Catching and passing

1Why this matters

Handball is a fast team game in which you pass the ball with your hands and try to throw it into the other team's goal. The ball travels much faster than any player can run, so the team that catches and passes cleanly, on the move, creates the chances. Almost every goal starts with a good pass. This first lesson sets out the game and its court, then teaches you to catch and pass safely and accurately.

2The game in brief

• Seven players a side: six court players and one goalkeeper. Substitutes may come on at any time, through the team's substitution area.
• The court is 40 m by 20 m. The goals are 3 m wide and 2 m high.
• The goal area is marked by the 6 m line. Only the defending goalkeeper may stand in it. A court player may jump from outside the line and shoot or pass before landing inside.
• Court players may touch the ball with any part of the body from the knee upwards. Kicking is not allowed; only the goalkeeper may use the feet, and only inside the goal area.
• A player holding the ball may take at most three steps and hold it for at most three seconds. Then the player must pass, shoot or dribble.
• Adults play two halves of 30 minutes. The official guideline for players aged 12 to 15 is two halves of 25 minutes.

Figure 1. The handball court. Blue: the goal areas. Diagram: Ganzaa.

3Gripping and catching

A handball is small enough to hold in one hand. Spread your fingers around it and grip it with the fingers, not the palm. Official ball sizes are smaller for younger players, so use the ball your school gives your age group.

1. Show a target. Hands up in front of your chest, fingers spread, thumbs and index fingers close together, so your hands make a W shape behind the ball.
2. Watch the ball all the way into your hands.
3. Give. Let your elbows bend as the ball arrives, to cushion it, and pull it in to your chest.
4. Low ball: turn your hands so the little fingers are together and the palms scoop it up.

4Three passes

Passing on the move: pass ahead of a running teammate, into the space they are running into, so they can catch without slowing down. The receiver calls or shows hands to say "I'm ready".

Worked example

Uwase catches a pass while running. She takes three steps, still looking for a teammate, then a fourth, and passes.

Decision. Four steps is one too many. The referee stops play and gives a free throw to the other team. She should have passed, shot or started to dribble by her third step.

5The session (about 40 minutes)

Warm-up (8 minutes). Jog, skip and side-step round the court. Then prepare the throwing shoulder: arm circles forwards and backwards, and hug-and-open arm swings. Finish with 10 easy passes to a partner at half power.

Skill drills (20 minutes).

• Partner passing. Stand 4 m apart: 10 shoulder passes each, then 10 bounce passes. Move back to 8 m for 10 more shoulder passes.
• Pass and follow. Two lines face each other 6 m apart. Pass to the first player opposite, then run and join the back of that line.
• Running pairs. In pairs, run the length of the court passing to each other, with no dribbling and never more than three steps with the ball. Pass ahead of your partner.

Game (8 minutes): ten passes. In a marked square, four attackers try to make ten passes in a row while two defenders try to intercept, without contact. Ten passes scores a point. A defender who intercepts swaps with the attacker who threw the pass.

Cool-down (4 minutes). Walk a lap, then stretch the shoulders, chest and forearms, and the calves and thighs, about 20 seconds each.

6Safety

• Throw only when your partner is looking and ready.
• Keep lines well apart, so balls from one pair do not fly across another.
• Catch with the fingers spread behind the ball, not pointing at it; a ball hitting straight fingertips can jam a finger.
• Remove jewellery and watches; keep fingernails short.

Practice

Solution. A free throw to the other team. Court players may not play the ball below the knee.

Solution. Ahead of her, into the space she is running into, so she can catch it without slowing down.

Solution. A bounce pass, which travels under the raised arms.

Solution. It lets you turn your hips and shoulders into the throw, which adds power, and it keeps you balanced.