Stealing/recruiting players

[RICK]

I made the turn back coming thru with the younger age groups. Does anyone else experience haveing thier players stolen or recruited. At the older age groups I know it happens but I cant believe that it goes on at the 10u / 12u groups. We had a pretty decent fall season going 20-3 but still these few girls were persuaded to leave.

Anyone else running into these issues at the younger levels?

 

[alexander58]

I made the turn back coming thru with the younger age groups. Does anyone else experience haveing thier players stolen or recruited. At the older age groups I know it happens but I cant believe that it goes on at the 10u / 12u groups. We had a pretty decent fall season going 20-3 but still these few girls were persuaded to leave.

Anyone else running into these issues at the younger levels?

Ive had some girls approached, but none have left. I know it goes on a little. It seems to happen mostly at the higher age groups.

 

[smddad]

Does having a coach leave and calling everyone on the roster count?

 

[CoogansBluff]

It happens in all divisions, IMO.

Why did they leave? What did the other coach promise to deliver that you couldn't?

 

[CoogansBluff]

Does having a coach leave and calling everyone on the roster count?

Things like this happen a lot, too. ... Assistant gets mad at the head coach and wants to take it over or destroy it.

 

[02Crush]

Yep. Happens pretty regularly for me.

 

[mtnbama]

I'm on my second time through myself. Going through it the first time, it used to drive me crazy about losing players who were recruited away -- especially players you helped develop to the point that they would be desirable recruits for (possibly) better teams.

But here's six things I learned:

1. Players are going to leave. Always. So get over it.

2. Don't try to pretend to your parents and players that player switching doesn't happen. Be up front with them at the end of each fall and spring season -- I always tell my parents and players at the end of the season "hey, this is time of year that players move around from team to team -- it always happens -- if it's something that you are thinking about doing, that's fine, just let me know by X date so I'll know what holes we need to fill" Also, I always schedule a practice/tryouts at the end of each season -- even before I know if need any players. This does a couple of things -- for most people, it gives them a reason/deadline to go ahead and let you know they are leaving, and second, if you wait to schedule tryouts till you need to have them, it's usually too late.

3. Don't burn any bridges, because if you really offer a better situation, they'll be back. I've heard of coaches telling players -- hey if you leave, you can't come back -- as a way of trying to get them to stay. Fact is, that's overplaying your hand. Assuming that they are leaving in good standing (don't owe money, etc) just leave them with -- "disappointed you're leaving, but it's important to be happy, so go and if things don't work out, you can always check back with me to see if we have spot open".

4. Since players always leave, you need to always be preparing to find and recruit new players. What that means is that you should always be building your brand as a coach -- the way you interact with umpires, with other players, with other parents, how you coach your team during games and between games, attending clinics, etc. Know who the other good players are in your age group. Understand what what you'd want if you were looking for new players (speed, slapper, pitching, etc).

5. Build a team that players and parents want to be a part of. Have great practices. Build team chemistry. Play a challenging, but appropriate schedule. Have a team that plays hard and has fun. NOTE: Just to be clear, even if you have these things, some players will still leave. But these are things that help you recruit their replacements.

6. Harshest truth of them all -- the best way to keep good players is to get rid of the bad players. The reason that good players leave teams is to get away from the bad players. So, if you want to keep the good ones, you have to do it for them. If you have players don't meet your standards for effort, and focus and committment -- you need to cut them. Otherwise, what will happen is that you'll end up losing your good players, and having all the bad players stay. And you need to do it in a timely fashion at the end of the season. If you've done your job as a coach during the season, it shouldn't come as a surprise at the end of the season when you have that conversation with the parent to let them go.

 

[Greenmonsters]

^^^^Mtnbama has some good advice. And to the OP, the only player that is "yours" is your DD. Sometimes players leave not just to get away from "bad players" ad Mtn notes, but also from bad coaches, too.

 

[CoogansBluff]

Outstanding post, Mtnbama.

#6 is an interesting point you make. That realization was a turning point for me.

In 4 years as a head coach, I lost one player that I really hated losing. She left between fall/spring. I don't know if she was recruited away or not. Doesn't matter. It's my job to make my team desirable for players, and I failed in her case.

Her family told me that it was a well-coached, well-organized team (maybe they were being nice) but that our team had too many girls who were not serious enough about working hard and getting better. And they were right. I liked all the players, but some were holding the others back by their lack of dedication

Reminds me of the quote by Lou Holtz, and it's paraphrased: "How do you solve a motivation problem? You get rid of the players who aren't motivated.''

Within a year, the work ethic and professionalism of our team was totally different, partly because the coaches raised the bar, partly because we found better (more mature) players. I can partly thank that family for it.

 

[iMlearning]

^^^^Mtnbama has some good advice. And to the OP, the only player that is "yours" is your DD. Sometimes players leave not just to get away from "bad players" ad Mtn notes, but also from bad coaches, too.

We lost 10 of 12 players off our team last year because of the coaches...the only 2 that stayed were the coaches daughters. It's too bad because I truly believe we would have been one of the best teams in the East!