A logo for surrey hockey is shown on a white background

Feedback at DC

In 2020, after much discussion and deliberation, the Surrey Player Pathway decided to no longer offer written feedback at DC level. In this we are aligning ourselves with most other counties in the South.


We didn’t come to this decision lightly but have done so for a variety of reasons:

 

  • It is very difficult to give meaningful feedback at this level unless the coach is on the pitch with the player and ‘in the moment’. Any written feedback has to be worded in such a way that it is not discouraging or over-critical and, as a result, may not be all that useful.
  • ‎There is some doubt that players are using the feedback to improve. If they are on a genuine path to develop then they will be improving/picking up things at each DC and then applying. The motivation for those who develop comes from within and if it isn't there (too early for the player or just not there) then written feedback isn't a solution.
  • Collecting the data to use for feedback is preventing the coaches from doing much of the actual coaching. Our coaches don’t enjoy this and is, we are finding, rather counterproductive.
  • Writing and inputting the feedback is a mammoth task, especially for those lead coaches who have groups of over 40 players. We pay all our coaches but only really for the time they spend on the pitch. The hours spent at home in the evenings doing admin and feedback are pretty much voluntary. This can’t go on but, more worryingly, many of our lead coaches find it more and more difficult to commit to the programme as a result.

 

We continue with our programme of coach development for coaches inside and outside of our player pathway activities and we believe that this is a much better use of our money and efforts as it means the right coaching philosophy is trickling down to younger players, years before we see them at the DC. In other words, a coach doesn’t have to write identical feedback for 2 dozen players saying they need to be feet apart, knees bent and right hand at the bottom of the stick to execute a sound ‘wide base receive’ if this information is already commonly coached at club and school. 


We will, of course, still be requiring all our coaches to keep some notes on each of the players in their squads in order to justify their selection decisions, and they will always be available for a chat if you have any direct questions.


We will continue to provide opportunities for new and existing coaches to improve and develop and we have recently invested heavily in creating an online system for our coaches where they can maintain and organise their coaching profile and through which we keep in touch with them to offer them the latest courses and development opportunities while allowing us to ensure their qualifications and awards are kept up to date and relevant.

Selection for AC Assessments - Yes & NO

After the DC cycle, coaches will select the players they feel are ready to be assessed for the AC. This does not mean the player is guaranteed a place at the AC, it means that the player will be assessed, along other players selected from the DC, as well as players currently in the PC, for a place in the AC squad. This is a tough selection process and in some age groups, will require us to select a squad of 20-23 players from a cohort of 50.

One of the most asked questions we receive from patents if a player is not selected for the AC assessments, is "what does my son/daughter need to to do to be selected next time".
There is never any one thing a player needs to do to improve, it is always a combination of all the core skills, speed, fitness, agility, awareness, coachability etc. 
Our coaches look at the players and determine of they are 'ready' for the next level. If not, continue to work on all aspects of your game and come back next year (if eligible).

We can never say 'if you do this and that, you'll be in with a shout for next year' - it doesn't work like that. Young players develop at different levels at different ages and we have plenty of examples where players who were extremely promising and well above the level for their age group at 12, stagnated and were not selected at 14. Similarly, players who were not selected at the start of their Player Pathway career have overtaken proven and talented players a couple of years down the line and gone on to represent Hampshire in the AC.

What if I think the coaches have got it terribly wrong?

Our coaches see a lot of players and we have been doing this for a long time. In Hampshire we have developed a very strong coaching community that collaborates and shares best practice and we always make sure that selection decisions are the result of input from a number of coaches. That said, the lead coach of a centre has the final decision.


At the end of the DC, when selecting for the AC assessments, if a coach is uncertain about a player, he or she will usually recommend that player for the AC assessments. That way, the player can be seen in a higher level environment and the decision usually becomes clearer.


It is getting much rarer now, but there was a time when it was not unusual for a club coach to scoff at our decisions and exclaim that the Surrey coaches made the wrong call after a DC or AC cycle. If said coach is not active in the Player Pathway, it can be argued that he or she can't really know what the level was in that centre so their comments are probably ill-informed.


However, if you or your club/school coach (who is also active in the Player Pathway) feels we have made a colossal error by not selecting your son or daughter for the AC assessments, you must get in touch with us as soon as possible. 

This is how the process works:

 

  • You send an email to our administrator ( visit our contact page ).
  • We will contact the lead coach of the centre to ask for his reasons for the decision.
  • This is then reviewed by the committee and commented on by the director of coaching.
  • The decision and the notes from the coach are then communicated to you via the administrator. - Please be prepared for the fact that the feedback will be to the point.
  • The Director of coaching's decision is final. Area, EH or any other parties have no say in the selection decisions for AC.

 

If, in consultation with the coach, we find that he or she does not have accurate notes and concrete reasons for the decision, we will always invite the player to the AC assessments where we can then take special care to assess the player again. 

This has happened on a couple of occasions on the past (although not recently). 

Share by: