NS Coach Newsletter Vol 2(9) October, 2013

Volume: 2 Edition (9)

Posted: Wednesday, October 28^th, 2013

All Newsletters available at www.laxcoachns.blogspot.ca

 “If we can make things better, how cool is that!”

News: “Professional Development and YOU!”

Did you attend the Atlantic Coaching Conference this past year or coach a team or complete an NCCP module like, “Making Head Way in Sport”? If yes to any or all, starting in 2014, the Coaching Association of Canada (CAC) will give Certified Competitive Introduction coaches credit for attending these professional development (PD) events. And don’t think lacrosse is the only one who has figured out that life-long learning greatly benefits all our athletes, not just the high performance achievers.

The CAC is helping every sport across Canada to formalize the number of points Certified Comp Intro coaches will acquire and the time period, or cycle, with which to complete the total number of PD points. At the CLA coaching sector meeting held in Toronto last week, the committee recommended that CLA adopt a five year cycle in which coaches would achieve 20 points.

Professional development can come in many forms in the way of NCCP modules, sport specific clinics or sport related sessions like sport psychology or nutrition. As points for these events vary, CAC has set up a points matrix which can be viewed in the following PDF file (pages 9-14, points matrix table on pg 14:  http://www.coach.ca/files/NCCP_Policies_ImplementationStandards_Jan2013.pdf )

                                                                                                             

In the future Certified Competitive Development coaches (the next step after Comp Intro) will work towards 30 points in the five year period. At this time, CLA is still putting the final touches on the Comp Dev program and plans to offer two of these clinics in 2014, roughly January and March next year.

News: “Team Nova Scotia Head Coaches”

Reminder that the Team Nova Scotia Head Coach application deadline is only days away, Friday, November 1^st. If you have not received or require the Process and Application documents, please forward an email as soon as possible to lacrossetechdirector@sportnovascotia.ca . Like last year, applications will be accepted up to 5pm.

Teams requiring Head Coaches for 2014 include: Girls’ (box) bantam, midget and juniors; Boys (box) peewee, bantam, midget and Founders; and, men’s field U16 and U19. If you are interested in coaching any of the other potential provincial teams (eg. President’s Cup), please state your intentions, and submit your application, before November 1^st.

Technical Director’s “My 2 Cents”

It just makes sense to me that we divide our box and field divisions into age groups, but after spending two very intense days working on CLA’s new skills matrix table last week in Toronto, the LTAD stage categories do better help coaches deal with gender and life stage development versus date of births. A case in point: Last January I posted the LTAD skills “wheel” diagrams on our blog, www.laxcoachns.blogspot.ca . The five wheels are separated by the age groups we use in box lacrosse, tyke to midget. What I wasn’t able to accommodate was the needs of female box lacrosse players because some of their guidelines run between the age divisions.

A quick review of the LTAD groupings:

Active Start –                                      G & B 0-6 years                       MiniTyke: 4-6

Fundamentals –                                  G 6-7               B 6-10              Tyke:Novice 7-8:9-10

Learning 2 Train –                              G 8-10             B 10-12            Peewee 11-12

Training 2 Train –                               G 11-14           B 12-16            Bantam 13-14

Learning & Training 2 Compete -       G 15-21+         B 16-23+          Midget:Jr 15-16:17-21

Learning & Training 2 Win -               G & B 17+                                Senior & Pro

G=Girls, B=Boys

So at a quick glance, you can see that the box age divisions don’t fit neatly into the LTAD scheme which reflects “physical, mental and emotional capacities in athletes according to scientifically-recognized principles and stages of human development”. A great point raised last week while reviewing the miss-matches, what if a set of standards with measurable criteria were available to group players into their LTAD divisions? Certainly for boys at the peewee stage where height and weights seem to range the most, this plan could bear fruit. But lets get back to reality, that ain’t going to happen.

So what to do? Well, it was the committee’s job to identify every technical and tactical skill related to box lacrosse (men’s and women’s field to come) and create a delivery path for each skill based on INTRO, DEVELOP, REFINE and PERFECT (Each of these where also divided into three more divisions). These four pathway divisions were then spread across the LTAD divisions, which could mean that a single delivery division could span several LTAD divisions. An example: Scooping’s DEVELOP division spans Fundamentals to Learn 2 Train.

At this point the KISS rule (Keep It Simple Stupid) and our rapidly expanding skills matrix table seem to be at odds, but the key for every box coach is to know when a skill needs to be introduced, when its complexity needs to be enhanced and/or incorporated into game tactics and making sure players reach the appropriate skill level related to the highest standards and/or measurable levels for a specific LTAD division.

To put the highest standards in perspective of their impact, my first thought was National competition. However, listening to Ontario’s technical director, their apex is easily the NLL. Imagine then if we backtracked using my standard versus Ontario’s to the level of our peewee provincial and select teams.

To really go out on a limb here, what if we box coaches took charge and set one evening a week to novice, peewee and bantam divisions during the month of April at Rocky Lake Dome? An example: All novice teams and coaches meet every Tuesday evening for one-and-a-half hours (Three-hours if two sessions are required). Over three to four weeks, coaches and players review the basics and introduce all technical skills up to the level recommended by the present LTAD suggestions. For peewee and novice, basic tactical skills could also be reviewed. As players went through “basic training”, coaches could develop and refine their teaching skills with the help of more experienced coaches and work towards NCCP Comm Dev standards.

Another great reason for doing this is that the CLA coaching sector is working towards removing the workbook requirements for Comm Dev. We could kill two birds with one stone: Review basics for players and get them up to game speed before May 1^st league play and more conveniently move coaches through the NCCP Comm Dev coaching process/manual (Completely admit to ripping off Wayne Finck’s coaching clinic “module” idea).

The Metro Minor Lacrosse League took a great step in grouping tyke and novice games last year, which absolutely helped the development of new tyke players and coaches. As technical director it was great to sit down and watch four or five novice games in a row, but as much as the MMLL wanted to help develop novice coaches, more focus had to be placed on the newer referees, who received great on-the-spot game feedback. The novice game schedule did not allow group coaching sessions like the tyke’s program, but perhaps we now have a time and a place to change that.

News: “Tips From The Crease”

“Get Coaching!”

The following link (www.coach.ca/get-coaching--s16572) says it all in its first paragraph, “Is this your first year of coaching, and you have no clue what to do? Or, perhaps you've been a coach for a couple of years, but know that there are still some things you could learn about planning your practices? Packed with tips, tools, and resources you can download, these FREE tutorials will set you up for success!”

OK, betting you have some sort of clue as to what coaching is about, but who hasn’t come out of a NCCP Comm Dev clinic and felt a bit overwhelmed or wished there was time to go into more depth on certain topics. Certainly for those looking to beef up their practice plans, the Get Coaching site is a great resource, whether you’re coaching lacrosse or any other sport.

News: “Next Month”

Keep track of up-coming events on LNSS’s website newslider and calendar.

• Team Nova Scotia Head Coach ApplicationDeadline, Nov. 1^st
• Petro-Can Sport Leadership Sportif, Nov. 7^th-9^th, Calgary
• LNSS AGM, Nov. 9^th See Website
• CLA AGM, Nov. 15^th-17^th, St. Johns
• Free Learning Facilitator modules (LF), Nov. 29^th

“Players should expect the best - We can deliver”

* * *

Free for Now! Online Concussion Module

Best way to help your players in the case of a concussion is to be prepared and NCCP is offering, "Making Head Way in Sport" for free online until the end of October, 2013. After this date the module will cost $15.

If you have an NCCP number go to www.coach.ca and click on eLearning. You should then have to log in using your NCCP number and password. If you don't have an NCCP number you can register for one. Once in, choose the multi-sport, "Making Head Way in Sport".

The module will take between 1-2 hours but is well worth it for your players, parents and yourself and it's FREE at this time.

Don't miss out, the module will help you with any contact sport you coach.

NS Coach Newsletter Vol 2(8) September, 2013

Volume: 2 Edition (8)

Posted: Wednesday, September 25^th, 2013

“If we can make things better, how cool is that!”

News: “Canadian Championships – That’s All Folks!”

It was a very exciting Labour Day weekend for the men’s U16 field team at the Canadian Nationals held in Montreal, which wrapped up Nova Scotia’s 2013 provincial program roster. Trying to up their achievement, where the U16 team won its first game ever in 2012, the 2013 team came back from a 0 -6 deficit to beat Team Manitoba, 14 – 12, to win the Red Pool Bronze medal.

Come backs and tight games where the norm for the U16 team this year, which was not reflected in their 1 -3 round robin record. A chance at the gold medal game was still possible, but the team just fell short against Saskatchewan in their 14 -9 playoff loss. In addition to the team’s bronze achievement, Cole Davis, was named to the tournament’s U16 All-Star team because of his face-off dominance.

Over the next two years the U16 and U19 teams and coaching staffs will be very focused on the 2015 Canadian Championships which will be held in Halifax. They will also have their eye on Team Canada U19 tryouts for the 2016 World Championships in BC. For players and coaches who want to be involved, don’t wait until 2015, get involved next year and be part of the building process.

Building on this year’s bronze medal achievement, the next goal is to beat one or more of the top tier teams during round robin action over the next two years, but for now, that’s all folks for this year’s Canadian National Championships.

News: “The Biggest Field Event, Guaranteed!”

For those coaches very serious about their field lacrosse game, men’s or women’s, the US Lacrosse Conference is a must, as it is the biggest gathering of coaches, officials, administrators and exhibitors in North America.

As it was last year, the conference will be held in Philadelphia, January 10^th-12^th, and early-bird registration is on until November 30^th, $95 ($115 after Nov. 30^th). In order to register for the conference you’ll also have to purchase a US Lacrosse membership, $50, which comes along with a great subscription to US Lacrosse magazine. Also, those who register for the conference can go back for one year and see and/or hear the seminars and live field demonstrations online.

For more details, go to the “Events” tab at www.uslacrosse.org and click on the “2014 National Convention and Fan Fest” link. Also, explore any possible grant funding opportunities by getting in touch with Greg Knight, lacrosse@sportnovascotia.ca. This is truly a great event for coaches and you’ll be all jazzed up ready to get going with your new found insights and tricks after this conference, guaranteed!

News: “LaxPath”

A very interesting statistic being circulated after the NLL draft, September 16^th: The top 16 drafts all came from US College programs, whether they were born in Canada or the US. So it doesn’t appear career-wise that leaving Canada to play NCAA field lacrosse hurts strong NLL prospects. Also, every member of Team Canada’s U19 2012 team was a US College prospect or had already played a year of NCAA ball before the 2012 Worlds.

Over this past year, several Nova Scotia players, male and female, have been approached by US Academies and Colleges to head south to play lacrosse within their academic institutions. But if you’re a coach trying to help a player along this path or a parent wondering about the professional scouting businesses, you might want to take a look at some of the resources online. Within Linkedin.com’s, “Lacrosse Partnerships & Business” group, the question was asked, “what’s the best college (US) recruiting software for lacrosse players and why?”: One suggestion was, “LaxPath”.

Don’t be fooled, but anyone offering recruiting services usually has some financial angle of some sort, so it’s very important to dig under the surface of any of these resources. A good place to start with LaxPath is its FAQs section. Like many other recruiting businesses, they’ll help players and coaches network, edit and/or display game footage, display bios which will include academic standings as well as physical fitness status, even review academic transcripts.

All-in-all, get to know these recruiting tools, as they can help when dealing with Academies and Colleges in asking the right questions and knowing what expectations these institutions should have. At this time US players are likely more savvy about developing a portfolio of their academic and athletic achievements, a skill Nova Scotia players would do well with, whether for lacrosse or future endeavours like job applications.

News: “A Bit of Online Fun”

For smart phone users, there are two more ways to enjoy field lacrosse. The US College video game has been out for several years and are presently asking for beta testers for their iOS and Android versions on Facebook, “College Lacrosse, The Game”. You can also download Brine’s free app, “Shootout” and jack up your scoring stats, although we’re not sure they’ll hold a lot of weight for recruiting purposes. Enjoy!

News: “Calling Team Nova Scotia Head Coaches”

For some it may feel like Nationals weren’t that long ago, but the Head Coach selection process will start gearing up in just under a week, when applications become available Tuesday, October 1^st. Like last year, applications will be accepted up to 5pm, Friday, November 1^st. Since this year’s LNSS AGM will be held early in November, coaches won’t be announced until the last week of November.

Teams requiring Head Coaches for 2014 include: Girls’ (box) bantam, midget and juniors; Boys (box) peewee, bantam, midget and Founders; and, men’s field U16 and U19. If you are interested in coaching any of the other potential provincial teams (eg. President’s Cup), please state your intentions, and submit your application, before November 1^st.

Technical Director’s “My 2 Cents”

Twice a year Sport Nova Scotia runs the Sport Milk Fair, a three-day event that introduces students to organized sports within the province. This fall, October 22^nd – 24^th, the event will be held again at Exhibition Park and will be another great opportunity for MMLL, and NSFLL Clubs and Coaches to interact with registered players, as well as potential new players. As with each sport fair, Lacrosse Nova Scotia will sponsor a booth with a table for promotional and display materials and nets will be set up with soft lacrosse balls and sticks for students to try their hand at shooting.

The lacrosse booth is always packed, as each fair draws close to 2,000 students over the three day event. Please get in touch with your club president or LNSS to volunteer. You can volunteer for the entire day, but typically the heaviest activity is between 9am to noon. Lets get started talking about next year’s season now and show these students how much fun they could have playing lacrosse.

News: “NCCP Certification”

A very successful women’s field lacrosse Community Development coaching clinic was run Saturday, September 14^th by Learning Facilitator Joanne Stanga from Ontario. Coordinated by Julie Finck and Greg Knight, Anne Johnson, Caroline McNamee, Kathleen Dehmel, Haley Glazebrook, Jenn Banks, Charlene Cisakowski, Danica Cooley, Kerry Costello and David Kehoe worked with NSFLL’s morning girls’ program at Burnside, then completed the classroom session at Sport Nova Scotia. Julie Finck also completed her first requirements in becoming Nova Scotia’s first female Community Development Learning Facilitator. Congratulations to all.

News: “Next Month”

Keep track of up-coming events on LNSS’s website newslider and calendar.

•  Applications available for Team Nova Scotia Head Coaches, Oct. 1^st
• Turkey Shoot Tournament, Thanks Giving, Oct. 12^th-13^th
• Sports Milk Fair, Exhibition Park, Oct. 22^nd-24^th

“Players should expect the best - We can deliver”

* * *

NS Coach Newsletter Vol 2(7) August, 2013

Volume: 2 Edition (7)

Posted: Monday, August 26^th, 2013

“If we can make things better, how cool is that!”

News: “Nationals Box Lacrosse Championships”

It’s hard to believe that the girls’ bantam, midget and junior teams and the boys’ peewee, bantam, midget and junior teams are done for another year. It just seems like a few weeks ago that they were running drills on Exhibition Park’s indoor turf. Congratulations to all the players, their parents and coaching staffs for another very active and successful year. Best of luck to this year’s U16 men’s field team in their efforts this coming Labour Day weekend, which will wrap it up for LNSS’s 2013 season.

News: “Sport Leadership sportif”

You might not be able attend this year, but the annual Petro-Canada Sport Leadership sportif conference is definitely something that should be on your coaching calendar. Canada’s top coaches, sport researchers and senior sport organization leaders will gather, November 7^th to 9^th, in Calgary, Alberta to share strategies and network.

Key speakers this year will include National Women's soccer Team Head Coach John Herdman, and NCCP Level 4 basketball coach BEV SMITH and attendees will visit the Olympic Oval to watch the Essent ISU Speed Skating World Cup! For more information go to www.sportleadershipsportif.ca and bookmark this site.

News: “Super Coaching Clinic”

The Super Coaching Clinic held July 26^th-28^th was a huge success for those players, box and field, that participated in Rick Phillips on-field clinics. Due to rain, the men’s field session was run indoors at the old soccer Subway facility. Despite players ranging from peewee age to University, by the end of the Friday session, everyone was able to handle the competition, including our Titan peewee long-pole, Alex Bechard.

Saturday, July 26^th, the provincial U16 was put through a full-day of practice and scrimmage against U19 and senior players. Most of the U16 players attended Rick’s Friday session, so it was an extremely full couple of days of field lacrosse. The time they invested, however, is showing in the players’ calibre of play.

On Sunday, July 27^th, some midget players were on their third session with Rick as they went through their paces with him during the provincial Midget session. The midgets were then followed by the Founders Cup team. Rick ran very intense high performance drills that emphasized the basic defensive and offensive elements of the game.

A final note regarding the weekend: A lot of work goes into putting a clinic together and a big thanks has to go to LNSS’s Greg Knight who besides booking fields, hotels and flights successfully put together a grant that helped defray $1,500.

Technical Director’s “My 2 Cents”

Winning teams don’t necessarily to things that are more complicated, but they surely do the basics at the highest competitive level and do them well over and over and over again. This was the key point I took away from Rick Phillip’s clinics last month and why it is such a pleasure to watch a coach who can pull any number of drills out of his bag of tricks when he sees players’ are struggling with a concept or skill.

News: “NCCP Certification”

A great month of activity by our coaches: Thanks to you for your hard work and giving up so much of your free time –Our players benefit greatly.

Congratulations to coaches Todd Cranston, Stephane Gagnon and Jay Titchmarsh for completing Box Comp Intro course of the Super Coaching clinic and coaches Todd Cranston, Jay Titchmarsh, Danny Shupe, Mitch Hannigan and Neil Ingraham for completing the Men’s Field Comp Intro course. Coaches Jordan Coyle, Sam Martin and Tony Robinson also successfully completed their Box Comm Dev workbooks.

A big congratulations goes out to the following coaches who are now fully “Certified” box lacrosse coaches, the highest level of certification for this discipline: Julie Finck, Tyler James, Craig Moore, Colin Beiswanger, Mike Smeltzer and Ross Mackay.

Alumni News:

Alumnus Sean Fitzgerald and his crew of Newfoundland Masters hosted their third Masters tournament in St. John’s, August 16^th-17^th, which featured two home teams and Nova Scotia’s elite select men’s team. Team NS can brag that the team’s average age was about 49 years old and was very competitive against the younger legs of Newfoundland, but in the end, Newfoundland’s young vets put down NS’s old dogs. To Team NS’s credit, they played two back-to-back games, semi and final, on the final day. Plans next year are to host a tournament here in Nova Scotia, as the Newfoundland lads would like a road trip. So keep that in mind you Masters out there and make sure you get out to this winter’s session at Exhibition Park.

News: “Next Month”

Keep track of up-coming events on LNSS’s website newslider and calendar.

• U16 Men’s Field Nationals, Labour Day Weekend, Montreal
• NSFLL Season, August
• MUFLL Season, September
• University Women’s Field Season, September

“Players should expect the best - We can deliver”

* * *