There are many different schools of thought surrounding this.
Many squads or individuals will feed in developmental ideas purely through competitive scenarios, whilst others prefer a schedule that allows for considered training opportunities away from the pressures of competition.
The reality for many is that a combination of the two will provide most effective, on one proviso, the focus should always be on the performance and not the outcome. At our school, we aim to combine training opportunities with competitive opportunities for students but all of our coaches are in agreement that winning is not the most important thing, the manner of the performance is. An individual trying to do the right thing in a game scenario (even if the outcome isn’t always success) is far more likely to have longer term success than the individual that focuses only on the immediate victory. An individual performer who is prepared to take on board feedback and seek to improve their individual performance is likely to progress further in sport than someone that is only after the instant wins.
With this in mind, training opportunities provide time for the feedback and practice process to take place and performance development to happen. The outcomes in competition will be achieved as a result of a performance focussed approach to sport.
This week our U19 Boys and Girls Volleyball teams have been in action again and are making great progress on the court, picking up sets and learning from their experiences. Over the weekend, our competitive basketball season also gets underway for our U19 Boys team against a Warsaw select squad. Congratulations and good luck to all involved. #beambitious
Louis Fearn
Director of Sport, Head of Year 10, LEAP Coordinator