The two ways: Whenever you go out to battle an opponent there are two main approaches you can take with the application of whatever technique and skills you bring to the match. The first is a PROACTIVE approach where you look to initiate the moves and deliberately push the action towards what you want to do. The second is a reactive approach where you let your opponent initiate and you take advantage of any opening created by your opponent's attack to counter and get the breakthrough. Each method will always have its advocates. As a general rule proactive methods tend to do better in encounters with a short time limit whilst reactive methods tend to do better in longer encounters. However, it will greatly benefit your development to work hard developing your skills in BOTH approaches. This immediately DOUBLES the number of attacks you make in a given time frame and makes you much less predictable in your attack patterns. Here you can see Nicky Ryan approach an opponent. His focused look clearly shows he has an initial proactive goal which he will work hard to enforce upon his foe, but he will also have the creativity to read his opponent's attacks as he gets close and be ready to go into his reactive counters as well. As much as it's a good thing to focus on what you want to achieve, remember always that there are TWO people in a bout and it pays to be able to attack off the actions of BOTH people rather than just one.
