Complexity Rating ★★★★

Cardiovascular Rating ★★

Purpose

Develop effective leg movements to clear hooks and facilitate passing.

Description

Training Partner Starting Position- The assisting student will start by lying on their back, legs bent and feet flat on the floor.  The hands are in the Home Alone Position. 

Practicing Student- The practicing student will stand directly in front of the assisting student with their feet set comfortably, slightly wider than the width of the shoulders.

To start the Drill- The assisting student will lift both of their legs off the floor and lightly hook the back of the practicing student’s Knee Pits. Next the practicing student will take double pant grips on the inside of the knees and apply light forward pressure by making stiff arms.  The practicing student will then lift one knee directly up towards their chest.  This should slide the practicing student’s shin across the assisting student’s shin and change the distancing of the hook from the back of the knee pit to to the midpoint of the practicing student’s shin.  Once the practicing student has adjusted the relationship to the middle of the shin, the whole lower leg will be pressed forward, at first leading with the knee and then placing the toes against the floor next to the assisting student’s buttocks.  The knee should be angled more forward than the ankle to create a negative slope and stop the assisting student from being able to pull their leg out.After successfully pinning the assisting student’s shin, the other leg will come to reinforce the first pinned shin by placing it directly next to the first shin.  The reinforcing shin can be close to the ankle as the space will be crowded. This will leave the practicing student with two pant grips, standing with legs together, pinning a single shin of the assisting student. Note- The assisting student should allow the second hook to be cleared easily for the reinforcement of the pinned shin.  In reality, this drill includes 3 distinct passing movements and they are just being placed together for practicing purposes.  

After reinforcing the shin the practicing student will remove the original pinning shin and step the foot out and away.  The step should be confident, flat on the foot, and in line with the hip.  The third and final movement is a transition to Reverse Knee-on-Belly.  The planted foot will then be lifted and the knee brought straight into the hip.  The weight should be transferred onto the knee and the trail leg that has been pinning the assisting student’s shin will slide across the floor in a large arc to post and provide base for the Reverse Knee-on-Belly position.

To reset the drill, the practicing student will leave Reverse Knee-on-Belly and quickly stand and rotate their body back in front of the assisting student.  Once in place the drill should be completed on the opposite side.

Common Mistakes 

  • The pant grips should be maintained throughout the entire drill.  They do not need to be reset as the drill is about effective pathways of the legs.  

  • The initial movement needs to be a lifting of the knee directly up into the chest.  Some students will want to step back with the leg, and while that will clear the hooks, it gives up the control of pinning the assisting student’s shin to their body.  This is building out a different skill set. 

  • The Butterfly Hooks can be difficult to deal with, especially the second hook that is holding the “reinforcement” leg.  A good training partner will allow this hook to be cleared for drilling purposes.

Testing Threshold 

Time 45 Seconds

Requirement 15 Repetitions