Return2Coach Profiles: Graham Smith
For UK Coaching Week (7-13 June) we’ve spoken some of our coaches from across the country to hear about their top tips as we #Return2Coach
FACT CHECK:
NAME: Graham Smith
CLUB: Leeds City Korfball Club
ROLE & EXPERIENCE: Head Club Coach, 8 years coaching experience.
1/ Plan ahead!
Put a plan on paper of what you want to do in the session – what is the objective of the session? What activities will meet the objective? How long do you want the different aspects of the session to run for? What will your warm up and warm down look like?
2/ Find out who is coming
See if your club is tracking who will attend before session, or at least gauge numbers – it’ll help you plan for what you want to do, and you’ll know in advance who you can rope into doing mini-jobs for you (like sorting out subs for in-session matches)
3/ Get your coaching stuff out the night before
Get your bag ready! Make sure you’ve thought about any coaching items you might need like a whiteboard, a whistle, cones etc. and put them near the front door to remind you to take them.
4/ Venue and equipment checks
If you don’t have the balls, check that someone has organised to get them to the session if you haven’t already. Check in with the club to make sure the posts will be available at the venue for use, and that you have the name and number of any caretakers/venue staff you might need to contact for access issues.
5/ Remind people what they need to bring
If it’s been a while since the last session, drop your members a note to say what they need to bring – things like a bottle of water; their korfball trainers; excitement to be playing korfball. I’ve found it really useful to post in the Facebook group around midday, so people can see what they need at lunch time and be thinking about the session later.