by Mark Millon, Millon Lacrosse

One of the most important skills needed to become a better lacrosse player is the ability to dodge. No matter what level player you are up against, without the ability to dodge you will see little success in freeing your hands for accurate passes and shots.

The first issue in dodging is to understand why you dodge and what your intention should be when making a move. The goal of any dodge should be to free your hands for a pass or shot. A dodge could be as simple as quickly backing away from the defensive player or as complex as an inside roll. Each of these dodges serves the same purpose — getting your hands free. Do not concern yourself with completely toasting the defender. It may happen but the goal should be to free your hands.

There are several fundamentals which will lay the foundation to your dodging ability. The better you are at these skills, the more likely you’ll be a better dodger. The first of these fundamentals and by far the most important is your stick skills — more specifically being able to play confidently righty and lefty.

Let’s briefly review why playing with both hands is so important with respect to dodging. If you can pass and shoot with only your left hand you will have to dodge in that direction every time. Your opponent will soon catch on and overplay you on your strong side so much that no matter how good you are at a specific dodge, you will rarely get your hands free. The player who can shoot and pass with both hands is a threat to dodge in either direction. This makes you much more difficult and dangerous to defend.

The next important fundamental is stick protection. During most dodges you will be within reach of your defensive player’s stick checks. If you don’t protect your stick there’s a good chance you’ll have the ball knocked away before you even start your dodge. When executing the dodge it is very important to keep your stick tucked until you are ready to release the ball. I have seen many players execute a great dodge, get a step on the defender, but then hang their stick and lose the ball.

As you begin to practice dodging it will be important to recognize your physical strengths and weaknesses. Once you do this you can determine which types of dodges will best fit your strengths. This saves spending a lot of time trying to perfect moves that don’t fit your abilities. For example if you are a bigger, slower player, you may not want to use too much energy trying to become a speed dodger from the wing positions. Conversely if you are small and quick, you don’t want to spend time practicing power dodges. Also, make sure to practice your dodges at 100 percent. Practicing at full speed will likely ensure that you dodge at full speed in game situations. The harder you dodge the more difficult you will be to guard.

A final fundamental is to keep your head up throughout the dodge. Many younger players concentrate so much on completing the move that their head drops toward the ground and limits their view of the field. Many times they make a great move to free their hands, but miss the open man or, worse, not see the sliding defensman and get crunched. A good drill to practice keeping your head up is to have your coach stand at the top of the crease and hold up different numbers, continuously having you call them out while you execute the dodge.

The ability to dodge and free your hands is an important skill to learn in order to become a better all-around player. Shooting ability, off-ball play, passing and desire also play major roles in a player’s development. If you can learn to play with both hands and protect your stick, dodging will become much easier for you. As a result you’ll be much more difficult to guard.