Keeping team motivated through an event (looking for answer)

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TrashHeap
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Keeping team motivated through an event (looking for answer)

Post by TrashHeap »

I noticed this with a lot of league bowlers at association and state tournaments, and it happened to our high school team at a recent tournament. By the final game, everyone was down and it seemed they just wanted to leave. The ethusiasm that was at the beginning was completely nonexistent at the end.

Is there something that can be done during practice to prepare these kids for those longer tournament formats.
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spmcgivern
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Re: Keeping team motivated through an event (looking for ans

Post by spmcgivern »

The dreaded, "I'm not going to win or make the cut so I am not going to try anymore" syndrome.

When I coached in college, it was important to focus on the process of bowling and not get bogged down with uncontrollable details like how the team was doing in the standings. It is really difficult to accomplish this and you will never completely take away the score/standings part. Developing a good team chemistry where bowlers work together and give 100% for the entire tournament is very important. I would rather have a bunch of 100% all of the time bowlers who get along than one All American who is a cancer to the team.

If left alone, the point in which the bowler(s) gives up becomes earlier and earlier in a tournament. At first it will be the last game or so. Then it will be after a really bad game. Eventually the bowler(s) will feel defeated once they walk in. There have been too many times when a team has come from back in the pack to either win or make the cut to make me believe my team has no chance. Are there cases where they have no chance? Of course, but you can't let them know that. Your behavior is just as important.

Teams with cooperation, effort and camaraderie will have a better experience regardless of the outcome.

One more thing. I also feel the more prepared the team is the better this type of issue can be mitigated. The team needs to know what to expect whether it is the physical side of bowling for the duration of the tournament, the emotional strain they will endure, as well as the expectation of the lane condition and what to do when certain situations arise. Having a detailed plan of attack will make these situations easier to adjust to and eliminates some of the stresses they pose.
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spmcgivern
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Re: Keeping team motivated through an event (looking for ans

Post by spmcgivern »

After reading your post again, I wanted to add one more thing.

To prepare for tournaments, especially longer ones, the team needs to have experienced the physical side of bowling that many games to understand what they will encounter. Marathoners don't train running 5 miles to run 26.2 miles. They occasionally run the required distance to get their body prepared for the physical side. There should be a slow buildup to the number of games they will bowl.

For situations like city and state tournaments, bowling team is no big deal. But a lot of bowlers may not bowl back to back nights let alone 6 games the day after bowling 3 games. If they can't prepare, they should at least understand they will get tired legs or whatever, and be ready to make adjustments accordingly.

One aspect of high school and college bowling many don't expect is the physical drain. I watched our regional high school tournament this past weekend and a lot of players stood the whole time. They were excited for their team and cheered and high fived and so on. These environments will tire bowlers out more than just bowling games in practice. College bowling is even worse in my mind, especially the girls. Just make sure they know what will occur and have a plan to combat those negatives to keep the team on tract.

Lastly, too many times when I was younger bowling scratch tournaments, I would have a number in my head of what I needed to bowl to do "well." If I wasn't bowling that score, I would get dejected and sulk and bowl worse. And yet, too many times I had a chance if I just kept a level head. The bowlers need to eliminate the expectation of what they need to score and just throw each ball the best they can. Let the scores speak for themselves at the end of the tournament.
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