I have chosen to practice kicking an AFL football on my non-preferred (left) foot over the duration of this unit. Being able to perform this skill proficiently can give me an advantage over my opponents, particularly in high-pressure close contests.
As is evident in my performance video, my left foot kicking technique is not fluent or highly coordinated, rather it looks clunky and uncontrolled. A major factor in this is that I currently drop the ball onto my boot with two hands from a high position, rather than guiding the ball onto my boot with just my left hand and having my right hand out for balance. Dropping the ball from a high position means that the ball has to travel a further distance to my foot and becomes less skewed by factors such as wind, resulting in poorer kicking accuracy. Also, dropping the ball with two hands means that my balance is poorer than a one-handed guided ball drop, limiting the extension of my leg through the football and resulting in a less powerful kick.
To improve this, I must improve the coordination in my left hand to be able to control the ball onto my foot. I will be able to achieve this through continued practice, and this, in turn, will improve my balance as I will then be able to use my right arm for extra balance when kicking the ball and be able to generate more power in my kick.
