The Coach Education and Mentorship Program is a Field Hockey BC initiative that is aimed at improving the knowledge base and on field delivery of our talented and dedicated coaches across the province.  First delivered in the fall of 2006 he program targets U12-U16 Club Coaches as this is the point at which our athletes lay the foundations for a skills base that will serve them throughout their field hockey careers. It is also a useful professional development opportunity for High School, Regional, and Provincial Coaches to update their skills and get up to speed on more effective technical and tactical delivery to their athletes.

The rationale behind the program includes:

• Effectively disseminating the knowledge base of our National Coaches and other Experts
• Making efficient use of existing knowledge
• Generating discussion and advancing ideas and theories
• Addressing systemic weaknesses
• Targeted education for a sustainable impact

For the Club Coach the program will involve two phases:

1. Education
2. 1v1 Mentorship

The education phase will involve the delivery of 6 standardized workshops that address key areas of development within our coaching community.  They will be hosted by clubs participating in the program and will run for 1.5 hrs each.  These will ideally be delivered leading up to the Junior Club Season of 2007 so that the lessons learned can be incorporated into coaching delivery through the season itself.  The workshops were developed by our FHBC coach education panel.

The panel currently includes:

Consultants

• Eric Broom
• Louis Mendonca – Former Men’s National Coach

Mentor Coaches

• Carolyn Gillespie – FHBC Regional Head Coach – Interior
• Kimo Linders – Former Women’s National Coach
• Lesley Magnus – FHBC Regional Head Coach - Interior
• John Sacre – Former Men’s Junior National Coach
• Nick Sandhu – Assistant Men’s National Coach
• Inderpal Sehmbi – Provincial Coach
• Krista Thompson – Regional Head Coach - Island
• Giles Wheatley – Former Men's Junior National Coach
• Robin D’Abreo –FHBC Provincial Development Coach

Workshop topics include:

1. Long Term Athlete Development
2. Coaching Approach
3. Technical Skills 1
4. Technical Skills 2
5. Basic Tactics
6. Practice Planning

The second phase of the program involves the selection of a candidate jointly by the respective Club and FHBC.  The candidate will receive 10 hrs of one on one mentorship with one of our Mentor Coaches.  This will ideally be over 3 practices and 2 games of the season. Delivery of this phase of the program is subject to the availability of our Mentor Coaches. The Coach Education and Mentorship Package is a $1500 value and as an introductory program and through a generous grant from the Golden Oldies/ VIT fund we are able to offer it to interested clubs for only $100. 

The obligations of the Club will include:

1. Promoting the program
2. Hosting and administration of workshops and mentorship possibilities
3. User fee ($100)

Any additional questions or concerns about the program can be directed to:

Robin D’Abreo
Provincial Development Coach – FHBC
robin@fieldhockeybc.com