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JOIN NOWAny suggestions for rotating 9 players during the game?
I am coaching U/9 team that has just started this season. We have just recruited another girl and so now we have 9 children playing. I want to give everyone an opportunity to play different positions, without confusing them! How can I rotate the positions to give 8 players a quarter off without disrupting the team too much?
tjohnstoneCoach, Australia
ANSWERS
fionaCoach, Australia
At this age it is easier to have 4 people have half a game each. I normally have 2 players share Centre (having them play 1/4 on 1/4 off) and another 2 share any other position except GK or GS. Hope this helps
Netball CoachCoach
Hi,
I agree with playing 4 half games - one plays first 2 quarters and the other plays the next 2 (to give them a chance to get into a rhythm)
You could try following a format similar to what Auckland based Kidsplay Netball recommend to their teams. Go to Kidsplay Netball, guidelines and click where it says templates for rotations.
you can adapt it - we had 9 players so I would put C and WA as the half games which meant those kids were involved in the game at some point no matter what.
It's also nice having a format to follow - less stressful when working out who plays what each week and it also means parents don't feel their child is unfairly put into positions when there are stronger players in a team.
hope this helps
PaulineCoach, Australia
Rotate the girls around all the positions, it can be done and 8 girls get three quarters on every week while the ninth player who gets a whole game can be the captain. As long as you keep careful records of where they play each week and can show the girls and parents that they have been sharing the positions evenly. They are only under nines and should be encouraged to try all the positions regardless of ability, you will soon work out where each child's skills are strongest and can match them up with the begining netballers and spread the range of abilities across the court. It will take you extra time to work it out but it is worth the effort as it is unfair for under nines to only get half a game.
Netball CoachCoach
With this age group you could rotate most position, but making sure that you maintain at least one player for 1/2 game in both attacking and defending circle. I have found that most of the players do not have a defined position choices so it is good to let them learn and experience all places where possible, depending on build and strength of the player.
