The Pin Shot

The pin shot or "toe" shot is one of the most exciting shots to see and do in the game of foosball. What makes this shot so cool is its versatility. This shot can be done with the ball pinned in the forward position (toe) or it can be done with the ball in a backward position (heel). You can do what I call a roundhouse pin shot, and you can even do combinations with the pin. It is from the pin shot that the wrist shot (rollover shot) evolved from. I will talk more about the snake shot later on.

One drawback to doing pin shots is that they are hard to control and setup on slick table tops or non-Tornado tables especially for beginners and some novices. Don't get me wrong it is ok to have some slickness to the surface, that makes the ball travel faster but if the surface is too slick, then the degree of control decreases and the chance of turnovers increases. Because of this drawback, I recommend that you learn and master other more high percentage shots like the pull shot. You never know when you are going to walk into an establishment with non-Tornado tables. However, I have seen those who are so good with a pin shot that it is their primary weapon no matter what the playing surface is like. The control these players possess is amazing and I have seen them rip a part defenses, including mine.

I call this shot the "toe" shot because the ball is at the end of the man's feet. Some people refer to it as a toe shot if the ball is in the front position and when the ball is in the back position, they refer to it as a heel shot. There are many who refer to it as a pin shot whether the ball is either in the front or back. However, I just call it a toe shot either way because either way the ball is still being controlled by the man's feet. Now, I will attempt to explain how to do some of the various types of pin shots that are commonly used. I hope you will find it to be beneficial to your game.

Front Pin or "toe" Shot

The Front Pin Shot (toe)
To do a pin seems fairly simple but to some it can be a hard shot to do. What is even harder is having to explain how the shot is done. So here goes.

Like I said earlier there are several ways to shoot from the front pin position. The illustration above indicates that there are (at least) two ways you can shoot from the front pin position.

STEP 1


Pin the ball in the forward position
The first thing you want to do is to set the ball up in the front pin position. Make sure that you are comfortable with the ball position and the degree of control. To some, getting the ball to a pin position can the most challenging part of doing a pin shot. There are a couple of ways to getting the ball into a pin shot position. One way, is to roll or move the ball around with the man until the ball is out from underneath the rod, and is at a safe distance to where to ball can be pinned. Another way, is to gently tap on the top of ball with feet of the man until the ball is at the desired location.

STEP 2
Look over the defense
After the ball is set and ready, look over the defense and see what is there. When you see an opening move the ball to that position and pop it in.

STEP 3


Move the ball away from the defense
Moving the ball in position is probably the hardest part. Basically, you move the ball in the direction you want to go to by applying a little pressure to the top of the ball with the feet of the man. Usually, the distance is not very far but sometimes it can be.

STEP 4


Hitting the ball after it is in position
After the ball has been moved to the shooting position, the ideal position of the ball should be directly under the rod or slightly forward. You do not want the ball to be behind the rod because you may jam the shot or lose the ball.

Basically, that is all there is to it. With one single motion, you are moving the ball around the defense in order to score. Unlike some of the other shots you have more than one direction in which you can shoot and score from.

away		towards

I prefer to do the away toe, however, I have notice that most players prefer to used the towards toes more, especially, when in a hurry. I think it is because it takes less effort and that more power can be applied when doing the shot. Try it, and see for yourself. You may agree. Nonetheless, you should practice doing this shot both ways and then establish a pin shot you are most comfortable with. If you get good at going one way you still want to be able to go the other way. That way the defense will always be guessing where you will go next. The more variations you can do with this shot, the harder it will be for the goalie to stop you.

Back Pin

The Back Pin Shot (heel)
The back pin shot (heel shot) is very similar to the front pin shot except the ball is behind the rod instead of in the front. I use the back pin shot a lot when I am playing on a Tornado table. For some reason I find it easier moving the ball forward and away then hitting it, rather than moving it back then hitting it. To do a back toe shot, you basically follow the same steps on how to do a front toe shot.

With the back pin or the front pin, the shooter can aim for the near or far corner of the goal. A skillful pin shooter will aim for what the defense has to offer. For instance, if the middle and the near corner is covered, then the shooter may choose to aim for the far corner. If the situation is reverse, then shooter may aim for the near corner.

If the shooter is facing a formidable goalie, one who is knowledgeable at blocking the pin shot, then the shooter may wish to mix it up with other variations. For instance, the shooter may go with a reverse or roundhouse pin shot instead of using a regular pin shot.

Though, you will rarely see pin shots used as a primary weapon in a high-level tournament match, it is still a very formidable weapon to use. Because of the versatility of the pin shot, a master pin shot shooter can tear apart most defenses. But, mastering the pin shot does not come easy. It takes a lot of time and practice to master all the variations of the pin shot.