Squash South Africa Long Term Player Development Programme Contents FOREWORD ................................................................................................ ......................................... 4 BARRY HENDRICKS ................................................................ ........................................................................... 4 ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS ................................................................................................................... 5 INTRODUCTION ................................................................ ................................................................. 6 A HISTORY OF THE SQUASH SOUTH AFRICA ................................ ................................................................. 6 PARTICIPATION IN INTERNATIONAL COMPETITIONS ................................................................................................ .................................................. 7 SQUASH IN SOUTH AFRICA ................................................................ .............................................................. 7 BACKGROUND TO LONG TERM ATHLETE / PLAYER DEVELOPMENT .......................................................................................... 8 EXCELLENCE AND LIFELONG WELLNESS ...................................................................................................... 8 SEVEN STAGES OF LTPD ................................................................................................................................. 9 Active Start (0-6 years) ................................................................................................................................. 9 FUNdamentals (6-9 males, 6-8 females) ................................................................................................................................................................ 9 Learning to Train (9-12 males, 9-11 females) ................................................................................................................................................................ 9 Training to Train (12-1 males, 11-15 females) ................................................................................................................................................................ 9 Training to Compete (16-23 +/- males, 16-21 +/- females) ............................................................................................................................. 9 Training to Win (19 +/- males, 18+/- females) ................................................................................................................................................................ 9 Active for Life (any stage males and females) ................................................................................................................................................................ 9 THE 10 KEY FACTORS OF LTPD ................................................................................................................. 10 Sensitive Periods for Trainability (Balyi and Way, 2005) ................................................................................................................................. 11 TRAINABILITY AND THE 10 S’S ................................................................................................................... 13 RATIONALE ..................................................................................................................................................... 15 GUIDING PRINCIPLES ..................................................................................................................................... 16 STAGE DESCRIPTIONS ................................................................................................................................... 16 STAGE 1: ACTIVE START ................................................................ ..............................................17 STAGE 2: FUNDAMENTALS ..........................................................................................................19 STAGE 3: LEARNING TO TRAIN ................................................................ ..................................21 STAGE 4: TRAINING TO TRAIN ................................................................ ...................................23 STAGE 5 - TRAINING TO COMPETE ................................ ...........................................................25 STAGE 6: TRAINING TO WIN ................................................................ .......................................27 STAGE 7: ACTIVE FOR LIFE ................................................................ ..........................................29 LTPD SUPPORT PROGRAMMES ................................ .................................................................30 LONG-TERM DEVELOPMENT OF COACHES ................................ .................................................................. 30 LONG-TERM DEVELOPMENT FOR TECHNICAL OFFICIALS ................................................................ .................................................................. 31 2 Squash South Africa Long Term Player Development Programme LEADERSHIP AND SUCCESSION .................................................................................................................... 32 LTPD RESOURCES FOR PROVINCIAL AFFILIATES, SCHOOLS AND CLUBS .............................................................................................................. 32 COMPETITION ..................................................................................................................................33 A) FACTORS IN COMPETITION PLANNING .................................................................................................. 33 B) COMPETITION REVIEW ............................................................................................................................ 33 Competition at the Active for Life Stage ..................................................................................................................................................................... 35 C) PLAYER MONITORING .............................................................................................................................. 35 IMPLEMENTING LTPD IN SOUTH AFRICA ................................................................................................................................................37 ROLES, RESPONSIBILITIES AND ACTION PLANS ............................................................................................................................................................... 37 REFERENCES .....................................................................................................................................38 APPENDIX A ......................................................................................................................................39 GLOSSARY OF TERMS ..................................................................................................................................... 39 APPENDIX B ......................................................................................................................................41 TRAINING MATRIX: SKILLS ........................................................................................................................... 41 TRAINING MATRIX; PHYSICAL CAPACITIES 1 ............................................................................................. 42 TRAINING MATRIX: PHYSICAL CAPACITIES 2 ............................................................................................. 42 TRAINING MATRIX: PHYSICAL CAPACITIES 3 ............................................................................................. 43 TRAINING MATRIX: PREPARATION AND RECOVERY ........................................................................................................................................................ 45 TRAINING MATRIX: PSYCHOLOGICAL SKILLS ............................................................................................. 47 APPENDIX C ......................................................................................................................................49 PLAYER DEVELOPMENT MODEL .................................................................................................................. 49 APPENDIX D ......................................................................................................................................50 PLAYER EVALUATION FORM ........................................................................................................................ 50 APPENDIX E ......................................................................................................................................51 THE INCLUSIVITY PROGRAMME ................................................................................................................... 51 3 Squash South Africa Long Term Player Development Programme Foreword Barry Hendricks Long Term Athlete or Player Development is a player centred philosophy where the needs of the player are taken into account during the player’s growth and acquisition of squash skills through his/her development pathway. The concept recognises that some players play for the fun of the game whilst others strive for