Fast breaks are prime opportunities should lead to goals just about every time in the game of lacrosse. Typically, in every fast break, there is a clear numbers advantage. That could be a traditional four-on-three with a midfielder pushing the ball down the field. That could be a five-on-four coming off a failed clear where we’re really looking to push transition. Fast breaks are a crucial opportunity to find the back of the net. Scoring in a settled six-on-six set is very difficult, especially with how good defenses have become today. Any opportunity to have a numbers advantage needs to be capitalized on.
That statement might not fully resonate with youth or even high school players who don’t always understand the numbers game. Understanding there’s a clear advantage and realizing that the best course of action is to keep decreasing those numbers is key. It’s about turning a four-on-three into a three-on-two. Then turning that three-on-two into a two-on-one. The final piece is getting to a point where you’re one-on-one with the goalie. Coaches may preach this concept, but I don’t think many players understand that it’s really this simple. You can hammer home drills all day, but until you break it down this way, it might not always translate.
We’ve all seen it. There’s a clear fast break opportunity and an athlete makes just one pass to an attackman who then takes a contested shot. Everyone is frustrated because the writing was on the wall. It was a prime scoring chance that got wasted. But that leads me to the real secret reason why fast breaks often fail in lacrosse. Athletes are not being taught to consistently follow the slide.
Picture a fast break coming down the field in a four-on-three situation. It’s common knowledge that the ball carrier needs to draw a defender. Once a defender slides, the ball should immediately move to where that slide came from. This is where things start to break down. Most athletes, as soon as they see their defender slide upfield to the ball carrier, plant their feet and stay exactly where they are. They might demand the ball and call for an outlet, but by planting their feet, they’re limiting their ability to keep the advantage alive.
The best thing they can do is follow that sliding defender upfield toward the ball carrier while still calling for the ball. Doing this pulls the second rotation upfield, chasing the next pass option, which creates more space and more opportunity for the offense. Another great example is when the next pass goes to an attackman at GLE. This attackman’s position is super important because of their proximity to the net. If their defender slides upfield, the attackman often plants their feet right at GLE. By the time the ball gets to them, they can feel the pressure of that third defenseman rotating across the crease. At that point, the attackman is no longer in a position to score, but they will often take a low-angle contested shot anyway.
If that attackman had continued to move their feet upfield with their sliding defender, they would put themselves in a much better scoring position. They would also make it more difficult for that third defenseman to rotate over in time. This is not a concept that is talked about often, but it’s crucial. Understanding the numbers advantage on a fast break, combined with the habit of following the slide, will completely change the success rate of your transition offense.
Fast breaks are prime scoring opportunities in the game of lacrosse. Offenses need to capitalize on them at a high rate. Teaching players to understand the advantage and to move with the defense, not away from it, is how you get the ball in the back of the net more often.
