more clubs...better clubs

Home » Start and develop your club » Playing Programme

Preparing for Competition

Athletics08It’s important to prepare your members for competitions against other clubs. Here are a few helpful hints that you may wish to consider before you start competing:

  • think about how much coaching/training players will need before they can take part in comeptition.  In a sport that is easy to introduce, early competition can cement their love of the sport.  In a more complex sport, a player with little previous experience could be put off the sport if their first competition is overwhelming; 
  • make sure your members are well prepared by setting realistic goals;
  • promote positive attitudes – taking part in competition is an excellent educational tool for mental as well as physical development;
  • consider providing a mentoring/buddy system to help support new/weaker members;
  • try to make sure that the training programme complements the competition programme/ calendar so that members are at their peak performance for competition;
  • all participants should be encouraged to act in a sporting manner in all competitive situations - see junior members’ code of conduct on the right for further information here (this can be easily amended to also suit senior members);
  • attitudes towards fellow competitors should be supportive, otherwise participants may become de­motivated and membership will drop;
  • encourage parents and supporters to act in a sporting manner and provide supportive feedback – see parents code of conduct for more information; 
  • above all, participants should enjoy competing.
Sports Council Wales Supported By: The Welsh Assembly Government Supported By: The National Lottery Supported By: Health Challenge Wales