The Jab Lift

• Stride towards the ball so that the non-dominant foot is set down alongside the ball.
• Adopt the lifting position, bending the knees and back to bring the head over the ball,
• Keep eyes on the ball.
• The ‘toe’ of the hurley should be pointed away from the body.
• Note that both thumbs should be pointing towards the ‘bas’ of the hurley.
• Ensure the hurley is almost parallel to the ground before performing the lift.
• Slide the toe of the hurley under the ball to lift it from the ground.
• As the ball lifts, release the non-dominant hand from the hurley into a cupped position allowing the ball to ‘fall’ into it.

Technical Drills

Drill 1 – Basic – Jab Lift

• This is a basic drill to practice the Jab Lift technique.
• Divide the players into pairs.
• Mark out a distance of 2 meters for each pair using cones.
• Place a ball midway between the cones.
• Beginning behind one cone, each player in turn jab lifts the ball and jogs around the second cone before replacing the ball for the next player.
• Repeat the drill for a set amount of time.

Drill 2 – Basic - Jab and Pass

• This is a basic drill to practice the Jab Lift technique, which also incorporates the hand pass.
• Divide the players into pairs, 1 ball per pair.
• Each pair faces each other approximately 2m apart.
• Player A jogs forward to jab lift the ball before hand passing to Player B.
• Player B, jogging backwards, places the ball back on the ground for Player A to repeat the exercise.
• The players continue in this manner for a set distance.
• On the return, the roles are reversed.

Drill 3 Basic

• This is a basic drill to practice the Jab Lift technique.
• Divide the players into groups of 4 players.
• Mark out a distance of approximately 25m using cones.
• Place 4 further markers at intervals of 5m between the outer cones.
• The players line up behind one of the outer cones.
• Place a ball at the first marker.
• The first player jogs out to jab lift the ball and replaces it at the second marker, before continuing to line up behind the far cone.
• The second player following on, jab lifts the ball and replaces it at the third marker and so on
• The fourth player jab lifts the ball at the fourth marker, jogs around the outer cone and replaces it at the marker again for the drill to be performed again.
• Repeat the drill over and back a set number of times.

Drill 4 Intermediate  - Jab Lift a Moving Ball

• This is an intermediate drill to practice the jab lift technique that requires the players to jab lift the ball as it moves away from them.
• Mark out a distance of approximately 30m using cones.
• Divide the players into groups of 3 players.
• 2 players line up behind one cone with the ball, while the third lines up behind the other cone.
• The first player throws the ball out in front of them to follow and jab lift before it stops rolling.
• The player continues to throw and jab lift the ball until they reach the far cone and pass the ball to the next player.
• Repeat the drill over and back a set number of times.
• To vary the drill, line all the players up behind the same cone.
• Each player in turn jab lifts the ball, throwing it out in front for the next player to follow on and repeat.
• In rotation, all the players move to the far cone.

Drill 5 Intermediate  - Jab Lift with Opponent

• This intermediate drill to practice the Jab Lift technique introduces an opponent.
• Mark out a distance of approximately 10m using cones.
• Place a ball midway between the cones.
• Divide the players into pairs, each pair lined up behind a cone.
• On the whistle, Player A runs forward to jab lift the ball.
• Player B runs alongside or just behind Player A to provide shadow opposition.
• Player B must not attempt to tackle Player A.
• Player A replaces the ball in the centre and the roles are reversed
• To increase the difficulty of the drill, allow Player B to tackle for the ball.

Developing the Skill

Grid Game 1 – Grid Swap

• This is a grid game designed to increase the speed at which players perform the Jab Lift.
• Divide the players into two teams of 5 players each.
• Mark out two grids approximately 5m by 5m with a distance of 10m between each grid.
• Assign a grid to each team.
• Line up both teams outside their grid.
• Place 10 sliotars in one grid.
• On the whistle, the first team must race forward, jab lift a ball each and return to place it in their own grid.
• The first team continues until all the sliotars have been moved.
• The second team then repeat the drill moving all the sliotars back to their own grid.
• The team who completes the drill in the quickest time wins.

Fun Game 1 – Jab Lift Musical Chairs

• This is a fun game to develop the Roll Lift technique.
• Mark out a grid 13m x 13m.
• 10 players work inside the grid.
• Each player begins with a ball.
• The balls are placed on the ground and the players jog slowly around the grid.
• On the whistle, the players quickly move to the nearest ball to jab lift it into their hand.
• One ball is taken away and the game continues.
• On the next whistle, the player who fails to roll lift a ball into their possession must leave the game.
• Continue to take away one ball after each round until one player remains.
• Players may compete for the ball.
  
  
  

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