ECB's new Coach Award is a rewarding experience

Passing on the knowledge on the Coach Award Pilot Course

Paul Boyce from Solihull Municipal Cricket Club attended the pilot course for the ECB’s new Coach Award course at Edgbaston. He tells ecb.co.uk that he thoroughly enjoyed the experience and can’t wait to start passing his knowledge on to the next generation

As a lifelong cricket fan, player and father of a cricket-loving 13-year-old lad I was delighted to be offered the chance to give something back to cricket and to the future of our great game.

As a qualified football coach and having attended differing types of coaching courses I believe we can continue to learn as long as we have the enthusiasm to do so. However, it is vital that as with any subject, that we teach the correct things as early as possible, have the right approach and pitch our coaching at the right level.

I have considered many times that there are many aspects to being a good and effective coach. Anyone can attend a course, most can complete and pass the assessment, but how many of us can actually coach. All of these questions and thoughts passed my mind before attending the Coach Award for Cricket at Edgbaston - the ‘pilot’ course for the future of coaching under the ECB.

As a ‘mature’ coach of 42 years, but a relatively fit person, it was with some trepidation I attended my first day. As the younger, fitter members of this course started to enter the course room I wandered whether I had bitten off more than I should have.

Very quickly my concerns were allayed. The tutors - all very well qualified, very professional and very well rehearsed - explained the course details, what we would be expected to do, what we could expect from the tutors and the course content.

They use of a number of different media forms: video; PowerPoint presentations; slides; and handouts. It was s well-planned and executed course with a great deal to learn, to cover all aspects from warming-up exercises, fielding techniques, batting, bowling and warm-down exercises.

It also covered deliberate coaching techniques, clear, to the point and hands-on explanations of all techniques - and the chance to practice these.

Personally, I was most impressed with the chance to practice the techniques we are to coach, to understand how and what to coach; also, to plan sessions and how to then analyse the results of a session and the techniques of individuals.

As a football coach for some years I have recognised that while we as coaches are aware of what to teach, a great many sessions are, unless a great deal of planning is applied, a chaos of exercises.

This is obviously not ideal, a plan has to be thought out, adhered to and executed as accurately as possible. A coach must command the respect and the attention of the attendees. This can, I believe, be helped by having the sessions planned and by keeping them interesting.

The Coach Award is the most complete course of any type I have attended. The coaches were aware of the attendees, what we wanted from the course, what the people we would coach would want.

It was a well-paced course with regular chances for feedback and to ask questions. Interaction between the coaches and the attendees of the course was excellent. All due respect was afforded to all and any personal needs were met.

The techniques used by the tutors, both verbally and with actions, were well balanced. Explaining the processes, demonstrating and then practicing the coaching points before asking the attendees to do the same worked very well. Coaching is, I believe, as much about being able to coach as knowing what to coach and this course spent a great deal of the time on how to coach.

I am far more aware of coaching techniques than ever before, aware of how to analyse and give feedback to students. I am very confident of being able to vary the content in sessions, being able to teach in a confident manner and use my imagination to evolve exercises and make learning fun.

I would urge anyone who has the slightest interest to attend this course, not to leave it until they have finished their own playing time. My only regret is that I did not complete a course until now. Who knows, it may improve your own game!

I am very confident and excited about the future at Solihull Municipal Cricket Club. I am looking forward to practicing the skills I have developed at the Coach Award course. Possibly the most important thing for me is that the young members of the Club, the future of the Club, will now have more qualified coaches, new ideas and renewed enthusiasm.

I intend to help give the Club the best possible chance to nurture youths so that they may have ‘wings to fly’.