Context. It may be my favorite word, but even then it would require more context! I had a wonderful conversation not too long ago with Sefu Bernard, who is a professional and youth basketball coach as well as coach educator. Some of our discussion centered around this topic, and in fact Sefu has written a great article about some of what we discussed which you can check out here! I often hear youth clubs proudly proclaim that they place their best coaches at the youngest ages. Man, talk about something that sounds really progressive and forward thinking. Surely, these are the people that get the development process! Or do they? What does best even mean? I use it, and then I catch myself using it because the term means nothing. It lacks context. Context is key!!! Why do you put your “best” coaches at the younger ages? What is the purpose? If your “best coaches” are coaching the younger ages, who is coaching at U11 and above? Or maybe U13 and above? Are these your “average” coaches? Should I assume your “bad” coaches are the ones who coach your MRL, ECNL, and Academy level teams? After the players develop and get older, once they have passed your “best” coaches, do they leave for the club that places their “best” coaches throughout? How does that work? The secret to a successful club is putting your “best” coaches at the level in which they are “best” at. Pep Guardiola may be the “best” coach in the world, but for all you and I know, he could be a lousy U9 coach. You have to delve deep and learn what “best” means for every coach in your club or on your staff. If you hire that successful college coach, are their skills suited for a U11 team, because they just “get” coaching and can work with any age group? Your “best” U8 coach can have a completely different knowledge base and skill set from your “best” U13 coach. When clubs talk about how they put their “best” coaches at the youngest ages, it screams of misunderstanding. If you have an A License coach who is best suited for U16-U18, why would you put him with U8-U10? If you have a coach who excels with the U7 and U8 age groups, and does a fantastic job, do they get promoted into older age groups where they actually are less qualified for? In fact, our licensing system with US Soccer does a great job of bringing the Peter Principle to life (Note, that is not a good thing). For those wondering, The Peter Principle is a concept in management where the selection of a candidate for a position is based on the candidate’s performance in their current role, rather than on abilities relevant to the intended role. E license coaches get the basics of working with younger groups, and each license above caters to older ages and more advanced curriculum. Our entire coaching system seems to be based off this idea, where a successful U7 coach gets promoted into coaching the U12 group and is out of his or her depth. The quality U16 and U18 coach gets the job as the Director of Coaching even though their skill set is founded in coaching and not necessarily managing. Coaching placement can be difficult. It’s easy to see an A license and assume that coach fits anywhere. The college coach may not work at the youngest age groups, simply because the differences from psychological, technical, and physical standpoints between a 6 year old and a 21 year old may not be suited for that coach’s knowledge base. We need to accept that going up the coaching ladder creates coaches who are “average” at coaching all levels, but few become masters. There are few Foundation Phase master coaches. There are few U8 master coaches, simply because our first inclination is to promote these people or put them in different roles. Mastery requires understanding the psychological, technical, social, physical, and tactical aspects of a 7 year old and how best to coach them. Or a 14 year old, or an 18 year old. Mastery requires a devotion to coaching that group, and not a “best practices” method in which we can put on a few sessions for any age group. It is important for a coach to be well-rounded to a certain level. To have a knowledge base that allows for an understanding of the entire development spectrum, a comprehensive understanding. But, there also comes an important point where a coach must understand where they are best suited; where there passion truly lies and where they want to invest their coaching career in. On the coaching carousel, well-rounded has morphed into average at all age groups, and mastery has fallen by the wayside. Can a coach change their mind about the area in which they feel a calling? Of course, but it is the act of deciding that will help the coach reach a new level of personal development. We have to identify the coaches who know where they make the biggest impact and let them flourish. “Best” means absolutely nothing unless you delve deeper. Place your “best” coaches in the ages in which they are “best” suited for: The ages in which they have a passion and a deep knowledge base for working with. Before you parade around that tried and tested statement, “Our best coaches work with our youngest players,” add some needed context and really put development at the forefront of everything you do! - Paul Cammarata
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9 Comments
This is an excellent article which I will share with the coaches in our club. I teach various ages but in our Grassroots program, I coach the under six? I am often asked why don't I let a less knowledgeable coach coach the younger ones? yes, it's true we don't get many volunteers for that age but I am a trained early ed teacher so I know what makes them tick! I can make them come back every week and give them a love for the game! I enjoy the silly games and the challenge of keeping their attention. It is amazing what the children do on their own once you set up the environment. I agree the best coaches are the ones who are best at the age group they are coaching. Awesome article!
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Nick
2/3/2016 10:50:07 am
Couldn't agree more that putting people in the roles that maximize their talent and passion is the best way for any organization to operate. Until the club soccer model changes to be more developmental (and getting compensated appropriately) no one will have a reason to reward coaches at the younger age groups the same they do for the older age groups. Therein lies the problem - people don't want to focus and excel on the lower levels of the ladder if advancement is the only way to earn more money/recognition.
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