Coaching Commune 3 de Mali
Commune 3 Mali 13
In 2006 I started my first coaching course in Mali with the Malian basketball Federation Mali . I enrolled into the (basic) license programme.
Why Mali ?
Firstly the league is the most spectacular league in the west Africa, The basketball federation is very well reputed and organized and most importantly the French language. It is one of the few great leagues in the world I did not play in as a player.
What my coaching course has to do with stade de Mali under 17?
Well, the license consists of both a theoretical and a practical and focuses on youth players. We spent a couple of weeks in a row at Bamako University in Bamako Mali and did the exhausting theoretical and practical part of the course.
The second part of the course required us to go back home and fulfill more of the practical part. We were send home with very specific instructions, detailing which tasks we had to complete. We were commissioned to organize and carry out 15 individual skill enhancement training sessions dedicated to improving player’s point Guards , defensive, offensive and ball possession skills.
Additionally, we had to lead 20 team coordination and overall game strategy training sessions. This is one of the most important parts of the tasks, as it consisted of making a team out of all individual players. For me the best way to get the best out of the practical part of the license course was to coach a team close to my home town. Stade Mali ´s under 19 became that team.
Not only was I able to do the practical part of the course effectively, I also had the privilege to see my work being put in practice during the weekend games. I analyzed the team’s evolution and documented it. During training sessions I tried to improve weak points, prepared the team specifically for each upcoming game, worked hard to make them aware of their responsibilities and to always think in benefit of the team. The team improved more than I could imagine.
At the end of the season I presented my work to the M.B.F in Mali. I graduated, received my B License and moved on to the more advanced coaching course,
Commune 3 3rd Division
After receiving the B (Basic) license I enrolled into the Fiba ‘A’ (Advanced) License course. The ‘A’ license course is more demanding and complex. Those who have this license can coach professionals at the highest level. Hence, the work load is twice as much as that of the ‘’ B’’ license. In similar fashion as the ‘B’ license, we had a two week residential training period in Burkina Faso during the summer of 2008. After finishing the theoretical part, I had to find a club to complete the practical part of the course.
Stade , which had just become champions of Mali, was experiencing a change in their coaching staff. Sports director Mr. Sydu Tall offered me the possibility of becoming assistant coach of Stade . This was a great opportunity for me to work at the highest level again
I did not hesitate a moment and consulted with my mentors. After long talks, analysing all pro´s and con´s with FA´s Mousa Sogorre, I took the heart breaking decision not to sign up for the job. Instead, I took a step back and chose to take up the coaching job commune 3 offered me to lead their first team, who were playing in the Belgian third division.
Many people asked me why commune 3. Press wrote about me training a third division club in Mali —see article from Mali post 7- I hope I will clarify the reasons why.
The job as head coach of Commune 3 would and did give me the avenue to complete the more than 50 coaching sessions I had to lead and carry out in order to obtain my ‘A’ License. Being the first responsible of team results was the ultimate test for me. Commune 3 was a team with limited financial resources, limited training facilities, with amateur- semi-professional and a hand full of professional players. I was being offered a job with lots of responsibility. I could test myself as coach, manager, scout, mental trainer, but most important of all, I was given the opportunity to apply my own coaching philosophy.
The year before I started as coach, the team finished second to the last in the league. They escaped relegation due to a court case and had gone two years without booking an away win. Commune3 however had some promising youth players which I had worked with in the year I coached their under 15 team.
The first thing I did when the season started, was integrating five under 15 players into the first team. I practically had to rebuild the team from scratch. We set up specific programmes for point Guards, defense, post play, and started working with the goal of becoming a team.
Results were booked fast. The new Commune 3 team won their first away match only after the third league game breaking the 2 year drought. We won a total of five away games that season.
In general the season went great and the team finished mid- table. Commune 3 head one of the highest goal scorers in Sydou Mamadou, and we crafted one of the best defenses in the third division. Most proudly I can say that the team showed mental strength, even when the club was facing difficulties which impacted them directly.
The coaching experience at Commune 3 saw me manage complex problems and issues. In modern Basketball , financial difficulties have become part of the game and can be found on all levels and in many countries.
The players and I went as much as six months without receiving wages. Keeping the players focused on performing was a victory itself. Till date in Mali, there has not been a team that managed to avoid relegation with the financial difficulties COMMUNE 3 faced that season.
Thanks to the team’s performance, mature thinking and successes, we created a very solid team foundation. The year after I left, the team managed to stay in the Mali third division and is still active in the same till date. Fortunately, Commune 3 also managed to improve their financial situation.
My year at Commune 3 was very positive. I felt strong and confident at the end of the season. The team’s performance confirmed to me that my coaching philosophy worked and that I had become a more complete coach. I really like to thank all those that were involved in Commune 3 for having made it possible for me to put my coaching philosophy into practice.
As planned at season end I succeeded in getting my ‘A’ coaching license. I am proud to say that I have become one of the first ever Ghanaians to hold the ‘A’ license! Now I have moved on to achieving my next personal ambition, becoming a Fiba Pro License holder.
I’ll still post more on my ups and down in the game of basketball
Commune 3 Mali 13
In 2006 I started my first coaching course in Mali with the Malian basketball Federation Mali . I enrolled into the (basic) license programme.
Why Mali ?
Firstly the league is the most spectacular league in the west Africa, The basketball federation is very well reputed and organized and most importantly the French language. It is one of the few great leagues in the world I did not play in as a player.
What my coaching course has to do with stade de Mali under 17?
Well, the license consists of both a theoretical and a practical and focuses on youth players. We spent a couple of weeks in a row at Bamako University in Bamako Mali and did the exhausting theoretical and practical part of the course.
The second part of the course required us to go back home and fulfill more of the practical part. We were send home with very specific instructions, detailing which tasks we had to complete. We were commissioned to organize and carry out 15 individual skill enhancement training sessions dedicated to improving player’s point Guards , defensive, offensive and ball possession skills.
Additionally, we had to lead 20 team coordination and overall game strategy training sessions. This is one of the most important parts of the tasks, as it consisted of making a team out of all individual players. For me the best way to get the best out of the practical part of the license course was to coach a team close to my home town. Stade Mali ´s under 19 became that team.
Not only was I able to do the practical part of the course effectively, I also had the privilege to see my work being put in practice during the weekend games. I analyzed the team’s evolution and documented it. During training sessions I tried to improve weak points, prepared the team specifically for each upcoming game, worked hard to make them aware of their responsibilities and to always think in benefit of the team. The team improved more than I could imagine.
At the end of the season I presented my work to the M.B.F in Mali. I graduated, received my B License and moved on to the more advanced coaching course,
Commune 3 3rd Division
After receiving the B (Basic) license I enrolled into the Fiba ‘A’ (Advanced) License course. The ‘A’ license course is more demanding and complex. Those who have this license can coach professionals at the highest level. Hence, the work load is twice as much as that of the ‘’ B’’ license. In similar fashion as the ‘B’ license, we had a two week residential training period in Burkina Faso during the summer of 2008. After finishing the theoretical part, I had to find a club to complete the practical part of the course.
Stade , which had just become champions of Mali, was experiencing a change in their coaching staff. Sports director Mr. Sydu Tall offered me the possibility of becoming assistant coach of Stade . This was a great opportunity for me to work at the highest level again
I did not hesitate a moment and consulted with my mentors. After long talks, analysing all pro´s and con´s with FA´s Mousa Sogorre, I took the heart breaking decision not to sign up for the job. Instead, I took a step back and chose to take up the coaching job commune 3 offered me to lead their first team, who were playing in the Belgian third division.
Many people asked me why commune 3. Press wrote about me training a third division club in Mali —see article from Mali post 7- I hope I will clarify the reasons why.
The job as head coach of Commune 3 would and did give me the avenue to complete the more than 50 coaching sessions I had to lead and carry out in order to obtain my ‘A’ License. Being the first responsible of team results was the ultimate test for me. Commune 3 was a team with limited financial resources, limited training facilities, with amateur- semi-professional and a hand full of professional players. I was being offered a job with lots of responsibility. I could test myself as coach, manager, scout, mental trainer, but most important of all, I was given the opportunity to apply my own coaching philosophy.
The year before I started as coach, the team finished second to the last in the league. They escaped relegation due to a court case and had gone two years without booking an away win. Commune3 however had some promising youth players which I had worked with in the year I coached their under 15 team.
The first thing I did when the season started, was integrating five under 15 players into the first team. I practically had to rebuild the team from scratch. We set up specific programmes for point Guards, defense, post play, and started working with the goal of becoming a team.
Results were booked fast. The new Commune 3 team won their first away match only after the third league game breaking the 2 year drought. We won a total of five away games that season.
In general the season went great and the team finished mid- table. Commune 3 head one of the highest goal scorers in Sydou Mamadou, and we crafted one of the best defenses in the third division. Most proudly I can say that the team showed mental strength, even when the club was facing difficulties which impacted them directly.
The coaching experience at Commune 3 saw me manage complex problems and issues. In modern Basketball , financial difficulties have become part of the game and can be found on all levels and in many countries.
The players and I went as much as six months without receiving wages. Keeping the players focused on performing was a victory itself. Till date in Mali, there has not been a team that managed to avoid relegation with the financial difficulties COMMUNE 3 faced that season.
Thanks to the team’s performance, mature thinking and successes, we created a very solid team foundation. The year after I left, the team managed to stay in the Mali third division and is still active in the same till date. Fortunately, Commune 3 also managed to improve their financial situation.
My year at Commune 3 was very positive. I felt strong and confident at the end of the season. The team’s performance confirmed to me that my coaching philosophy worked and that I had become a more complete coach. I really like to thank all those that were involved in Commune 3 for having made it possible for me to put my coaching philosophy into practice.
As planned at season end I succeeded in getting my ‘A’ coaching license. I am proud to say that I have become one of the first ever Ghanaians to hold the ‘A’ license! Now I have moved on to achieving my next personal ambition, becoming a Fiba Pro License holder.
I’ll still post more on my ups and down in the game of basketball
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