CORNER OF THE MONTH

The Give & Go

By Al Mattei

Founder, Top Of The Circle.com

The "give & go" is a staple of field hockey between the 25-yard lines.

But executed well, the concept of exchanging passes and cuts is a devastating concept on a penalty corner situation.

It has worked particularly well for the 1994 NCAA Division III champion Trenton State College team, especially when the passers were Jennifer Cortese and Melanie Vasofski. Both were gifted scorers with amazing skill and control.

History repeated itself in 1999 in the Division III championship game when The College of New Jersey used Kris Arnold, Jami Holtz and Tiffany Trockenbrod in similar fashion.

The great thing about the "give & go" corner is that it is not a set play. It is a concept that can be relayed to the corner offensive unit. The idea is simple: take the flyer and trailer out of the play with well-timed passes (blue arrows) to spots in the circle advancing towards the goal.

When the ball is stopped on the initial corner insertion, the player doing the passing needs to wait until the corner flyer has committed to the ball, then flips to the right. If no trailer is present, the shot can be taken (orange X). If the trailer is on top of that shooter, the ball is flipped left, and the shot tan be taken (red X). If it happens that there is another follower, the ball can be passed right again (black X), where the shooter only has the goalie and at most one corner defender to worry about.

Now, the ability to complete passes in the circle is all well and good. The question is, when to shoot? There should be someone watching the defense, and shouting signals to those doing the giving and going. There should be code words: "flat" or "pass" in order to continue the lateral passing, and "nobody" or "shot" if the pass receiver is open.

One final bit of advice: this is a rhythm corner. Timing is everything. Passes, receptions, footwork have to be perfect in order to score consistently here.