Durham Attack | Fundamental Skill

Serving Technique

You will learn that what you do with your feet and lower body determines how well you will perform all volleyball fundamentals. Correct positioning of your feet and lower body is essential.
Feet	In order to begin the serve we first start with your feet positioning. Right handers place your RIGHT foot behind your LEFT foot so your RIGHT foot is almost perpendicular to your LEFT. This is called the "two o'clock" position, with the LEFT foot on the twelve, and the RIGHT foot on the two. Your LEFT foot should be pointed EXACTLY in the direction of where you want to serve. The ball will go where your LEFT foot is pointing. If you want to serve down the line then your LEFT foot (hips and upper body) should be pointed straight ahead. When serving cross court your LEFT foot , hips and upper body should be turned and facing cross court. All your body weight should be on your back (RIGHT) foot. The only lower body movement needed when you serve will be a shift in weight from your back (RIGHT) foot to the front (LEFT) foot.
Upper Body - Left Arm	Extend your LEFT arm (for right handers) straight out in front, with your palm facing up. Place ball in the palm of this hand.
Toss	The toss is one of the most important elements of the serve. Make sure the starting position for your LEFT arm is straight out in front of you - not down by your waist. With a straight left arm toss the ball no more than one metre in the air. The ball should fall 10 cm in front of and 10 cm inside (to the right of) your left foot (for right handers). For practice, while learning, let the ball fall to the ground. Your toss should be the same every time. Its really important to get the toss high enough - if its too low then your arm will be jammed and the serve will go too low - into the net. One metre in the air and 10 cm ahead of and inside your left foot. If you toss too far to the left or right: You will be forced off balance. You will be forced to chase your toss - which will force you NOT to serve in the direction you want to. Believe it or not the toss is where most serving errors start.
Right Arm	The RIGHT arm is fully extended with fingertips and palm (facing downward) lightly covering the top of the ball. After the toss - you step forward (shifting your body weight from back foot to front foot) to meet the ball. At this moment you begin your arm swing. Start your right arm swing by pulling your arm straight back - palm facing outward - keep elbow high (your elbow should pass over the level of your ear - in slow motion you should be able to turn your head slightly to look underneath your elbow as you pull your arm back - use the same movement you would use to pull a bow and arrow. Once you've pulled the arrow (your elbow) as far back as it will go, keeping the elbow as high as possible - raise the forearm above your head - palm facing the sky - bring arm forward to make contact with the ball. Contact should be made squarely in the center of the ball with the flat upper palm portion of your hand.
Establish a Serving Rhythm	Assume the starting position with your feet in the "2 o'clock position" - your weight on the back foot, prepared to toss with the left hand. Take a step, shifting your weight from your back (RIGHT) foot to the front (LEFT) foot towards the ball. Start arm swing (just like pulling the bow of an arrow) as you step forward (shift weight) to contact the tossed ball. Contact the ball squarely in the middle of it - with the upper part of the palm of your hand. Let your transfer of weight carry you onto the court.
Tips for an Effective Serve	1. Elbow Keep your elbow high while serving - DURING the arm swing. Keeping your elbow high increases your chances of getting the ball OVER the net. How do you know if your elbow is high enough? When you pull your elbow back before your toss STOP and look to see if you can look underneath your elbow. Your elbow should be higher than your ear. Now start all over again and make sure when you pull your elbow back before you toss... its higher than your ear... now follow through with your swing. 2. Toss Try to toss the same way EVERY TIME. Practice just your toss by letting the ball rest in the palm of your hand. Your toss should be one metre in the air - your arm should be straight and fully extended in front of you. Let the ball fall. It should fall every time 10 cm in front of and 10 cm to the right of your front foot. Keep your weight on your back foot until you are ready to start your arm swing. One metre in the air and 10 cm in front/inside your front foot. One metre in the air and 10 cm in front/inside your front foot. One metre in the air and 10 cm in front/inside your front foot. Practice JUST tossing over and over and over again. You can do this at home - you don't need a gym. Put a sheet of paper on the floor in front of your foot and see how may times in a row you can have the ball land on the paper. It will really improve your serve. Make sure you keep your body balanced. Tossing to the right or left will knock you off balance. Your front foot is your guide. 3. Face Your Target Face your entire body in the direction you want to serve. If you want to serve down the line - then face your body down the line - square your shoulders and hips, point your LEFT foot and your straightened tossing arm - DOWN THE LINE. 4. Eliminate Excess Movement Excess movement that does not contribute to the serve adds more room for errors. Focus on simplifying the motion and getting into a consistent rhythm each time.
Don'ts	Don't Shot Put the Serve Shot putting occurs when your elbow is too low during your arm swing. When your elbow is low the server is forced to try and lift the ball over the net just by using the force of an open palm, which doesn't produce enough force or momentum to get the ball over the net. Don't Worry About Getting Onto the Court Until You Have Served Let the transfer of weight from your back foot to your front foot carry you into the court. Its part of your natural follow-through. First things first - complete your serve before you worry about getting onto the court. Focus on your serve, the rest will happen. Don't Disguise Your Serve Don't try to fake out where you want to serve. Let everyone in the gym know where you are going to serve - especially whoever you are serving to. (This often puts pressure on the passer.) With practice and repetition you will be able to serve tough enough so that your target will have difficulty passing your serve. Also, when you try to show that you are serving in one direction then serve in another direction - it usually forces you to add more movement than necessary in your serving technique. More often than not you will Miss the timing of your toss, or Contact the ball on its side or Be forced off balance which all contribute to a possible missed serve.
FIVB Rules of the Game re: Serving	Only one toss of the ball is allowed. Dribbling or moving the ball in the hands is permitted. The server must hit the ball within 8 seconds after the first referee whistles for service. A service executed before the referee�s whistle is cancelled and repeated. At the moment of the service hit or take-off for a jump service, the server must not touch the court (the end line included) or the ground outside the service zone. After the hit, he/she may step or land outside the service zone, or inside the court. New OVA rule for 2005-2006: if serving space is less than 2m then players will be allowed a step-in on the serve (OVA Indoor Competition Manual.) Positional Faults: At the moment of serve, all players except the server, shall be within the team's playing area and may have any part of the body on the boundary lines or center line, but no part of the body shall be touching the floor outside those lines. All players shall be in correct serving order at the moment the ball is contacted for the serve. The Middle Front shall not have a foot touching the floor as near the right sideline as the Right Front nor as near the left sideline as the Left Front. The Middle Back on the SERVING TEAM shall not have a foot touching the floor as near the left sideline as the Left Back. The Middle Back on the RECEIVING TEAM shall not have a foot touching the floor as near the right sideline as the Right Back nor as near the left sideline as the Left Back. No back row player shall have a foot touching the floor as near the centerline as the CORRESPONDING front row player. If the server makes a fault at the moment of the service hit (improper execution, wrong rotational order, etc.) and the opponent is out of position, it is the serving fault which is sanctioned. Instead, if the execution of the service has been correct, but the service subsequently becomes faulty (goes out, goes over a screen, etc.), the positional fault has taken place first and is sanctioned.