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Stroke analysis •
Drills • Pictures • Discussion
Spider is a mixture of frontcrawl arms and eggbeater legs. The
player actually looks like a spider scuttering about. In water polo,
it is used to keep defender away from the ball. This is because
it creates a zone where another player cannot enter. Also, it can
be used to press an attacker into making a hasty pass or shot.
Young players enjoy having a go at this stroke.
Watch out!
When spider is used in a game, care should be taken not bump other
players with your elbows or feet. This can result in exclusion.
Stroke analysis
| |
Action |
| Body position |
Head out of the water; head remains still, looking forwards;
shoulders are raised out of the water; hips are close to the
surface; knees at least shoulder width apart; thighs approach
a sitting position; |
| Legs and feet |
Steady alternating kick; resembles an alternating breaststroke
kick, but legs never fully extend; movement mainly from the
knee; feet circle from the knee |
| Arms and hands |
Alternating action; elbows are held high; hands enter ball
width apart |
| Breathing |
Regular breathing as required |
| Timing |
Co-ordination of kicking and pulling into a continuous action |
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Drills
Note that players who are just learning to swim pick this stroke
up as easily as any other.
Without a ball
| Description |
Level |
Teaching points |
| Swim across the pool attempting to emulate the teacher's energetic
emulation of a spider! |
Beginner (beginning swimmer) |
|
Swim across the pool with head up with front crawl arms
and alternating breaststroke kick with or without a woggle
for support |
Beginner (swimmer) |
Keep the head still; knees apart |
Swim across the pool with head up with front crawl arms
and an eggbeater kick with or without a woggle for support
|
Beginner/ intermediate |
Keep the head still |
| Alternate between head up frontcrawl and spider on a signal. |
Intermediate |
Spider is slow or stationary; Head up frontcrawl is fast |
With a ball
| Description |
Level |
Teaching points |
| Perform spider with a ball |
Intermediate |
Do not touch the ball |
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