All opinions expressed here are my own.
"Tell me and I forget. Teach me and I remember. Involve me and I learn." -Benjamin Franklin
Hi guys.
Great conversation. Keep it up!
We are are one of many clubs I know who have been asked to have A and B teams. This is to aid the grading process Northern are planning. I am starting to think this has only been requested of the hate to say “smaller” clubs.
We were also asked to provide scores at the end of last season, but our players have changed so much since then this cannot be a good indicator.
If I am honest even our A team would not be as strong as many “big” B teams I would think, so much as I want a challenge for our guys the A pool might to a tough gig.
A
Agreed.
I don't have the answers to how to solve for grading either.
I'm not privvy to whether we were asked to or not - but we have graded the 9s and 10s into A and B. This is for player development, not result driven.
We collected and passed back to the SAP coordinator scores last year - so I can only assume they were passed on up the chain to Northern.
If there were enough games you'd just have each team play each other and take the top and bottom halves - but as we all know games and game time is reducing not increasing.
If clubs were going to field the same two teams consistently week-in, week-out you'd just ask them to nominate which half of the draw they think their teams would fit in. But personally I saw last year and have been told this year that clubs will be choosing different teams each round. Impossible to grade "teams" if the teams change that frequently.
My understanding is that the grading period will be the 3 weekends prior to Easter weekend; there will be no football Easter weekend, and competition games will start the following weekend (as Round 4?).
Now, that has the season "proper" starting April 10... 3 weeks after I would have assumed it would start.
And I assume the mid-season (after 8 rounds) re-shuffle of the draws will still happen?
The wet weather has severely hampered our preparation (one trial v Valentine indoors at howzat) - Johnson Park is just about always wet - so I'm half way happy that games are so far away so that we can actually get some time under our belts.
Now I recall seeing one club do this last year, and that club didn’t do it the two years before by the way, but I don’t feel it’s very common. Therefore the issue of grading this type of ‘team’ becomes that clubs issue not Northern’s. I don’t think Northern can adapt their chosen pathway to accommodate clubs who do things different.
On grading, I’m on record saying this is easy if clubs are honest. I know where our clubs stand in terms of both A and B teams and where they fitted among the other clubs last season. Most clubs would also be honest. Where there may be some debate, Northern should have the final say. They watched all the teams last season after all.
Didn’t they????????
A
Does anyone have any idea if the girls are just being "thrown in" with the boys for grading? I have heard that the 10s girls will because of the lack of teams (not all of the WPL clubs could form teams in the under 10s). Our trial game so far has only been against teams of girls and I have no idea if they are grading them against the boys?
How are you supposed to grade off last season? Some teams have had big changes to their teams from last season. And playing 5 a side wonÂ’t give you a clear indication of what they will be like this season. IÂ’d like to see a mini pre season tournament held at speers point like maybe a gala day on half fields over a weekend. Saturday you do group games then Sunday some semis. Let the kids have a taste of a tournament like they used to back in the day. Stop being so precious about losing, its part of life. You win some you lose some. They get over it in a day or 2.
I couldn't agree more, after our first full season of SAP last year of pretty decent losses most games Ive learnt try to speak to the young one about what they enjoyed and what they learnt from it and anything they'd like to work on at home through the week.
Its disappointing hearing the constant "i cant watch this crap anymore" or "how many goals did you lose by this week" to young johnny walking back to the car after the game. no doubt it has an impact on the players
I say day or 2 mainly because their friends at school play for other clubs and may stir them but nothing wrong with that. No different to them winning or losing swimming and running races at school carnivals. That’s just sport, some take it more seriously than others.
I think at times we can be harsh on coaches, I’ve been guilty of it also but let’s not forget the amount of time they put in and the crap they go through having to get tickets These days to coach and probably get f all pay for it. Then to have to deal with some parents that expect you to turn their kids into stars. It’s not the coaches fault the rego is high and maybe some coaches feel that pressure by parents to perform because of the money they fork out. Anyway just my take on it.
Totally agree,I was just referring to the certain few who take losses as a dagger to the heart and have been known to lash out at refs and opposition in frustration.Them and parents(as we all agree) are the ones who should be setting the example and like parents, 99% of coaches are great.I just get a good belly laugh out of the ones who think losing a 9 year olds SAP game is going to cost them the vacant Man City job if Pep retires.
ohh mate, they are out there. that exact line was said only last week at a trial game followed 10minutes from another parent "blow the whistle already this is just embarrassing" unfortunately some parents dont yet understand the big losses are just as important to development as the big wins.
That's crazy to hear, but i do believe it. i for one as a coach and a dad for JDL (SAP) if faced with a big loss pick out key things they did this week and the key things we can work on at home or in training and try to focus the kids on this (can't control the parents)
end of the day we are told there is no results but the kids know so you need to encourage team work and team goals more.
I am all for telling kids when they do something wrong that they know is not upto scratch (usually behavior) outside that i am one very positive coach compared to other coaches i have come across
Unfortunately they do and even worse they carry on if a loss happens and start going on about their kid not being put in their position. As though a 9yo position is striker or a winger, even heard "but that's where he has always played".
As mentioned before at my club I was more heavily involved in our SAP teams last year and one of our teams struggled in terms of results but they got better each week and were much very competitive by the end of the season (even winning a couple games) but even then these parents in one of our U9 teams have decided to go elsewhere to what they deem as better teams.
If one team is running through and easily scoring goals and the other team can't touch the ball it isn't developing anyone. I don't care about the score but neither team gets better from it.