Try not to be a PlayStation Coach

What is a Playstation Coach?

These are coaches that attempt to control every moment from the sidelines by using their voice as the control-pad. Telling each player where to pass the ball, who to mark, where to run, when to shoot. They behave like a frustrated player on the sideline, wanting to kick every ball. This doesn’t mean they are ill-intentioned, some are often excited and wanting to encourage success and help their team. There is also an amount of pressure they maybe feeling on the sideline. Coaches can feel they are being judged by the parents and players for their actions and therefore try to look busy and loud on the sideline, because that is what a good coach looks like right?

The problem here is they are only focussing on success in that moment. They are coaching short term development. They can solve a problem for a player in a moment, and that may help their team to win this particular game. The issue is that THEY solved the problem and NOT the player. The player is simply following their instruction, often without realising why they are doing it. What happens when coach isn’t there? Or next week when a different choice is needed? The player is not prepared to make that adjustment alone.

So what does Long Term Development look like? This is when we encourage players to think for themselves, to find their own solutions and problem solve on their own.

It doesn’t mean that coaches are now redundant. We can still help by encouraging the players, prompting the thought process, celebrating a good decision and equally be reassuring when they choose the wrong one. It requires more patience from the coach, an acceptance that mistakes will happen, we might lose this game. But in the future we will learn from it and be better.

We can encourage these thought processes by asking questions during the game and during team talks. Instead of “Jenny, mark number 9!” Try “Jenny who is a threat at the moment?” Then watch the player and you will often be surprised, they will very often find the right solution, give the right answers in team talks.

The most common question I use on the sideline is “Where is the next pass going?”.

At Team Goal we encourage our coaches to only coach ‘off the ball’. When a player has the ball at their feet they have enough thoughts going through their head, the pressure is immense, the last thing they need is another voice telling them what to do. This goes for you parents too.

Allow them to make their own decision and then praise them if it goes right. If it doesn’t, “what other option could you have chose?”

At half time, instead of “We need to press them higher up the pitch!” Ask the players, “where are they getting success against us? How do we combat that?”

The outcomes from this are tremendous, you are not only encouraging players to think of themselves, but you are giving them ownership, encouraging them to speak up and talk to each other, to share their ideas.

Here is the kicker. It’s all POSITIVE. Even in a bad moment. And who doesn’t like a bit of praise?

Here is an example :

“Jenny you should have passed to Claire” this will be perceived as a negative comment to the player.

“Jenny what could you have done different?”

“I could have passed to Claire?”

“Brilliant Jenny, well recognised.”

You see the difference? The coach is praising the player for finding the right solution.

Another example :

“Jenny you’ve left your marker!”

Or

“Jenny, who’s the threat at the moment?”

If she recognises it, the next comment is again “well done”. If she doesn’t, “how could we have prevented that?” Again once they find the answer, the response is positive.

Positive praise resonates much deeper with any player. They will want to keep receiving more praise by doing the right things, and as they found the solutions themselves they know exactly why it was the right decision to make. Their understanding is much deeper, and they will use that database of learning to help them solve more problems in the future. Making them a better player.

So next time you see a coach being relatively quiet on the sideline. Maybe it’s not that they don’t have a clue how to fix things. Maybe, they are allowing the players the opportunity to learn. For the long-term.