Stop Checking The Disc!!!

It amazes me how often I see players checking the disc unnecessarily, even at high level games. The rules about checking the disc are very clear:

9. Putting the Disc into Play

9.1. Putting the disc into play means that the offensive player in
possession of the disc establishes a pivot point (typically their foot) at the point on the Field of Play as specified.

9.2. If no Check is required, the disc may be put into play immediately.

11. The Check

11.1. Whenever play stops during a point for a time-out, foul, disputed possession, violation, safety stoppage or injury stoppage, play is restarted with a Check.

So in the following situations you DO NOT HAVE TO CHECK THE DISC:

• The disc is on the ground after a turnover
• The disc is in the endzone after a turnover and you are bringing it up to the endzone line
• There is a turnover and the disc has gone out of bounds
• Momentum takes you out of bounds after catching the disc
• Momentum takes you into the endzone after catching the disc
• A brick or middle is called after the pull

In these situations all you need to do is establish a pivot point at the appropriate point and you are away. The number of times I have been able to get a quick pass away because the d isn’t ready or is waiting for me to check the disc is amazing. And the number of times I have seen free passes not taken while a player holds out the disc for the d to touch is more amazing still.

Basically, when there is a call – you need to check the disc – otherwise start playing!

This goes for when you are marking too. Don’t wait for the thrower to hold out the disc and then tap it in to see them get an easy break throw off. As soon as they have a pivot point, have that mark set up and start stalling them.

Doing this is not being bad spirited – it is knowing and obeying the rules – which is good spirit. If more people started playing by the rules, more people will be able to learn what the REAL rules are!

WUGC 2008

Over the last month I have been involved in the selection process for the teams to represent Australia at the Would Ultimate Guts Championships to be held in Canada in August.

Unfortunately I wasn’t successful in this process and therefore won’t be going to this event.

Still, I was able to learn a few things in the process and have made some observations:

Training:

At the Australian Institute of Sport (AIS) we were given a talk about Strength and Conditioning training. The key point I took away from this is that training helps you get good at what you train at. If you train at running 10km, you will get good at that, but that may not help your Ultimate game unless that is what you do on the field. This has helped me re-evaluate how I train and I think there is a lot more work that could be done in Ultimate to find ways of training which make us better ant the things we do on a frisbee field. Maybe handlers and cutters should be doing completely different types of training?




Cool down at the AIS

There are some great players in Australia:

At the first training camp which included the prospective Dingoes as well, I got to play with some top quality players. It was great to finally be on the receiving end of a Matt Dowle hammer, rather than watching it sail over my head on D. I think Australia has a really good chance of taking it to the world – especially in the Open division.

Selection Process:

Waiting is the worst part. Especially when you are waiting for something NOT to happen. The way the process worked was that the team was finalised and then the selectors rang to inform those that didn’t make it. This meant everyone was waiting for their phone NOT to ring. I suggest a better process:
*Team is finalised

*Email sent to players outlining
- team has been finalised
- which selector will be providing feedback to which players.
- when selectors will be available to provide feedback (ie 9am – 9pm, 12-2 and 5-9 etc.) and their contact details

*If unsuccessful players have not contacted selectors by the next day then the selectors try and call them.

*After all unsuccessful players have been contacted the team is emailed out to everyone.

This process would put the power of when they find out back into the hands of the players, so at least you have some control over WHEN they find out if they made the team. The current process is unnecessarily painful for all players involved.

Goal Scoring:

Obviously I am biased because I didn’t make the team, but I am unsure of what value the selectors put in players who are primarily focused on scoring goals. I think there were several people in the Mixed squad who were legitimate goals scorers – they go out on the field to score goals, and when the chips are down they can get on the field to score a goal and will more than not deliver. Out of the final team that was picked I don’t see enough players who are legitimate goal scorers. Sometimes these people may be over looked because they can be seen to be just on the end of a good throw or be in the right place at the right time. But the ability to score goals is more than just good luck and it takes a specific type of player – hopefully some of these emerge for the Mundis.

Incumbency:

Of all the previous Aussie reps who made the original squad, only one did not make a team (sorry Boo Boo). It seems that if you had a spot on the team before, you have a very strong chance of making the team next time. Or the players that did make it last time who felt a bit unsure of whether they could make the team this time, withdrew rather than have to be cut. Experience is always going to be a valuable attribute in a selection process, but for only 1 incumbent to miss out is a very high percentage of incumbents making the teams.

Perseverance:

The biggest highlight of the selection process in my mind was Seb Barr making the Mundis. Seb missed out on making the Thunder team for Boston in 06, but kept training like the Thunder boys and kept trying to get better. All this paid off and he now has a spot on the Australian team, whereas a lot of the 06 Thunder players actually missed out. He is a true example of perseverance paying off. Well done Seb!

Expectations:

After the final Mixed selection camp I took a definite step about my expectations. Despite having done all I could to present myself as a valuable player worthy of selection, I decided that it would be easier to accept that I had NOT made the team and deal with that feeling then and their, rather than cling to a hope that I would make the team. I still felt that I could make the team, but I was fully prepared not to make it. This meant that I was either going to be proved right, not make the team, and be OK about it, or be proved wrong, make the team, and be ecstatic. I think this made it much easier to deal with the actuality of not being selected and is a useful lesson that I can use both on and off the frisbee field – accept the worst, and if your wrong – that’s great!

One Percenters

As I prepare for the Selection Camp for WUGC 08 at the AIS next weekend I got thinking about the small things that make a big difference on the ultimate field.

In AFL they call these things "One Percenters", like smothers and tackles etc.

In Ultimate we have key core skills: running, catching, throwing, reading the disc, jumping, laying out. To be an elite player you have to be good at all those things. The one perecenters are things outside these core skills that don't take a lot of skill, just an awareness that they need to be done. They are also the things that separate good players from great players.

The things I think come under the"One Percenter" banner (even though I think they are worth more than one perecent) are :

Faking with Purpose
A lot of intermediate players seem to fake just for the sake of faking. But good players sometimes just stand still with the disc until they actually know where they want to throw it, then they fake to move the marker to get the disc where they want it.

Holding the Force
This is obviously crucial, both when marking and guarding. Knowing the force is a key component of this as is NOT going for point blocks on the open side.

Talking
This is both on and off the fields. Calls such as: Up, Strike, Switch, No break

Catching D's
So many times people get undone by this, but they keep macking those D's - CATCH THEM!

Clearing Hard
If you make a cut and don't get the disc, cut just as hard back to the stack

Backing Up
When the disc goes deep and you are not nearby, either on O or D, you need to sprint hard to help out.

Engaging the Dump
At whatever count the team rule is you need to look at the dump and then not look anywhere else.

Transitioning Quickly
When there is a change from either D to O or vice versa, you need to change to the new state as quickly as possible - sometimes even before the turnover has actually happened.

Attacking the Disc
Never wait for the disc to come to you - ATTACK IT!

These all sound like such simple things, but if you could ensure you remembered to do all of them every game, I think your effectiveness would increase dramatically. As well as being useful to remember when playing at an elite level, these things are also useful to remember when teaching beginners/intermediate players - they are simple tips to pass on that can dramatically increase the effectiveness of every player, regardless of their 'core skills'.