7 laws of Hockey

Hockey passing
Moving the ball can cause more trouble than running with it

#5 Play in triangles, utilising width and depth of the field

hockey strategy
The coach strategizes to conquer different zones within the field

The concept here is to divide the whole team into mini-zones, viz. Right-side triangle, Left-side triangle, Midfield triangle, etc., and use these zones to carry out offensive or defensive strategies during the run of play.

A useful tip here while building an attack is to use Right-side and Left-side triangles in the ratio of 60:40. Also, as was the case for Law #4, there is scope for flexibility in this law too.

Looking at the big picture, the usage of triangle zones makes effective use of the width and depth of the whole field, in order to create and exploit space.


#6 Keep switching focus from left to right, and vice versa

Hockey switch
Switching play constantly can create holes in the defence

When the ball moves from the left (left-in) to the right (right-in or right-out), opponents are caught shifting from one side of the field to the other. In case they are not nimble enough to recover or react to the ball movement, they can be caught in the middle, thus leaving wide open gaps to be exploited.

This concept is employed to a high degree by the top teams in the world, by moving the ball from side to side via the back field, which in many cases comprise four defensive players.

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