18 February 2006
Survey of Coaching Development in Leinster
Brendan Harpur Chair, Subcommittee on Review of Coach Development
Sub-committee on Review of Coach Development
Sub-committee are undertaking this review:
Pat Henderson (Kilkenny) Sean Dempsey (Laois) Paddy Christie (Dublin) Sean Kelly (Meath) Noel Delaney (Leinster Coaching Director) Lester Ryan (Leinster Coaching Director) Brendan Harpur (Dublin)
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Content of Presentation
Profile of Respondents Overall and Comparisons of Survey Results
– Coaching Staff
– Foundation Course – Issues and Content Needs
– Accessibility of Information and Uptake on Best Practice Course – Knowledge Transfer and Support Levels
– Level 1 Course – Issues and Content Needs – Handball Results
Key Findings Going Forward
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Key Issues to be addressed
1. Code of Best Practice
2. Need for an Introductory course
on coaching. 3. Need Foundation participants to see an actual
Coaching Session in Action
4.The need to support Foundation participants at Club level. 5. The need to improve support to local schools by Clubs. Athletic Association) GAA (Gaelic
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Key issues to be addressed
6. The need to implement a Level 1 course for Juvenile coaches only
7. How to improve the coaching of key skills in Hurling and football. (Tackling/Evasion/Scoring) 8. How to address the Rules of the Game at Introductory, Foundation and Level 1 9. How to put in place the necessary resources for coach Tutors to deliver their courses 10. How to maintain and improve the Tutoring skills of Tutors
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Profile of Respondents
Number of Respondents – 138 Respondents, representing approximately 559 people
Number of clubs and schools – 65% Clubs or 90 Clubs; 28% Schools or 39 Schools; 7% unknown or 9 unknown
Coaching Roles of Respondents (N = 138) – 82% in an active coaching role
Attendees at the convened meetings – This included: School Liaison Officers, Club chairmen/persons, Executive Committee members, Voluntary team mentors, Adult Games chairmen/persons, Club officers, and Juvenile Committee members
Other views included 82 Level 1 course participants 27 Foundation tutors 11 Level 1 tutors 78 County players(36 football/36 Hurling/6 dual )
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Coaching Staff
2.1 Coaching Staff – Totals and Percentages of Males and Females
The vast majority of coaches are male. Roughly ≥95% for Football and Hurling.
On average, there are 9 active Football current Juvenile coaches per Club and 3 per school.
There are 8 per Club and 3 per School for Hurling;
There are 4 per Handball Club and 2 per School. There are consistently fewer female coaches, especially for Football and Hurling Clubs and Schools.
The percentage female coaches is highest for Schools versus Clubs and Handball compared to other sports.
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2.2 The course on "Code of Best Practice for youth sport?
All of them
26.8
A course is planned for our coaches
About 27% of the respondents say that all of their Club Juvenile /School coaches have undertaken the course on “Code of Best Practice for Youth Sport”. 11% indicate that a course is planned for their coaches.
10.7
None of them
35.7
About 63% either „don‟t know‟ or indicate that none of their coaches have undertaken this course.
Far too many either „don‟t know‟ or report low take up of this important course.
9
Don't know
26.8
0
5
10
15
20
25
30
35
40
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2.3 – 2.5 & 2.8 Courses, a log book and receipt of certificates
More coaches have completed the Foundation versus the Level 1 course. On average per Club / School, 6 Football and 4 Hurling coaches have completed the Foundation, and 2 and 2 respectively, the Level 1 course. An average of 2 Juvenile coaches per Club / School have completed the log book & received a certificate. An average of 2.5 adult coaches per Club / School have completed the Foundation course and 1 for the Level 1 course.
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2.6 – 2.7 Reasons for Inactivity among Coaches
Other commitments 17.4 16.7
Own children no longer involved Moved on to adult coaching 9.4
“Other Commitment” and “Own children no longer involved” appear to be the top reasons for a coach‟s inactivity over time. Perhaps increasing the levels of commitment and personal satisfaction gained from coaching are among the key drivers for sustaining activity levels among coaches who have completed the Foundation and Level 1 courses.
Needed additional adult helper
8.7
Generally found tasks too difficult
6.5 6.5
Difficulty in dealing with young players Difficulty in dealing with School or Club Authorities 2.9
Difficulty in dealing with parents 0
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2.9 5 10 15 20
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Foundation Course – Issues and Content Needs
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3.1 – 3.2 Parents and Key Topics for Shorten Version of Foundation Course
% Ticking 38.4 32.6 32.6 29.0 27.5 25.4 23.2 21.0 20.3 19.6 13.8 9.4 6.5
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A solid majority of the respondents (65.7%) believe that parents (who are not intending to become active coaches) should have a shorter version of the Foundation course.
According to the respondents, the Top 5 key topics for such a course should include the shaded items in the table.
Key Topics Organising and controlling children Coping with indiscipline Enjoyment Rules of the game Seeing a practical coaching session in operation Respect for the referee Code of Best Practice for youth sport Appreciation of First Aid How to structure a coaching Session How to actively support the coach at training and/or matches Overall Aims and Objectives of the GAA The basics of running jumping and coordination Management and Administration of teams
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3.3 - 3.5 Foundation Course
Both Clubs / Schools agree that the Foundation course should be primarily aimed at „Those who wish to become active in coaching teams‟ (41% and 50% respectively) and „Parents and Coaches‟ (45% and 47% respectively) 100% of clubs / schools would favour the Foundation course to consist of the following parts: – Part 1: An appreciation of coaching for Parents / Mentors / Coaches, and – Part 2: Emphasis on the practical aspects of coaching for Active Coaches. Over 54% of the Clubs indicated that a “Theory Session followed by practical” and that “Seeing a Coaching session in operation” were both essential methods of delivery for the Foundation course.
The Schools agreed at 49% in both cases. None of the other methods exceeded this percentage for the schools.
77% of the Clubs and 83% of the Schools felt that if the Foundation course content was increased, they would be prepared to attend for 9 hours rather than 12 hours.
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3.6 Foundation Course Topic Priorities
Clubs Priorities 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 Schools Priorities 3 2 1 4 5 9 7 6 8 11 10 12 13 16 15 14
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Top 5
Bottom 5
Foundation Course Topics Fundamental skills Enjoyment Organising and controlling children Structuring a coaching session Seeing a practical coaching session in operation Rules of the game Coping with indiscipline Code of Best Practice for youth sport The basics of running jumping and coordination Respect for the referee Organising games for young players Warm up and stretching exercises Appreciation of First Aid Overall Aims and Objectives of the GAA How to actively support the coach at training and/or matches Management and Administration of teams
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3.7 Assessment and Accessibility of Information (4.1 / 4.2)
Type of Assessment Undertaking practice supervised by the Tutor during course Table quiz and practice supervised by the Tutor Coaches should not be assessed Taking a table quiz on the content of the course No assessment; but observation Assessment through Observation or Feedback
% Clubs 47 29 12 9 1 1
% Schools 41 30 22 7 0 0
Clubs and Schools prefer that coaches participating on a Foundation course should be assessed by means of „undertaking practice supervised by the Tutor during the course‟.
Both also agree that information on the Foundation courses in their counties are „readily available‟ (71% for Clubs and 85% for Schools).
Both also agree that information on the Level 1 course in their counties is „readily available‟ (68% for Clubs and 82% for Schools). However, improvements are needed as Clubs also indicate that in some instances information on the Foundation (21%) and on Level 1 courses (27%) is not readily available.
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Accessibility of Information and Uptake on Best Practice Course
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4.3 – 4.5 Special Workshops
(Topics listed under Clubs, Schools and Football and Hurling according to % interest)
Clubs – Football & Hurling
Fundamentals of Agility, Coordination and Balance, 60% Physical conditioning, 59% First Aid, 57% Young Referees course, 51%
Schools – Football & Hurling
Fundamentals of Agility, Coordination and Balance, 51% Physical conditioning, 41% First Aid, 49%
School--Football Clubs Football
Tackling skills in Gaelic Football, 71% Drills to improve football skills, 68%
Schools - Football
Drills to improve football skills, 69% Tackling skills in Gaelic Football, 59%
Go Games Workshop, 56% Kicking or Possession, 54%
Kicking or Possession, 54% Go Games Workshop, 44%
Young Referees course, 46%
Clubs - Hurling
Schools - Hurling
Hurling Advanced Skills, 59% Indoor Hurling Drills, 51% Go Games Workshop, 46% Wall Ball activities, 41%
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Only workshop topics showing higher interest levels (≥40%) are listed here. Special workshops which provide for skills acquisition, conditioning, and drills seem to be the most desirable for coaches.
GAA (Gaelic Athletic Association)
Hurling Advanced Skills, 36% Indoor Hurling Drills, 36% Go Games Workshop, 36%
Knowledge Transfer and Support Levels
5.1 – 5.2 Knowledge Transfer and Support Levels
From your experience, what percentage of Foundation course participants apply their learning from the course to actual teams:
– 39% of Clubs indicate „25% to 50%‟ and 24% say „>50% to 74%‟
– 37% of Schools indicate „25% to 50%‟ and 37% say „>50% to 74%‟
What difficulties do Foundation participants encounter in applying their learning to actual Teams or Groups:
Top 10 Difficulties 1. Managing disruptive children 2. Keeping variety in drills 3. Communicating to groups 4. Too many Children to supervise 5. Dealing with Parents 6. Need for an experienced coach to help them through the initial sessions 7. Designing and conducting Skill Drills 8. Demonstrating Skills 9. Observing and correcting Skills 10. Giving Feedback to players
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Club Schools 57 46 49 54 47 36 41 38 37 18 37 31 31 29 28 26 21 21 33 23
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5.3 Evidence showing that Juvenile coaches made a difference
What evidence to you have that Juvenile coaches, who have completed coaching courses, have made a difference to your Club/ School players
Increased skill levels of players Clubs, 48 Schools, 31 Clubs, 43 Schools, 26 Clubs, 37 Schools, 28 Clubs, 33 Schools, 15 Clubs, 31 Schools, 23 Clubs, 19 Schools, 21 Clubs, 11 Schools, 13 0 10 20 30 40 50 60
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Increase in numbers of players attending training
Greater variety in coaching sessions
More involvement by parents
More people prepared to take up active coaching
More successful in competitions
No evidence
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Full time Coaches
Very little support is provided by the full time Employed Club Coach to the Club / School according to the respondents‟ feedback. Only 14% of Clubs and 15% of Schools say that the coach provides advice and guidance to the Club / school‟s juvenile coaches
13% of both Clubs and Schools says that the coach „coaches juvenile teams.
In fact both report that the coach spends <50% of actually coaching players (56% of Clubs and 57% of Schools report this.) 29% of Schools and 28% of Clubs says that the full time Employed Club Coach spends 50% to 74% of time actually coaching players
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5.5 Problems Coaches Encounter with Schools
Very few Clubs are Schools reported that full time employed Club Coaches entered problems when working with schools.
Other than possible problems regarding „no obvious follow up on coaching from teachers,‟ and the „lack of interest from teachers‟, the following graph shows that the vast majority (≥80%) report few problems encountered.
Problems the full time Employey Clubs Coaches encounter when working with schools Problems listed No clear understanding of role from the school Lack of interest from teachers No obvious follow up on coaching from teachers Little or no team competition organised in the school Lack of equipment Unsuitable facilities at the school Clubs - Clubs - Schools Schools % No %Yes - %No %Yes 96 86 83 92 98 93 4 14 17 8 2 7 95 95 95 97 100 100
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5 5 5 3
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5.7 Skills or Aspects of Game Presenting the Greatest Difficulties in Developing Players
Hurling_Tacklingskills Hurling_Scoringskills Hurling_Evasiveskills Hurling_Passingskills Hurling_Carryingskills Hurling_Warmup Hurling_ReceivingSkills Football_Tackling skills Football_Evasive skills Football_Scoring skills Football_Passing skills Football_Receiving skills Football_Warm up Football_Carrying skills 0 5 5 10 8 14 13 20 30 40 50 60 70 13 19 28 30 33 39 42
32 26 24 23 22 19 5 5 8 9 10 13 21
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Clubs
Schools
51
59
The greatest difficulty is with tacking, evasive, and scoring skills.
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County Players views
Most neglected in modern coaching
Football
No.1 Tackling
Hurling
Hooking
No.2 No.3
No.4
Blocking Kicking
Pick- up
Frees/ Sidelines Blocking
Catching
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5.8 – 5.9 Level of Support to Schools
Coaching support from Clubs to Schools – 91% of the Clubs describe the level of support the Club gives to local schools in relation to coaching Football as "moderate to high." Only 43% of the schools report the same. – 77% of the Clubs describe the level of support the Club gives to local schools in relation to coaching Hurling as "moderate to high." Only 36% of the schools report the same. – Rather 64% report mixed or minimal to no support.
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5.10 Most Important Issues
What are the most important issues for local schools in relations to coaching Football and Hurling?
Issues were identified based on whether >20% of the respondents ticked each items as a issue. For Clubs, most of the issues involve Football within the primary schools. This includes the "Need for a coach from the Club", "Need for Mentors / Team Managers to assist at matches", and "Coaching courses for teachers". These also were consistently mentioned across Football and Hurling as well as the "Need for a coach from the Club", "Coaching courses for teachers“, and “Coaching Equipment” being mentioned for Secondary Schools.
% Ticking Clubs Football - Clubs - Need for Mentors / Team Managers to Assist at Matches 31 Football - Clubs - Need for a coach from the Club 24 Football - Primary Schools - Need for Mentors / Team Managers to Assist at Matches 37 Football - Primary Schools - Coaching courses for teachers 34 Football - Primary Schools - Need for a coach from the Club 33 Football - Secondary Schools - Need for Mentors / Team Managers to Assist at Matches 22 Football - Secondary Schools - Coaching courses for teachers 22 Hurling - Clubs - Need for Mentors / Team Managers to Assist at Matches 21 Hurling - Primary Schools - Need for Mentors / Team Managers to Assist at Matches 24 Hurling - Primary Schools - Coaching courses for teachers 24 21 Hurling - Secondary Schools - Need for Mentors / Team Managers to Assist at Matches
Schools Football - Secondary Schools - Coaching courses for teachers Hurling - Secondary Schools - Coaching courses for teachers Hurling - Secondary Schools - Coaching Equipment Football - Secondary Schools - Need for a coach from the Club
% Ticking
26 26 23 21
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5.10 Most Important Issues
What are the most important issues for local schools in relation to coaching Football and Hurling?
Issues were identified based on whether >20% of the respondents ticked each items as a issue.
For Clubs, most of the issues involve Football within the primary schools. This includes the "Need for a coach from the Club", "Need for Mentors / Team Managers to assist at matches", and "Coaching courses for teachers".
These also were consistently mentioned across Football and Hurling as well as the "Need for a coach from the Club", "Coaching courses for teachers“, and “Coaching Equipment” being mentioned for Secondary Schools.
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Level 1 Course – Issues and Content Needs
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6.1 – Content and Issues for Level 1 Course
Clubs Level 1: Issues and Content Needs Rank Means Fundamental Techniques 1 3.9 Team Play Tactical Ploys 2 4.8 Physical Fitness 3 5.6 Planning a Yearly Programme 4 5.9 Non-pressure Pressure Drills 5 6.0 Tactical Prowess and Decision Making 6 6.5 Refereeing Rules of the Game 7 6.9 Fitness Testing 8 7.4 Performance Analysis 9 7.7 Flexibility 10 7.7 Conflict Resolution 11 7.9 Psychological Wellbeing 12 8.4
GAA (Gaelic Athletic Association)
Schools Rank Means 1 3.4 2 3.9 5 5.5 6 6.3 3 4.8 4 5.0 9 8.3 11 8.4 7 7.5 8 7.7 12 8.4 10 8.3
The priorities for Clubs and Schools in the Level 1 Course involve: – Techniques – Fitness – Planning the Programme – Drills – Tactical Decision Making
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6.2 – 6.4 Testing for Level 1 and Intermediate Course Elements
84% of Clubs and 82% of Schools agree that a Level 1 Coach should successfully complete a Test on the Playing Rules before being certified.
Considerably fewer Clubs and Schools see a need for some form of Intermediate course between Foundation and Level 1 for Active Coaches: – 51% of Clubs say “Yes”, 30% “No” and 19% neutral on this matter
– 33% of Schools say “Yes”, 30% “No” and 37% neutral on this
matter
Those that say “Yes” consider the following the key elements of such a course:
See the illustration on the next page.
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6.4 Intermediate Course – Key Elements
What would you consider to be the key elements of an Intermediate Course between Foundation and Level 1 courses
Clubs, Rank 1
35 30 25 20 15 10 5 0 10 18 15 13 15 31 29 28
Schools, Rank 1
28 Clubs (%Yes) 26 Schools (%Yes) 18 15
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6.5 Do you agree that the Steps in Coach Development should consist of 5 Steps
Your Feedback
5 Step Plan Step 1 Agreement Step 2 on Steps to Coach Step 3 Development
Step 4
An appreciation of coaching for parents / coaches / teachers (98% Clubs; 96% Schools)
Practical aspects of coaching for active coaches (97% Clubs; 100% Schools) An intermediate level between the foundation and Level 1 courses for active coaches or as identified in „key elements‟ (65% Clubs & Schools) “Level 1” Course designed for juvenile coaches only (75% Clubs; 82% Schools)
Fully supported
Fully supported
Majority Support
Majority Support
Step 5
The current “Level 1” course but only for coaches involved with adult teams (69% Clubs; 67% Schools)
Majority Supported
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6.6 Overall and Specific Assessments of the Level 1 Course
Clubs Statements to Assess Level 1 Course Overall Relevance of the Level 1 to the role of a Coach Applied what I learned with to team Applied some things to team Helped general understanding Overall Effectiveness of Instruction Clarity of Presentations Ease of Understanding for Presentations General standard of documentation Ease of understanding the documentation Relevance of the documentation General standard of equipment used (visual aids etc) Overall rating of the venue Level of comfort of the venue Appropriateness of the venue Freedom from distractions Level of accessibility of the venue The pace of the Level 1 course
Schools
% Satisfactory % Satisfactory to Excellent to Excellent 100 99 97 98 100 100 98 91 91 91 98 94 92 94 94 96 94 100 100 100 100 100 100 100 100 93 100 90 100 87 100 93 100 90
General consensus is high levels of satisfactory to excellent experience with the Level 1 course.
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6.7 – 6.9 Details of Level 1 Course
The pace of the level 1 course is reported by both Clubs (92%) and Schools (88%) to be „about right.‟ Not more than 6% said that it was „too advanced‟ (Schools and Clubs at 6%) or „too elementary (Schools at 6%; Clubs at 2%)
On average, about 20 to 22 participant coaches attend the Level 1 course. Over 60% of Clubs (63%) and Schools (71%) believe that these numbers are „just right‟ considering the course objectives.
The general consensus seems to be that about 25 to 50 participants are „too many‟, 12 is some cases is „too few‟, and between 15 and 20 are generally considered to be „just right.‟
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Changes Recommended by participants
No.1 Shorter / more concise No.2 Less repeating
No.3 Standardise Handouts
No.4 Focus on Juvenile or Adult coaching No.5 More examples of sessions/drills
No.6 Minimum requirements for participants
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Handball Results
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7.1 – 7.2 Handball Issues and Content Needs
Compared with Clubs, Schools more often report Handball to be an active sport. For example, 37% (10 of 27) of Schools indicate that it is an active sport , only 8% (5 of 60) of the responding Clubs say this. Thus 92% of Clubs and 63% of the Schools do not have Handball as an active sport. Of these, 46% (26 of 56) of the Clubs and 44% (8 of 18) of the Schools say „yes‟ they would like to see Handball promoted in their Club or School. Also, 43% of Clubs and 44% of Schools responded with „maybe in the future‟ they would like to see it promoted.
46 Yes 44
43 Maybe in the Future 44
%Clubs 11 No 11 %Schools
0
5
10
15
20
25 30 Percentages
35
40
45
50
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7.3 – 7.7 Handball Issues and Content Needs
The active juvenile members are between 16 and 23 coaches, of which roughly 10 are males and 10 are females for clubs. For schools the active juvenile members average between 13 and 31, of which roughly 15 are males and 10 are females. The active playing adult members for clubs are an average between 10 and 18, of which roughly 8 are male and 13 are female.
The active playing adult members for Schools are an average of 4 with the majority being male. No data was submitted on numbers of females playing Handball for Schools. The Clubs estimate that nearly 4 adults per club would be interested in undertaking a coaching course for handball coaches. The schools reported an interest of one per responding school. Nine clubs responded to this question and 7 schools responded. In terms of facilities available, both Clubs and Schools says they either have no facilities (52% and 56% respectively) or that they do not have a handball alley or suitable indoor or outdoor walls. An average of 97% of Clubs and 94% of Schools indicated that these facilities were not available at their Clubs or Schools.
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Additional Comments
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County Players comments
Q.2 What you remember most about best underage coach
No.1 Good at skills and drills
No.2 Always encouraged No.3 Good instruction No.4 Treated everyone the same
No.5 Passion for game No.6 Organised and well prepared Q.3 What you remember most about least effective coach
No.1 Bad language/ Shouting No.2 Poor drills No.3 Too much physical
No.4 Bad organisation No.5 Bad communication
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Key Findings Going Forward
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10 Key Issues
1. Ensuring that all coaches have undertaken the Code of Best Practice and that all Foundation tutors can deliver this module.
2. The need to design and implement an Introductory course on coaching aimed at parents, would be mentors and coaches.
3. Providing an opportunity for Foundation participants to see an actual Coaching Session in Action 4. The need to support Foundation participants to implement initial sessions at Club level.
5. The need to improve support to local schools by Clubs.
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!0 Key Issues
6.The need to implement a Level 1 course for Juvenile coaches only.
7.How to improve the coaching of key skills in Hurling and football. (Tackling/Evasion/Scoring) 8. How to address the Rules of the Game at Introductory, Foundation and Level 1 9. How to put in place the necessary resources for coach Tutors to deliver their courses
10. How to maintain and improve the Tutoring skills of Tutors
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Thank You!
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