Here's a Drill for You!
By Dave Mahaffey, Softball Ontario Coaches Committee Member

There are hundreds of softball drills that you can run in a practice and they cover every aspect of the game. But my favorite drill of all time to get your players to continuously handle the ball over and over again that produces real game like situations is called Follow Your Throw. All you require is a minimum of 3 players P1, P2 and P3, with 2 players P1 with the ball and P3 standing about 5ft/1.5m behind P1, P2 stands about 35 ft/10m away. The drill starts with P1 running full speed towards P2 pumping the the ball like they were going to throw it to P2 when they get within about 15ft/4.5m P1 throws the ball to P2. P2 receives the throw then takes off back towards P3 and P1 takes the spot of P2 in the rotation. P2 does exactly what P1 did only now in the opposite direction making the throw to P3. P3 then continues the rotation back towards P1 and on and on it goes.
 
So why is this such a great drill for the players:

• For younger players they must handle the ball over and over again for them to improve
• It simulates game pressure, there is no time to rest,  my partner will be heading back at me in about 5 seconds
• This drill teaches them to develop soft hands to receive the ball and fast hands to get rid of the ball quickly and accurately
• Great warm up drill,  no stress put on the arm because we are not throwing at long distance (more exciting than a lap around the field)

So Why is this such a great teaching drill for coaches?
 

• If this is your first practice you will immediately see who your better athletes are by just standing there and observing them
• Make your players do this over and over,  have them focus on receiving the ball with two hands (Keep telling them over and over TWO HANDS).  If you don't get two hands make them take their gloves off
• Make your players make good throws from short distances then as they progress you can lengthen out the distance (Keep telling them give him/her a good ball to handle)
• Yours players are learning the very difficult run down situation without you having to teach the rundown (make the throw and follow the throw to the bag because that runner may be coming back in your direction shortly)
• As they develop,  modify the drill so they make the throw right away after the ball has been caught and then they follow the throw to the bag, again TWO HANDS at all times and give the receiver a good ball to handle
• Teach them to get into the throw as they see the ball released coming at them so that they can make the catch and get rid of the ball quickly.   Emphasize move your feet into the throw so you can catch and release quickly 
• You can add more players and lengthen out the distance to each line as required
• You can group your players easily into ability (some times it's good to have a good player throwing to a poor player so they are getting good balls to handle because we want them to improve)  

Remember, don't be afraid to modify the drill,  add more players if needed.  They will get tired from the running,  and shorten or lengthen the distance as required.

NCCP Parents
By Joe Bennedetti, Softball Ontario Learning Facilitator

Coaches must embrace the challenge of communicating clearly the roles of parents and coaches so the team can derive the benefits of strong parental involvement. Their leadership in this task, along with advanced planning will be the keys to their success in this all important endeavour.

The New NCCP has some excellent tips on how to develop positive relationships with parents, and include appendices with a sample introductory letter, and Parent Questionnaire found at www.coach.ca . The CAC strongly recommends a coaches – parents only meeting, with an agenda, and a question and answer period at the beginning of the year to start the communication process early and on a positive note. A comprehensive list of expectations and responsibilities of coaches, parents and players can be created after the meeting and distributed to all concerned

Good coaches know that they are responsible that everything gets done with respect to the needs of the team. Of course they also realize that they can’t do everything, nor should they even try.  Some coaches make the mistake of being really busy doing unimportant things.  Good coaches coach, and good parents take on other responsibilities and tasks to allow the coach to coach.

As a community soccer coach of my son’s six and under team, I read that on game day I was required to put up my own net. This involved going to a storage container, having the right key!, carrying the net, Velcro strips, and spikes, to the goal, then having a ladder and  hammer and four arms to do the job. If I was lucky I could accomplish this task before the scheduled start of the game if I took the afternoon off work. One day I asked my father, a real soccer fan, if he thought the Manchester United coach, or the AC Milan coach, put up their own nets? He assured me he did not think that was the case. That was the last time I put up a net. A schedule and sign up form was created and the parents were asked to help; and they did, allowing me to coach - greet the players, warm them up, and have a team meeting and cheer before kick off.

Coaches must learn to ask, delegate, direct, motivate and follow-up to make sure the job gets done, so they can prioritize their coaching duties. Ask the parents what they can do, what they would like to do. Some have lots of time, some a few extra bucks, some have a pool in their backyards, some have good connections, but all will be able to contribute in some way.

Following is a list of ways Parents can make a positive contribution to the sport environment:

• Properly equip your child
• Assure punctuality of your child
• Attend games and practices and cheer the team on
• Bring/provide nutritious food and refreshments
• Provide sponsorships or help fundraise
• Buy in to the coach’s philosophy
• Assist in facility and equipment setup and takedown
• Host a pool party
• Carpool
• Respect the 24-hour rule,  written feedback and/or constructive criticism
• Be the team mascot
• Research and get quotes for new equipment or resources
• Practice at home with your child
• Educate yourself about the sport, its rules, organizational structure etc.
• Remember how the coaches take their coffee or their  preferred adult beverage
• Scout opponents before key competitions
• Video games and practices when requested
• Be relaxed about apparent chaos at practice
• Accept an administrative task: treasurer, media liaison, scorekeeper/statistician etc

Coaches can promise their parents one thing; "The more they get involved with the team the more fun they will have".

Some coaches, usually those with little or no experience, actually choose to ignore the parents, acting as if they don’t exist. They do so at their own peril.

Parents truly make the difference. Of course every year you get a different and unique group of parents. Some years you get extremely lucky and have a great group of families; they enjoy each others company and are a huge support to the team. Other years – that’s not exactly the case, but still, with strong leadership and proper planning you can make the best of any situation.

As the coach, you can be that leader, enabling your parents to make a significant contribution ensuring this season will be truly memorable for all the right reasons.