Team Captains

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On your High School team do you have team captains ?

Do you just give it to upperclassmen even if they do not have solid leadership abilities ?

Do you think it is a good idea to give kids control to yell at other kids?
 
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WWolff said:
On your High School team do you have team captains ?

Do you just give it to upperclassmen even if they do not have solid leadership abilities ?

Do you think it is a good idea to give kids control to yell at other kids?
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I like team captains. Having the players vote for captains after describing what makes a good captain to them is a good idea. It is important to let them know that it does not need to be a senior. I do not know if I would describe it as yelling, but team leaders do get on other players to make sure they are working hard. Team leaders include other players than just the captains. It is also important to help your captains and leaders understand what it means to hold those positions and how they are to act. In a way I guess you need to train them.
 
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Not a big fan of team captains, it is usually just a popularity contest when left to the players and the coaches pet when left to the coaches. The girls are plenty smart enough to figure out who they want to follow. A true leader doesn't need a title to get the girls to follow them. JMHO
 
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The3dm said:
Not a big fan of team captains, it is usually just a popularity contest when left to the players and the coaches pet when left to the coaches. The girls are plenty smart enough to figure out who they want to follow. A true leader doesn't need a title to get the girls to follow them. JMHO
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Agree with this ^
 
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The3dm said:
Not a big fan of team captains, it is usually just a popularity contest when left to the players and the coaches pet when left to the coaches. The girls are plenty smart enough to figure out who they want to follow. A true leader doesn't need a title to get the girls to follow them. JMHO
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I totally agree, I hate team captains. It isn't my job as coach to choose someone to inspire them, that is their job.
 
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Even if they are not officially named a captain, those that the girls choose to follow are the team captains. Once those girls establish themselves as the team's leaders the coach should work with those players and develop their leadership skills. This is related more to a high school or college program than a travel team. In terms of building a program where you have girls for a four year period at various levels of talent and commitment having captians is important. For most travel teams there is allready a serious commitment by all players. You still have team leaders on those travel teams, however the need for a captain is less. If you examine the top high school and college programs I bet you find captains. It is not perfect at all high schools. If you do not have good leadership from the coach it can turn into the negatives that have been mentioned.
 
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alittledifferent said:
If you do not have good leadership from the coach it can turn into the negatives that have been mentioned.
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I like the analogy that goes with this statement. It goes like this; The coach is very similar to a shepherd leading their flock, teams captains are the Boarder Collies that keep the flock focused and they react to the Shepherd's queue. The Collies instinctively keep the flock protected and organized, but it is only through the Shepherd queue do they move the flock in a direction.

You need a good Shepherd that can recognize the instincts and give the Collies the latitude to do their job. The flock knows what the Collies job is, and they'll do what the Collie asks out of respect and not fear. They know if the Collie gets out of hand the Shepherd will put it down.
 
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The3dm said:
Not a big fan of team captains, it is usually just a popularity contest when left to the players and the coaches pet when left to the coaches. The girls are plenty smart enough to figure out who they want to follow. A true leader doesn't need a title to get the girls to follow them. JMHO
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At the high school level this is the approach I have used. However I do coach/nudge/push the catcher into being a vocal leader while on defense, and if I can get a middle infielder to step up that is a bonus as well.

As far as yelling at kids, I never allowed that to happen from anybody. If you meant a little high-spirited in your face stuff then I defer to the above quoted text on letting the players figure out who to allow to do that and who is emerging on their own.
 
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The3dm said:
Not a big fan of team captains, it is usually just a popularity contest when left to the players and the coaches pet when left to the coaches. The girls are plenty smart enough to figure out who they want to follow. A true leader doesn't need a title to get the girls to follow them. JMHO
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Agree 100%. True Leaders always show up and are realized by the team.
 
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In my opinioin, team captains are a good thing. It should not simply be a popularity contest. Captains should be trained on how to be vocal in a positive way and on how to help mediate conflict. They should work closely with the coaching staff to understand the philosophy of the coaches. Coaches can't always be around the players, team captains (good ones) can help keep things right and not let small problems snow ball. Players should have a say in who their captains are and should be told a ahead of time what qualities would make a good captain.

JMHO
 
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We do not have team captains and no players go out for the pregame meeting.
 
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Interesting .. after practice last night I talked with the team (11u) and one of the things I complimented them on is how well they respect and treat each other as team mates. There is no status among them, they pull for each other and they seem to all know that each player contributes to the team in a positive way.

I would never dream of having a team captain among them, although there are 2-3 girls that are leaders, they do it by their play not a 'C' on their shirt...
 
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How many Collies does a Sheperd need to control 12 sheep ???? LOL

I have one for you,..." Too many cooks in the kitchen mess up the meal", or "Too many Chiefs and not enough Indians".
 
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THUNDER ROAD said:
How many Collies does a Sheperd need to control 12 sheep ???? LOL

I have one for you,..." Too many cooks in the kitchen mess up the meal", or "Too many Chiefs and not enough Indians".
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12 is a low number if you are talking about a school that has a freshman, jv and a varsity. Even with varsity and JV you are possible talking about 22-26 kids. The point of a captain is not about control. A good collie is not controlling the sheep as much as it keeps them together, points them in the right direction and makes sure they arrive together. Again, if you are talking about 11 or 12 girls on a travel team it is a completley different situation.
 
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WWolff said:
What if your Collie has rabies you have alot of dead sheep
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A good sheep herder recognizes the signs of rabies before the collie gets into the sheep. You eliminate that collie and get another one.
 
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WWolff said:
Who said you have a good shepherd ?????????
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I mentioned earlier that it depends on the coach as with many other situations. This is starting to sound like you have a situation you are speaking specifically about.
 
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