Well fellow readers, its once again come round to that time when I rest my weary work mind with a few months of travelling. Last time it was South America, this time I’m off over to Asia to sample the fine cuisine and backpacking that the Philippines, Malaysia, Thailand, Vietnam, Laos, Cambodia and China have to offer.
To mark this occasion Ill be blogging for the next few months until August over at www.buymeabudbud.com, so check there for my adventures for here on in.
What a magical and rewarding few weeks its been in the korfball world. Both of the University teams I coach finished top draw at their respective national competitions. The team I play for (Birmingham City) finished top of the league winning 12 from 12. And on a personal note I finished the league as top goal scorer ending just shy of 50 goals, putting 47 in from 10 games.
But fear not fellow readers, this is not a bragging post, but more of a reflective jumble on my ball skills philosophy in korfball, and how to go about coaching some players to improve. I fear for its structure as I have not planned a dime, but after a season that I’ve had I feel as though I have some clought to give my thoughts some space on my blog for others to read.
Ball Skills
For some coaches I feel they fear to go out of a “korfball comfort zone”, that is to coach only what is directly transferable to a korfball game. However I would argue that basic ball skills you cant teach in a korfbal orientated drill (or less so as the message will become diffused), and it is essential you spend some time getting players used to a ball in their hand.
Often at my training I will have the team do pure ball skill drills: warm up bouncing the balls (akin to basketball) across the hall, left hand, right hand, through the leg. Other drills I do are simple one player one ball silly moves. Catch behind the back, through up, do a 360, and catch the ball, pass off a wall, catch in the air, and pass back to the wall in the air. Along with this I do running in shots but with moving the ball around the back before the shot, or under the leg, or catch and shot all in the air. Directly before the nationals I also had them trying to do 360 spins.
All a bit silly, yes maybe, but it has two advantages to it - one is the improvement you’ll see in the players (covered below), but not to be overlooked is the enjoyment that the players get from trying out the moves, and watching players fail and throw the ball no where near the korf.
Now people who know me know that I like a bit of flair and showmanship on the court (at the right time), but this showmanship only comes from the confidence to handle the ball exactly in a confident manner no matter where it is. All these “fun” drills improve the players ability to catch, pass, and have confidence and strength to use the ball in an effective manner no matter where it is. A player with bad technique will drastically improve because of these simple drills, as they become accustomed to handling the ball from a less than perfect area, and have the inbuilt muscle knowledge on how to bring that ball to an optimum position.
Basic ball skills are essential to a good player, and one that shouldnt be overlooked at the basic level.
A video I made about a year ago at the Korfball World Champs:
“Congratulations to the second team for winning the nationals last weekend.
Conceding just 6 goals throughout the day Birmingham romped through the group stages, routing Sheffield and Nottingham 7-0. In the other group games Hallam and Keele were dispatched with consumate ease.
The first real test came in the semi final where at one point Birmingham were trailing by 2 goals. However not to be denied Brum rallied to score 4 unanswered goals and take their place in the final.
All that stood between Birmingham was a UEA side that had seen off Hallam in the other Semi Final. Captain Cawley set the tone with a well taken goal accompanied by an oscar winning celebration. Things were going to plan as Brum went two goals ahead, but a lucky goal by UEA put the match back in the balance.
‘The next goal will be crucial’ muttered Coach Wilkins as he prowled the touchline.
That proved to be correct as Brum grabbed a vital third goal. Well taken long shots saw Brum open up an a four goal advantage, much to the delight of the cheering fans ( all four of them :)). A momentary lapse in concentration let UEA grab a consolation but it mattered not. The final whistle sounded and with it Birmingham were crowned as the second team champions and officially the best korfball club in Britain.”
“So that’s what it feels like. That’s what it feels to have every element of sport dancing to your own tune. To train for two years with one goal in mind and to achieve that goal in convincing style. To go into the biggest tournament of the year confident with your own game. To have a committed coach who you trust will have moments of tactical brilliance that will shape your success. To have a team around you that is confident in each other on the pitch and friends off it. To overcome small obstacles in preparation and squad selection by comfortably winning your first game against fancied opposition. To be led by a captain who you know will comes up with the goods when you most need it. To be able to celebrate deliriously, as if no one was watching, when your beat the favourites. To hold the cup aloft and know you’ve done alright. To have everything working in beautiful sporting perfection with nothing left to chance.
That’s what it means to be Woods and Schumacher, Wilkinson and Beckham. And for one weekend, that was what it felt like to be a member of the University of Birmingham Korfball first team. Or should I say the National Korfball Student Champions.
8 years ago I started playing korfball at Birmingham University.
7 years later and I have a gold medal hanging around my neck after an intense weekend of korfball.
It feels ……. f**cking awesome!
Once a year the top 16 student korfball teams compete at the Nationals, the top event for the sport at student level in this country. It an intense rollercoaster of emotions through two days of intense korfball.
Since I left the Uni 4 years ago I’ve been coaching the side trying to get the best out of them all and get them to play the korfball I know they can. Finally, this year, all the hard work, the extra training sessions, and my personal korfball philosphies have paid off as the side beat all oncomers to take top spot at the championships. I’m not going to lie, there were some tears in my eyes as the final whistle went, as one of my personal goals had finally been realised.
It still hasn’t quite sunk in, but I know we’ve achieved something that all the players involved will remember for quite some time.
That also led me to have a wander around google sketchup, which look like a really nifty little tool for doing some basic 3D modelling. Interesting …. I can think of some uses for it already ….
GET QUOTE