This has given me pause for thought. It is a pity all the subjects were from team games.
Mentoring I wholeheartedly agree with the sentiments. Mentors are essential for coach development. In my experience too many novice/inexperienced coaches do not make good use of their mentors during training. I think at level 1 and 2 there is a need to tighten up the way we train and use mentors in my sport.
Assessment for me this is a catch 22 situation. If an assessment day happens we use the learners to role play situations. The whole event is false if you have experienced athletes. I also know that getting people with little/no experience for an assessment is an absolute nightmare. The alternative is to send assessors to watch the coaches in the clubs. This then becomes incredibly complicated administratively because of verification etc., and would be prohibitively costly as well.
Periodisation of training! The best laid plans... Inevitably if you are working one to one with an athlete. You can draw up a coaching plan for the year with short, medium and long term objectives but these can all go pear shaped due to illness, injury or other factors beyond the control of the coach or athlete. The coach has to react, reset or improvise.
Networking
I have been privileged to meet, observe and work with some outstanding international coaches. The ones that made the greatest impact on my coaching were the ones that gave their time to assist in the training of the more junior coaches that will eventually replace them.
Nash, C. S. & Sproule, J. (2009). Career Development of Expert Coaches. International Journal of Sport Scientists. 4 (1), 121-138.
