Play to win or play for memories?

[play4keeps]

I think there has to be a balance. My daughters NEVER played for a coach that didn't want to win but sometimes, depending on the opponent, the coach was realistic that playing a particular opponent wasn't going to have a winning outcome but viewed the game more as 'experience' -- the opportunity to raise your game and make a good showing. Playing hard, playing well isn't always going to have a winning outcome and sometimes the 'good and hard' has to be the reward

 

Hight school volleyball, for most players, IS about making memories. Most of the players won't go on to play after HS and those that aspire to that play club. That's not to say that players are never recruited out of HS, our HS in particular is heavily recruited by a local NAIA university and the girls who go on to play there almost never play club.

 

Coaches know this and good coaches, I believe, try to strike a balance between winning and fun. Only 8 teams in the entire state go to the championships. Our coach was never satisfied with making it to Sweet 16 but was happy that the girls have that memory.

 

Am I making sense this morning, or do I need more coffee?

[clubonlyforus]

Makes perfect sense to me.

 

Hopefully after we are gone and have moved on, I will be able to tell more of the things that have happened and most of you probably will be at least a little shocked. For now I am trying to keep some peace (while still trying to not explode! Haha).

[PHargis]

COF, not knowing your school but realizing what you have said, if you had the best coach in America, someone likely is going to have a gripe with something. Can you coach? Are you qualified? Will you tie up your sneakers and teach a setter, OH or libero? Will you condition the players on you team? Or will you take on the job of handling all of the personel issues or personal issues for what you are paying your coach? Are you a teacher? Is your coach also a teacher? Did your school or booster club suggest any coaching clinics to help him/her be better? has your coach been to State the last two or three years? Do your parents and players have a goal to reach State? Does your coach know that is their goal? Does your principal know that is their goal? Maybe, just maybe, someone or two should make the intentions known. BUT, don't make the mistake of parents being the only ones who have the goal. Without players signing off and believing, it will never happen. Varsity High School Volleyball players are there to represent their school and win and if they just want to be on a team, there are JV and levels of Club you can pay your money and everybody be happy (I doubt it). Most players do not want that they want to be the best they can be.

[PHargis]

P4K, read your post and I have heard you mention it on this site, why did you and your coach never make it to State. You certainly made an effort for some years and it seemed to make a difference to you at one time. And you did play club a few years. Your daughter did meet her goals evidently in and out of High Schools.

 

While I don't think so in this case and there are many who coach High School that are fine Club coaches and post on this site. this is the time of the year that the push is on to recruit players for Club and rightly so. Club has helped make VB in this State but there is a friendly competition between the Coaches of Club and High School Coaches. It reallly should not exist. Club is a money making venture and those in it work hard to create improvement and to a point they provide results. They work to find instructors who have exhibited the ability to teach the skills players are looking for. Most have used those skills themselves.That works for a while but an observation is that few are able to teach those final skills to the degree of a Super player. That takes more of a physical presence which genetically few achieve. So then why go thru the process. Teaching enhancements is an advantage and learning those abilities is an advantage.. it may allow them to teach someone else some day. To pay the amount each year on club has to have some motivation. Everyone has their own motivation and reason. But just to play for enjoyment? Certainly enjoyment has some excitement and broadens an interest and it is a reason to continue a relationship with an offspring, College and university coaches, IMO don't recognize that unless the monetary value of a scholarship is high enough for some interest. Many finally recognize a lot of schools offer those things to recruit Students in one way of another.. Its true, many HS coaches can't handle those skills but they can. If they can;t at one school they can at another. Why would an exceptional coach not want to try to step up the latter, unless the pay at the next level does not show an advantage. Got to be a reason. So there is a reason, to accomplish something and maybe its a coach in a teaching position, a resume type thing aor maybe its something else, recognition or maybe its the ability some day to walk back into a gym with someone you know and look up in the rafters and point and say I was on the team that earned that banner for this school. Its a part of history and for what thats worth its motivation in trying to win one, two or more, thats the period we are in right now and is more than Rec Ball. its hard work.. Memories have accdomplishments also.

Edited October 6, 2012 by PHargis

[play4keeps]

Why didn't we make it to state...let me count the ways...actually it's just counting one way...Region 5 plays through Region 6 which includes Brentwood, Ravenwood, Independence. We made it to the Sweet 16, 3 years in a row, and every year had to play through Independence to get to State. Well, the rest is history. We were a program where few girls played club at a high level or at all so many girls never touched a ball from November through July. Independence was the opposite. I don't underestimate the value of club -- you wouldn't practice the piano for a couple of months before a competition and then not touch the instrument for 9 months and expect to be successful. This has nothing to do with our HS coach other than to say some schools flat out tell their players they must play club if they hope to make the team. Our coach did not have either the mind set or the support of our administration to do that.

 

Yes, my daughters both played club. My oldest from 1999-2004 and my youngest from 2005-2010. Eleven years total. All at Impact/Alliance. My oldest was recruited at DIII and chose to coach instead. My youngest is currently a junior at a DII school in TN playing as a DS. Was club important. Absolutely. Our college team has 5 freshmen this year. 2 of them are starters. Those two played at a high level, at the same club (and in the spirit of full disclosure, I'm biased as I was a strong advocate for their recruitment but honestly I predict one of them will be the SAC Freshman of the Year), for the same coach. Both were court-ready when they got to school. The other 3 have GREAT potential (and killer swings). They also played for clubs -- 2 from other states, but were not ready for the speed of the college game and see very limited court time. I expect that one will step into a starting position next year with the other two seeing more court time but not really contributing until their junior year.

 

I have said this before, college coaches have limited or NO time to recruit as the HS and college seasons are at the same time. We have a lot of recruits on campus this time of year but it's due to the recruiting we do in the off season, aka club.

 

This has nothing at all to do with HS coaches or whether or not they want to win. This has to do with player development and the HS season is so short and so intense that coaches barely have time to play all required matches and tournaments much less do intense technique and skill training. That's what club is for.

 

**Now I will step off my soap box and let you all get back to your regularly scheduled topic**

Edited October 7, 2012 by play4keeps