Coaching (Draft in revision)

  1. PREFACE

This policy is in effect for all members of the “Fuzion Volleyball Club”, herein after referred to as the Club.

  1. GOAL

Our programs strive to teach and communicate good sportsmanship and provide a positive message to all our athletes. Our children look to us to provide a safe and fun environment in which to compete. It is imperative that our coaches and spectators demonstrate sportsmanlike behavior at all times. In an effort to promote positive behavior by all coaches, athletes, and parents we have implemented a Code of Conduct, which sets forth a non-exhaustive list of acceptable, and unacceptable behavior, and the consequences of engaging in unacceptable behavior.

  1. PROVISIONS

The following guidelines are designed to ensure yearly continuity and strength throughout all age categories and to ensure the long-term viability of the club.

  • COACHING PHILOSOPHY

Our philosophy is to develop life-long volleyball players who love the game, are sound fundamentally and have an understanding of the game’s rules, strategies and tactics. We will do this by developing players for the long-term; providing instruction, direction and opportunities for players of all levels and abilities. Our goal is to produce players who are competent and can compete at the age-class, recreational, senior and collegiate levels and beyond. We will also strive to provide coaching and referee training opportunities to our players.

The club will strive to follow Volleyball Canada’s Long Term Athlete Development (LTAD) model in developing and training players, specifically our elite teams. Because of the challenges LTAD brings in terms of available gym time and the increased coaching and player commitment, we will strive to find a balance that allows for the elite teams to meet their mandate while not short changing other teams. LTAD resources can be found at: http://www.vcdm.org/coaches.

  • TECHNICAL DIRECTOR

The Technical Director (TD) will be in charge of ensuring all coaches are following the club’s coaching philosophy and adhering to its policies. The TD will be responsible for the following:

  • To conduct a coaches meeting prior to the start of each season to review the club policies and coaching philosophy and a season ending meeting to assign coaches for the coming season.
  • Assist coaches in resolving any coaching or team-related issues.
  • Provide coaching resources, such as practice plans, coaching certification plans, etc.
  • Manage the coaching certifications, with the goal of increasing the overall certification level of the club.
  • Conduct random observation sessions.
  • Support coaches with age appropriate skills training.
  • Ensure continuity between all age groups in technical and tactical areas.
  • Facilitate a Technical Workshop at the start of the season for parent volunteers.
  • Arrange for specialty workshops for players (ie setting, hitting, serving).
  • Identify training opportunities for coaches.
  • Assist in the selection of teams, as requested.
  • Be a liaison between the coaches and the Executive Committee, attending Executive Committee meetings and reporting on progress, offering feedback on the organization and degree of success of coaching and competitions.
  • Responsible for receiving phone calls and emails from potential players.
    • TEAMS

The club will offer an elite program for the top players from each age group, providing them with quality coaching using the Volleyball Canada LTAD model. Our elite teams will be known as the Whites and will compete in the Volleyball New Brunswick age classes and be encouraged to compete in Volleyball Canada national competitions.

Our other teams will be known as the Blues and will consist of any players not in the elite program. The goal of the Blues team is to develop elite caliber players. They will compete in the Volleyball New Brunswick age classes.

Age Classes: Players will be placed on teams in their age group, determined by birth year, unless they try out and are selected to a higher-level team.

Development: Comprised of all eligible players who meet the age requirement and are not selected to, or choose to not be part of, a more advanced team. Younger players are not eligible for this team unless there are not enough players to fill out the team, at which time younger players may be added.

Competitive: Comprised of all eligible players who meet the age requirement and are not selected to, or choose to not be part of, a Whites team. Younger players are not eligible for this team unless there are not enough players to fill out the team, at which time younger players may be added.

High Performance: Comprised of any eligible player, regardless of age, as long as they meet, or are younger than, the age requirement. For a younger player to be selected to this team, they must be an impact player and be considered a starter or first off the bench. If the younger player will not be a top seven player, or for any other reason they are not selected to this team, they will be placed back in their appropriate age category.

  • TEAM SELECTION PROCESS

At the start of each season, each age category will conduct a tryout to select a team. Whites and Blues coaches may work together to conduct a joint tryout, with the Whites coach selecting players first then the Blues coach selecting from the remaining players. The Whites coach has the option to conduct a separate tryout, but must work in conjunction with the Blues coach so that any player not selected to the Whites team will still have an opportunity to try out for a Blues team. All coaches will use the guidelines in Section 1.03 above, as criteria in selecting their team.                       TEAM SIZE

  • Team size
    • will be determined by the number, skill level and commitment level of the players. Depending on the number of players, the recommended minimum per team is 10 with a maximum number of 12. Every effort should be made to keep the skill gap as small as possible in each team. In the event where there is a significant gap between the last desired player on the roster and subsequent players, the latter players will be placed in the development program. However, it is the coach’s discretion to keep up to 2 developmental players on the roster, as long as the roster does not exceed the maximum number players.

 DEVELOPMENT PROGRAM

The development program is for players in all age categories who are new to the game or are interested in learning the skills of the game. Any player who does not make a Whites or Blues team will have the option to play in the development program. Development players will practice with the Blues team in their age group, but will not participate in tournaments. The goal of the development program is to give instruction in the fundamentals and developing competitive-level players.

TOURNAMENT STRATEGY

The tournament strategy will be to compete in four Volleyball New Brunswick sanctioned tournaments per season plus the Provincial Championships. All teams will have a goal of participating in the Volleyball Canada national championships each year, in consultation with team parents, players and the Executive Committee. When opportunities arise, intra-provincial competitions will be encouraged.

MINI PROGRAM/ATOMIC/TRIPLE BALL

  • The club will offer a Mini-volley program for children grades kindergarten to grade 5. Mini-volley is an approach for introducing boys and girls to the game of volleyball, with the game being adapted to encourage learning, promote success, and increase the enjoyment. The Mini-volley program will run in 8 week cycles with cycles being offered in the fall, winter and spring.
  • Players from our 15U and older teams will be encouraged to be involved in coaching or assisting in the mini program. They will also be encouraged to enrol in a coaching certification course.

COACHING CERTIFICATION

  • Coaches will be encouraged to receive their NCCP certification, with a minimum goal of achieving Certified Level 1. Our goal is to have as many of our coaches achieve advanced certifications as possible, striving for Level 3.
  • Coaches are also encouraged to attend seminars and workshops that will increase their coaching knowledge and benefit our athletes. The club will pay the registration fees for coaches enrolling in NCCP certification courses, including the technical and multi-sport components.
  • Parent volunteers are increasingly common, with varying degrees of volleyball experience. A basic technical course will be given to parent volunteers to ensure continuity in teaching the basic skills.

COACHING EQUIPMENT

All coaches will be provided with 1 set of 6 official VNB balls, a ball bag, a ball pump, a first aid kit and ice cooler. Additional equipment deemed desirable, but dependent on approval of the Executive Committee are portable ball carts, agility ladders and video analysis and statistic gathering tools.

CAMPS

The club will offer a yearly March Break,  Weekend clinics and a Beach Camp, if possible.

AGE-SPECIFIC TARGETS

The following are age-specific skill targets, based on the LTAD guidelines. See the Volleyball Canada LTAD manual for more details.

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