Coaches Corner: “Can I Try Goalie?” - What to do First

Owner/UPenn Coach Dave Page works with a first-time goalie from Harlem Lacrosse giving the position a shot!

It takes a special kind of person to watch a couple of lacrosse games and decide they want to jump in the cage, but every year, a new wave of boys and girls do it. If you get The Question, what should you do first?

First of all, DO NOT BUY THE GEAR! Eventually, getting your own gear will become important, but there is always a little “attrition” built into the position. If possible, borrow as much as possible until your young goalie makes sure they are all-in on goalie.

Beyond that, the most important thing to do is as quickly as possible, give the goalie a chance to be successful, have fun, and protect themselves. Goalies are always getting better and evolving, and we all loved the position before we got good. But if we’re being honest, it’s no fun getting shelled, bruised up, and pulling the ball out of the cage all day, and so if the position is going to “stick”, it helps to give a goalie the basic tools early on.

Teach them the basics of a proper stance, how to move their hands to the 6 spots on the cage, and as much as possible, how to step to the shot. It doesn’t need to be perfect (it won’t be!) but in most cases you should be able to get these going in the right direction in just 30 minutes or so. Giving them that foundation to build on just may be the key to them giving the position the time!

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