WATCH AND LEARN- Ollie Lang's "Control".

We are all familiar with Ollie Lang pulling the big moves and the runs down field shooting their whole team out. But what also makes Ollie a great player is his self-control.

This video of a game in last years NPPL Commanders Cup between the Ironmenn and The Russians. As you watch Ollie play this game he would only shoot ONE SINGLE POD in this game. He doesn’t just go up and shoot everything in front of him. He exercises a lot of control of his game and he uses it to control the whole game by bumping up and making the play calls. Ollie only shoots ONE pod in this whole game.

As you watch Ollie in play here – (he’s wearing Nicky Cuba’s jersey) note how he doesn’t shoot much in each bunker - instead he bumps up and looks and feeds information to his back line. He is in control if his game – he’s not shooting unnecessarily – he not giving his position up. Instead he’s up there making the calls to his team.

It takes a lot of self control not to be tempted to blast away when you're way up there. All noobs will be shooting everything they see and don't see. They will give their position away and sooner or later the other side will counter his move and pick him off.

At the start of the game, Ollie breaks into the tombstone - Sean McDonald is on his left in the big door and Billy Wing is in front in the dorito. You can clearly hear Ollie calling out the bunkers. When Billy Wing get shot – Ollie stands up and shoots a few bunkers to open a lane for himself and bumps into the same dorito Billy was in.

At the dorito you’ll see that he doesn’t shoot at all but he is constantly looking around. He again shoots a lane for himself and bumps up to the 50D.

At the same time Sean moves up into the car wash to follow Ollie. You have to follow your team mate - can't be a damn turkey. Or he'll be with out back up and he'll get picked off.

At the 50D is where Ollie is playing in his ‘control’ game. He head checks and head checks and rolls his gun but doesn’t shoot. He’s calling Brandon Short to shoot Kosta Federov in the car wash on his left who is pinning him down. He doesn’t shot at all and has a huge check in when Federov in the car wash shoots at him. He’s at the 50D for about a minute and doesn’t shoot at all.

At the same time there is a Russian way back in the right corner tombstone- he’s looking cross the field at Ollie’s dorito – he should be 100% guarding this lane now with 2 Ironmen up this side but at a split second of bad decision he looks tape side and Seam bumps into the 40 can.

BIG DOUBLE PLAY
At that same split second the Russian back right is not looking - Ollie makes his move and runs on the inside to bunker Federov in the car wash. At the same time Sean comes out on the outside and anticipates that Kosta in the car wash will either get hit by Ollie or try to get away on the outside down the tape. Sean guesses correctly and shots Kosta as he comes out tape side.

This is an awesome team move by Sean reading Ollie’s play and anticipating the Kosta’s move to the outside of the car wash. This is why these guys are playing in the Pro division.

After Sean gets shot out- you’ll see John Paxton come up to the 40 can and snaps shoot with their back left by tapping his bunker to bait him out and nails him to finish the game.