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Coaching: Defense

How to Coach Lacrosse Defense: High School Lacrosse

Coaching any high school sport can feel like herding cats, but coaching lacrosse is especially difficult. There are so many different ways to play defense it can be tough to decide which strategy to implement, and even harder to get 10 students to all execute it correctly together. 

This guide is designed to help coaches effectively teach the fundamentals of defense, outline the primary defensive packages, and help you decide which style of defense is right for your team. 

These principles can be used for any age group from under 10 to college, but this guide is geared more towards coaching high school lacrosse players on Varsity or Junior Varsity teams (Ages 13-18).  

This guide will help both veteran lacrosse coaches who may have experience playing lacrosse in college, as well as those who are coaching for the first time. 

Standard Defensive Packages Overview:

The most common defensive packages for high school teams are:

  • Man to Man Defense with a Crease Slide
  • Man to Man Defense with an Adjacent Slide
  • Zone Defense 

You will decide which type of defense to play based on the offensive set that your opponent is running.

Click the links to learn more about each defensive package

Lacrosse Defensive Fundamentals

  • Body position is always more important than stick position.
    • Throwing checks with a long stick is fun but often leads to mistakes and bad defense. Have your defenders use a short stick or no stick at all until they learn how to be in the correct position with their body. They should always be between their man and the goal. Knees should be bent so you are ready to move quickly. Very similar to how man to man defense is played in basketball.   
  • Head on a Swivel. 
    • Defenders must constantly be turning their head to check where the ball is, and what your man is doing. They must be ready to leave their man and slide to the ball or to another player to help out, while not losing track of the man they are covering. 
  • Communication is Key.
    • If your defensive players are not constantly talking and sharing information, they are playing bad defense. Being loud and wrong is better than being quiet and right. Talking through who is hot and ready to slide, who has the ball, and what defensive package the team is in is essential to playing good defense. 
  • Pack it in, defend the crease first. 
    • Keeping all your defensive players packed in together near the crease will stop shots from close to the goal. It will also help your team be in position to slide and help each other out on a double team. 
  • Stop the Ball
    • The first goal of your defense is to stop the person carrying the ball from dodging to the goal and scoring by themselves. Make sure you are ready to help and stop them from scoring 1 on 1. That starts with good 1 vs. 1 defense as well as your team knowing how and when to leave their off-ball man and slide to the ball with a double team. 
  • Don’t throw a lot of checks.
    • The best players know that too many checks will move you out of position and help the offensive player. Your defenders need to learn how to be patient and play good defense and wait for the right time to throw a check.
  • Every defender always has two jobs.
    • Many players like to just worry about the one man they are covering and follow him around the field (One job). Every player MUST be ready to leave the guy they are covering and slide to help other defenders. (Second Job). Teaching players to understand they have 2 jobs, and what they are in each situation is extremely important to effective defense.

Conclusion

Defensive Strategies in lacrosse seem simple, but are much more difficult to execute effectively on the field. Great communication, good footwork, good decision making, great ground balls are the key to any great defense.

By understanding these strategies and using them effectively, coaches and players can maximize their chances of stoping goals and helping their teams gain an edge over their opponents. Contact us if you are interested in learning more about coaching defense in lacrosse!