Make session enjoyable
Set Team Goals
Stages of Learning
The previous Sunday it was important for the players resurrect themselves as a team and as individuals as last weeks training session was about setting morals and team work. It was important to forget about the previous weeks performance as compliance was gained and keeping the players in the dog house (Martens, 2004), would just build pressure on them and anxiety would be experienced hindering performance. The team ran out 4-0 winners against Blyth Spartans, a great result , it would seem that the players were all extroverted on Sunday, they were focused and aroused to a more optimum level in order to perform, this was caused by and increased amount of activity as after the game the captain said the players knew they had done wrong the week before and wanted to gain my respect, this supports Yerkes and Dodsons Law (1908) as extroverts are renowned for heightening their arousal to a more optimal level by increased activity, social engagement and other stimulation-seeking behaviour The ability to perform these components is questioned; Weinberg (Weinberg, 2003) argues that players need to maintain a level of concentration, motivation and arousal levels. .
Tonight’s session was about making the drills enjoyable and building on the team spirit that had been placed following the impressive performance at the weekend. The warm up was called king of the ring and although this is predominantly a child’s game, it was clear that although this drill was well below the players age demands, the enjoyment was there for all to see. King of the ring is a dribbling drill used to make players look up whilst dribbling with the ball; awareness is also used in this drill as the objective is to be the last man standing with your ball inside the circle. The drill was progressed quickly as the circle was made smaller, as a result of the players grasping the cognitive stage of the drill it was important to use differentiation, this encouraged the players to shield the ball and make use of their upper body strength keeping their ball on the furthest foot away from the opponent, it was obvious that everyone wanted to win, as a coach having differentiaition in drills improves achievement and motivation of the players (Wigfield, 2002; Eccles 2002). This supports Watkins finding in the late eighties that adolescence posses a greater level of physical activity and that excellence in athletic ability is dependant on physical skills (Watkins, 1989). Authors such Kelly research in the eighties contradict Watkins theory and that sporting excellence does not just depend on physical ability, cognitive, emotional and interpersonal are components that lead to excellence in performance suggesting there is a great deal of psychological elements that make a great performer. The interpersonal element resulted in the players excelling in this drill as in the drill debrief the players commented on how much they enjoyed it, I asked the players if they knew what the aim of the drill was, they could not answer the question. This could suggest that the players were autonomous in their performance, further suggestions could identify that the players were in the top-down model where their central system is advanced in order for minimum cognitive thinking taking place. It was important for the players to experience an enjoyable drill, the performance level was very high, this supports Gardner’s writing in the early nineties, he quoted that if a performer is enjoying a session they perform to a higher ability (Gardner, 1991), relating to this research conducting exciting and enjoyable sessions is identified as positive discipline by Martens research this is progressed from step one, this is creating the right team culture (Martens, 2004), of course any player will tell you they want to win, but encouraging good practice and enjoyment is what sport is about that is the environment I am trying to create.
Sundays 4-0 victory was the second clean sheet of the season, the response form the players was just what the doctor ordered, from this I wanted the team to be dedicated to the team goals which I was about to set, setting team goals is part of the coaching process skills identified by Lyle where planning for competition is concerned (Lyle, 2002). I wanted the team see how many games they could go without conceding a single goal this included cup matches, Salas (Salas et al, 2001) that goal setting and problem solving are more than likely to have positiveeffect on team performances, this would be taken one game at a time and the necessity of all the players in agreement to this goal was vital. I expressed my belief in the players that they could achieve this goal, with the hope that this would install belief in the players to carry out the task, extrinsic factors can hinder the achievement of team goals, this includes the opposing team, their environment, but most importantly the team them selves, the ability to perform these components is questioned; Weinberg (Weinberg, 2003) argues that players need to maintain a level of concentration, motivation and arousal levels. .
Setting team goals are essential to performers; it can be the difference between winning and loosing, it is a coach’s role to develop the players in order to achieve these goals, they have to set the correct environment in order for the player’s state of arousal to be reached (Yerkes and Dodson, 1908), This relates to Sir Alex Fergusons beliefs that are the role of a football coach is identified as shaping and motivating the players as individuals and as a team in order to achieve their goals that are set (Sir Alex Ferguson, 2002).
A number of skills are required in order to enhance team goals, when referring to the role of a coach; these are identified as discipline, communication and enthusiasm (Sabock, 1973). D Broadley (1999) argued that a whole number of people that take on the role of coach are unaware of the depth of knowledge and skills required, as football is no different to any other subject, if taught properly can enhance an increased level of development of not only the coach but the participants and their goals, this relates to Holbrook and Barr’s research into how respect is gained, being knowledgeable about the sport gains respect of the players (Holbrook, 1979; Barr, 1979) this knowledge can be gained by personal experience or by listening to another personal experience. Relating to this research it is clear that in order for the team to achieve this goal set by myself, it is up to me to guide and instruct the squad to the best of my ability, a humanistic approach to coaching of which I have tried to work closely to when delivering these coaching sessions is a good way to deliver theses seesions, this has been addressed by Lyle as the emphasis of empowerment of the individual towards achieving his/her goals that is created by a persons centred philosophy (Lyle, 2002).
Gardner, S. (1991). The Tensions Between Education and Development. Journal of Moral Development, 20 (2), 113-125
Holbrook & Barr (1979) Respect May be gained. [online]
Martens, R, (2004). Successful Coaching.
Lyle, J. (2002) Sports Concepts [online]
Sabock, R.J, (1973) The Coach. The University of Michigan
Salas, E. Klein, G.A. (2001). Linking Expertise and Naturalistic Decision Making. Lawrence Erlbaum Associates Publications. 142.
Sir Alex Ferguson (2002) Roles of a Coach [Online] accessed 30/11/07
Watkins, B., Montgomery, A., (1989) Conceptions of Athletic Excellence among Children and Adolescents. Child Development, Vol. 60, No. 6, pp. 1362-1372
Weinberg, R.S. (2003) Foundations of Sport and Exercise Psychology. USA: Worth Publishers, Inc.
Wigfield, A., Eccles, J.S. (2002) Development of Achievement Motivation (Education Pscyhology. U.S: Academic Press Inc.
Yerkes, R. M., & Dodson, J. D. (1908). The relation of strength of stimulus to rapidity of habit-formation. Journal of Comparative Neurology and Psychology, 18, 459-482
1 comment:
Your work shows insight and awareness. I think at times however that you try to sound more impressive by using words and phrases that you don't fully understand. It is probably better to keep things simple. If you use terms wrongly you end up sounding like "Del Boy" - a bit of a plonker!
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