A number of clubs are filled to capacity with some having 8 or 9 teams in an age group.

These clubs generally just trial new players as they are already familiar with their existing players, who rarely will move up outside up a division if staying in their current age group and down a division if moving up to the next age group.

Clubs should only be trialling if they can guarantee that all potential new players, (especially Juniors), are guaranteed a coach.
Unfortunately some clubs can not even guarantee coaches for their existing players.

#144915 instead of complaining, do a coaching course & offer to help. That would reduce the shortage by one.

Trials are essential for all clubs, always on the look out for that hidden talent and it is good to see that that shortages of coaches is recognised as an important issue, DaddyO.
Some kids do have to move clubs to progress.
But perhaps there is other more underlying issues than just coaching numbers ( and bless those that volunteer, without them we would not have clubs at all!!).
But the more that clubs can recruit, the more revenue can be raised. So as kids leave for other sports or other clubs, due to lack of coaches, others quickly and unsuspectinglyly, take their place.The circle of life on the hardwood!!! There is no easy answer, clubs have to flourish and kids have the right to enjoy their sport and have skilled development.

Uncle ChopChop says "H.T.F.U."

114915 - If your child is not guaranteed a Coach - have you considered taking your child to a club that can guarante a coach. It would be to your childs benefit, would it not? than to have your child in a large Club with no Coach! I would be certain that your child would get a Coach and perhaps play up a division in a smaller Club!

Interesting comments. The thread is about the numbers of potential basketballers "trying out//trialling" . I think basketball is becoming a higher profile sport. But if the numbers of players grow faster than the number of volunteer coaches ( especially with some experience, not talking about the parent who does it just to help out) can be appointed, whether it be small clubs or larger clubs (it is all speculation) then there is a problem. How do you make coaching more valued//attractive from a club perspective? Please no comment about whinning parents. They probably need to feel heard ( appropriately), after all they pay the fees.!!!! Having no coach is not ideal, especially for juniors.

PAY THE COACHES?

Paying coaches is an interesting one. On the face of it its a great idea. However local clubs in SA, in most cases, are not run professionally enough. Committees would be making the decisions on who gets paid and how much. Committees are generally whoever is willing to agree to the job and have their kids interests at heart. Already enough politics in clubs without paying coaches.

If clubs can generate enough revenue to get a more professional structure as some clubs in VIc/NSW then its a great idea!

To pay junior district coaches in the BSA competition $20/hour would cost about $1.6M pa, excluding carnivals. (400 teams, 5 hours a week, 40 weeks per year). That's one hell of a lot of sausage sizzles.

You could do it through fees, but I think the parents might baulk at the extra $500 a year in fees on top of what they are already paying.

Apart from all that, $20/hour may not be enough to fix the problem. One reason for the shortage of volunteer coaches is that the people with the skills to coach don't have time - paying them won't help.

No need to pay junior coaches by the hour. Pay them a small amount per training session, plus an amount for any individual they may do with any kid in their age group (this would have to be approved by the the development officer in each club). Also pay them a fee per game, prehaps something like what the refs get paid, its not much but it is something. I would say that only Div 1 and div 2, 1's coaches get paid, the rest do it on what ever basis they are currently doing it on.

This may just encourage more people to get involved in coaching, maybe.

Reimburse the Coaches for their travelling expenses. I think you may get some that ordinarily might pull out that may stick around if they are at least being compensated for travel expenses, because essentially it can be a thankless task for some Coaches.

BUT...
Umpires get paid - Why not the Coaches? Pay them a standard rate in line with Umpires - Level 0 coaches get a base rate and for each level eg level 1/2 coaches accreditation the prices increase.

Heres a thought....instead of BSA charging Spectator fees and them keeping the money - perhaps they could put the Spectator fee into paying Coaches....They already get the player fee - which I assume pays for the refs.

You would also get more parents willing to do the Coaches Course if they were going to be compensated in the long run. May find a few parents who actually have something to offer the sport and may actually make great Coaches

Observer, coaching isnt like umpiring. I dont beleive you can say level 1 get paid this and level 2 get paid this. There are 2 many variables involved. To be honest most of your top coaches are on good salaries anyway. They do not do it for money and given, in a lot of cases, their many, many years of significant basketball experience any money would basically be a joke - unless you want to pay me a $100 or so an hour then money might come into it ;)

I would suggest you pay the lower division coaches. The Div 3/4/5 coaches should get paid some money. There is also another categoy. Those coaches that choose to pursue coaching as a career choice. Well if they are good enough they will be your JDOs, and yes they should get paid good money.

The main issue here is the lower divisions not having Coaches - I dont think any Club would or should be struggling for higher division Coaches but you cannot offer cash payment to one group and not the other.

You do not know that one of your colleagues who coaches at a high level may not welcome the extra money even if it only reimburses the petrol spent in getting to games/trainings

Clubs are struggling for lower Division coaches and it should be looked at as a serious option for attracting more coaches to the game of basketball and if you dangle a few $$$ there are those that would take up the challenge - it is human naure.

If you wish not to be reimbursed or compensated for your time and effort that is your choicc, and more power to you....but not everyone would be in the same situation.

The problem is - where does the money come from? Basketball does not have an infinite sorce of the folding stuff. It all eventually comes out of the same pockets.
Regardless of what the majority of posters on this forum seem to think, BSA and the Clubs run on a shoe string. There is extremely little slack in any of the budgets.
Some sums - for ease of caculation I will do this for a Club with 50 teams.
50 coaches at say $10 per week = $500 per week.
About 40 weeks per year for basketball = $20,000

$20,000 divided by 400 players = $50 per year

Thats on top of the current Club fees.


Result - basketball becomes more expensive and more people drop out!

As was put before - use the spectator fee to pay the coaches - makes sense - BSA is making money and is not poor anymore. They should run the payments as they do with the refs. Ultimately it is the parents that are paying but they are spending this money anyway

PS - BSA could send a cheque to the Clubs who in turn could pay their Coaches - and if in the case of the Coach above who does not want the payment - he/she could donate the money back to the Club for their Junior Development Programme

How were trials numbers???

Hey, hangin Round this thread is about coaching...... oh sorry, it WAS about numbers!

Maybe some kind of authorised program where Phys Ed uni students receive points/acreditation towards their studies in exchange for their practical time given to coach or at least help out with training/coaching. Would need close monitoring but could be done.

They might bring some new ideas to fitness and playing. I have seen uni students do blocks of practical assignemts in local high schools. I once organised for a local yr 12 boy (who planned to study PE the following year at uni) to come and train a primary school sapsasa bb team once a week for a term. He wasn't available to do the carnival coaching but his input at training was a great help.
(I'm a parent not a teacher)
The primary school sent a letter of appreciation (for him) to his principal.

A call for a more extensive school sport infrastructure wouldn't hurt either.....parents, players, teachers, old scholars ...many willing hands make light work and cost less too.

All I wanted to know was how many kids showed up at Trials?

Has it happened yet Curious?. Once all the club's have their trials I'm sure you will get a clearer picture.
I know when my child trialled for Under 12's a couple of seasons ago there were only 3 girls, but a huge amount of boys.