Hope you’re gearing up for a great hockey weekend, getting started with this week’s Playbook.

Today I’m going to dive into one of the best examples of elite pre-scanning I have seen in recent years, explain what made it so special, see what we can learn and give you some training tips for implementing into your own games.

To set the scene, this play came in the 4th quarter of one of the best games of the Men’s Hoofdklasse (The Netherlands Premier Division) so far this season.  It was the two Dutch giants Bloemendaal vs Kampong playing and the game was tied at 4-4!

There were 5 minutes left in the match when Bloemendaal broke down the left and England’s Zack Wallace was streaming down the centre of the field in support. Watch & enjoy by clicking the image below.

Ok…let’s break it down.  Now the image below is the important part to pay attention to.

Zack is highlighted in the very bright yellow circle above, although he is running full tilt to support the ball carrier on the left, HE IS NOT LOOKING AT THE BALL.

He knows where the ball is and is looking at the rest of the field - classic Pre-Scanning.  What makes this really elite is that he’s doing it while sprinting, it’s much easier to pre scan while stationary or jogging.

Now, what great pre-scanning does is allow you to use really basic skills for super spectacular outcomes.

What he does next looks and is in fact very simple.  But it’s only possible because of his scanning & vision.   He uses his feet just a little bit more than a normal player would (the great players always take just a few more steps than normal players) and rotates his body 90 degrees before receiving the ball.  As you see below, his chest & head are now facing the ball.

Because he knows where the space & his teammate is, he keeps rotating his body (another 90 degrees) so his back is to goal and he is able to play a first time forehand pass through a small gap, running at full speed to set up the winning goal.  The level of execution is truly spectacular but when we break this down, he is using really fundamental skills that us mere mortals can aspire to:

• Pre-scanning
• Extra footwork
• Forehand first time push pass

When coaches talk about the best players in the world just doing the fundamentals at a higher level than anyone else.  This is a prime example of what we are talking about.

So what are some ways we can integrate this into our own games.

You don’t need any special technical ability to pre-scan.  It’s a mental ability—concentration.  It’s very easy to be absorbed in the game and laser focused on the ball. After all watching the ball really closely is also an important part of many skills.  However, when you don’t have possession and you know where the ball is on the field, scanning and rotating your head is so so important!

In training sessions set yourself scanning goals during each drill or game.

How many times can you scan within each drill?   Like anything it’s a habit you can form, it will take concentration & effort at first but the more you do it, eventually it will become subconscious.

Almost every player no matter the level can scan more to improve performance, so get out there and set some ambitious training goals and see how much you can improve.  You might not be Zack Wallace but you’re very capable of playing some special push passes with MORE PRE-SCANNING!