Keep It on the Grass

The ground strike — the pull along the deck that wins the scrappy ball

Camogie
U10
60 min
10–24 girls
2 coaches
Effort 2/5
Quarter pitch
u10
ground-striking
fundamentals
fun-games

The PitchPlans coaching teamGAA Award 1 & 2 coaches

Kit: Sized hurleys, helmets on for every ball, size 4 sliotars one each plus spares, 24 cones, 8 cone goals, 12 bibs (2 colours)

Warm-up8 min

On the Grass

Setup: 25×25m square, a size 4 ball each, helmets on before the first touch. Mentors on opposite corners minding the traffic.

How it works: Every girl keeps her ball moving along the ground with soft sweeps of the bas, minding the traffic — the ball stays on the grass all night and that is the whole game. Calls run it: SWEEP LEFT and SWEEP RIGHT tap the ball that way, STOP puts the bas flat on top of it, ROUNDABOUT sweeps it away from the nearest girl the other way, PARK finds an empty cone and rests the ball beside it. New call every twenty seconds so nobody settles and every head stays up.

What to say

“Tell them: 'the ball stays on the grass tonight — we are ground camógs all evening.'”
“Tell them: 'a boot's length in front so you see the ball and the traffic both.'”
“Tell them: 'little low sweeps — you are guiding it, not chasing it.'”

Easier

Walking pace, bigger square, a hand-nudge allowed for the newest girls.

Harder

Weak-hand-on-top for one round; shrink the square a step every minute so the traffic thickens.

Activity13 min

The Ground Pull

Setup: Pairs 8m apart, one ball per pair, all striking down the same channel with three steps between pairs. Mentors walk behind the striking line, never in front.

How it works: The ground strike, built one piece at a time. Piece one, the stance: side-on to your partner, feet either side of the ball's path, bas back low. Piece two, a slow shadow pull with no ball, brushing the grass along the line to your partner. Piece three, one girl rolls the ball gently along the ground and the striker meets it side-on and pulls it back first-time — no stopping it, no lifting it, a clean sweep along the grass. Count clean pulls that reach your partner without stopping; swap roles every five and race your own best, not each other.

The technique, step by step

Stand side-on, feet either side of the ball's path.
Bas back low along the ground.
Meet the rolling ball out in front and pull through the line.
Follow the bas toward your partner and watch it arrive.

Common mistakes

Chopping down on top of the ball — it is a pull along the grass, not an axe.
Facing straight at the partner — turning side-on lets the swing follow the line.

What to say

“Tell them: 'turn side-on and swing along the line the ball is travelling — pull with it, not at it.'”
“Tell them: 'low bas back, low bas through — keep the whole swing near the grass.'”
“Tell them: 'watch the ball onto the bas, then look where it went.'”

Easier

Stop the ball dead first, then pull it back on a second swing; partner rolls slower and straighter.

Harder

STEPR: partner rolls livelier and to either side so the striker moves her feet; weak-side pull every fifth ball.

Activity13 min

Through the Gate

Setup: Pods of three, each pod facing a fan of three cone gates — near 6m, middle 8m, far 10m, each a different colour. One striker, one fetcher, one caller, jobs rotate every three strikes. All balls struck along the ground.

How it works: Ground strikes with a target and a call. The striker calls a gate, then pulls the ball along the ground through it — near one point, middle two, far three, and only the gate she CALLED counts, so the brave call big and the clever call sure. The ball must stay on the grass the whole way; a ball that hops up does not score. Three strikes each, rotate jobs, keep pod totals and beat your own. Round two, the strike comes after the fetcher rolls the ball in, so it is a first-time ground strike at the gate.

What to say

“Tell them: 'call it and mean it — a called strike is a braver strike.'”
“Tell them: 'firm and low through the ball — a shy pull dies before the gate.'”
“Tell them: 'same smooth swing for the far gate — distance is timing, not temper.'”

Easier

Gates pulled two steps closer and widened; a settle-then-pull allowed all round.

Harder

STEPR: the ball is rolled in from the side so every strike is first-time and moving; far gate narrows; a missed called gate gives a point to the fetcher.

The rest of this session is free — along with 3 more this week.

PitchPlans coaching team

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