Ever just have one of those days?

[Formerlaxdemon]

So today my team lost 12 - 2.

:guns: :angry:

Needless to say, the ole Formerlaxdemon is far from happy about such a disappointing score, especially since it was at home. I really am just boiling with anger and frustration at my players :hot: for playing so horribly. We lost to a team we dominated last year. From the get go, it was obvious we were bigger and stronger and had better stick skills, but my mids simply would not do anything right. They could not get a ground ball to save their lives, could not pass, help in clearing, get the ball moving or get into position on plays. Only one mid even got himself close enough to shoot, thank the Lord he made it in. Defensively, the mids were terrible and would not fall back and one even walked across the half. I yanked him for such poor effort which helped, but all in all it was not nearly enough. The mids were out played by the opposition's mids plain and simple.

Defensively things were alright. My starting goalie played the first half and something just went all wrong with him, I just don't know what. He allowed every shot. My back up played the second half and saved 10 and allowed 3. We then scored twice. In the second half things came to life. My players started playing, hitting, scooping those groundballs and making big saves.

As a coach I am wondering what you other coaches do to just get rid of your frustrations in cases like this and what would you do to remedy the situation?

In summation, I am not happy with middies. Period. :angry:

[Pitibear]

This is tough, really tough to handle...

options:

1. Go back in time, be young again, get out on that field and lead the team...
2. Take heart in the fact that, because they won the game, your opponent gets to play next week...and because your team lost the game, they get to play next week...

Not much help, I know, but it's what gets me by, I just get all philosophical about life, lacrosse, and the gods not paying me any attention appropriate to my importance in this world.

Seriously, I don't know if God or gods exist, I hold to a belief in faith, but I don't have any miracle or positive proof. I do, in contrast, have incontrovertible proof that the Devil does not exist. If he did, I would have sold my soul way before this to be 15 years old again...that's about all I can say...

[Formerlaxdemon]

I hear what you are saying Pitibear, I really do. But as a coach I just feel so let down by my middies and goalie. The rest of the team does as well. I think I just need to get back to basics.

[Longpole5435]

Do us all a favor. Don't run them because they played bad. It ignores the fundemental problem by simply solving it with physical labor, not actually adressing the issues you saw. Unless, of course conditioning truly was an issue.

[goalieskcickay]

Do us all a favor. Don't run them because they played bad. It ignores the fundemental problem by simply solving it with physical labor, not actually adressing the issues you saw. Unless, of course conditioning truly was an issue.

No, I'd run them into the ground. :thumbsup: But that might just be because I'm a sadistic person.

On second though, don't, but make sure they know they can't play like that again. By the sound of it, they usually do fairly well, so tell them you expect at the very least their best effort, if not their best preformance.

[Formerlaxdemon]

Do us all a favor. Don't run them because they played bad. It ignores the fundemental problem by simply solving it with physical labor, not actually adressing the issues you saw. Unless, of course conditioning truly was an issue.


Have no fear. I would never run them. That does nothing but waste valuable practice time.

I just need to work on the mids... somehow... and give my starting goalie a pep talk.

My mids know exactly what to do and when to do it and have shown they can in the past. They even did it in the second half, but the first half they did nothing really. I just need to address that and work on basics with them I guess.

Any other suggestions for mids?

The Formerlaxdemon is no task master though.

[Longpole5435]

For the goalie, just give him time, goalies have bad games, but if you notice a trend in practice and future games, maybe its time to talk with im and or play the backup.

[Formerlaxdemon]

For the goalie, just give him time, goalies have bad games, but if you notice a trend in practice and future games, maybe its time to talk with im and or play the backup.


This is the first time he did so poorly. His last game he allowed 5 shots and stopped 26. Not bad at all. Something just got to him. I have been very understanding of him and just want him to get back into his game.

Like I said, all of my concerns are with the middies. I welcome all coaches advice on mids and how to get them on track.

[Longpole5435]

Shuffle the lines.
Sometimes simple change can spur improvement.

[laxjunkie]

After every game, win or lose, I sit with my players and we go over what went right and what went wrong. It makes the kids really think about the game and the effect of their mistakes.

Then, we take the "what went wrongs" and work on those for the next practice. Sometimes the chemistry is off, and you have to let the kids put the loss behind them and focus on what they need to do to win the next game.

[Formerlaxdemon]

After every game, win or lose, I sit with my players and we go over what went right and what went wrong. It makes the kids really think about the game and the effect of their mistakes.

Then, we take the "what went wrongs" and work on those for the next practice. Sometimes the chemistry is off, and you have to let the kids put the loss behind them and focus on what they need to do to win the next game.


That is what I was thinking of doing. This is just such a shock to me since I have never had a team lose like this. I really believe in my team too which is why it just hit me so hard.

I think I am going to spook my players, tell them I am going to thrash them, then sit them down and go over everthing and try and do my best to fix it instead of any punishment they might expect.

I really just want them to fix what went wrong and get back into the game.

[LCNlaxman]

Even though i am not a coach, music really helps to calm me down. Fairly relaxed stuff. Although they are a heavier band, Opeth's "Damnation" album is nice and relaxed. If i can remember correctly off the top of my head, there's not too much, if any, weird vocals so it's something i think anyone would enjoy.

If i think i've done something wrong (or someone else), i try and figure out what i can do to correct it. I mostly say that for real-world situations (ie. saying something offensive to a friend) but it can be applied in a coaching situation. Just think of what the players did wrong, or things you thought they could've done better or differently.

[Pitibear]

there are four parts to the sport:

technical. tactical, physiological, psychological...they are intertwined.

Sounds like you are not particularly worried about their skills...technical part isn't the problem.

Sounds like, since they have done it in the past correclty, with success, the system of play, or its components works...tactical isn't the problem...

Sounds like physical condition isn't the problem...

Unfortunatley, that leaves psychological, which is the toughest to pinpoint or correct...there were three or so good psychological suggesions above. I am reminded of the "lollygagging" speech in Bull Durham...

Maybe this was even a simple abberration...all the midfield thought all they had to do was show up, and they didn't even really start playing up to their base ability until the second half. If that's the case, they should be reminded that their seeming inability to perform, especially if it was subconscious on their parts, cost their team a game.

Gather the players in question together and clamly give this speech:

"I've got you guys here because I need you to know that you are the key to our team's success. You might not believe me when I say that. You're not the superstars of the team. You're not the rookies. Your not the third liners. Look how that plays out in a game. The other team's superstars cancel out our superstars. Their rookies cancel out our rookies. Their third line and our third line are both third lines. What this comes down to, guys, is: if our midfield outplays their midfield, we win...simple as that. Our team needs everyone of you guys to decide that you are going to outwork, outplay, and out hustle your guy on the other side the whole game long. If each one of you makes a commitment to yourself, and each other, then we win. Everybody think about this and let me know if you can make that commitment. Thanks!"

I'm sure you can put this together with your personal batch of cliches to make it believable...good luck, let us know how the next game goes...I, for one, am supremely interested.

[stinisonfire]

Have a chat and go over what you guys did right to start off, then what went wrong. Maybe a good chunk of your d-mids are new to the position and don't know how to throw a poke, drop back and then drive them down the sides.

As for the goalie, I know what its like to be in his shoes. When the mids aren't playing defense (or the rest of the team from the sounds of it) and you're just getting shelled, sometimes it's hard to pull yourself out of that rut. Maybe a different warm up could help, or some extra shots before the game and at half time.

Fundamentals are the key to the game, obviously. You know this as well as I do. Ground balls win games. One drill we do in practice is a 3v2 live ground ball drill. We have 2 defensemen (poles and/or shorties) and three offensive. The coach will throw a ball out, and as soon as you see if you can go (you start about the mid-line). If the offense pick it up, they take it to the cage and try and either get a fast break, or set up a man-up and work the ball around to the open man. You can also do this with a 3v3 set-up as well.

My biggest guess with your team is this; I think they underestimated the team you guys played, especially the goalie. I remember my senior year we played a dirt team (mainly football players who wanted to hit), and won like, 11-7. I wasn't playing goal due to a knee injury, so we took them lightly in the first round of the state playoffs. Even though we were a much better team (faster, stronger, much better stick skills, footwork, etc) we underestimated them and they started off on a 6-1 run, with their goals coming from fast breaks. We got our act together, and put them away by about 10 when the game ended. I guess its because we were playing to go to the regional semi's on our own turf. Maybe your team just has to find something within themselves to play for...

[marflax33]

options:
Get marflax there for mid. 110 percent coach :thumbsup: Actually i have had a few games like that, but not in lacrosse. In football, all the safeties were sucking hard core, and i was hurt, had a bad cold and hurt ribs. Well, i had to play, sick, and still did well. All the other safeties were healthy, and fit, and not hurt, but just werent really trying because they thought it would be an easy game. Needless to say, other team was passing, corners were also lazy, than the safeties werent in there zones or anything. I was kind of pissed, because it hurt my ribs more, and it took longer to heal. And we still lost, meaning all my efforts were about pointless. Yeah it sucked.