Rotate your thinking and win

Over the last 4 to 5 weeks, the strong AFL teams have emerged in the 2022 season, and each of those teams has lost games of footy during that period. Winning and losing games is an inevitable part of competitive sport. 

 

At a recent AFL coaching session, an enthusiastic and genuine volunteer coach posed a question around game time for players considered to be 'less skilled'. A simple inquiry but it raises alarm bells.  It communicates a hierarchy exists within the team.  A ranking of talent and opportunities where playing time is distributed accordingly.  

 

Far too many junior players aged 9 - 19 are benched for large chunks of time and sometimes entire quarters. Is it an inability for these players to influence games in any way or an overwhelming inclination to win that is leading this to happen? What should be happening is that all players, irrespective of their standing in the team, rotate on and off the ground.  

 

Increase game opportunities, add an individual development plan to work on with the coach and these emerging players may do several things; grow their capacity to play and compete, develop a love of the game and create a stronger affinity for their team and longevity at their club.  At the same time, the lauded players are probably not being challenged or having their overall game developed.  Training and selection processes can become unaccountable. 

 

The answer is every player plays 80% of game time. Set your rotations to start at the 2 min mark of the first quarter and keep going or divide your players into groups and have them manage their rotations.  

 

The danger is players who are not getting game time will be lost to the club and the game. Their recollection will be they loved it but didn't get a crack. Players take time to develop, particularly those who are not exposed to a supportive volunteer coach willing to give them game time to develop at the expense of personal endeavour.

 

This week in the AFL competition teams will win and lose, irrespective of the result they will be rotating their players on and off the ground from the start of the game. They will also spend their time developing their players' knowledge and confidence in readiness for their next challenge because that’s what coaching is.