EP 64 - Real Coaches, Real Problems: Gamespeed – "Are they looking to exploit or create space?"

In this episode of Real Coaches, Real Problems, it's just me again, unpacking a phrase I see written on session plans all the time: game speed. A coach I've mentored sent through a session labelled "game speed". It included cone drills, some reactive agility work and a small-sided game. When I asked which part was the game speed, he said, "all of it." The drills weren't bad, but none of them had all three things I think game speed needs: a real cue from the sport, the right movement solution, and the right moment to use it.

I start by defining game speed as optimal speed, not maximal speed. Then I work through the three places I see it break down. First is the wrong stimulus: lights, numbers and coach calls that never show up in the match. I share the mistake I made with baseball pitchers, and the hands-behind-the-back defending we used in rugby sevens to give attackers a truer cue to read.

Next is the wrong solution. A smaller winger kept getting caught using the same sidestep as a big, fast centre. Every athlete in a 360-degree sport needs to know whether they're exploiting space or creating it, and slower athletes will live far more in the "create" world.

Finally, there's the right strategy at the wrong time. A netball centre had excellent footwork but was always a fraction late. I cover making timing the focus of feedback instead of effort, building in affordances to buy time, and using failed reps as your best coaching moment. I also explain why letting a 7v7 run is an exposure to chaos, not game speed coaching.

Want help building a clearer philosophy, sharper programme design or more confidence in the applied setting? Find out more about our mentorship here: https://collaboratesports.com/bespokementorship

Collaborate 360 Performance Workshops: Game Speed with Ruth Waghorn
If this episode has you rethinking your sessions, this is the room to be in. Our first regional workshop is on Wednesday 28th October, 6–9pm, at Hertfordshire Sports Village in Hatfield. It's led by Ruth Waghorn, Physical Performance Coach at the FA. It isn't a night of new drills. It's a coaching approach to game speed: you'll identify the actions and behaviours that decide outcomes in your own sport, whether that's football, netball, rugby, tennis or anything else, and build your sessions around them. You learn by doing, in one room with one specialist, close to home.

Places are limited. Book now: www.collaboratesports.com/workshops