Shop
10335859_PLL_Week5_Game4_WTR_WHP_LM_DSC01708_jpg_Abby_Szlosek_20220704_182420

Waterdogs SSDMs: Blindsiding dodges and blocking shots

By Joe Keegan

PLL Analyst

Jul 11, 2022

Halfway through 2021, the Waterdogs defense was getting torched. Opponents were shooting 38.6% in settled sets. They made a few changes: Moving Liam Byrnes from LSM to close, dressing Ben Randall regularly, and maybe most importantly: Inserting short-stick defensive midfieler Matt Whitcher into the lineup.

Whitcher was intriguing prospect following the MLL merger. An offensive midfielder at York, Whitcher was viewed as a SSDM who didn’t have much experience at SSDM. Teams opted for true defensive midfielders – selecting Zach Goodrich (6th overall), Charlie Hayes (15th overall), and Isaiah Davis-Allen (21st overall). Whitcher went undrafted.

Waterdogs LC head coach Andy Copelan scooped him up and gave him a chance. Whitcher hasn’t left the lineup since. With Whitcher in the lineup, opposing offenses have shot 23.8% in settled sets. He’s strong on-ball – and smart off-ball. Not many players can sneak up on Zed Williams like this. To do it with a short-stick, when you need to take one more step, giving Zed’s teammates one more second to shout (“two on you!”), is even more impressive.

The Waterdogs – who ran two-way midfielders in their first couple seasons with Zach Currier and Ryan Conrad – added another gritty SSDM this spring: Jake Higgins.

Higgins was selected 22nd overall out of Maryland. He’s an armpads-on-biceps, glass-eating d-mid. Higgins doesn’t just happen to soak this shot; he wants it to hit him.

Using two-way midfielders to trap opponents was the Waterdogs best form of offense in 2020 – before they added dodge-to-shoot threats like Michael Sowers and Mikie Schlosser. Now, they don’t need their defense to stay and play. They just need stops. Whitcher and Higgins are creating plenty of them.

Share This With Friends
You May Also Like