AFL 2012 NATIONAL COACHING CONFERENCE CONCURRENT SESSION DESCRIPTIONS Session 1: Saturday 18th February, 8.30 am – 9.45 am 1A Conducting Effective Drills – Stan Alves (AFL Coaching Ambassador) How do you decide what drills to include in your training session? The best drills, and perhaps the most satisfying, are those developed by you for a specific purpose. You can choose almost any aspect of the game, however small, and design a drill or activity to practice it. This session will present important principles in developing, selecting, and conducting drills to ensure maximum effectiveness from training. 1B Kicking Remediation – Kevin Ball (Victoria University) With the game constantly increasing in speed, it is vital that players continue to maintain a high standard with their kicking. This session will review the history of teaching kicking, discuss today’s modern kicking requirements and put forward a skill template that coaches and players can use for their benefit. 1C Developing Children and Youth – Glenn Wilkins (Ballarat Grammar School) & Craig McBrien (Park Ridge SHS) The objective of this session is to outline the latest detailed information around coaching young players. The presentation will provide the coach with the skills to develop a structured program outlining the key components of training programs, drills, and game based training with a focus on development and building positive relationships. It also covers the most effective ways to get the most out of players focusing on communication strategies, questioning techniques, feedback, and assessment and how they can be utilised by the coach to get the best outcomes for individuals, team, and club. 1D Developing Players Ability to Perform When it Counts – Bo Hanson (4 x Olympian; Athlete Assessments) In this workshop we use the “stages of learning” model to understand the learning process and how to identify and reduce the degree to which an athlete may “choke” under pressure. We also learn strategies to ensure we perform at our best more often by discovering the principles of consciousness and unconsciousness. Whilst this sounds complex, this workshop makes it simple by explaining and using actual simulations during the workshop, to narrow your focus, expand it when required and how to control your focus to produce maximum performance. 1E Coach Coordinator Program – Jason Saddington (AFL NSW/ACT) & Steve Teakel (AFL VIC) The role of the club coaching coordinator is a pivotal role in the Australian Football club environment and is designed to assist in the support and continual development of club coaches and support staff. The club coaching coordinator is a liaison between the club committee, local league and other football stakeholders including the regional AFCA branch and Regional Development Managers. 1F Perfect Preparation – Jenny Williams (Best on Ground Performance) If you could have access to a crystal ball that would help identify and recruit the best players and coaches, coupled with a program that develops extraordinary preparation and sound performance psychology wouldn’t you spend an hour finding out about it? Jenny used the world renowned Hogan profiles to look at the personality characteristics of successful AFL coaches and a group of X factor players. She will discuss the findings using the profile of an AFL coach (with permission) and how the profiles can be used to improve team performance at all levels. Session 2: Saturday 18th February, 11.20 am – 12.35 pm 2A Defensive Strategies – Marty Allison (Calder Cannons FC) This session will look take an in-depth look at the defensive side of football, and in particular developing a defence that is capable of performing under pressure. It will explore the balance between attack and defence, creating turnovers vs. creating scores, positioning, adapting to forward lines, players physical make up and future trends. 2B Developing Elite Kicking – David Rath (Hawthorn FC) This session will provide the participant with an insight into the development of kicking performance. The session aims to challenge some traditional beliefs regarding kicking coaching and performance. By examining the characteristics of elite kicking, participants will establish an alternative framework for the coaching, and more importantly, learning of kicking. 2C Coaching Junior & Youth Kicking – Anton Grbac (AFL Victoria) This session will focus on identifying typical challenges when coaching, remediating and planning kicking development in youth and junior players. Simple activities and training parameters to achieve improvement outcomes will be introduced. 2D Inclusive Coaching - Communication and Development of Players from Indigenous and Multicultural Communities – Michael O’Loughlin & Jason Mifsud (AFL) With the continuous growth in the participation of indigenous and multicultural players in the AFL system, it is important that coaches at all levels understand the diverse backgrounds some of these players come from and are able to provide the support needed to allow these players to reach their full potential. 2E What Research Says about Youth Player Development and Transition to Elite - David Buttifant (Collingwood FC) & Jason Berry (Victoria University) This presentation will introduce the issues faced by AFL clubs in the transition of players from the junior ranks into AFL football. Combining evidence from a collaborative AFL club study that investigated training loads and injury status of 1st-year AFL players, David and Jason will provide a research informed roadmap of player development best practice methods to maximise young players potential in AFL football. 2F What Coaches need to know about Fitness – John Quinn (GWS Giants) This session will look at how to teach players to become fit. Often players complete running exercises because they have to, but not all players know how to become fit and how to push their physical boundaries. John will outline strategies in getting players to reach their potential in relation to their physical condition. Session 3: Saturday 18th February, 3.15 pm – 4.30 pm 3A Understanding the Press – Stuart Dew (Sydney FC) The press has become a common strategy in modern football. This session will look at what the press is and how to train your players to successfully implement a press and/or beat a press. 3B Goal Kicking – John Blakey (Sydney FC) Goal kicking is a combination of science, skill and mental toughness. There are many different situations including goals scored from set shots, general play and snap shots which will be examined. Accuracy, or a lack of it, can win or lose many games. This session will examine the various methods that can be used to teach goal kicking with an emphasis on the art of teaching different types of players who have different abilities and personalities. 3C Auskick Skills and Drills – (AFL NSW/ACT Game Development Staff) In this practical session, AFL NSW/ACT Game Development staff will run delegates through a series of Auskick Skills and Drills with the emphasis on how to ensure the activities are engaging for AFL Auskickers and junior players. 3D Coaching Players from other Sports – Mark Browning (AFL Academies) With the increasing diversity of sports to which the youth of Australia have access it is important that coaches are able to adapt coaching techniques to assist players from a different sport to participate in AFL football. From the recruitment of young players, to their skill development and use of the ‘oval’ ball, this session will outline the key strategies to coaching players from other sports. 3E Effective Body Contact/Tackling – Scott Hill (Sports Wisdom) Scott Hill will share his insights on how AFL defence can become more effective, from Rugby League Techniques. Along with the use of the attacking fend in AFL to create further opportunities and space in AFL. 3F Combine Testing & Player Preparation – Kevin Sheehan & James Veale (AFL) This session will cover the history of the Draft Camp/Combine and its growing importance in the football landscape. This session will give attendees an up-to-date interpretation of how “Combine results aid talent identification in AFL. Finally, each test will be analysed to give coaches and players an insight into how best to prepare for and train to perform well in a respective test. Session 4: Sunday 19th February, 10.20 am – 11.35 am 4A Developing an Effective Forward Line – Leigh Tudor (Sydney FC) The session will include everything from how we score, to setting up predictable structures so that the synergy within your forward line (and the team) is at a premium. Some setup ideas will be shown along with vision. 4B Ruckwork– Steven King (Western Bulldogs FC) This session will focus on ruckwork skills, training, developing young ruckmen (or big men in general), ruck tactics, the role of the ruckman on and off the ball (e.g. going forward, staying back, spending time in another position, including interchange), their relationships with other players and countering opposition ruckmen. 4C Successful Coaching for Juniors – Jason Saddington (AFL NSW/ACT) This session will consider the crucial elements to ensure the successful coaching of junior players. It will go through the basics including being on time and appropriately dressed and will provide strategies for controlling the group and ensuring a safe environment. Jason will go through communication techniques and how to best teach the skills. 4D Communication, Learning Styles & Personal Brand – Laurie Serafini (Serafini Communications) In this cutting