POSITIONAL PLAY: FULLBACK
BRUTES
of the
PITCH
the shot will take and move to set themselves up to take advantage of virtual “holes” in the defense. They literally look at the field and play in a different way than most players. As a defender, being able to cut off these lanes is vitally important. Positioning yourself between the offensive player and the goal is critical to hindering their momentum. This is impossible to do if you allow your mark to get past you.
Once an offensive player breeches the back line, the only thing standing between them and a goal is the goalie. Make no mistake, our goalies are some of the best, most fearless players on the field, but they can physically only cover so much of that giant netted area. By maintaining your position between the offensive player and the goal, you narrow that firing lane, thus creating a smaller lane for the offensive player to shoot through and a likewise smaller area the goalie must defend.
Challenge every play
All of the above does not matter if you are not pro-actively challenging each and every play that comes your way. Quite often, games are won, or lost based upon a single goal or point.
This is one of those things that makes good defenders proud - while an offensive player can only have one or two good “plays” to be considered successful, defenders are not a success unless they prevent every offensive play from happening. It also means that defenders cannot “take a quarter off.” They must go full out all game.
Fullbacks are often seen as the thugs on the field. The big brutes that just hit people and get in the way. And, while that is true to a certain extent, it is also true that they are some of the most committed players on the field. They take each and every goal personally. It is an unglorified position of honor, similar to linemen in the NFL. While they may never score a goal, make lightning fast runs the length of the field, fullbacks (and their goalie generals) are the foundation of every team.