Pompey Paula - help with netball?

As a C myself, I have lots to share with you! Will reply in-depth a little later as I am at work and boss in hovvering...

Right, firstly well done on getting this far in the league. Fitness and endurance are half the battle in my opinion so you're doing well! What team do you play for? If you're not too far away we could have a friendly!

Okay, so as a Centre everyone looks to you to be the play maker and have all of the ideas. In reality, it's very hard to focus on much more than your own game when playing Centre because it is constant. It's hard for me to assess a game as the captain when I am on court as I have to think about where I need to be.

In our squad of 25 we have two teams and in training we never ever focus on set pieces. In fact, we dont have any. The truth is, learning techniques on getting free, holding space and movement around the court has been much more helpful.

http://www.netballsouth.co.uk/coaching/skills.php - Drill 1 - we like this one as you have to pass quickly and precisely, there are so many of us that we have to do it in a box shape instead! Ensure that the players move onto the ball by passing it a little bit in front of them, make sure the passes are acurate, and most importantly dont move too soon!!!

In terms of tactics we focus on things like movement onto the ball, general movement, spacing, passing, dodging and back and side-line balls. You also need to think about who takes free passes/penalties and throw ons in terms of where you are on the court. Finding and using space and good accurate passing for me is better than any tactic or set play and there are so many techniques to get free, Dodge, change of pace, change of direction are just a few.

Backline passes, for example, GK would take a defensive back or sideline pass, WD or GD take a free pass/throw in the centre third and preferably C or WA in the attacking third (unless of course they are in the circle, in which case GA and GS can fight it out. Also, if someone contacts the GA in the centre third, the GA would not take that free pass, instead she would move and be a 'free player'.

Back and side line passes can be difficult, particularly when they are defensive and the GS is marking. Ideally, as a centre you will run back into the centre third as soon as you see you have possession. This means you can drive back into the goal third to offer another passing option. NEVER pass across the circle if you can help it. Hold space on the circle. This can be done by either GD or WD, however we always like to WD to do it - They must hold the line of the shooting circle either at the top or the side (but not too far into the corner) making sure that they have safe space in which to receive a pass. GD would be free to move around the goal third, she just needs to remember to not make her move too soon! The defender will anticipate the pass and intercept.

In terms of Centre passes the tips I can give you are:

Jump straight into the circle. DO NOT wait for your team to get onside, they need to get onside quickly and be ready to recieve a pass. I know that sounds harsh, but waiting gives the opposition team time to anticipate what you're going to do.

DON'T decide who you are going to pass to before the centre-pass. It should be a split second decision and you should have 4 options.

GA and WA should work together to try different ways of getting free. Nowhere in the rules says that you cant stand together on the line whilst waiting for a pass to be played. If one of the players doesnt step all the way up to the third line she may be able to burst into the Centre third ahead of her defender.

don't be afraid to pass behind. GAs don't think as defenders. the GD is sometimes my best option as her GA doesnt expect her to run.

Try not to do the same thing over and over.

Make your centre pass strong and convincing - chest passes are best for accuracy and power.

Sorry if I'm teaching you to suck eggs here, just trying to think of the main coaching points from my course. Hope that helps? You can always email me and I can liaise with one of the other coaches to help further.

PP, this is beyond helpful, thanks. I suspect one of our main issues is a small squad (12) with only 8 or so 'experienced' netballers, the rest in it for fun. Of the experienced lot, we have a 'dream team' of 7 who are decent players but need to swap in the less experienced ones from time to time (all fair enough in a 'fun' league). But it often becomes chaotic with people running around with no game sense (for example, one girl insists on marking facing her opponent so you have to shout to her if she has a chance of an interception as she's not watching the ball). We try to keep a 'spine' of good players on at all times but I wondered if there were some simple set plays for the less experienced to learn.

I'd like to talk more if you are willing? My email is ********************@*****.***. Don't worry if it's too much fuss!

See defending is not my strong point but I have some coaching points that really help me and I feel have improved my game. I'm not about tonight but email and I'll be replying at some point over the weekend.

You have mail.

Hey FTLOB,

I've lost your email address that you replied to me on as I got a new Blackberry t'other day! Sorry for being poo, hope you didnt think I was being rude?!

We had a friendly last night as the summer league starts for us on monday - wasnt too bad, relatively low scoring and we lost 21-18. Could have done better, but a lot of my team were playing out of position.

How's your team going?