Handball Techniques

Lessons

Senior 4 · Physical Education

Handball Techniques

4 lessons

Lesson 3 of 4

Shooting the ball

30 min

Six square metres and a goalkeeper

A handball goal is 3 m wide and 2 m high, an opening of 6 m², and a good goalkeeper with arms and legs spread can cover a large part of it from the right position. So scoring is not about throwing as hard as possible at the goal; it is about shooting from a good angle, at the right moment, into the space the goalkeeper cannot reach. In Senior 1 you learned the jump shot and the basic set shot. This lesson refines the main shots, uses geometry to show why position matters, and covers the rules on shooting, including the 7-metre throw and the new rule that protects a goalkeeper's head.

Definition

Jump shot: a shot thrown at the top of a jump, usually from the back court over the defenders, or from the wing or pivot while flying into the air over the goal area.

Set (standing) shot: a shot thrown with one foot on the floor, used for surprise shots from distance and for the 7-metre throw.

Dive (falling) shot: a shot taken while falling forwards into the air over the goal area, used by pivots and wings close to goal.

Wing shot: a jump shot from the side of the court in which the wing jumps into the air over the goal area to widen the angle.

Lob: a soft, high shot over a goalkeeper who has come off the goal line.

Shooting angle: the angle between the lines from the ball to the two goalposts: the width of goal the shooter can see.

7-metre throw: a penalty shot from the 7-metre line, awarded when a clear chance of scoring is destroyed illegally (IHF Rule 14).

The main shots

Shot	Teaching points
Jump shot	Run-up of up to 3 steps; take off from the foot opposite the throwing arm (left foot for a right-hander); drive the other knee up; ball high behind the head, elbow at or above shoulder height; throw at the top of the jump with trunk rotation and a wrist snap; land on the take-off foot or both feet.
Set shot	Opposite foot forward; ball high and back; turn the hips and trunk; whip the arm through; the back foot may drag but one foot stays in contact for the 7-metre throw.
Wing shot	Run along the goal-area line and take off as near to the corner of the area as possible; jump in towards the goal centre to widen the angle; decide late, near post or far post.
Dive shot	From the pivot or wing: lean forwards, push off one foot, throw before landing, land on the hands and forearms and roll safely.
Placement	Low shots near the posts and high shots in the far top corner are hardest to save; shoot to the side the goalkeeper has left open; vary height and timing.

The rules (IHF, 1 July 2025, summarised). A goal is scored when the whole ball has crossed the goal line inside the goal (Rule 9). Court players may jump over the goal area and shoot, as long as the ball is released before they land in it; entering the area after playing the ball is not penalised if it gives no advantage (Rule 6). In the 7-metre throw the thrower must shoot within 3 seconds of the whistle, may not touch or cross the 7-metre line before the ball leaves the hand, and must keep part of the same foot on the floor until the release (Rules 14:4–5 and 15:1). If an unhindered shooter in open play, or a 7-metre thrower, hits the goalkeeper's head first and the goalkeeper was not moving the head towards the ball, the shooter receives an immediate 2-minute suspension (Rule 8:8d).

Worked example

Worked example 1: the angle a shooter sees. Put the goal centre at the origin, with the posts at $\pm 1.5\,\mathrm{m}$ . A shooter at $x$ metres out and $y$ metres to the side sees an angle

\theta = \tan^{-1}\frac{y + 1.5}{x} - \tan^{-1}\frac{y - 1.5}{x}

Back-court player straight in front at 9 m ( $y = 0$ ): $\theta = 2\tan^{-1}\frac{1.5}{9} = 2 \times 9.46^{\circ} = 18.9^{\circ}$ .
Wing taking off from the goal-area line at $x = 4.5$ , $y = 6.7$ : $\theta = \tan^{-1}\frac{8.2}{4.5} - \tan^{-1}\frac{5.2}{4.5} = 61.2^{\circ} - 49.1^{\circ} = 12.1^{\circ}$ .
After flying about 2 m into the air over the area, to $x = 3.5$ , $y = 5.0$ : $\theta = \tan^{-1}\frac{6.5}{3.5} - \tan^{-1}\frac{3.5}{3.5} = 61.7^{\circ} - 45.0^{\circ} = 16.7^{\circ}$ .

The jump into the area widens the wing's view of the goal by more than a third. That is why wings take off as close to the corner as they can and fly towards the centre before they shoot.

Worked example

Worked example 2: where do our goals come from? A school team records its shots over three matches (illustrative figures).

Position	Shots	Goals	Success
Back court (9 m or further)	30	12	$\frac{12}{30} = 40\%$
Wings	15	9	$\frac{9}{15} = 60\%$
Pivot (6 m)	14	10	$\frac{10}{14} = 71\%$
7-metre throws	7	5	$\frac{5}{7} = 71\%$

Overall: $\frac{36}{66} = 55\%$ . Almost half the shots came from the back court, the least successful position. The team should use its back-court players to draw defenders and pass to the pivot and wings, and shoot from distance only when a defender leaves a gap. The shots from close range are better partly because of the wider angle (Example 1) and partly because the goalkeeper has less time to react.

Video: "Jump shot — Basic technique 1 | Handball at school", IHF Education Centre. As you watch, check the take-off foot, the height of the throwing elbow and when the ball is released.

Tip

"Look one way, shoot the other." Goalkeepers read the shooter's eyes and arm. Keep the arm high so the ball could go anywhere, and decide the corner as late as possible.

Warning

Common mistakes. Taking off from the wrong foot. Dropping the elbow (the shot is weak and easy to read). Shooting from a narrow angle when a team-mate is better placed. Landing in the goal area before releasing the ball. Always aiming at the same corner.

Safety. Never aim at the goalkeeper's head: besides the danger, it now brings an immediate 2-minute suspension. Learn the dive shot on mats first, landing on the hands and forearms and rolling, not on the knees or chest. Goalkeepers in practice need a warm-up before facing hard shots.

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Practice

List four teaching points of the jump shot for a right-handed player.
Calculate the angle of goal seen by a shooter straight in front of the goal at 7 m.
A wing is at x = 3, y = 6.7. Calculate the angle of goal she sees, and compare it with Example 1.
Explain why wings jump into the air over the goal area before shooting.
State three rules a player must keep when taking a 7-metre throw.
A player scores 7 goals from 20 back-court shots and 6 from 8 shots at 6 m. Calculate both success rates.
In open play, an unmarked shooter hits the goalkeeper on the head; the goalkeeper was standing still. What happens?
A coach tells a strong back-court player to shoot from 9 m whenever she has the ball. Evaluate this instruction using the ideas of this lesson.

Show answersHide answers

For example: take off from the left foot; drive the right knee up; ball high behind the head with the elbow at or above the shoulder; throw at the top of the jump with trunk rotation and a wrist snap.
θ = 2 tan⁻¹(1.5 ÷ 7) = 2 × 12.1° = 24.2°.
θ = tan⁻¹(8.2 ÷ 3) − tan⁻¹(5.2 ÷ 3) = 69.9° − 60.0° = 9.9°. This is narrower than the 12.1° at x = 4.5 on the same line, because she is closer to the goal line at a sharper angle.
Flying towards the goal centre while in the air widens the angle of goal they see (from about 12° to about 17° in Example 1) and brings them closer, while staying legal because the ball is released before they land.
For example: shoot within 3 seconds of the whistle; do not touch or cross the 7-metre line before the ball leaves the hand; keep part of the same foot on the floor until the release (no jump).
Back court: 7 ÷ 20 = 35%. At 6 m: 6 ÷ 8 = 75%.
The shooter receives an immediate 2-minute suspension (Rule 8:8d), because the shot was unhindered, the head was hit first and the goalkeeper was not moving the head towards the ball.
Too rigid. Shots from 9 m have the narrowest angle and the lowest success in Example 2. A strong shooter should shoot when the defence gives her space, but her threat is also useful to draw defenders and pass to the pivot and wings, where success rates are higher. Judge by the situation, not by a fixed rule.

Quick check

Which take-off foot does a right-handed player use for a jump shot?

Remember

Jump shot: take off from the foot opposite the throwing arm, ball high, elbow up, throw at the top of the jump.
The angle of goal a shooter sees is $\tan^{-1}\frac{y+1.5}{x} - \tan^{-1}\frac{y-1.5}{x}$ ; it shrinks towards the wings and grows closer to goal.
Shoot over the goal area only if the ball leaves the hand before you land; 7-metre throw within 3 seconds, foot on the floor, line not touched.
Hitting the goalkeeper's head first in open play or on a 7-metre throw brings an immediate 2-minute suspension.

Sources and credits

International Handball Federation (IHF), Rules of the Game: Indoor Handball (edition of 1 July 2025): Rules 1, 6, 8:8, 9, 14 and 15 summarised, not copied.
IHF, Amended Rules of the Game enforced from 1 July 2025: the changes in force from that date.
Photo: 2023-01-07 Handball, EHF European League Women, Thüringer HC - Paris 92, Steffen Prößdorf, Wikimedia Commons, licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0.
Video: "Jump shot — Basic technique 1 | Handball at school", IHF Education Centre, embedded from YouTube.
Shooting-angle diagram (drawn to scale), tables, worked examples, practice and quick check: written by Ganzaa. The shot figures are illustrative.

This lesson adapts CC BY-SA material and is shared under CC BY-SA 4.0.

1Six square metres and a goalkeeper

2The main shots

Six square metres and a goalkeeper

The main shots