Children in Sport - Part 5
Author: Jake Downey
Date: 08 Feb 2007
Category: Jake Downey
Article 5 - The 'Play' Days are over - (the 16-18 year olds)
In the previous article I discussed the development of young players from 11-16 years of age. I suggested that they ought to concentrate mainly on skill during these years as well as participate in a variety of other sports so as to develop a larger range of movement skills. I stressed that there was no need for narrow specialisation and that parents and coaches need not worry that doing other activities might hinder future success.
Round about 16 years of age there should be more need and interest in specialising and more opportunity for doing so. It would be quite usual for young athletes to narrow their focus to one or two sports only at this time.
Awareness
During this period coaches, parents and officials should be aware of
a number of factors which can affect young players' development.
These are: the effects of the growth spurt on fitness and co-ordination; self consciousness, lack of self esteem, a poor self image, leaving school, getting a job, unemployment, lack of money: so unable to afford practice courts, restrings, shuttles and entry money for tournaments. There are also ‘A' levels and higher education and with these the conflict of choice - to try to make it in badminton or work towards a career. There are some players who give up everything for their badminton and try to earn enough to pay their way or obtain funding from encouraging and ambitious parents. Amongst these are young players who are misled into over-estimating their potential with the inevitable lack of success and sense of failure.
Doubts
I think that many parents must also have doubts at this stage - having put perhaps five years or more of their time and money into their children - some may wonder whether it is worth continuing. Is there a future in badminton for their child and, if so, is that future in the best interests of their child or ought not he/she start looking seriously towards the future and get down to working towards a career of some sort?
I wonder also how many young players who do have the ability to reach the highest levels find that they cannot afford the costs of doing so. At the present time the more talented the player the more the player is expected to attend squad sessions, team practices, team matches and enter tournaments. How many of these players fail to attain their potential because of lack of money. In demanding so much are we perhaps risking losing our future champions through no fault of their own.
At this point you might wonder what all this has got to do with the development of players between 16-18 years of age. It is important because if we want to help the young person to develop as a player then we need to know about the player as a person and the background to that person.
Now is the time when the first signs of the young adult emerge - personality, character, values, enthusiasm, commitment, ambition and potential talent. Along with their experience and results these are all features which enable us to judge whether or not such young players are worth investing in. If they are then we should invest in them with all the resources we have available to provide the opportunity for the gifted players to develop their talents to the full.
Commitment
In return we should demand and expect a commitment to the work necessary to attain the highest standards possible. There will obviously be some players who will continue to play and make a partial commitment to becoming good players because they enjoy the social side of the junior tournament circuit; but they know they wil never commit themselves fully to reaching the top. Either they believe that will not be good enough or they will have other ambitions. But for others (including those who go into higher education) who do aspire to the top and believe they can make it, this period is the end of the beginning.
To some extent the play days are over. Time, money and effort must now be spent on mastery of the art of playing badminton. The quest should be in pursuit of excellence. The work is hard, time consuming and requires concentration and thought, self discipline and sacrifice, as is the case when trying to master a craft. There is much to learn and get right.
The more talented one is the less is the amount to learn.
The more passionate one is about the game the less there is the sacrifice.
The more determined one is the less the struggle to succeed.
The more one enjoys the challenge the less it seems like work.
The more disciplined one is the more is one likely to succeed.
It is through the work involved that players soon dicover whether or not they are really committed to the game and to reaching the top. The moment of truth comes when they discover that the demands of the game are more than they are prepared to accept.
Self Learning
The mastery of one's craft is a gradual process and the good coach will plan sessions and competitions carefully so leading the player forwards stage by stage. The coach will be there to guide, lead, advise and inform. But in the end all learning is self learning and it is the player who ultimately must be responsible for his/her own progress and achievements.
At this age most experienced and talented players should be skilful in performing the strokes, moving and applying tactics. Now what is required is practice and more practice in order to play with that degree of control and accuracy needed for top class play. No more the ‘hit and hope' shots but instead, to be certain that the shuttle will go exactly as directed from whatever part of the court it is hit from.
It is now that players should acquire the habit fo learning from the experience of competition. They should be able to analyse their own play and that of their opponents and then decide what things need more practice or what must be learned to defeat certain opponents next time. Unfortunately too many young players are poor analysts and fail to learn from competitive play. Perhaps it is that they don't have to think for themselves with coaches and parents there to serve as mental crutches. Too often they fail to recognise what was good about the play of their opponents and how to combat it. Even a victory can provide insights into the state of one's own play and and indication of what needs working on.
Speed
With the improvement in racket and movement skill can come the development of speed and power. Practices for speed hitting (fast racket work) are essential, particularly in the midcourt and forecourt. Linked with this is quick, light footwork - the ability to ‘dance' lightly on the balls of the feet. Fast hands and feet are the hallmarks of the good player. In addition there is the need for explosive power - the ability to accelerate quickly from a static position, to change direction quickly or thrust upwards into a jump. Speed, strength and quality of movement develop with practice and being made aware of how one does what one does.
The body
Now also is the time to learn about one's body and how it works: what and how to feed it, make it fitter and look after it so as to prevent or recover from injury. For any aspiring player the body is as important a tool as the racket. A healthy body fit for badminton can mean the difference between success and failure in top class badminton.
Attitudes
Finally, and of most importance, are the values and attitudes a player adopts. For just how important is success if at the end of the day players are lacking in fairness, tolerance, honesty and respect and consideration for others. Badminton is a sport and Sport is of value in our culture because it exemplifies such ideals.
Sport should provide an environment which allows individuals to express their talents to the full which is why so many players undoubtedly value it. But it also provides an environment in which individual freedoms should be restricted by social obligations and it is in this respect that such ideals as fairness, honesty and respect for others determine just how players behave in sport. In the heat of competition in the effort to win it is sometimes difficult to abide by such ideals and to do so is another test of character that Sport provides. Without such ideals Sport loses its point; with such ideals young players gain the opportunity to fulfil themselves as persons - as sports men and women.
It is not easy to develop these qualities in young players for they apply to social life in general but we are lucky that sports provide a rich environment in which to do so. We can help young players to be more responsible by giving them responsibility to participate fully in their activity, e.g. to experience umpiring others' games in tournaments or to share in the running of a club or a tournament; by assisting in the coaching of younger players.
We should expect young players to conform to reasonable standards of behaviour both on and off the court. We should ensure that all players get equal consideration, the stars as well as the others. It is important that young players learn that though success can bring privileges that in itself does not imply that privileged players should ignore their responsibilities to the game and to other people in it. Above all we, as adults, also have much responsibility and should not forget that we can teach most by example. If we can get all these features of the players' development right the we could be well on the road to seeing not only future world champions but also well balanced responsible athletes.
