I have been hearing some complaintsfrom different people because I have been neglecting my blog.
This is our typical start to camp.
I believe timing is the biggest struggle for the athlete when learning to attack, so we start there. Once they figure out when to begin to move towards the ball the rest seems easier. We have the athletes Start right from a set ball the very first time they try to attack. A setter will toss the ball straight up to them self and try to set the ball for the attacker. The attacker is told to wait for the ball to leave the setters hand then begin their approach. One of the big problems is the setting skills are really weak and we haven't covered it yet. But just ask them to push the ball as high as they can into the air and you will be surprised how well the drill works.
Then we will put the two skills together. The athletes will self set over the net to a passer, just like a freeball in a game. The ball is then passed to the setter and then caught. We have the ball caught so the set is more controlled for the attacker. We tell them the pass and the attack are the two most important concepts and we need to make sure our second contact is good. The setter will toss to self and set to an attacker just like we did in the first drill.
We will have the attacker stay in for 4 attacks in a row. There is a tendency for young coaches to have the athletes follow the ball. One contact and cross the net. But I believe they need multiple reps at the same skill. That way they can hear a correction and try it right away or figure out an adjustment on their own with passing. We will have three groups attacking along the net at the same time. Splitting the court into thirds. this will allow for more reps and less people standing around.
I have no excuse as to why it took so long for another entry, I just found myself distracted with other roles that I need to fulfill for my team. This summer I am part of the organization and presentation of 11 volleyball camps over an 8 week period. These camps are used as fundraisers for exhibition travel and scholarships. I find that fundraising has taken up a big chunk of this summer. We have planned a special trip for our team and we need to fund raise close to 50k this summer for everything.
I really enjoy the camps and working with the young athletes and coaches. it gives me a new perspective on learning. Especially when we are working with the 11 and 12 year olds. I haven't been a part of this many camps in a summer since for 15 years. Seeing different camps and their structure has led me to think of why and how camps are organized.
I find that often we start off at the young camps without putting things into context. The main purpose of volleyball is to score on the opposition. This is usually done through an attack. Quite often we would start with partner passing and working on passing and setting skills. These are two really important skills but neither lead to the score. I find that in young volleyball we have a celebration when we get three contacts. Pass to a pass to a pass. to me that isn't the way volleyball should be played. The last few years we decided to start our camps off with attacking. Since that is the ultimate goal, I feel we should start there. In the Edson And Vermillion Camps we had young athletes (11-14 years of age), so this was a bit chaotic. But with starting with attacking and reinforcing the attack we had more attempts than ever before.
I find that often we start off at the young camps without putting things into context. The main purpose of volleyball is to score on the opposition. This is usually done through an attack. Quite often we would start with partner passing and working on passing and setting skills. These are two really important skills but neither lead to the score. I find that in young volleyball we have a celebration when we get three contacts. Pass to a pass to a pass. to me that isn't the way volleyball should be played. The last few years we decided to start our camps off with attacking. Since that is the ultimate goal, I feel we should start there. In the Edson And Vermillion Camps we had young athletes (11-14 years of age), so this was a bit chaotic. But with starting with attacking and reinforcing the attack we had more attempts than ever before.
This is our typical start to camp.
I believe timing is the biggest struggle for the athlete when learning to attack, so we start there. Once they figure out when to begin to move towards the ball the rest seems easier. We have the athletes Start right from a set ball the very first time they try to attack. A setter will toss the ball straight up to them self and try to set the ball for the attacker. The attacker is told to wait for the ball to leave the setters hand then begin their approach. One of the big problems is the setting skills are really weak and we haven't covered it yet. But just ask them to push the ball as high as they can into the air and you will be surprised how well the drill works.
From this point we work backwards, now we ask for the attacker to make sure they are taking off on two feet as they jump. We will continue this until most seem to get the two feet take off. Then we ask the right handed attackers to face the setter when they take off and make sure their left foot is closest to the net. Then we move on to trying to get a longer second step and so on. The athlete now has a context of what they are trying to do.
Once we have a basic grasp of attacking we then move to passing. Our goal is to keep passing fairly simple at this level. We us two simple cues. First is platform, strong straight arms that are level. The second cue is the ball goes where you lean. This allows the athletes to make adjustments on their own. If I need the ball to go further ahead, I need to lean forward more, need the ball to go more to the right then I just lean more to the right. Leaning this way helps create a natural platform that is oriented towards the target.
Then we will put the two skills together. The athletes will self set over the net to a passer, just like a freeball in a game. The ball is then passed to the setter and then caught. We have the ball caught so the set is more controlled for the attacker. We tell them the pass and the attack are the two most important concepts and we need to make sure our second contact is good. The setter will toss to self and set to an attacker just like we did in the first drill.
We will have the attacker stay in for 4 attacks in a row. There is a tendency for young coaches to have the athletes follow the ball. One contact and cross the net. But I believe they need multiple reps at the same skill. That way they can hear a correction and try it right away or figure out an adjustment on their own with passing. We will have three groups attacking along the net at the same time. Splitting the court into thirds. this will allow for more reps and less people standing around.
At the start of the drill it might seem scrambled but we have found if we stick with it long enough they will get better. When I first started to coach camps through this more discovery method I found it was hard to let go of the control. One skill coach controlled drills always look smooth but when we apply them to a game situation they break down. How often do we hear the phrase if my team only plays like they practice.
The next progression is to split the three groups up into two and split the court in half. We now play a modified game. It is basically the same start to the drill. A ball is set over the net to a passer. The ball is passed to a setter who catches it. Then a self toss and set to an attacker who attacks it. Now we have two or three defenders on the other side of the net. They try to dig it up the ball and catch it for second contact. The setter then self toss and set a hitter on their side and a game continues.
This leads them closer to a game and they see all the concepts of what is necessary. All this happens in the first two hours of the camp.
From this point the athletes understand the basic flow to a game, now we can begin to teach the other skills and have the athletes understand where they fit into the game.
From this point the athletes understand the basic flow to a game, now we can begin to teach the other skills and have the athletes understand where they fit into the game.
I do believe there is a need for one skill drills, but only after they have an idea of where the skill fits into the game. Then we can break the skill down more and use the one skill drills as a method where they feel what the skill should be like. But we then need to put the skill back into a game situation, or a part of the cycle of the game.
We believe the best passing drill, is pass-set-hit. The best serving drill is serve-pass-set-hit. The best blocking drill is pass-set-hit-block. The best defensive drill is pass-set-hit-block-dig. The more we can put the skill into the context of the game the better the athletes understand its use and why it is necessary. I once heard Karch Kiraly speak and he said something along the lines that he couldn't beleive how many drills women teams do with no blockers. In a match maybe only 2 percent of the game is played with no blockers.
The first 2 weeks were at Jasper Volleyball Camp. I wrote about this camp in a blog post last year. http://coachingbobcats.blogspot.com/2012/07/jasper-volleyball-camp.htm.
The first 2 weeks were at Jasper Volleyball Camp. I wrote about this camp in a blog post last year. http://coachingbobcats.blogspot.com/2012/07/jasper-volleyball-camp.htm.
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