Dodgeball in my opinion is one of the most enjoyable team sports, anyone can play in London Dodgeball Leagues, and have fun. However, the more competitive you get, you start to realise it can infact be incredibly tactical.

One of the most common strategies used, that I have seen is the “lob and beam”.

It requires 2 players on the same team and 1 unsuspecting victim on the other team. Firstly, you must agree with your teammate when to perform this, as the two of you must get the timing down for it to be successful. Firsty, player one must throw the ball at the opposing team in a way that looks as if it will be easy to catch or dodge towards one side. Warning, you take the risk of actually making the catch an easy one so be careful. As the opponent gets ready to catch your ball, or take a predictable dodge, have your teammate beam the ball at the player. Their focus will be on the first ball that comes their way so therefore they will not see the second ball headed your way.

Pros and Cons of the Dodgeball tactic

Pros

This is generally the easiest way to get a guaranteed out. It works extremely well against opponents that are up against one of the side lines. It also works well against those that do not see it coming.

Cons

With any Dodgeball strategy that requires two people to complete, there are risks. Firstly this tactic leaves the first thrower susceptible to elimination, especially if the second person does not follow through. Secondly this tactic can leave both players open if not completed quickly enough, and they are caught by the opposing team. To combat this, have a third team member with a ball ready when you call the play. They must protect you both by deflecting any incoming attacks with a ball. Once you throw, quickly get ready to dodge again, and get another ball.

To use this move in the most efficient way, have your weakest thrower lob the ball (this person should also have good reaction time and dodging abilities), your strongest and most accurate thrower beam the ball, and someone with really good hand-eye-coordination protect the two of them. It is suggested to have the protector stand in front of the “beamer” so that it is harder to see the ball being thrown at the opponent. It is similar to playing chess when you kingside castle and use the rook to protect your king, and use the bishop to draw out the queen.

This may sound extremely simple, but how many of you have actually thought about strategies within your London Dodgeball game? It is also highly successful, and if done properly can change your game.

It will be great to hear of any other Dodgeball tactics that yourself and your team mates may use…..

We have seen some great goals already in the 2012 Euro’s, so what better time to look at our top 5 goal celebrations. Many believe Football is one of the greatest, and oldest sports in the world. It is only fitting that the best sport in the world has some of the greatest goal celebrations. Below is a collection of what I think are the top 5 celebrations in recent football history.

For all you out there playing in the GO Mammoth London Football Leagues, this is for you!!

Top 5 Football Celebrations

5. Nani’s Full

Number five goes to Nani’s full (360 back layout), that he pulls off during the match against Liverpool. Not only has he yet again just completed a full out sprint, he then goes on to complete a high level gymnastic flip. It is one thing to flip with out a spin, but add a spin, and that flip becomes completely different, and much more difficult. If any members of your team in your London Football League can complete this, send us a video and we will post it!!

 

4. The Bike

Creativity greatly factors into the worth of a celebration, and it seams that the boys on the Stjarnan club team have that down. This team is very good at coordinating themselves and building things as their goal celebration. In this clip the team decides to build a bike, of which one player is completely suspended in the air. It is a clear pictorial image and given the personality of this team, makes perfect sense. What could you and your team build?

 

3. Paul Gascoigne

The antics of the infamous dentist chair were well publicised in the media, Gazza thought he’d go one better and share it with the world. I’m not going to spend too much time waxing lyrical about his wonder goal, but, I bet Colin Hendry is still aimlessly looking around trying to work out where Gazza has put the ball! The celebration itself was, in a sense, the most ironic celebration ever. If by some strange occurrence you don’t know the context then it may seem a strange celebration indeed. But actually it was poking fun at the English Tabloids, who weeks earlier had photographed Gazza, Sheringham & McManaman on a drunken night out, downing drinks from a dentist’s chair. The tabloids slated the players, saying it was embarrassing and Gazza should be dropped. So, naturally Gazza responded by scoring one of the greatest goals of all time, and yes, recreating the now infamous dentist’s chair.

 

2. Gone Fishing

Yet again the ever so creative Stjarnan club creates an excellent goal celebration. Technically its not too hard. I bet your London football team could even do it. All you have to do is have a fake cameraman, and five to six team members holding the fish. That’s right the fish! (The trickiest part of this celebration.) If you pay attention, Jóhann Laxdal has to flounder his way across the pitch, so that his team can scoop him up. This is no easy task. Have you ever tried to fake a spasm and move in a given direction? It is very difficult to accomplish. When this celebration is done all together, it is pure comedy.

 

1. Toshihiro Aoyamo

This one had to win (may not be the best ever goal celebration), but, when you score a goal from beyond the centre field line then you deserve recognition. You also deserve to celebrate however you want, and that is exactly what Toshihiro Aoyama did. The amount of power and the accuracy to make a shot of this calibre is astounding. What makes an entire team celebration is worthy of this standalone act. It’s a spin off of the “traditional” bowing celebration, except you end up with a split at the end, which is nearly impossible to get a strike off of. In this case, nothing is impossible for Toshihiro and he easily knocks down the final two “pins,” as easily as he put in that shot.

 

Judging the top 5 football goal celebrations is always a difficult matter, and I am sure there are a million and one video’s that you may believe are better, and that I have never seen.

Please post the video’s below and prove me wrong. You can even suggest your top 5 best goal celebrations of all time….

Netball, has been around for over one hundred years. The sport was invented around 1893, and is believed to have derived from basketball.

Doctor James Naismith invented basketball in 1891. He created it in order to have a sport that could be played inside during the long northern winters.  Originally dribbling was not a rule at the inception of the game, but was later adopted. The first Basketball games were low scoring. The first official game ended one-nil. The sport was then spread through YMCA and Universities throughout the United States and in 1892, Senda Berenson, took and modified the rules of Basketball for women’s play.

In 1893, Martina Bergman-Österberg, a teacher at Physical Training College in Hampstead, London, introduced yet another version of basketball rules to her students.

These rules were adopted and modified regularly over the years until 1901, when the first official set of Netball rules were issued. Netball had already begun to spread around the world before the rules had even been officially scripted.

Unlike Basketball, which was traditionally played inside and with a basket mounted 10 feet on to a wall (the current day hoop and backboard arrangement was introduced in 1906), Netball moved to the outdoors, and traded the baskets in for rings, as well as introducing three zones of play. The sport of netball also incorporated limited movement compared to basketball.

Globally, Netball spread rather quickly. Before the official rules were even published, Netball had already made its way to Australia in 1900. By 1906 New Zealand had adopted the sport. Its introduction to the Western Hemisphere came in 1909, when it made its way to Jamaica. New Zealand established the first official Netball governing body in 1924.

The first international game was played between Australia and New Zealand. This match ended 40 to 11 in favour of Australia back in 1938. International matches and Netball Leagues have since been adopted in the nature of the sport. In 1960 the major Netball playing nations developed a global standard set of rules. These countries included; Australia, England, New Zealand, Sri Lanka, South Africa, and the West Indies. This conference concluded that the official form of netball competition would be 7 players versus 7 players. Prior to this some countries played 9 verses 9 Netball matches. The official governing body of Netball, known as “The International Federation of Netball Associations” (IFNA), was also established. Lastly, a world championship tournament was established, and is to be played every four years. The championship is known as the World Netball Championships. The Australian team has won the title 10 out of 13 times. Sydney, Australia will host the 2015 Netball world championships.

Netball is an increasingly popular game with Women worldwide, but (since the 1980’s), it has also become more attractive to men. Join in the fun, and make history with London’s Ladies and Mixed Netball Leagues.

For Netball, as in any sport, it is important to properly train your body so that you can perform at your maximum potential. Speed, endurance, strength, and skills are very important aspects of the sport.

It is sometimes hard to fit a regular exercise program into the busy, and hectic lifestyle of a Londoner so here is a simple fitness plan to help guide you along in the weeks leading up to, and during your London Netball Leagues.

Remember that it is necessary to stretch properly, before any exercise in order to maximize benefit and minimize the chances of injury.

 

Day 1

The first day of training would occur 5 days before a match. (Assuming you have a match on Saturday, the first day of training would be on a Monday.) Since this first day is the farthest from competition, it can be your most challenging day, allowing for recovery throughout the remainder of the week. Focus on more strenuous cardiovascular exercises, and speed building. One possible exercise is running up and down stadium steps or a hill for roughly twenty minutes. This exercise can be broken up if desired into 10 and 10 or 7 and 13-minute intervals. After this exercise, take a break for about 5-7 minutes, and then run a sprint drill. Suicide runs are a good choice. Make sure to reach a full out sprint and maintain it as long as possible. Make sure to traverse the entire court by the end of drill. Only 2 sets are needed. Take another short break and then begin walking lunges to the half court line. At the half court line, take a short break (30 seconds to a minute) and then make your way back to the base line. Try to close out your workout with around 50 ladies push-ups (in intervals of 10), and 100 crunches (in intervals of 10). These exercises will help to develop speed, and cardiovascular endurance.

 

Day 3

Two days before a match comes the second day of training. This day will focus on strength training of the arms. First of all, begin with a mile jog as a warm-up. Netball is not a sport where it is necessary to build bulk, so there is no need to focus on heavy lifting. Instead focus on lighter weights with higher reps. Try three sets of 15 repetitions of a lighter weight for bicep curls, triceps curls, lateral pull-downs, and pectoral-flys. Follow up this workout with another 100 crunches (in intervals of 10 as well).

 

Day 5

 The day prior to a match, Spend a day on the court, or any local London Netball post working on skills. Take a multitude of shots from different areas of the circle. Work on running around the court while maintaining proper positioning. If at all possible, take friends/team members with you and work on passing, shooting, and defensive drills together. This is just a skills and cool down day. Do not do anything too strenuous, after all there is a match the next day.

 

Notes to Remember

 In addition, given enough time during the week, attempt to go to the courts or local Netball post on days between workouts, and continue to hone skills through skills practices. Taking a multitude of shots, from all different areas of the circle, is necessary to maintain and improve shot accuracy.

Healthy Eating is important to the development and maintenance of Netball fitness. Eat lean meats, such as fish and chicken, and seek proteins in eggs and beans. Avoid fried preparation of these foods. Baking and sautéing these foods are great alternatives. Vegetables (both raw and cooked) and fruits are healthy foods that help to maintain fitness, and can act as great snacks.

One of the most popular sporting activities in London is Netball. It is a fantastic way to socialise while enjoying exercise, and it is available to all individuals whether starting as a beginner or with years of experience. I have put together the below basic Netball warm up for those of you trying your hand at London Netball leagues this Summer.

 

1.Jog:

Take a warm-up jog! Not too far or strenuous, 3-5 laps around the netball court. Jogging awakens the body and steadily raises the heart rate prepping the body for vigorous exercise.

Jogging also helps the body to become more limber and increases the effectiveness of stretching. Have a think which is easier…. bending frozen or room temperature dough?

 

2.Stretch:

Stretching is vital to performance and injury prevention. Stretching properly helps to prevent tearing your muscles, while increasing your range of movement. For netball there are a few key muscle groups.

Legs: Running around is a major aspect of netball. It is crucial that your legs are properly stretched.

Toe Touches:

• From a standing position, bend at the waist and reach down towards toes. Hold for 20 seconds.
• Spread legs while standing, slightly farther than shoulder width, and spend 20 seconds reaching to your left toes, then swap sides and spend 20 more seconds reaching to your right toes. After these sets, drop hands straight down and reach back as far as possible. Hold for 20 seconds.
• While seated place legs together and reach to grab toes. Pull up on toes if possible for 10 seconds, and then lay flat for 10 seconds. Try to not let legs bend.

Hurdler Stretch:

• Take right leg and tuck it behind you and reach for your toe in front for 10 seconds, and then reach back for 10 seconds. Switch and repeat with left leg.

The Pretzel

• (Stretches both leg and back) While sitting, leave left leg extended and cross right leg over top, while keeping knee up. Take left arm and cross body effectively turning your body to the right side hold for 10 seconds and then repeat on other side.

Frog Squat:

• Squat down to the balls of your feet with legs spread apart. Place arms just in front of you on the ground. Lean slightly forward with your elbows to the inside of your knees and hold for 20 seconds. This will stretch out your groin area.

Calf Stretches:

• Can either place toes on a wall or fence at an upward angle for 20 seconds for each calf separately, or find a small ledge and drop your heel for 20seconds each. After completion, point each toe for 5-10 seconds.

Upper Body and Arms. Netball has a high degree of arm involvement and needed mobility, making it necessary to stretch your arms properly.

• From a standing position, lean to your left side while extending your right arm, and hold for 20 seconds. After 20 seconds switch and repeat with your right side.
• While lying on the ground, curl knees into chest and hold for 10 seconds.
• To stretch arms take left arm and drop it behind your head and use right arm to gently pull on left elbow for 15 seconds. Repeat the same process with your right arm.
• Take left arm in front of body and cross it across your chest. Use right arm to pull left in at the elbow. Hold for 10 seconds. Duplicate process with your right arm.
• Interweave fingers and extend arms while keeping palms facing outwards for 10 seconds.
• Let your head hang and slowly move it side to side for 15 seconds.

3. Get moving again!:

Once stretched out you should feel more limber, and it is important to maintain this feeling by staying active and keeping muscles warm.

• Do 25 star jumps to help keep muscles warm.
• Face one of the sidelines and do side shuffle to the half court line while waving arms. This drill keeps you warm while practicing defensive maneuvers.

 

4. Get the team involved!

Netball is a team sport after all. Team interaction is necessary for proper function.

• Have the team members practice passing around a ball, while calling out the name of whom they are passing to. First begin with a standard bounce pass, and then move to chest passes. Move back to bounce passes using only a single arm alternating which arm is in use. Also do this for chest passes.
• Have the Goal Attacker(s) and the Goal Scorer(s) take warm up shots. First from a straight on, then moving to different sides and depths. Have another team member simulate game play passing to the shooters while they are moving around and at different angles.

5. Recollect: 

Take a moment before the game or practice begins to go over strategy and mentally prepare yourselves. Remember to Have FUN! Though the sport is competitive, remember that you are there for the enjoyment of the sport, no mater the outcome!

 

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