Change the Coach?
T
he ECB CA National Conference
was so much more than just
coaching cricket – it was about
coaching better.
I watched two practical coaching
demonstrations from elite coaches at
the conference – batting with Graham
Thorpe and spin bowling with Chris
Brown.
Both deployed a range of practices to
challenge and develop specific skills,
but, if I am honest, I wasn’t really that
interested in the cones, hurdles, heavy
balls and baseball mitts.
I was much more interested in hearing
what the experienced coaches were
saying to the player. And both coaches
focused almost exclusively on
outcomes.
In his batting session, Graham Thorpe
demonstrated practices designed to
help the player to develop confidence
in different situations, but his
comments to the batter concentrated
on outcomes – can you hit the ball
squarer/straighter/over the top?
The outcomes in the spin session were
even more targeted. No matter the
activity, the coach was commenting on
just one thing – the presentation of the
seam.
Because, as Chris emphasised, the only
way for a spin bowler to achieve
consistent drift, drop, bounce and
break (tha t ball-of-the-century
moment) is to present the seam at the
perfect angle, with the spinning
finger(s) moving over the top of the
ball (for most deliveries).
I’m sure that Chris was scanning for
much more than just how the ball was
leaving the bowler’s hand, and storing
up additional feedback in case the
outcomes were not consistently
achieved.
But all the player heard was “good
presentation” or “good seam”.
Simple messages, repeated often –
Keep it simple, stupid….
I didn’t want to miss presentations
from Ian Renshaw, co-author of the
only book on non-linear pedagogy I
ever expect to read, and Professor
Chris Cushion of Loughborough
University, on the challenge of games
as a coaching tool.
Ian spoke briefly about the
pedagogical foundations (theories of
learning and teaching) of games-based
coaching, but mostly demonstrated
some of the games he advocates, in
sessions on the constraints-led
approach in the club and home (or
one-to-one) settings.
The club games were challenging,
exhausting to play, and, perhaps most
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