Captain Considerations: Win Now Versus Win Later

Nation,

Our sport is growing up. No longer can pick up teams walk into local tourneys and dominate as they once did. As the game continues to mature, this will become even more difficult.

Under the current Worlds system, teams qualify to represent their country by winning their national title in the previous year. You win nationals in 2007, you represent Canada in 2008. That's the system we have to work under.

So if you're not a defending national champion this year, what should be the plan of your team?

A lot of teams that were very close to winning will continue to compete for a national title every year until it is time to dissolve. This is understandable. I expect my readers to cringe as I compare teams to the business concept known as the product life cycle. But what about the rest of the pack? How should team leaders plan for this year and for coming years?

Ultimate Product Life Cycle

Here are some ideas on how to get started making those decisions

1. Take stock of your team and your players
2. Evaluate your micro environment. Your city, your league, your feeder system. Understand how everyone and everything affects you. Understand cause and effect.
   
3. Evaluate the macro environment (competition in the division and how you stack up, changes in the system, changes/status of outside areas such as the college scene)
4. Set your goals
5. Make a plan
6. Stick to it
   

Personally, I think the most important thing in club ultimate is winning nationals in a qualifying year. It's a pretty simple and clear vision, and every leadership book will tell you such simplicity is needed to carry out the many tasks needed to get to your goal. There will be a lot of tough decisions, but being able to ask "Does this decision help achieve the end goal" adds focus and credibility to your mission.

Any team on this planet can be beaten. However, if you want to beat Furious, Traffic, or Team Fisher Price in 2011, you better develop a long term comprehensive plan that gives you the best chance for success when it matters most.

Don't you drink coffee with a fork?
Photo Source: Daniel Bergson/Facebook

Or,

You can do it the other way that so many teams do. You can lose focus and abandon your plans the minute a good player(s) comes into town in order to try and win every year. You can ignore your city leagues and feeder systems because you're busy with other things. You can lead aimlessly without a real plan from year to year.

To each his own.

Captain Considerations: Properly Valuing the Injury Prone

Nation,

With tryouts looming, I have decided to start a collection of posts titled Captain Considerations. The topics will cover some of the major topics team administrators and captains should consider when holding tryouts, selecting squads and setting up a game plan for the upcoming season.

If you'd like to submit an article, please feel free to contact me.

Jamie Noonan Looks to Huck at UPA Finals 2006
Photo Source: Ultypics.com and the great Dave Knowles

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Every year, teams and players at this time of year look forward to spring tryouts. By now you've being inundated at every ultimate gathering (game, workout, party, etc) by the same list of character stereotypes

• The overly positive (about the upcoming season)
  
• The overly cynical
• The indifferent but wants you to know that they're indifferent
• The non committal (to any particular team)
• The prognosticator (who will play where, who will make what team, etc)

I gotta tell ya, these people can get annoying REALLY fast. The captain who selects their team hopefully ignores all these people, and focuses on what's important.

So what is important?

Of the many key considerations, properly assessing the injury risk during tryouts may have a major effect on your team's success.

It's so easy to pick the Spring Superstar. Their talent is tantalizing, and they clearly have the skills/speed to play. But where are they in August and October? They're on the sidelines or wishing the team well from home, nursing another injury.

All players are susceptible to injuries. But some players are chronically hurt. With these players, you have to ask yourself:

• What are the value of these players, given that they will miss games (and contribute nothing in these games) and in most games after tryouts will be performing at less than optimal levels?
• What is the opportunity cost of picking these players as opposed to other players who can play more and don't get a spot on your team?
  
• How can you manage these players to win the most games, and win the most important games in your season?
• What is being done by the injury prone athlete to combat this problem?
  

Properly valuing players in sports with stats is difficult enough, and ultimate is even more complicated. It might be an unpopular decision in the local ultimate community, but team selectors might have to pass on the injury prone.

If you pick too many skilled players who injure easily, your whole team may be sitting on the sideline come tourney finals on a far too regular basis.