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.:Tips for Middies:.

Middie is for those of us who can run, and run alot. Sprint, long distance, the middie is the workhorse. They bring the ball from point A to point B, roughly 80 yards apart most of the time. Most of them are track stars.

Running

The most important thing to any middie is their ability to run. They will have to run away from slashing, vicious defenseman and fellow middies. They have to be able to run far, so to help this you should run long distance for 3 to 4 miles. Do it with variable speeds, speed up for a half mile, slow down, speed up, etc. They also have to run fast. For this, run sprints. 40 yard, 100 yard, 200 yard, and even 500 yards at a time. Time them, and try to improve on your time with each session.

Stick Handling

While the middie is running at top speed, he is not going to get far if he has no stick handling skills. Cradling leftie, rightie, and dodges are important if you want to get from point A to point B with the ball still in your stick. You can't really practice this, but try to get used to dodging and cradling leftie and rightie, because if you show a weakness in one hand the other team will force you to that hand and then you'll be in trouble.

Throwing/Catching

You will probably throw and catch more than anyone else on your team. A defenseman gets the ball and passes it to you, most of the time. Then, you take the ball up the field and you pass it to an attackmen. Attackmen also throw and catch alot, but defensemen almost never have to catch a ball, just pass it to guess who, you. And, most of them aren't that accurate, so you have to be able to catch leftie and rightie. Throw and catch against a wall or with a few buddies leftie and rightie. Shuffle left and right. How many times in a game do you stand still while throwing and catching a ball?

Shooting

Middies really don't shoot alot, thats the attackmans job. But, when you do, wouldn't you like it to go in, or at least be on net? This is a less important topic, so don't worry about it to much. Practice accuracy and power. Maybe tape a 6x6 area on your throw/catch wall and try shoot/catch.

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