Determination time

Teaching determination.

After our home tournament we had to re-evaluate where we are heading.  In the tournament we played more people in different situations and were able to evaluate personnel and also where our system weaknesses are.  It also allowed us to compare our present athletes to each other and try to project where their skill level will be down the road.

As a whole the coaching staff is really impressed with the direction our team is heading.  After the disappointing result in the tournament the team’s commitment has jumped up 2 levels.  They realise that everyone around us is improving as well.  For us to achieve our goals, we need to improve at a faster rate than our opposition.

WE decided that since the week directly after the tournament was a bye week  that we could spend a little bit more time pushing players to make change.  WE would stop a drill and ask them to create the appropriate skill over and over before we would start competing again.  We made every drill a competitive drill.  Everything had a winner and a loser.  It was one of the rare times that I had to be bad cop.  I once read in a book by Jimmy Johnson when he coached the Dallas Cowboys “turning the thing around”  in there he talks about positive coaching. He explained he would be positive, positive positive positive, then bang negative.  The negative moment was so rare that it had a huge impact on the player.  Then he went on to say you have to celebrate with the player when then do the action right.  This week we put that theory to the test and it helped make huge improvements.  Before the week started we talked with the team about staying together and being positive.  That as a coaching staff we would be a little bit more negative and it was their job to keep the air positive.  By letting them know ahead of time helped create a positive air of change.

We also designed drills that would have players competing individually. An example of a drill would be server vs passer drills.  In these drills the only way to score was to pass a good pass (three pass), but to get into the passing part of the drill you had to force someone to pass bad by serving them tough or strategically.  If the passer scored a point, then the server  had to run to the other side of the court and serve from that side. A consequence for not winning directly on that point.  If the passer passed a zero or 1 pass then the server would become target and the target would become server.   Lots of running and movement. An unintentional by product of this was the athletes holding each other accountable.  If someone would pass a 1 then everyone would let the target know.

We also designed  drills that were very hard to score in.  Since volleyball went to rally point in the late 80’s every ball scores a point.  We have found that players accept the scoring of the opposition too easily.  We wanted to mimic every ball worth a point but still make it incredibly difficult to win the drill.  We decided to use a plus minus system.  Team A is trying to get to +7 and Team B is trying to get to -7.  The drill itself has one score.  Team A wins the rally goes up + 1, the next two balls team B wins suddenly the score is -1.  WE would have a serve and four down balls, then other team would serve.  Trying to mimic long rallies in a match but still scoring on each ball.  +7 seems to be a good numbe,r + or -5 was achieved a couple of times but the last two points were extremely hard to get.  WE eventually had a winner and the attackers were exhausted by the end of the drill.

Another drill we competed hard at was win 3 down balls in a row and your team  win the right to serve.  Two coaches on either side of the net will put a free ball or down ball into the winning team’s side.  Whichever team wins three of these free balls in a row has a chance to serve.  If they can win their serve point then they score a point. 

All these drills are meant to teach the group determination.  When they have an opportunity to score be excited and put the ball away. If we have to give a free ball then we head to the net with incredible determination instead of being back on our heels hoping for the other team not to score.  We need to change our mind set from oh no.  To bring it on!.  If they have done something that forces us to give a free ball then we want to win with a block or dig transition, so we can look across the net with the attitude is that all you got!

This is a big weekend for us coming up.  We play UBCO. They are a new team in Canada West.  Their record is 2-8 at the Christmas break, but their two wins came from beating U of Winnipeg and U of Manitoba, the fourth and fifth ranked teams in Canada.  When you take a look at UBCO second semester they have 6 or 7 matches that are winnable for them.  That would put them at 8 or nine wins.  We need to hold them down this weekend and climb up the win category.  This is basically a playoff match already.

Love the playoffs!!!!