle the other player can hassle the pass but the two in the middle do not compete for the ball on the ground.

Variations:

A) Player 2 (forward) attempts to catch the ball from the front while player 3 (back) tries to bat the ball away from behind. The runner is working with the forward to get the ball moving in the same direction. The back is trying to bat the ball away from the runner. If the ball hits the ground all players can compete for the ball with the forward and the runner working together.

B) A second alternative sees the back try to catch the ball and the forward try to keep the ball moving in the air. Now the player coming on to the break does so from behind the ball, that is from the opposite side the ball is hit from. The runner picks up the break or takes a pass going past the defender from behind (support play). If the ball breaks the defender and the runner work together to move the ball out.

Variations A and B can be set up so that the contest ends in a shot at goal or clearance. Set the cones up on the 20m, 45m and halfway lines. The ball always comes to the contest from out the field but the runner comes from alternative ends, that is alternate between variations A and B after every ball. Half the time the back gets support to clear the ball (when the runner is coming out) and half the time the forward gets support to shoot (when the runner is coming in).

C) Also you can use two additional cones and have the runners running between cones D and E to simulate the ball breaking in the middle for half forwards or half backs to run on to. This is so that they come onto it from the side rather than the front or behind. The runners can decide to go in front or behind the contest.

Players 1 and 5 continue to strike the ball from cones A and B as before. Again the contest can be set up to finish with a shot or clearance by placing the aerial contest on the 45m line.

Also you could have one player come from both sides at once, one to help the forward and one to help the back. These creates a 2 v 2 situation. Forwards and backs should have coloured bibs on.

D) Finally you could have the two runners come from the same side. Again one back and one forward wearing different colours. Below the backs are even numbered players and the forwards are odd numbered players. It is best in this instance if all the balls come from well out the field.

With the two players coming to the contest from the same side they have to decide to attack the ball at the contest, to move to take the break or a pass, or to simply track the player they are running with. Again the objective is to get in a shot for a score (forwards) or to effect a clearance (backs).

To rotate the players the two players who ran in to the previous aerial contest are the players who compete for the next ball. Thus each pair gets to play two balls before getting a rest. To keep the drill moving the next ball should be played in as soon as the last ball has left and the next pair need to be ready to be in position.

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Warm Up Drill 2

Groups: 2
Sliotars: at least 1 for every 2 players
Cones: 4
Skills: Striking, Shooting
Level of Effort: 2/5
Level of Complexity: 1.5/5

Set-up:

Break players into two groups either side of the goals. This needs a net behind the goals. At each side half the players line up on the end line and half line up at a cone 25m out. The players on the end each have a ball.

Description:

Players run out with a ball from A and C and handpass to B and D who collect and strike over the bar (running in a straight line). Players at B strike off their left and at D strike off the right. Players handpass from the outside and strike from the inside.

After hitting the ball players go and line up again at A and C gathering a ball from behind the goals.

Continue for about 2 minutes and switch sides so that players will have to strike and pass on their other sides.

Variations:

A) Use a goalkeeper and players from one side can shoot for goal.

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Warm Up Drill 1

Groups: 3, 4 or 5 players
Sliotars: 1 per group
Cones: 6
Skills: Controlling, Striking, Lifting, Soloing, Handpassing, Catching, Batting, Dribbling, Kicking
Level of Effort: 2.5/5
Level of Complexity: 1.5/5

Set-up:

Use four of the cones to form a rectangle that is about 15 metres wide and long enough to accommodate the required number of groups. Place the last two cones about 5 metres further out to give the option of a 20 metre distance.

Players break up into groups of three (or five) and have the groups split with two (or three) people at cone A and one (or two) players at cone B 15 metres away. The first player at A has a ball.

Description:

Player 1 starts with the ball in his hand and runs towards Player 2 at B. Half way acriss he rolls the ball along the ground in front of player 2 and then follows the ball to cone B and takes his position there.

Player 2 controls the ball, runs towards Player 3 at cone A, rolls the ball along the ground in front of player 3 and this follows the ball to cone A can takes his position there. Player 3 controls the ball and continues the cycle.

The ball should be rolled gently as players are just starting off and are just looking to get the eye in and the heart rate up slightly. Continue for about one minute and then work through some of the following variations changing again after about a minute or so.

Variations:

A) Throw the ball head high with a firm, flat throw for the next player to catch to warm up the catching hand.

B) Strike the ball gently along the ground for the next player to control, varying striking off the right and off the left sides.

C) Throw the ball in the air dropping down on the next player for a high jumping catch.

D) Solo and hand-pass to the opposite player. Pass with the right hand on the way out and use the left hand on the way in. Pass from the hand and from the hurley.

E) Leave the ball in the middle between the players to allow a pick-up of a stationary ball. After picking the ball the player carries the ball for a few steps and drops the ball to the ground for the next player to come on to.

F) Players take a hand-pass, throw the ball a couple of yards in front of them, pick it up as it rolls away from them and then handpass to the next player. (players can also just block the ball out in front as they receive the handpass from the oncoming player). The key is that the ball is rolling away from the player as he goes to pick it up.

G) Strike into the hand using both left and right. The receiving player must catch the ball rather than play it on the hurley if possible.

H) Player coming from A throws the ball high in the air for player from B to bat down to feet of player remaining at A who controls it and throws it up for the next player at B.

I) Player coming from A throws the ball in the air for player from B to bat down to himself. He then picks the ball and gives a handpass to remaining player at A.

J) Player coming from A throws the ball in the air out in front of the player at B to allow him to come forward to jump in the air and catch and then hand-pass to remaining player at A.

L) Dribble along the ground touching the ball at least six times before passing along the ground to the next player. Bounce the ball two or three feet on the hurley (one hands or two) before bouncing the ball to the next player.

M) Player coming from A drops the ball in front of the player at B who plays/dribbles the ball along the ground 2 or 3 times, he then picks it up and drops it in front of the next player.

O) No hands. Solo to a couple of yards of player at far side then strike or flick the ball off the hurley to the player who controls it with or without catching and solos to the opposite side.

P) One handed. Players run at the players opposite with the ball in hand and throw the ball up to give a one handed pass with the hurley to the next player. The ball can also be pushed forward two handed from in front of the body.

Q) Solo across and give a kick pass to the next player to catch. Kicks can be from the hand or off the hurley.

R) After eight to ten minutes move the players back to the outside cones to have 20 metres between the groups. Have the players strike the ball along the ground and to the hand as before but this time much harder and faster. Continue for 90 seconds to 2 minutes on each.

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