Field Hockey Passing Drills

The following field hockey passing drills will ensure that your team is well trained in one of the most basic (and important) fundamentals of the game. If your team can pass accurately and intelligently, eventually you will get good shots on goal. Errant passes often lead to turnovers and transition opportunities for your opponent, which represent one of the easiest situations to score a goal. These field hockey passing drills are fun and can be practiced by players of all skill levels.

1. Back and Forth. A simple yet effective field hockey passing drill, this is a great way to start off practices. Have your players partner up and practice passing the ball back and forth to each other. For added difficulty, place to balls, cones, or any other marker on each side of each player. If a player cannot get the ball to his partner within this window, he has to do pushups, sprints, or some other form of exercise.
2. Keepaway. Have your players gather round in a circle, with one player in the middle. Players on the outside of the circle can pass the ball to any player so long as the ball crosses the middle of the circle. The player in the middle tries to intercept the pass, and if he does, then he switches spots with the player who passed the ball last. This field hockey passing drill not only works on passing skills, it works on individual defense for the player in the middle.
3. Give and Go. Divide your players into two teams of equal numbers. One team will be on offense and one will be on defense. When a team is on offense, the player with the ball cannot take more than three steps without passing to his teammate(s). If a player breaks this rule or the defense steals the ball, switch sides.
4. Scrimmage With a Twist. The next time your field hockey team scrimmages, institute a rule such as the three step maximum outlined in exercise three. You can also set a minimum number of passes that need to be made before a shot on goal is legal, or you can use both rules in the same scrimmage. For increased difficulty and added incentive, make players do pushups, sit ups, or wind sprints if they break the rules you set forth.