CLUB POLICIES

CURRENT AS AT JULY 2023

TMB PLAYER ATTENDANCE POLICY

ATTENDANCE

Attendance will be taken at ALL training sessions and games.
Building accountability for our players is a major tenet of our philosophy and will not only benefit our team camaraderie but our players will learn about consequences and building good habits for life. The purpose of the policy is not only to give coaches a warning in case it affects our session or game but, just as importantly, to hold the players accountable to their teammates and coaches showing their commitment to their team. Communicating absences also demonstrates respect for their coaches' time and investment into player development.

UNEXCUSED ABSENCES - PENALTIES

Game and Training absences incur the same penalties. An unexcused absence means neither the parent or the player notified the coach/team manager via their team’s WhatsApp chat (or privately contacted the coach/TM) that the player would be absent from training or a game.

The first UNEXCUSED absence will incur a warning. An email will be sent to the parents with a reminder of the policy and its purpose and importance. The player will be told of the warning at the next training session or game.
The second UNEXCUSED absence will incur a 1 quarter penalty during the next played game.
The third UNEXCUSED absence will incur a half game penalty during the next played game.
The fourth UNEXCUSED absence will incur a full game penalty for the next game played. *That player will still suit up and sit on the bench and will be counted as an active player for that game. They just will not take the court. Coaches need to enforce this regardless of when it occurs in the season.
If a player has a 5th UNEXCUSED absence, they will be removed from the team.

This is a volunteer-run organization and we dedicate our time and energy to these players. Simply communicating when players will be away is a minor request that demonstrates accountability and respect for others.

EXCUSED ABSENCES - NO PENALTY

Excused absences should be communicated as early as possible. A minimum of 24 hours is preferable barring unforeseeable circumstances such as sudden illness or family emergencies. There are no penalties for an Excused Absence.

Excused Absences Include: Sickness/doctor apts/surgery, family commitments/holidays, extreme weather, transportation issues, Rep trials/training/games and *injuries.
* Injuries: TMB wants to encourage attendance when injured to observe, learn and support their teammates. Players who are injured also need to suit up and sit on the bench during games to cheer on their teammates when physically possible. They are still part of the team, injured or not. We understand that some injuries warrant complete home rest. If a player/parent states an injury for lack of attendance it is still an excused absence, we just want to encourage attendance to both parents and players when possible.
Excessive Excused Absences: If there are more than 3 absences of any kind in one Term, coaches should notify the DOC to discuss the situation.

PARENTS CODE OF BEHAVIOUR

FROM BASKETBALL QUEENSLAND

Remember that children participate in sport for their enjoyment, not yours.
Encourage children to participate, do not force them.
Focus on the child’s efforts and performance rather than winning or losing.
Encourage children always to play according to the rules and to settle disagreements without resorting to hostility or violence.
Never ridicule or yell at a child for making a mistake or losing a competition.
Remember that children learn best by example. Appreciate good performances and skilful plays by all participants.
Support all efforts to remove verbal and physical abuse from sporting activities.
Respect officials’ decisions and teach children to do likewise.
Show appreciation for volunteer coaches, officials and administrators. Without them, your child could not participate.
Respect the rights, dignity and worth of every young person regardless of their gender, ability, cultural background or religion.
Refrain from engaging in negative or destructive discussion or postings on social media about players, coaches, spectators, officials, administrators or other basketball participants, that may be viewed as abusive, harassing or offensive in nature.

‘PLAYER OF THE GAME’ POLICY

Basketball is a team sport therefore we do not reward individual players at games with a prize, certificate, etc. The best reward for a child is to have their actions recognized verbally by their coach. It is the job of the coach to identify effective/positive actions that players achieve in each game and verbalise them to the team (or in some cases privately) at the end of a game. Every player is on their own journey and Coaches are always looking for each player to improve or action coach feedback.

It’s important to remember that parents won’t generally recognize player growth because they don’t know what a coach is asking of their child specifically or their team. Our job as Coaches is to give small goals and feedback to all players on our team throughout the season so that they know what they need to work towards.

That said, at the end of every game, there will always be something a coach can celebrate whether it be a small or big achievement as individuals and/or as a team. The key focus is how we worked together and how maybe individual players helped make that teamwork effective.

Studies have shown that athletes that get rewarded for performance over time:

● Can lose motivation
● Can lose enjoyment of the game

● Can ruin team mentality

In many cases, the player of the game might be the same person week in and week out. Rewarding the same person would be redundant and pointless and it can also create a lack of motivation with other team members if this reward seems unachievable. Alternatively, if Coaches use the ‘Player of the Game’ award as something they give to a different player each week, regardless of that player ‘earning it’, this can also create friction and the reward loses its significance.

TMB is in the business of building intrinsic motivation through positive feedback, encouragement and goal setting. This is one of many life skills that we are passionate about instilling in our athletes.

Seahawks ‘Player of the Game’ Certificates From Sponsors

If Seahawks hand out any type of certificates, Coaches and Team Managers are to collect at the game and disperse at the end of the season to all players or refuse them all together. It will be up to the Coach to decide how to handle this. Managers need to support whatever strategy the Coach chooses. Coaches and Managers need to discuss this at the beginning of each season.

Thank you to all Coaches and Managers for supporting this policy. Please reach out if you would like to discuss further.

WOLVES GAME DAY LOLLY POLICY

Team Managers are not expected nor required to bring any food of any sort for before, during or after a game.

FRUIT If a Team Manager would like to bring fruit to share after a game, we are not opposed to it. But again, it is not required or expected.
LOLLIES / CHOCOLATE Team Managers are not permitted to distribute lollies or chocolate before, during or after games. If parents choose to give lollies/chocolate to their own child after the game, that of course is their choice.

Hydration is the most important part of sporting activities so it is key all players have 1 full water bottle at their games. If it needs filling, the Team Manager can fill it for a player during a game if requested. We recommend our athletes drink water in the 2 hours leading up to the game for better hydration. If a parent would like to provide a sports drink for their child, that is of course permissible but we do recommend water is also provided.

Thank you for supporting this policy.

RECOMMENDATIONS

Night before / day of the game

Athletes are encouraged to eat substantial, healthy meals the night before and the day of their game that include complex carbohydrates which help with sustained energy for sporting activities (vs simple carbs found in fruit, lollies and processed foods).

Complex carbohydrates include:

Whole grains such as brown rice, oatmeal and barley, wheat, rye, etc
Grain-like foods such as quinoa (a seed) and buckwheat (a grass)
Starchy vegetables including potatoes, sweet potatoes and corn
Non-starchy vegetables, which includes everything from broccoli to zucchini
Beans and legumes like lentils, kidney beans, and chickpeas

Refined carbohydrates can also provide lasting energy:

● White rice, cereals, breads, crackers, bagels, etc

These should be paired with healthy proteins and fats for optimal energy stores, muscle building and recovery and brain function.

Rest is also a critical component to helping to repair, recover and reset the body for competition.

TRAINING PROTOCOLS

Wolves Tamborine Mountain Basketball works in close community partnership with the Tamborine Mountain State High School for the use of the MPC and the Tamborine Mountain State School for the use of the outdoor basketball courts for training and club related activities. This support is invaluable for our club and community. Without the TMSHS facility we have no full size indoor court available on the Mountain for our players to train.

Parents and players please take note of the expectations of TMSHS for when we are using their facility:

Wolves Team practises are during teaching preparation and after school study time. This means there are students and faculty on campus until then and in some cases longer. Also note that on either side of the stairs that go down to the MPC (where we train) are Staff Rooms. Please review the following seven points with your children - players and siblings alike - as we will be held accountable by the high school moving forward.

Parking

Parents are only allowed to park in the main car park and not past the gates (these areas are for staff only).

Quiet when walking to the MPC

Players need to get to and from training quietly (no ball bouncing);

Checking In & Out

U14 / U12 / U10 players must be walked down and “checked- in” by a parent or the person dropping them off

All parents must leave the MPC area and return to pick up children after practice. You can wait in the carpark.

Team Supervisors

If you would like to watch practises; the team needs a supervisor (or 2 if you find a partner to split a shift with) for each practise session - Shift 1 (3:15-4:45) or Shift 2 (4:45-630). Thursday’s practise only has shift 1.

Supervisors must have a blue card. If you can need more information or can help out in this important role to ensure we can continue to practise at the high school, please contact your Team Manager or Denise Hayes 0400 076 516.

Bathroom Usage
During training (3:30pm-6:30pm), please only utilise the Disabled Toilet. This allows for appropriate and timely cleaning of the larger toilet blocks.