For the Lacrosse Goalie: Why Playing "Up" Can Make You Better...Or Worse

Question: This question came from a subscriber to the Lacrosse Goaltending Insiders List.

Hey Jonathan, This is my second year playing lacrosse goalie, i just finished my modified season last year as a defenseman, and i played goalie during the summer with a local team. And poeple tell me that im not that bad(yeah for modified) but my freshman year has found me and i am looking for a position on the team as a goalie. Lately i have been playing with this clinic team called Roadhawks (it's in central New York) and i play with the age range 9th to 10th grade. And one of the coaches who is also MY coach has taken me to 2 varsity tournaments during the begining of the year, i dident do to bad, and i accationally practice with the varsity team. And i have still been wondering...if this is my first year as a official goalie, would practicing or even playing with the varsity be making me even better than i already am, because this is my first year? People keep telling me that if i take harder and faster shots and playing with advanced players will make me better. Is this actually true?

From Garrett


Why Playing "Up" Can Make You Better...Or Worse

For many goalies there comes a time where you get the chance to play "up". This usually means that you get to play with an older group, or a better level of lacrosse. (Notice that "older" doesn't necessarily mean "better.") And for most goalies this can be a good thing. But it can also be a bad thing so let me explain.

As a general rule, the chance to play up a level is usually good for you. The faster shots, the quicker pace of the game, usually results in better play for you when you move back down to the level you are accustomed to playing. It's like lifting a heavier weight for a while and then lifting a lighter weight. Your body compensates so that the lighter weight feels really light and you can move it more quickly.

But moving up can also be a bad decison for two main reasons:

One, you get hurt because some retarded shooter decides to wind up and hits you somewhere it hurts. Out you go with an injury or worse, a concussion. Fear sets in and you are never able to recover from it, even when you go back down to play at the lower level.

Two, you get so discouraged because a lot of balls go in the net that you develop a belief that you will never be able to play at that level. As silly as this may sound I've seen it happen to a lot of goalies who had the opportunity to be great.

Now you can make the most of playing up if you do two simple things to keep the bad things from happening:

One: Make sure you're wearing enough equipment. As I mentioned before it takes one stupid player to ruin a career. Make sure you've got enough equipment on so that you are protected. You're going to take more shots off the body than before because you probabably won't be able to catch up with your stick right away. You'll be a bit slow and that is to be expected, so if you're expecting it make sure the rest of you is protected.

Two: Understand that there will be more goals going in than there were when you played down a level. I was always excited to play up a level. Usually the first bunch of shots felt really fast, then I got used to the level of play and quickly adapted. I was fired up to play and you should be too. Now a couple of times I played up I got absolutely schooled. The key here is to walk away knowing that you will be able to play at that level some day but right now it's a bit quick. Stay positive and learn from the experience.

I always played up. In fifth grade I played with the seventh and eighth graders. In eighth grade I played on the high school Junior Varsity that actually played against some other schools varsity. And in the summers I played on a men's team in a summer league. What I noticed along the way was that most of the guys really took to me. They protected me because I was the "young kid" in the cage. After I made a couple big saves they were cheering for me and having a blast. Those older guys tought me a lot at every level.

I took a lot of hard shots though. Some really hurt. Luckily not enough to make me fearful of the ball but I'd seen a lot of kids get really hurt and it really affected their game. Had they had a different attitude and worn enough gear I think they could have gone on to be great goalies.

If you keep your attitude right those older experiences can really help you long term. Seek them out, protect yourself and you too will have a great experience.

Good luck,

Jonathan - The Goalie Guru