Emphasize players keeping their body between other players and the ball (i.e. protect or “hide” the ball), utilizing proper cradling technique.  Once the players get the hang of the technique coaches casually try to dislodge the ball from players who don't have it protected, otherwise pushing them on their hips in order to throw off their centre-of-gravity (Variation #4B).  Instead of a coach or coaches trying to dislodge the ball, players could also be designated to do this job, with up to half of the group with a ball and half without; switching roles halfway through the drill (Variation #4C).  This drill can also be done as a game whereby if a player drops their ball or gets knocked out of the designated area they must wait until the next game to get back in, otherwise try to dislodge the ball from other players until their are only a few remaining (Variation #4D).

*Variation #5 (2 min):  "One-Handed."  Teach the "one-handed" cradling technique in a subsequent practice, as well as switching the stick from one hand to the other, again using variations #1 to #4 for practice.