They've lost 4 girls pre summer and it now looks another 3 - 4 post summer.

wow.

These kids were with Norwood for years and years.

i would be extremely concerned if i was JDO.

I am genuinely shocked, i don't think i have ever seen the top squad of a club crumble so quickly.

Other sports or other clubs or just quiting? Not uncommon for numbers to change with girls in particular....but that is a lot of players out of the squad!

It seems the decision to do that may bite them in the butt for years to come.

You lose 16 1 girls, you lose sisters, brothers.

It is a shame for those girls, they played together from under 10's and now split up.

Chewie - my understanding is 2 or 3 girls moved to Forestville at the start of summer and 1 to Sturt.

Mid season now there is 1 to Forestville and 1 to North and 2 possibly looking for new club.

Yes, super disappointing.

^ I completely get what you are saying.
Girls basketball IS very different. Their needs are vastly different to the boys, It would pay to see some investment in the future of girls basketball.

In my experience, the girls program gets the "left over" coaches - often. No disrespect to the coaches who have have been appointed, many have been awesome and in my opinion better than the coaches chosen to develop the boys program however the coaches handed to the boys are state coaches, NITP coaches etc and the girls program get the rest.

Getting back to Norwood and the girls who have fled there were some excellent female coaches involved in the 14's and 16's. One who had the 14 1's (the bunch who have left) as an assistant and she was bumped out for someone new, with no warning... and she was Norwood from birth, with premier league sons and a bunch of loyal, happy girls under her.

Can ANYONE remember a time an entire division 1 team transferred to other clubs? i haven't seen it before personally. I don't know the coach or anything about him bar he was at Sturt and there was controversy.

and 2 more of them to West Adelaide.

wow.

Once again perhaps it may be worth getting the facts before making comments, judgement and criticising! Maybe ask the families involved what really happened. Not to mention how unsportsmanlike it is to walk out of your teams and not playing the rest of the season! I'm sure that’s says enough! Great team work???

This seems to have gone kind of off topic pretty quickly. Lots of interesting points, some that I agree with whole heartedly, and others I struggle with, which may be more an indictment on me than anything.

Gender equality in coaching would be a good thing and most rationale people would tend to gravitate to this, but the crux of the issue is more the communication styles of some coaches. I've seen equally abrasive men and women coaches, and at times you can literally see when they lose a player or a group. You can be the best fundamental or tactical coach going around, but if you lack communication skills to juniors, and particularly to girls, you may be causing more harm than good. Obviously these are some generalisations and a blending of skills are required, but in general, its how you deliver the message that is key to me, and being able to recognise that you have 10 individuals to talk to and teach, all with different skill sets, not just in basketball, but in life.

I immediately railed at a few of the comments such as time spent with players and picking up the pieces, but I understand these for the basis they were intended as coaches are very different in their approaches, styles and time. 4hrs still seems low to me. Im putting in about 10/12hrs and this feels low, to the point I feel a little guilty some weeks that Im not working as hard as the team. The coaching at genders and the girls getting the leftovers struck a nerve, but again, this may be the case at some clubs. Im possibly fortunate to have had the choice with coaching roles, and I can honestly say .... the gender doesn't matter to me, but the type of kids that they are does.

I'll be running into some Norwood coaches in a few weeks and look forward to having a good chat to get some further background. I will say Ive coached against two of the womens coaches noted above at u14/16 level. One of them was brilliant and Id have 20min chats to her post game, the other I didn't know so well, but she seemed to have the best interests of her team at heart.

Well said Chewy! Reading this forum i feel we all really need to get the facts right! I don't believe its fair to say "I heard it from a reputable source"! Perhaps you should ask the Coach why he got the sack from Sturt! Thats the most reputable source. I think you will be very surprised!
Secondly, a TEAM is about "together everyone achieves more"! Your child may be a great athlete but along with that the coaches are looking for, good attitude, respect for themselves, players and their coaches not to mention the game itself, discipline and being a team. Without this i don't believe you can say your child is a great athlete of any sport!
JDO's, clubs and BSA should be there to support these coaches as it is not an easy task. Not only are they coaching what they love and have great passion for which is "Basketball" but unfortunately have to put up with constant questioning and ridicule from parents! quiet sad really!
Good luck to the U/16 girls i believe there is an exciting season ahead for you all. I believe you have great experienced coaches (not left overs at all) and we are excited for Norwoods girls program right from the U/10 to U/18 that is developing and becoming very strong and positive. Norwoods coaches coming through have great experience knowledge and understanding of the game!
All the best Norwood!

Some wonderful comments raised above, thanks for taking the time to offer up another perspective.

I have no idea about the Coach or why he left his previous club but an ENTIRE team of top age, Under 16 Division 1 girls walk away from a club and especially before the end of the season there would be a pretty damn good reason and it sure as hell wouldn't be "court time".

I hope they flourish in their new teams.

I hope for the good of Basketball in SA that Norwood get their act together.

Its great to finally see the smiles and unity within the U/16 girls! Before the "mass exodus" and previous coach the team was beginning to full apart then.
Children learn best when they are happy and feel supported by their peers!

The team DID fall apart... that's the tragedy.

The Under 16s girls you mention are basically a new team now.

i hope they are happy, for sure.

I guess there will be promotions to 1's for some 2's.

But, it is Norwood - so you will have 3 - 4 new players poached from other clubs and promised Div 1 spots for Winter, no doubt.

^ who the hell is living through their children? what you think 14/15 year old girls don't have anything to say or want to understand what the hell happened to their club or team mates? This is a forum, to discuss things, which is what is being done.

If you do not like the thread, don't click on it. Don't respond to it.

For things to improve and for change to take place, often discussion is the first step.

"Discussion"

Usually refers to an exchange of ideas in person.

^ Ok. so you are suggesting the starting top age point guard for Norwood left before the season as she would not get a DIV 1 spot? hahahah. she is in NITP. She was in the ECC 16's team as the point guard, she will be the starting point guard for the state team this July. I am laughing.

I don't know that you know Norwood if you think those girls weren't going to be division 1.

i didnt speculate the issue was the coach, i dont know the coach. I know many of the girls who played under him at Sturt and not a single one would say he was a good one, however.

I'm sorry but two of the girls who just walked away are in the State 16's squad and 2 of the others are SA Country 16's and if they "weren't performing" i highly doubt it was because they didn't have the ability.

Who is Norwood's 18s coach?

#264

Not one bit of what you have said is true, but don't let that detract from your vindictive agenda.

It's not hard to work out who you are based on your made up story, so be very careful about who you take potshots at.

Summer season isn't fair really, but it's not a big deal really.

Southern and South are VERY skilled in this age group of girls.

Forestville took a heap of Norwood girls into their 1's (3 i believe) at start of summer, those girls are not used to the structure and could be part of the reason.

Also, Sturt, Southern and South have super strong, talented girls in the team as does Eastern 2003 born girls in SA are a strong group. 2004 girls are dominated by Forestville & Sturt, so will change next year.

http://websites.sportstg.com/club_info.cgi?c=1-3-44227-0-0&a=CLEAR

Mass exodus for Norwood juniors. 5 - 10 more to be cleared.

More players and probably more coaches to follow from Norwood. They have lost immense talent, but they still hold up to standard due to their depth and support within the community. If they were run properly, their junior program would be elite. Unfortunately, it isn't. They have lost so much junior talent. Couple of years ago it was first coaches, but now players and families are starting to realise they are better else where. This is everyone's gain. From what I know (which may be little), Forestville, North and Southern have gained hugely from departing players and coaches.