How To Select A Club Volleyball
Club season is here again! to start looking for the best club for your skill level. Although the club is time-consuming and expensive, it is well worth the effort in the long run.However, before selecting a club, consider the following advice.If you are not sure which club you are going to play for, here are a few things you can do to ensure a successful and enjoyable club season.
Here are some of the highly recommend questions to ask before selecting a club:
- What’s the club philosophy?
- Do they have a discipline program? * Is the club program too demanding, or too laid-back?
- Does the club train players to the next higher level? or do they have to recruit good players.
- Does the club team play the same position as you (ex. setter, libero)?
- How many years has the club been around?
- Go to visit their practice or take any of their training.
If you are fortunate enough to be offered a spot on more than one club team, here are some questions to ask yourself:
- Who are the players? Are they girls you will get along with?
- How many players will be on the team? This will affect playing time.
- How many players will be on the team that plays your position/s?
- This too will affect playing time.
Some final advice before selecting a Club
- As a player, Would you like to be pushed and be in a demanding program or more in a laid-back and just practice and play?
- Attend the Players & Parents introduction meeting. It is the best place to get answers to any questions you may have and to understand the demands of the club. At the meeting, you will learn the expectations (for example you play basketball or softball, and some of those practices conflict with your club practices. Will this be a problem? Or, what if you have homework or group projects at school; will you be allowed to miss practice?)
- Can you afford a club team? How much will it cost? What are the volleyball club fees? What are the monthly payments? Is there a discount if you pay in full? What extra costs do (travel, overnight lodging, food, etc.) when you go to away tournaments?
- If you are religious, does the club have practices or tournaments on your religious days? If so, can you compromise?
- Remember: hard work beats talent when talent fails to work hard.
Why I Pay for Club Volleyball:
During a recent dinner one of my friends asked, “Why do you pay so much for club volleyball?, Below is a summary of my answer, I wanted you to know what I really “pay” for and what I hope you gain from these experiences.
The truth is I never intend to pay for club volleyball.
I pay to assure you that you pushed beyond your perceived limits. I pay professional coaches to challenge you at every practice and match. I pay them to push and challenge you to the point where you might want to quit because it is so tough. I pay them to build up your confidence at the same time so you don’t. I pay them to coach you in volleyball because I understand that your self-assurance on the court transcends to your everyday life. I pay for you to learn how to set goals and chase down dreams. I pay your coaches to help install a high level of self-confidence that you can and will accomplish the goals you set for yourself. I pay so you have more caring and responsible adults involved in your life. I pay for the days when you arrive at home exhausted from school and you don’t really want to go to position training/weights/plyometrics, but you do it anyway. I pay for the life lessons that losses, frustrations, and disappointment from the competition can provide. I pay for life lessons, victories, and personal/team accomplishments that competition can provide. I pay for these opportunities because I do not have to push or force you to play volleyball, rather your desire to play is unequivocally intrinsic.
I pay for you to have opportunities to take pride in your actions on and off the court. I pay for you to be accountable to others (coaches, teammates, club directors) and to help you understand that you are not the center of the universe. I pay for the opportunity for you to honor your teammates and coaches by always giving your best effort on and off the court. I pay for you to have the leadership opportunities volleyball offers. I pay to provide opportunities for you to help everyone around you improve as a person and teammate. I pay for you to understand that you will forever be surrounded by more talented people and less talented people and that a true leader has the humility and patience to work with both. I pay for you, my daughter, to learn that it is the accumulation of hours upon hours of practice combined with numerous personal sacrifices to be an overnight success.
No, it is not club volleyball that I am paying for, I am paying for the time and conversation with a teenage girl on the way to and from practice. I pay for the smiles and sense of purpose that playing club volleyball provides you. I pay to provide lifelong memories from traveling and going to new places with me. I pay for you to experience new cultures, foods, and cities that we experience by traveling to tournaments. I pay because its clear that volleyball sparks your life, passion, and sense of pride. I pay for help in guiding you down the right path. I pay because club volleyball reinforces the life lessons about hope, compassion, hard work, and commitment to yourself and others, that your mom and I have taught you, and continue to model for you.
Most importantly I pay for the bridge of understanding that volleyball provides a father and daughter.
Love always, Dad
Jeffrey Kerns, Ed.D