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Coaching Matters
26 May
Train the Trainers Workshops
Two “Train the Trainers” workshops have recently been held in Auckland and Lower Hutt. Thanks are extended to Kevin Sheehy for his valued assistance to the workshop presentation. From this we now have a greater number of people available to present Softball NZ Coach Development Courses.
Hutt City Sports Awards
The Hutt City Sports Awards were recently held after a 22 year absence in the Hutt Valley. A programme booklet was produced and dedicated to the past 22 years of sporting history in the Hutt Valley. Softball features as one of the most successful sports during that period. The book is an excellent record of that time and can be purchased from the Hutt News for $5.00.
Congratulations to Te Aroha’s Mike Walsh – Coach of the Year and Trish Hina, former national softball rep but named Top Sports Women for her outstanding accomplishments in Rugby and Rugby League. Also to Rita Hokianga from Saints who was a finalist in the Young Sports Women category.
ISF U19 Women’s World Series in South Africa December 2011
If you want to join the tour group that is travelling to Cape Town to support the NZ Junior White Sox at the ISF World Series in Cape Town, contact naomi@softball.org.nz.
Naomi Shaw
Softball NZ National Director of Coaching
Coaching Matters
26 April
Congratulations to Sport Wellington COACH OF THE MONTH Robin Cutting for his role in guiding the Wellington Women’s Representative Softball team to success at the National FastPitch Championships earlier this year. It is the first time in 16 years that Wellington Women have won this event. This young team with a couple of veterans combined into a focused unit under Robin’s tutelage. His excellent knowledge and experience crystallized this team into a winning unit which never gave up and they had some superb come from behind wins to take the title.
It’s time to make sure that you have thanked the softball community within your region for their tireless voluntary work over the past season.
Go to the Softball NZ website www.softball.org.nz to check out what workshops and coaching courses are being held during the off season in your area. The softball coaching calendar also encompasses the Regional Sports Trust coaching courses on offer. If you attend any RST coach development, then your attendance is recognised on the coaching database. It’s a great way to build a profile of any coach development you are undertaking (and it looks good on a CV as well!) If you would like a course to be run in your area, feel free to get in touch with me.
A Softball NZ Train the Trainers workshop was held recently in Auckland and another is planned in May to be held in Lower Hutt. From this will come softball people who will be approved presenters. This will enable more flexibility and better regional coverage of softball coaching course delivery. Thanks to Kevin Sheehy from AUT who assisted me with the delivery of the 1 day workshop. Kevin ran a practical session on how to build Game Sense/Teaching Games for Understanding strategy into coaching practice.
Softball NZ Coaching Course fees continue to remain at a very reasonable price given the quality of the resources received and the experience of the presenters. However, please note that the fee to undertake the Essential Skills Unit (6 hours) has increased from $25.00 to $30.00.
Is there such a thing as an off season...???.
Not if you are a national team player or coach. The Black Sox head into camp this weekend, the NZ White Sox will start an off season training programme soon, the Junior White Sox team are into pre-world series training and the two NZ Development Team players and coaches have been holding regional training sessions prior to their departure for the youth games in Australia in July...whew!!
If you would like to join the Williment Travel Group Tour to go to the ISF U19 Girls World Series December 2011 in Cape Town, South Africa to support the Junior White Sox at World Series...give me a call naomi@softball.org.nz
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Congratulations are to be extended to the North Harbour Softball Association and in particular Guy Kawe as the Harbour Coaching Director. Guy has been particularly proactive by creating a coaching strategy for North Harbour that creates a coaching environment that develops and retains coaches and ensures that their athletes are retained and can compete nationally. I would suggest that the results coming out of North Harbour at junior level are an indication of a great plan that is starting to come to some fruition. |
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Some examples of Guy’s coaching plan include a survey undertaken earlier to determine the coaching and development needs of the association; winter clinics planned; Kiwi Sport initiative now into its 4th year and growing; distribution of a coaching newsletter; revised NHSA coaching awards; a coordinated and planned approach to coach development courses leveraging off the Greater Auckland Coaching Unit (GACU) courses mixed with Softball NZ coaching courses; attendance to train the trainers workshop etc Well done to Guy and the North Harbour Softball Association |
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Naomi Shaw
Softball NZ National Director of Coaching
Coaching Matters
4th March
The National Age Grade Tournaments in January have come and gone. Thank you, thank you, thank you to the vast number of coaches who have dedicated time and effort to ensure that young athletes across most regions have had an opportunity to experience national tournament play. The experiences that the young players have had will sit with them for life. You as a coach have been instrumental in guiding our young talent to higher honours...give yourself and any other coach you know of a pat on the back and a tilt of the head as acknowledgement of a job well done.
Thanks also to national age grade selectors who are instrumental in selecting tournament teams and providing talent identification information. Tournament selectors this year were Dave Sorenson (HV) Megan Harlick (CB) Max DeBrett (AK) Mel England (HB) Alex Carter (WN) Ross McCulloch (SL) Rachel Cade (SL) Max Moate (AK) and Vanessa Miller (MW).
We are now seeking tournament selectors for the Division 1 Secondary School Nationals to be held 28 March – 1 April 2011 in the Hutt Valley. We need a boys & girls selector, so please get in touch with me if you are interested on naomi@softball.org.nz. Guidelines and support is provided to those selected.
Congratulations to Thomas Makea (Senior) named as January Coach of the Month by Sport Wellington. Tom coached the Wellington under 19 Boys representative softball team to win the national title recently. His organisation, planning, preparation and tactical knowledge guided the young team through the tournament with an unbeaten record, a feat that has not occurred for many years. Tom instilled discipline and team unity to ensure they were focussed on their goal of winning the national championship.
Please remember to acknowledge your coaches with a nomination to your local Regional Sport Trust.
A reminder that the Softball NZ Coaching Loan Library still exists and we have some excellent resources available to borrow. I would highly recommend the USA Softball DVD Instructional Series with DVD’s on Fundamentals of Pitching; Fundamentals of Hitting; Slapping & the Short Game; Hitting Drills; Defensive Drills. Go to this link to see what else is available from the loan library...here
And if you want to have any coaching courses run in your area get in touch with me or click onto your Regional Game Development Officer’s link as follows: venita@softball.org.nz; dave@softball.org.nz; kath@softball.org.nz; softball@nel.sporttasman.org.nz
Naomi Shaw
National Director of Coaching
Coaching Tips
Game Sense Coaching - Age Specific
download here
5 Quick Tips for Planning & Organising your Practice
download here
20 Great Ways to Improve Your Softball Coaching
Download here
The Ten Absolutes of Good Hitting
Download here