Wall Ball: the quickest way to improve your stick work

You probably hear it all the time…"grab your stick and get on a wall". Many coaches love for their players to do this practice in their spare time. But why should you listen to them? I'll tell you why. The quickest way to improve your stick work is by playing "wall ball". "Wall ball" is simply practicing lacrosse by throwing a ball against a wall (concrete, brick, or stone) so the ball bounces back to you. Throwing a ball against the wall means that the ball immediately bounces back to you, eliminating the extra time a partner would take to catch and throw the ball back to you. It's also convenient because you can do it whenever and wherever you have the time, without requiring another person. It's the fastest way to improve your stick skills because you're able to perform many repetitions in a short amount of time. For example, you can get in about twice as many repetitions in the same amount of time playing wall ball as throwing the ball with a partner. Overall, wall ball sharpens your reaction time, improves your eye-hand coordination, and develops your ability to consistently throw the ball with accuracy.

To play wall ball, you need your stick, a ball, a wall about 10 feet high, and your gloves (always practice your stick skills while wearing your gloves). Start by standing about 5 yards away from the wall. Throw the ball at a spot about a yard above your head. Repeat throwing at the exact same spot at least 100 times with each drill. Try to catch the ball every time without letting it hit the ground.

Wall ball tips and drills:

• Be creative and turn wall ball into a personal game or competition. For example, I like to liven up wall ball by taking a stick of chalk and drawing a 1 square-foot box on the wall to use as a target. I try to hit the box 50 times in a row throwing with my right hand. If I ever miss the box during those 50 throws, I must start counting all over, beginning at 1. I don't stop until I successfully hit the box 50 times in a row. I then repeat the process with my left hand. This personal competition to hit the box 50 times in a row without missing made my wall ball practice more enjoyable.
• Try "quick sticking" your passes. A "quick stick" pass or shot describes when you don't take time to cradle the ball AT ALL after you catch it. Learning how to catch and throw the ball without cradling is a very important skill for ALL offensive players. The quicker you can get the ball in and out of your stick, the more often you can take advantage of opportunities on the field. This will lead to more assists and goals.
• During all drills other than the quick stick drills, focus on catching and releasing the ball from your stick as quickly as possible, using only a half cradle while the ball is in your stick.
• If the wall is long, practice jogging parallel to the wall while simultaneously throwing and catching the ball.
• Try throwing the ball 1-handed against the wall 50 times with your right hand and 50 times with your left hand. Practicing 1-handed throws teaches you to snap your wrist at the end of your throw. This will improve your forearm strength and add power to your passes and shots as the snap of your wrist becomes stronger.
• Try throwing once right-handed and catching right-handed and then quickly switch to throwing once left-handed and catching left-handed. This is a good drill to improve your ability to quickly switch hands.
• Try adding a split-dodge immediately before throwing and catching right-handed. After you catch the ball with your right hand, immediately split dodge to your left and throw and catch left-handed. Practice this same drill with the roll-dodge and the face-dodge to become comfortable throwing and catching the ball while your feet and body are moving.
• Try throwing the ball right-handed and catching it left-handed, then throw it left-handed and catch it right-handed. This forces you to quickly change hands while the ball is in midair.
• Sometimes you should intentionally throw bad passes at the wall to practice catching balls that are not perfectly thrown to you.
• Try behind-the-back passing with each hand.

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