Coaching Females

This forum is for the discussion of women's football, the fastest growing participation sport in Australia. This includes local women's football and the A-League Women.

Moderators: BillShankly, John Cena, Forum Admins

Post Reply
RAP300
Boot Polisher
Boot Polisher
Posts: 56
Joined: Wed Oct 17, 2012 9:38 am
Has thanked: 3 times
Been thanked: 2 times

Coaching Females

Post by RAP300 »

An interesting article that has come out this morning on AFLW.
This issue was previously brought up in a separate topic, but thought it deserved its own thread.

https://www.sen.com.au/news/2018/02/06/ ... ach-girls/

juniorsupporter
Squad Player
Squad Player
Posts: 1077
Joined: Sat Apr 03, 2010 9:11 am
Has thanked: 38 times
Been thanked: 18 times

Re: Coaching Females

Post by juniorsupporter »

Pretty spot on IMO. IT's not about expecting less with regards to effort and performance- it's about how you deal with a group of girls/women to get the best out of them from a team perspective.

Will be interesting to see what the guys on the forum have to say-

MegaBonus
Team Manager
Team Manager
Posts: 8852
Joined: Sat Apr 01, 2006 9:43 pm
Has thanked: 4 times
Been thanked: 89 times

Re: Coaching Females

Post by MegaBonus »

WoW.....basing coaching methodologies on stereotypes and generalisations...
“Hence, we will not say that Greeks fight like heroes, but that heroes fight like Greeks." Winston Churchill

User avatar
Raich Carter
Squad Player
Squad Player
Posts: 1678
Joined: Tue Mar 20, 2007 1:49 pm
Has thanked: 35 times
Been thanked: 20 times

Re: Coaching Females

Post by Raich Carter »

juniorsupporter wrote:Pretty spot on IMO. IT's not about expecting less with regards to effort and performance- it's about how you deal with a group of girls/women to get the best out of them from a team perspective.

Will be interesting to see what the guys on the forum have to say-

As in any situation you are involved with its about how you deal with any person in a group situation or should we throw up some more generalisations - "boys will be boys" and all that rubbish.
When I am king, you will be first against the wall
With your opinion which is of no consequence at all

juniorsupporter
Squad Player
Squad Player
Posts: 1077
Joined: Sat Apr 03, 2010 9:11 am
Has thanked: 38 times
Been thanked: 18 times

Re: Coaching Females

Post by juniorsupporter »

Ok, so maybe not very interesting to see what the guys on the forum have to say- in fact, quite boring and predictable really...

sportsbird
Promising Junior
Promising Junior
Posts: 358
Joined: Thu Aug 30, 2012 1:46 pm

Re: Coaching Females

Post by sportsbird »

RAP300 wrote:An interesting article that has come out this morning on AFLW.
This issue was previously brought up in a separate topic, but thought it deserved its own thread.

https://www.sen.com.au/news/2018/02/06/ ... ach-girls/
Well done Rap300 for locating that article. it was exactly what I was trying to say but certain people think coaches should treat the ladies like the men.

MegaBonus
Team Manager
Team Manager
Posts: 8852
Joined: Sat Apr 01, 2006 9:43 pm
Has thanked: 4 times
Been thanked: 89 times

Re: Coaching Females

Post by MegaBonus »

@ junior supporter - why....because you didn't get the response you wanted????

@ sportsbird - and I can find you countless articles suggesting you do girls a disservice by treating them differently

the reality is....a good coach is a good coach, who takes all factors into consideration to get the best out of the individual and the team...
“Hence, we will not say that Greeks fight like heroes, but that heroes fight like Greeks." Winston Churchill

sportsbird
Promising Junior
Promising Junior
Posts: 358
Joined: Thu Aug 30, 2012 1:46 pm

Re: Coaching Females

Post by sportsbird »

MegaBonus wrote:@ junior supporter - why....because you didn't get the response you wanted????

@ sportsbird - and I can find you countless articles suggesting you do girls a disservice by treating them differently

the reality is....a good coach is a good coach, who takes all factors into consideration to get the best out of the individual and the team...
Well said megabonus
Your last comment is correct.
You need a good coach who takes all factors into consideration and that includes understanding the famale physiology and psycology. This why the current crop of good male coaches who have not coached women in the past and have not had the experience have failed in this area.

User avatar
Bomber
Vice Chairman
Vice Chairman
Posts: 60364
Joined: Tue Apr 04, 2006 11:40 am
Has thanked: 44 times
Been thanked: 128 times

Re: Coaching Females

Post by Bomber »

I'm surprised men coaches can ever get a word in anyway.

As for understanding women's psychology - man has been working on that for centuries and still its a mystery!

And Physiology? Well, be a bit more careful when chesting the ball, other than that, we all are claiming to be "equal" in this day and age aren't we?
Ignore this signature

User avatar
paul merson
Assistant Coach
Assistant Coach
Posts: 12058
Joined: Thu Nov 06, 2003 6:32 pm
Has thanked: 17 times
Been thanked: 16 times

Re: Coaching Females

Post by paul merson »

MegaBonus wrote:@ junior supporter - why....because you didn't get the response you wanted????

@ sportsbird - and I can find you countless articles suggesting you do girls a disservice by treating them differently

the reality is....a good coach is a good coach, who takes all factors into consideration to get the best out of the individual and the team...
Spot on Mega, as I posted earlier, you treat players in a way to get the most out of them, regardless of gender, meaning you treat both males & females the same.
The more I read of some comments on here more I think some don’t understand modern day men’s football & think it’s the old yelling and screaming at players, the mental toughness of today’s players is not at the level it was when I started seniors 20 years ago, coaches have had to adapt to that, I get the feeling some on the outside haven’t.

So after a season of treating the AU GKs in the same manner I treat Metrostars GKs, I’ve been asked to work with more women GKs, so should I rely on feedback & experience or Sportsbird?
Image

billy the kid
Squad Player
Squad Player
Posts: 1366
Joined: Wed Nov 27, 2002 8:57 am
Been thanked: 12 times

Re: Coaching Females

Post by billy the kid »

I think the issue about women and men can be said about girls and boys and juniors v seniors.

There is one constant that a coach needs to have....that is good coaching and a good communicator. I've seen good bad and ugly male and female coaches. And their demise or successes have come down to being able to demonstrate a good understanding of the game and training and treating people as players of the game ad not because of gender age etc. Players can pick out the spinners and time waster coaches and once you have lost respect, it's downhill no matter what gender the players are (or ages).

It's a simple game. Ball. 11 Players and nets. Highest score wins. Equal score a draw.

juniorsupporter
Squad Player
Squad Player
Posts: 1077
Joined: Sat Apr 03, 2010 9:11 am
Has thanked: 38 times
Been thanked: 18 times

Re: Coaching Females

Post by juniorsupporter »

I would like to clarify my position- The terms "treat the same" and "treat differently" are very vague. Are we talking about expectations or ways of communicating? And no, I didn't call the early responses predictable and boring because I disagreed with them. I think to a certain degree we are all saying the same thing.

Expectations of male and female players should be the same, without doubt. Commitment, effort, dedication, tactical and technical skills and knowledge. Physicality on the pitch, intensity etc. All the same. To demand any less of one gender or the other is, in itself, sexist because it implies that expectations are lower.

What I am trying to say is that there are some subtle differences in the way women and men operate on an interpersonal level. Not better, or worse, just different. Should be taken into account when working with groups of players. That's all. Good communication is vital no matter who you're coaching- it's the way in which the communication happens, both between the coach and players and within the playing group itself, that, in my opinion, can be tweaked to improve team dynamics and performance.

billy the kid
Squad Player
Squad Player
Posts: 1366
Joined: Wed Nov 27, 2002 8:57 am
Been thanked: 12 times

Re: Coaching Females

Post by billy the kid »

Hi Juniorsupporter. Thanks for clarifying however, I didn’t take exception to your comments. Quite the opposite. It works in well with the discussion.

I think a coach has become a very complex matter. Nowadays there are many factors that clubs must ensure ie gender/racial equality, violence towards women and children, child safety, bullying, player safety, awareness of gender, socio economic and race matters have become the melting pot. Basically a sporting club environment has become a melting pot of society.

As I said above the one constant for a coach is that they undertake the training and accreditations required. Demonstrate an understanding of the game and of course be an excellent communicator. Apart from that I would say most coaches I have seen demonstrate first and foremost a love of the game and are involved because they want to make a difference. It isn’t for the money.

Male or female from my experience have the same motivation for being out there and whilst for some in the lower grades (boys and girls) the motivations isn’t to play for Australia or Manchester United, clubs can accommodate everyone no matter what they aspire to. What I do think is lacking is the ability to develop a strong skills base at the junior (14 and under) to a level that it should be at. Sadly the sole focus is on success and winning and whilst this is what we play the game for, it comes at the cost of skills development.

Boy v girl OR man v woman argument is for mine is superfluous. In this PC crazy world we strive to much for equality when it’s already there.

astonvilla91
Bench Warmer
Bench Warmer
Posts: 719
Joined: Thu Apr 30, 2009 9:58 pm

Re: Coaching Females

Post by astonvilla91 »

RAP300 wrote:An interesting article that has come out this morning on AFLW.
This issue was previously brought up in a separate topic, but thought it deserved its own thread.

https://www.sen.com.au/news/2018/02/06/ ... ach-girls/
This is dumb, there are a lot of guys who would have the same described reactions to these scenarios.

Post Reply