Octopush News Feb 2003 - Reed Consulting (UK)

COACHING TIPTreat your pushers to a New Year makeoverQuestion: How can you easily flick the puckhigh, long or accurately with a pusher thatresembles a washed up piece of driftwood?Answer: You can’t!We spend hours on fitness and practice toimprove ourselves in this manic sport weplay but improving the ONLY thing that isallowed to touch the puck comes a longway down our mental list.The pusher that you use needs to be the right sizefor you. So many times I have seen a small childwith an old “rams horn pusher” that they canhardly pick up let alone swim underwater with.This idea is often seen in adults too although theycan still swim with it the resistance of it throughthe water will ultimately impair performance.Having a “new” bevelled edge at the front of yourpusher has two benefits for you:• it will always mean that you need to putless effort into your flick• it will keep the splinters at bay, saving thenasty grazes that are often seen on theoppositions’ back or arms after youmissed the puck! (This saves buying theextra pint at the pub to say sorry.)Ultimately you need three pairs of pushers: onepair in use, one pair drying at home from thenewly applied paint (after the last time you usedit) and one pair in your bag, in case you snap thefirst! When you first buy or make them, treatyour bats with a good brush on under–coat andthen use spray paint in layers to build up a goodcovering.In short:• Check the size of pusher you use• Narrower is the better option for speed ofcontrol and less water resistance• Splash out and buy three sets the same• Keep them “looking new”• Dry the pushers naturally after eachgame• Keep your glove in the same condition.SARAH LISCOE, Director of CoachingPLAYERSfrom the GBLadies EliteTeamcelebrate a£3000sponsorshipdeal withsub–aquaequipmentmakers,Oceanic. It’sthe singlebiggestcontract ofits kind inthe history ofour sport.Pic: RobLiscoe11