WALL BALL DRILLS
 

Find a wall in your area

(it could be the side of a school, gym, handball court, etc) that is at

least 15 yards long and ten feet high.

Phase 1-Quick Stick/Rapid Fire: Line up around 3-5 yards from the wall.

First, 50 right hand throw and catches without cradling. After

completing 50 right hand throw and catches, do the same with your left.

Did you notice I didn't mention starting with your strong hand. With

"wall ball" anything you do right, you follow-up left. This stage is

great because it allows you to work on quick sticks, hand eye

coordination, and one timing. You will become better about getting rid

of the ball in a timely fashion without even noticing it by practicing

this stage.

Phase 2-12 Yard Passing: Line up 12 yards from the wall. Start with 30

right hand throws, which will come back to you on one bounce. When you

retrieve the ball from the one bounce, cradle once, then follow-up with

the next throw. When you have completed 30 right handed throws,

follow-up with 30 left.

Phase 3-Throwing & Catching On The Run: This may be my favorite and most

helpful stage. First I start line up 5-7 yards from the wall on the far

left side of the wall. I begin this stage with the stick in my right

hand and while I am running alongside the wall (towards the other end),

I throw and catch the ball on the run. The important part is to throw

the ball on the run and not always catching the ball stick side. I like

to do this during every stage. Do you always get a pass stick side? No.

Therefore, in your training you should throw the ball against the wall

and catch it cross hand (or across your face). After I run one length of

the wall, I run back to the other end throwing lefty (doing the same

thing I did with my right). Keep repeating these steps. This stage

should be done for about 5-7 minutes.

Phase 4-Shooting: Line-up around 12-15 yards from the wall. Get in

proper shooting formation (hands loose, three quarter/overhand motion,

snapping of the hips, and following threw) mark a few places on the wall

with tape to aim at. Shoot at about 80% velocity, having the ball come

back to you with one bounce. Depending on where you aim, the ball may

take bounces that aren't the same, so you have to work a little bit.

Start with 25 right, and follow up with about 25 left.

Phase 5-Trickery: This stage is fun. This is a great time to practice

behind the backs (make sure you are not following threw too much. Step

in the direction you are aiming, and the behind the back motion is only

about a foot, with the head of your stick ending up hitting the top part

of your arm near your shoulder). Around the world, threw the legs, and

any other creative stuff can be incorporated at this time. I would leave

around 5 minutes for this stage. I am a firm believer that this stage is

important. If you can pull this stage off (and only if you are mastering

the other 4 stages should you try this stage), it is an indication that

you have a strong comfort level with your stick and great hand eye

coordination. It is also a stage that can help you in terms pulling

something off in a game that is nice to watch and necessary. There are

times in a game when a behind the back is the only option.

So there it is, five stages of 'Wall Ball." Get a radio with your

favorite beats, a snow cap and duck boots if there is snow on the

ground, and do what you have to do to get out at least five days a week

for 20 minutes/per day. Don't let the competition pass you by. No

excuses!