The Role of Footwork in Optimal Field Hockey Performance

with Shiv Jagday,
FIH accredited coach;
2020 Field Hockey Canada Hall of Fame inductee;
one of the marquee coaching figures in field hockey history; coached in multiple World Cups, Olympic Games and the Pan Am Games; Canadian National Team Coach from 1981 through 1986; USA National Team Coach from 1998 through 2005

Shiv Jagday, a 2020 Field Hockey Canada Hall of Fame inductee, delivers a quality presentation full of coaching tips and techniques that centers around one of the most important aspects of field hockey - footwork!

Stance & Footwork

Coach Jagday begins by covering three different types of stances: neutral, offensive, and defensive. He details the differences between each stance and also provides good and bad examples for you to observe prior to working on stance with your own athletes.

Next, Jagday dives into various footwork moves that all players should have in their repertoire.

These include:

• Split step
• Side shuffle
• Stutter step
• Baby step
• Pivoting
• Adjustment step
• Drop step
• and more!

Each move is defined and explained in-depth by Coach Jagday to give you an abundance of information for coaching your team's footwork effectively.

Creating Time & Space + Drills

Once you've mastered the fundamentals of stance and footwork, you can move onto applying those concepts to practices and games. Jagday discusses the art of creating time and space on the field, and also covers numerous footwork drills that he's used in practice during his career.

As part of his presentation, Coach Jagday details how to optimize stickwork under pressure. He also talks about how to help players make better decisions when the ball is in their possession. Finally, game footage is included to visually reinforce the concepts covered throughout.

Clean and efficient footwork can provide your players with the edge they need to cut through the defense and score more goals. If you need a great overview of footwork in field hockey, look no further than this video from Coach Jagday!

40 minutes. 2021.