The Bear in the Line - Up

Photos by (from left to right): Elke de Gram, Wim de Bruijne and Cor Mantel.

The Bear
The Bear is a tall, strong and very athletic attacker.
He / She plays under the korf. His /her most important function is to rebound shots.
The strong Bear can give control to the continuity of the attack.
The Bear who wins frequently the rebound, gives confidence to the Tiger, Panther and Wolf when they go for a goal chance.
The Bear can develop his / her role as rebounder better and support the Tiger, Panther and Wolf in the best way if he / she is able to operate as a killer around the post.

• The most important quality of the Bear is that he likes to win the ball after a shot. Of course he / she is really physical strong (a wide body and he /she is a good jumper) but also he / she mentally very motivated to rebound the shots.

• The Bear can read the attack very well and his speciality is that he can read where the ball will come down after a shot.
  By reading the attack he moves around the post so that he can dominate the post zone. By blocking out his Centre or Guard he prepares the most best position for rebound the shot.
  By carefully reading the ball which comes down he / she knows how to win the ball: keeping his wide body in position or jumping up to the ball.

• The Bear is a killer. In moments that the Guard of the Bear forgets that defence is his / her first duty, the Bear will punish that fault. The Guard or Centre (personal opponent of Bear) should not forget that control is more important than a risky undertaking for intercepting the ball. The Bear makes about 4 – 12 shot during a match and his scoring percentage near by the post is between 30 – 50 %.

• The Bear who is a specialist rebounds 15 – 25 shots during a match. The better Bear wins about 70% -80%.
  
• The Bear should cooperate with the Wolf. By his position under the korf he can give support to the Wolf that she / he can conquer the best feeding position. Sometimes the Wolf uses Bear's position to block out the Guard of the Wolf, so the Wolf can go for a goal chance. Sometimes when there is a smart cooperation, Bear and Wolf can change their roles nearby the post.
• Very often the Bear needs the help of Wolf or Panther to come in his blocking position. The Bear gets his free lane to the post by cutting the Wolf or Panther in a feeding position. The Guard of the Bear has to follow the Bear otherwise the Bear comes in a goal position.
• Of course the Bear can feed the Tiger and Panther from his position near by the post. The Bear is empathic for the needs of Tiger and Panther.
• The experienced Bear is important for coaching the Tiger; Panther and the Wolf. He / she gives support and directs the other roles by communicating loudly.
• The best Bear is all round. Sometimes he operates as a Tiger or Panther as well.
• Mostly the Bear is a male player. There are a few female players who can operate as a strong Bear.