Welcome to the
Goalkeeping Newsletter. Today's issue is in response to an email I have
received from a collegiate keeper coach who wanted to know a way to help his
keeper land softer on power dives.
The key to a soft landing on power
dives is to use the ball to help make the contact with the ground less jarring.
Assuming the keeper has made a diving save and has the ball under control, her
next step should be to have the ball make the first contact with the ground. The important
thing to concentrate on here is to have one hand on top of the ball and the
other hand behind the ball when you place the ball on the ground. If
you land with one hand under the ball, the ball will come loose upon contact
with the ground. Other things to remember are that with the hands in the
proper position on the ball, you need to make sure that the elbows are in front
of the body and not under the ribs, which could result in broken ribs and/or a
dislocated shoulder.
Upon making contact with the ball
to the ground the first part of the body to make contact with the ground will be
the side of the shoulder. Then the side, hip and finally the outside of
the knee. This type of landing is much softer and easier on the body then the
alternative that I call the sack of potato landing (this is when a person lands
with the completely flat with their whole body hitting the ground at the same
time).
In summation, the way to soften
your landing on a power dive is to land ball, shoulder, side of upper body, hip
and then outside of the knee.
If you have any comments, questions
or suggestions, please email them to
comments@finesoccer.com.
