The yips - and how to fix it?

[golions]

We all know that Hipwood, Cameron and McStay have the yips at present and it can be a momentum killer - essentially no reward for effort. Not to mention that against the better teams, we have been slaughtered on the rebound resulting in a 2 goal turn around on the score board.

Does anyone else feel like Hipwood and McStay should be told that no matter where they take their shots from they should be told to kick through it as far as they can? At training and in games. Even from 15m out. Just to get them in that routine.

It looks like this season we won't really be challenging the front runners. Cats, Pies, WCE essentially look like they are cruising and will turn it up a notch come September. Richmond and GWS next in line.

So we might as well use this season to get these kind of issues ironed out as much as possible.

 

[craigvn123]

Routine and practise under as much pressure as you can. You can't simulate match pressure but if you get them to do a drill each night at training where they have 10 shots and have over $50 to the coaches end of year trip for each miss you will start to stress. Especially after a week and you are starting to bleed money. It's the same when practising pressure for golf.

 

[Nunez]

My man got Dis.

 

[WA Lion]

Practice to create muscle memory and confidence - jonny Wilkinson had a tactic where he didn't actually look at the goal, but identified a person/visual landmark behind the goal - when kicking for goal he was actually trying to hit this specific place (Not thinking about the goals at all). I wonder if anyone else has tried this? (You'd have to think so)

 

[Dalions]

Practice to create muscle memory and confidence - jonny Wilkinson had a tactic where he didn't actually look at the goal, but identified a person/visual landmark behind the goal - when kicking for goal he was actually trying to hit this specific place (Not thinking about the goals at all). I wonder if anyone else has tried this? (You'd have to think so)

I’ve heard people talk about picking out the umpire and putting it over their head.

 

[jjami15]

You watch how Hipwood holds the ball when lining up for goal, it’s very light and lose and this must be impacting on his ball drop. In regards to McStay I agree with kicking through the ball and the same with Charlie.

It is purely muscle memory and routine and then doing it over and over and over agin so there is confidence with it. Then it’s between the ears, trust the routine focus on that and kick through the ball.

 

[POBT]

I was always taught to run straight at the target and try and keep everything lined up and moving in the same direction. Hipwood doesn’t do this with any regularity. For me, he doesn’t have the yips, he just has really poor technique.

Charlie has the yips though. It is like he freezes just as the ball drops.

 

[jackess]

I was always taught to run straight at the target and try and keep everything lined up and moving in the same direction. Hipwood doesn’t do this with any regularity. For me, he doesn’t have the yips, he just has really poor technique.

Charlie has the yips though. It is like he freezes just as the ball drops.

Apparantly he doesn't miss at trainings or in warmups. During the Bulldogs game one of the commentators said he didn't miss at all during the warmup.

 

[Scubaveg]

Run straight at the goals. Ball always heads in the direction of the run up.


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[BuntonRules]

I was always taught to run straight at the target and try and keep everything lined up and moving in the same direction. Hipwood doesn’t do this with any regularity. For me, he doesn’t have the yips, he just has really poor technique.

Charlie has the yips though. It is like he freezes just as the ball drops.

I particularly watched Eric's goal kicking technique Saturday. When he runs straight, he kicks straight. When he goes the Buddy curve, it is a lottery. He has the correct technique. He just does not use it all the time.

 

[Elixuh]

Apparantly he doesn't miss at trainings or in warmups. During the Bulldogs game one of the commentators said he didn't miss at all during the warmup.

A more pressured environment will always exacerbate poor or inconsistent technique.

 

[jackess]

A more pressured environment will always exacerbate poor or inconsistent technique.

I disagree. If you practice a technique often enough you should get pretty reliable. This is the case in most sports. Look at Steve Smith batting or Murali bowling. You'd never teach those techniques.

 

[M Malice]

It's all in the mind on match day, it's been happening for as long as I've been following the AFL. Makes a huge difference if you slot one through early, confidence is the key. My advice would be to just go back run in and kick it, don't dwell at the top of your run up and think about it too much, KISS technique.

Bloody hard to train for though.

 

[Mr Ripper]

Drop punts are overrated.

 

[davemc_lions]

Team stats
Lions 118 goals 117 points
Other top 8 sides only the 2 SA teams in 7th and 8th are like us.
Cats 137:90
pies 124:107
GWS 125:110
Tigers 112:98
WCE 100:81
crows 103:106
Port 109:112

Cameron 15:18, Hipwood 16:16, Rayner 10:11, Zorko 5:7 and Berry 5:6
McStay 11:5 and how many OOF
McCarthy has 11 goals no behinds and I think 4 that did not score as well.
Clugga 11:5 and Robbo 9:4 the straightest. Although seen both miss easy ones

It is in their head.. same as golfers they practise practise practise. Then freeze up.
Many other forwards had the problem. Riewoldt, Hawkins, Buddy.
I know I heard they do not have lots of shots in training as condition/fitness guys say your done enough. Not sure thats true. Pretty sure I heard Lynch mention it before.
The more you talk about it the more they stress

 

[brutus76]

The obvious - TRC
Timing Rhythm Co-ordination
and practice practice practice

The most accurate have all 3
Hipwood would be a TC no R
Mcstay would be a TR no C

 

[ZoBlitz]

Drop punts are overrated.

Should go back to the drop kick, I reckon.

 

[BuntonRules]

Should go back to the drop kick, I reckon.

place kick

 

[Dylan12]

Drop punts are overrated.

Torp you reckon even 20m out Rip?

 

[Mr Ripper]

Torp you reckon even 20m out Rip?

Tumble punts. No penetration, but almost impossible to miscue.

 

[davemc_lions]

A lot of good goal kickers cannot kick set shot from a slight angle. no idea why as said not just our players.
If you look at our last good lions era I like stats, they where all around 2 goals vs 1 point. Or close over their career.
J Brown 594:325
A Lynch 633:357
D Bradshaw 524:255
Look at first 3 years playing they where not as good apart from Bradshaw
J Brown 57:38
A Lynch 69:62
D Bradshaw 110:48

McStay the star here.. and everyone worries about his kicking. Be nice a stat misses from set shots
Hipwood 94:75
Cameron 119:99
McStay 64:34

Pressure a lot different looking at current players. First 3 almost 2 goals per behind.. Franklin/Cameron miss a lot
Riewoldt 610:361
Hawkins 521:275
Betts 581:304
Franklin 928:669
Cameron 357:206

 

[Dylan12]

I was looking at our goal difference of +28 and unsurprisingly, the difference is 2.16.28 (i.e. Lions For 118.117.825 - Lions Against 116.101.797). Stating the obvious, but we must get better at converting our goals.

 

[Back2Back2Back]

Charlie has the yips though. It is like he freezes just as the ball drops.

I reckon he overthinks it on a straight shot. Give him a split second to snap blindly and he's usually pretty accurate, but given time and space to line them up and he's a bit wayward. Interestingly, not unlike Jason Akermanis used to be as well. You could never be confident backing him on a set shot either.

 

[bato]

Charlie's yips started at the warm-up at the MCG (prior to Ess game). He was missing e v e r y t h i n g.

 

[DashinD]

This weeks Trends podcast is on goal kicking... very good.