Jude Menezes
Jude Menezes 🇮🇳 🇳🇿 is the former goalie for India before he moved to New Zealand and became a “kiwi” himself. He worked as the goalie coach and an assistant coach for the New Zealand Blacksticks for many years and gained a lot of experience in international hockey.
Following the Tokyo Games he took on the new challenge of being the head coach for the women national team of Japan. In January 2021 he delivered a masterclass session for us about the PCD from a goalie’s perspective. We’re very happy he agreed to #sharetheknowledge with us once more in between some major games and tournaments with Japan.
Rebound Scoring
If there’s one idea every field hockey coach should take away from the recent masterclass on rebound scoring, it’s this: coaching anticipation and readiness in your strikers is just as valuable as technical training. In fact, it might be the difference between average finishing and a team that consistently capitalizes on second phase scoring.
Too often, as coaches, we focus heavily on finishing mechanics and repetition of shooting drills. Of course, technical competence is essential. But the nuance Jude Menezes brings to the table is about teaching your strikers—and support players in the circle—to adopt a mindset in which they believe the next ball will always come to them. They don’t wait for clear-cut rebounds; instead, they position and prepare for them. The real winner is anticipation, and that’s much more a product of mental approach and training than of raw skill.
How do you work this into your day-to-day coaching?
First, shift some of your focus in scoring drills from execution to mindset and positioning. Design exercises that require strikers to stay live after first attempts, and reward second or third efforts, not only the first finish. Build in unpredictability—a ball can come off a goalkeeper, a defender’s stick, the post, or a deflection. In video reviews, pause after initial chances and ask: Where is everyone’s body weight? Who’s reading the play? You want eyes scanning, feet moving, and minds switched on for what happens immediately after the first shot. Make it part of your coaching vocabulary: anticipation, readiness, and adapting to the unexpected.
It’s not just strikers who benefit; midfielders need to be taught to “arrive late” in circle situations, staying connected to play. These second-phase runs make all the difference in capitalizing on loose balls.
You’ll also want to teach your teams (and especially your forwards) that the game is not scripted. As Jude Menezes put it: “Because the game is not always scripted, things happen. So how quickly can you adapt? How ready are you? You just have to play what’s in front of you at times.” Build this adaptability into your session plans. Change the lines of attack at the last moment. Require your players to make “gut runs”—those off-ball sprints that often go unrewarded except when the rebound falls for the tap-in. And don’t let your defenders off the hook: train them to anticipate danger, not simply clear after-the-fact.
Why is this so crucial?
The best teams aren’t those that chalk up the highest conversion on first shots; they’re the ones who relentlessly create danger in the circle and are mentally and physically first to rebounds and loose balls. It isn’t about luck. As Jude Menezes outlined using international examples both from the men’s and women’s game, these moments are earned through an embedded culture of readiness and belief.
Why Watch the Whole Masterclass?
The workshop dives deep—far beyond the classic “second phase” coaching clichés. You’ll hear field-tested examples, see breakdowns of international clips, and get practical training ideas straight from recent international experience. If you’re serious about making your forwards—and your team—dangerous every time the ball lands in the D, this session is full of drills, principles, and mindset shifts you’ll want in your toolkit.
Join us behind the paywall for the complete breakdown and step-by-step applications for your training sessions, with the three must-implement takeaways for every coach who values smarter, sharper, and more relentless attacking.
