I had a dialog with an grownup volleyball participant whose staff received a brand new coach for the season. I point out the “grownup” half to offer some context. Within the US, grownup volleyball isn’t practically as large as it’s (proportionally talking) in different international locations – a minimum of should you exclude collegiate groups. That may lead American readers to tune this out, however don’t. What I’m going to speak about is common.
The staff in query was in a middling division with extra middle-aged gamers the place the main target is normally extra tilted towards participation than excessive degree efficiency. That doesn’t imply groups don’t need to win, or that groups don’t have ambitions to be promoted to the following increased division. It’s simply that they had been there for the love of taking part in, not with excessive ambitions. And so they solely skilled 1-2 instances per week.
This new coach got here right into a staff and instantly set about engaged on their mechanics. He wasn’t meant to educate them in matches, however at one level confirmed up for a house fixture. He then continued to educate them on method, which I used to be instructed prompted issues. It had the gamers so flustered they made a great deal of errors.
This brings up two various kinds of disconnects between teaching and scenario.
Coaching vs. Efficiency
The primary disconnect is one I see numerous coaches get mistaken. Matches and practices are completely different conditions. We will’t deal with them the identical. Observe is about exploring, taking dangers, and accepting the innevitable errors as a part of studying. Match time is about efficiency – doing what it takes to win. A coach who talks method throughout matches takes the gamers’ minds away from performing. It’s a distraction that may result in a drop in efficiency – just like the one talked about above. Equally, a coach who treats follow reps like match reps will seemingly stunt participant improvement. They may are inclined to create an environment much less conducive to exploration and experiementation, and thus studying.
Not matching participant priorities
The second disconnect is a much less frequent one, however is maybe extra problematic when it does occur. If the gamers have one precedence and the coach works towards a distinct precedence, it normally doesn’t go effectively (and the cut up can occur midseason). Either side find yourself annoyed. Within the explicit case above, you might have gamers who need to carry out effectively in matches, however who llikely see themselves as past the purpose of adjusting a lot technically. The participant I spoke with was specific about that, saying this is likely to be their final season. So you might have a coach attempting to educate issues by which the gamers don’t have any actual funding.
The underside line is that every coach ought to know their scenario and coach to it – to not what they need or suppose it needs to be. This will require having significant conversations with the gamers to grasp their motivations.
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