Who travels as coaches?, Who chooses the coaches?

[jamielew]

I've heard on the grapevine that Chris is going to be the coach/manager for the ladies when they go to the worlds this year? How do our coaches feel about this?
How does Brian Stote feel about this? Surely we should be sharing the responsibility and the experience around so our coaches can become better at their jobs?

[peterb]

I go back to my post earlier.

Seems to me there's little point in becoming, or progressing as a coach if all you can expect to be asked to do is show newcomers to the game (who are few and far between around here) how to throw a ball.

For me, progressing as a coach means being able to aim towards coaching (representative) teams and players. However, I don't see myself ever being given a sniff of a chance of this, no matter how good I might be or become, because even our most qualified coaches can't get a look in.

The way it looks to me, the EPA don't take coaches or coaching seriously - it just looks good to the outside world to have a list of people who have 'qualified', it would seem.

What's the NATIONAL Coach's role in deciding who goes to these competitions? In fact, who actually makes the decision? Is there any evidence that this is done in a 'proper' manner?

Use us or lose us, EPA.

[Toni]

Junior team manager for Junior World Championships is Gareth Sullivan.
I know Gareth will give 100%,
but what are the Management committee on they appoint a team manager without consulting the team. Ignore the teams request for Jerome. Then when their first choice can not go they still ignore the teams request for Jerome and appoint someone else.

This is not about Chrisa Allen or about Gareth Sullivan, its about the team getting a coach that they are all happy and confident with and that can guide them at the level of play that they will be at. Can someone on the MC please tell me why the boys wishes were ignored.

This post has been edited by Toni on Aug 27 2009, 10:13 PM

[Brian Stote]

In response to Jamie's direct question to me and to link in with Peter's concerns, I have spent some time putting together the following. -

The current list of registered, qualified EPA coaches stands at 6 Grade 2's and 29 Grade 3's.

Of those, only one has what could be regarded as substantial international experience as a player and who therefore truly understands the pressures of contesting championships at world level.

Some have been playing for a very long time, by GB standards, and, if they have used their brains for critical appraisal of skills and tactics which they have observed either in high quality tournaments at which they have been spectators or at the highest level at which they have played, then they may have the knowledge to advise less experienced players, but there is no substitute for actual play under pressure.

In many more physical sports, the great majority of top coaches are drawn from the ranks of those who have played at international level but no longer have the pace or fitness levels to play in the top flight themselves. They then step naturally into the coaching role to pass on their experience to younger, fitter hopefuls.

Because it is possible to play our sport to an advanced age, we don't have a ready supply of 'retirees' from international ranks to contribute in this way and our coaching force is largely composed of those who have felt motivated to put something back into the sport, generally at a lower level, whilst still playing regularly up to inter-regional level.

In an earlier contribution, I wrote "We could achieve the best of both worlds if some of our most experienced international players were to be fast-tracked through a coaching award and thus be able, at the same time, to share their expertise with assistant coaches during coaching days for each of the age groups."

In my first experience of travelling abroad with an international team, I had the good fortune to be invited as an observing coach to accompany the former National Coach, Pat Watts, to the 2002 Junior European Championships at Haine-Saint-Pierre in Belgium. Pat was manager and Head of Delegation, while I was officially team coach, though really learning the ropes from Pat. He was coaching me. I didn't know the play of any of the lads in the team (Dominic Hickman, Matt Shrimpton, Sean Prendergast and Rob Binney) but the trip was invaluable in terms of observing the more sophisticated tactics and skill levels of foreign teams and watching the ways in which other coaches worked with their teams. My knowledge of French also meant that I could talk to some of the coaches about their methods of coaching and game analysis.

This sharing of knowledge (Pat was a greatly experienced international player in his own right) must be one way to make progress in the training of our coaches.

Another route, alluded to above, is to award coaching status to invited top internationals, under a fast-track system, and then players such as Jerome, Herve and Chris can bring their experience to bear in an accredited role.

The third potential strand is to use coaches from the top petanque nation in the world (which happens to be our nearest neighbour geographically) to work with English coaches and players.
I would be prepared to pay to attend a course run by, for example, Fred Ney, the French National Ladies' Coach, if he could be brought over to England. We cannot drag ourselves up by our own bootstraps.

We also need to encourage those coaches who want to gain further experience by, for example, making a seat available on a trip to a European Championship of any description as a learning exercise. They would be expected to produce a report on their return (as travelling coaches/ managers already are) in the expectation that any recommendations might be acted upon if they are seen as valid.

Most of our coaches are working in isolation with no forum to exchange ideas and views. We need support built into the structure for coaches to receive occasional refresher courses and mentoring by senior coaches.

If our qualified coaches are not considered to be experienced enough to accompany teams to tournaments abroad (perhaps justifiably so) then we need to give them that experience. If they don't know the players then we need to develop a coaching system which links coaches and players much earlier. We also need a set-up which allows our coaches to feel part of a mutually supportive group aimed at bringing up standards of coaching and play. Perhaps these are the ways to enhance the status of coaching in England.

[OLD GIT]

Very well put Brian

Are you up for National coach at the AGM ? Not that Dave does a good job with his limited time available

[Nicsdad]

I have to agree with Old Git, Well put Brian.

Nicsdad

[Foo]

well he has three votes now

Brian came to watch us play (among others) european club championship on the saturday and while he was not there as a coach a few things he said to me after games really really helped. he did not try and tell me how to throw the ball but more about the mental (yes as anyone knows i am mental) side of the game. Things that while you are playing you do not see.

Brian you have my vote.

Also i was led to believe you cant coach at international level if you have not passed level ?????????? whatever WHY??

[Brian Stote]

I don't know whether it was ever official policy, but at one time, in BPA days, it was accepted that you couldn't become a Regional Coach unless you were already a Grade 2 nor coach internationally unless you had played as an international for GB.

Since the inception of the EPA, regions are autonomous associations affiliated to the parent body and can now adopt whatever policies they like, provided that they do not conflict with national policy or guidelines.

As there are only 6 currently accredited Grade 2's, then the first criterion immediately falls by the wayside since there are not enough to go round, let alone allowing for the possibility of an association having the luxury of choosing which of its Grade 2's it wants as its regional coach.

If the second criterion were to stand, then only Simon Bird would be eligible.

We cannot add to the numbers of Grade 2's at the moment until the redesigned course for that level is brought into operation and the accreditation of anyone as a Grade 1 cannot happen since we have no criteria drawn up for any to be created.

I believe that the last Grade 1 under the old system was Lee Jamieson when he was National Coach for the BPA.

The former constituent members of the BPA / BPF are now developing their own systems of accreditation of coaches and Scotland has chosen a somewhat different route from the other two.

Anyone who would like to try for the Grade 3 coaching award can contact the National Coach and, once the numbers are sufficient (I would suggest that four would be an absolute minimum), he can set up a training and examination sequence at a mutually convenient venue.

Any Grade 2 Coach is qualified to run both the preparation day and the examination process but the results of the written exam are sent to the National Coach for checking of marking and of the practical exam for authentication and cross-checking.

We are at a sort of 'halfway house' until the new system is bedded in and then, I suppose, we can build on that.

[jack-and-mo]

Hello All,

I am assuming that all the active T/Bers (except one - me) are at Brean & are at the indoor 'Presentation' as I type this: -

I am puzzled - again, as to what is 'happening' or not, on this subject, since the last post ?

There was no unofficial friendly updating info available at the recent "Kent Classic" here in Kent, with some of the personalities involved being present. This was surprising!

The block details & the host's w/site 'link' has I find recently been deleted from the EPA's w/site 'home' page. Why?

Can anyone give a concise & understandable updating, as to what is happening/ the 'problem' resolved or not, regarding the previous posts?

The 'silence' is disturbing.

Regards,

Jack

This post has been edited by jack-and-mo on Sep 21 2009, 09:03 AM