BRUNSWICK

The coach patrols the sidelines and ballfields, constantly chatting up the players and officials. It seems simple enough, but, what is coaching all about? And, what goes on in the minds and lives of Mid-coast region coaches on that very first day of that very first game of the season? Or any game, for that matter?

Game face

For Richmond boys coach Joe Scribellito, he puts his game face on from the get-go.

“I start thinking about the game before my feet are on the ground in the morning and I usually ask myself if I gave everything I could to get my team prepared for the team we are about to face,” said Scribellito, whose Bobcats host Valley this afternoon.

“At a small school I have taught the kids everything about the positions they could play if someone got hurt … do they understand what they’ve been taught? I start running the next game through my mind after the last game ends.”

“On the morning of that first gameday, as every Friday during football season, it’s game day,” said Brunswick football coach Dan Cooper. “I’ve been thinking and preparing for it all week. All the worries have been set aside — the hay is in the barn … let’s get it on! I’m just honored and excited that our players will have the opportunity to play this great game, make great memories with their teammates, and do something very special. And, I’ve got the best seat in the house.

“I’m fully confident in our players that if they are poised and compete hard, a victory song of ‘Way Down in the Valley’ will be sung at around 9 p.m. by 50 players and coaches oozing Brunswick football pride! What a day! That’s what I’m thinking when I wake up on Fridays.”

“I usually start thinking about the game as soon as I wake up,” said Mt. Ararat girls soccer coach Sam Chard. “If the game is going to be a tough one, or against a rival, the thoughts are already running through my head all week long.”

“You start thinking about the first game, or the next game, once the whistle blows for the end of the previous game,” said Martyn Davison, Brunswick girls soccer coach.

“I just think of my team and a few things I remember from the opponent the last time I saw them,” continued Davison. “I try to focus on what we are going to do as a team and not so much what the opposition is going to do. All our thoughts are now on the next game and then, win or lose, we look to the next one.”

“Game day is always exciting,” said Lisbon field hockey coach Julie Wescott. “You are anxious for your kids to have a chance to show how hard they have been working in practice. As a coach you are always wondering if your athletes are prepared for the opening game of the season, but you also have to understand that not everything will be perfectly executed during that first game.”

“Every meet day is sort of like a festive holiday occasion,” said Morse cross country coach Dane Dwyer. “It is an opportunity for each team member to gauge their individual improvement in relationship to previous personal times as well as seeing how they stack up against familiar or new competition. The number-one thing on each runner’s mind is the meet, making sure they’re drinking plenty of water and eating the right amount throughout the day to hopefully help them have a great race.”

“I begin thinking about the first game as soon as the schedules come out in the early summer,” said Morse girls soccer coach Steve Boyce. “At that point it is so far away that it is just a point by which we have to be ready. After our last preseason game, the preparation becomes more focused. I have to finalize our roster, formations and determine a starting lineup. As we approach game day, I begin trying to balance final conditioning with tactical and technical workouts hoping that we are healthy at kickoff.

“I wake up on game day and the first thought is of the game. What is the weather going to be like at game time and are the playing conditions going to be a factor? Then I wonder how our players who are dinged up will be feeling at game time. I also think about whether the players have been able to focus on the game with a sense of urgency so they may perform as they can but not so much that they freeze under the ‘pressure.’”

Game-day concerns?

“I always wonder if my players are well rested from the night before,” said Scribellito. “And, I get concerned if our warm-up lacks intensity, and throughout the game we play more to our opponents level instead of our level.”

“I’ve been thinking about gameplanning all offseason,” offered Cooper. “By the time the first game kicks off I’ve seen kids go up and down the depth chart based on their offseason workouts and preseason play. The gameplan has changed two or three times, refined and perfected. Always moving forward, trying to improve every day. Did we get it right? We’ll soon know.”

“I think about how my team will perform,” said Chard. “If we had a good practice before the game, I hope that we play just as well in the game. I also think about how individual players will perform in the game and lastly, I think about whether I’ve prepared the kids enough for the game.”

“I think you can tell from the character of the individual how they will react if a game doesn’t go our way,” said Davison. “Personally, my character would be to come out fighting and try harder, and some players are like that and some go the other way. It’s either fight or take flight. I know how most of my players will act, but not all. Sport is all about confidence and it can be tough to come back after a setback, but a setback is only really of importance in the playoffs as you will be out of the competition.”

“In the regular season you get the chance to put it immediately right in the next game,” continued Davison. “All teams have injuries and you have to prepare the available players as best you can. If you do that as a coach then you have done your job and there is no more you can do.”

“Being a teacher in the same school as my athletes I have the game on my mind early on because I see my players passing in the halls and I will usually ask them if they are ready to go,” said Wescott. “I am a coach who is very enthusiastic in hopes that my energy gets my team ready to play, but there are times when you need to be able to keep your team calm and focused so that they can get the job done.”

“We always walk each course to make sure everyone knows where to go,” said Dwyer. “Offer runners possible approaches to run, and sometimes a realistic time or goal to accomplish.

“Mike Rice and I are the co-coaches of the team. We’ll talk about our goals for each runner leading up to the race and find time to encourage those that seek or depend upon it, usually talking to each individual separately. Each runner has a different approach, and some perform better naturally without our two cents worth.”

Preparation a key

“I always look back at any loss and ask what could we have differently given what we saw from our opponent,” said Scribellito. “I woke up the day after losing to Greenville last year (Western Class D finale) thinking about what we could have done differently then.”

“I do worry that we as coaches didn’t do enough to teach and demand these traits from our kids,” agreed Cooper. “I do worry that some kids will give in to pain and fatigue during the game. I worry that some of them will get nervous and make mistakes.”

“As a team we always have a game plan and that will change depending on the style and pattern of play of the team and the opponent you are facing,” said Davison.

“As coaches, we do not try to put too much emphasis on the regular meets, rather approaching each week as a building block leading toward the championship races in October,” said Dwyer. “Trying to help them reflect upon each race and trying to find at least one aspect to focus on during the following week, such as strategies on pacing throughout the race, running hills, starts, kicks, pacing off a competitor or teammate, etc.

“We try to push having all team members putting in summer mileage. Those that do are usually more prepared than others, but part of the excitement of the sport is seeing a newcomer or two emerge, as well as the improvement of the returning runners from the first meet on. Basically, we try to keep the focus of being at 100 percent by the league and championship races, and approaching the regular meets as preparation for those meets.”

Lot of intangibles

“I love to walk our field before every game thinking about how proud I hope my boys will be to play where their parents played, where so much history has been made,” said Scribellito. “We talk about eligibility throughout the year and remind our players they are students first and, thankfully, I haven’t had to worry too much about that.”

“I try to get a good jog in before the game,” said Cooper. “I feel it melts away the stresses of the game, recharges the batteries, and gets me focused. Not that I do a lot on game night, but I do want to be a positive role model for my team and be mentally ready to make good decisions during and after the game for my players.”

“I have to make sure that the kids are keeping up with their grades,” said Chard. “Maintaining good grades is mandatory in my programs and the kids know this. I rarely have any player in jeopardy of not playing because of grades. We also have a great program at the high school that’ll enable kids to play while giving them a chance to improve their grades if they are in trouble. We don’t just make them ineligible, we try to help them.”

Assistants are crucial

“I am fortunate to have a good assistant (Bryan Gosse) and a group of volunteers (David Scribellito, Joey Scribellito, Steve Wuellert) stepping up to become certified,” said Scribellito. “We all talk about tendencies we’ve seen in our players and team. These become points of emphasis during our pregame class talk and areas we watch to be able to adjust throughout the game, especially during halftime.”

“My coaches have had input all week, all season, and offseason,” allowed Cooper. “I have a fantastic coaching staff. Those guys are the straw that stirs the drink.”

“Sometimes I’ll seek their advice as to who to place where,” offered Chard. “It’s always good to have an extra set of eyes on the field to knock some sense into me!”

“I have an awesome assistant coach (Joanne Campbell),” said Wescott. “She is great to talk to before games and we go over our game plan to make sure that we both agree with what we are trying to accomplish.”

Game-day traditions

“My only tradition on the first day is to always go out and paint the field and think about what has been and what could be,” said Scribellito.

“Traditions? Doesn’t everyone have one? I do, but I can’t tell you what it is … wink, wink,” said Chard. “I can tell you that it’s different depending on who we are playing and at what stage of the season we’re in. That’s all … nothing more!

“As for me, kicking the ball into the net always seems to calm my nerves or is a release if we didn’t play well. I also think about what worked and what didn’t.”

“We normally have pasta parties before home games for the team and this is held by a parent at a parent’s house,” said Davison. “That way we know the girls have a had a good pregame day meal of carbs, etc.”

“Our team has many traditional rituals leading up to each week’s race,” said Dwyer. “Sleep night is always two nights before the race. It is the night that an individual’s energy source will come from. Basically, it means trying to get a good night’s sleep. The day before the meet we’ll run an easy two and a half to three miles, followed by a group game, usually ultimate Frisbee that includes some relaxed speed work.

“The evening before the race, someone on the team will host a pasta dinner to help prepare for the next day. All of these rituals help to develop a friendly and fun team, as well as encourages the parents and families to be involved.

“We do preach eating well and drinking healthy fluids, staying away from the sugary drinks throughout the season, although the drink of choice during the pasta dinners for the majority is chocolate milk.”

“Over the years I have developed routines, not superstitions, that I go through prior to and during the game,” allowed Boyce. “It is not unlike the routines a batter goes through prior to each pitch; each routine helps me get ready.

“Pregame warmup is the most difficult time for me as I can’t stop thinking about whether I have prepared the players as well as I could or what else could I be doing to give us the best chance for a good outcome. The kickoff puts an end to all that anxiety. There is nothing more I can do, it is now up to them and how they can cope with the challenges of the game.

“It is all about controlling emotions and keeping our energy on an even keel. A couple of years ago, we had a strong team with high hopes to go far in the playoffs. At our first playoff game, our pregame warmups and get-the-energy-up activities took their toll on us physically and we were flat and lifeless at game time. We lost and I learned a costly, but valuable lesson about game preparation.”

Calm around the storm?

“I am the first to admit I get as excited as my players when we score,” said Scribellito. “I think it’s important for coaches to maintain a calm and level head when a call goes the other way or when a player tries, but forgets what he’s been taught. Staying positive, strong and calm is a key to a team that has confidence.

“Richmond is an amazing place to coach, there are no tryouts, we are at times surprised by who shows up to join the team, and equally so, when someone leaves. Make no mistake, Richmond is a soccer town characterized by sportsmanship and determination and by hard-working players and coaches who love the game.”

“I think it’s important for any coach to be calm and collected,” added Davison. “Although it can be tough to do in game situations as you are wanting all of your work in the week to pay off for the team.

“I ask my captains to lead the way and set the example of how to behave when representing the school on and off the field. The girls are well aware they are representing their school and community. Again, we try to get to know the characters of the girls so we know how to handle them in pressure situations they may find themselves in.”

“I rarely lose my cool in a game,” said Chard. “I’ve always got a lollipop in my mouth to soothe me throughout the game. The kids know that if my lollipop is gone by halftime, or bitten into, then I’m not really satisfied with their performance. It’s never good to get ahead of oneself, especially if it’s a rival game. That’s the beauty of the game, things can change in a heartbeat.

Final words?

Chard: “One would think that going into my 18th season would give me enough experience or courage to not worry about a game, but I do. I think about matchups with the opponent and who on my team had a good practice the night before. I never have a solid starting lineup for every game until game day just in case someone else stepped up. Oft times, kids can get complacent and automatically think that they’re on the starting 11 for the entire year. I don’t believe in that and it makes the kids always thinking about performing at a higher level. It makes the team competitive!”

Dwyer: “We often have some high academic performers and class officers on our teams. The nature of the sport is developing the work ethic to run 3.1 miles and works well in taking back to the classroom and vice-versa. One of our major goals is to help each team member develop a higher level of confidence through their experiences of running cross country, from mid- August to the end of October.”

Cooper: “Win or lose … that’s not what’s important. It’s how you play the game. What’s important is competing your best physically and mentally and being able to have pride in your performance, good or bad. Brunswick football pride is numberone. Pride today. Pride tomorrow. Pride always.”

GEORGE ALMASI is the Times Record sports editor. He can be reached at galmasi@timesrecord.com