Coach’s Corner

Practices: Make the hours count, don’t count the hours

What does that mean? If you ask any successful athlete or scientist or mathematician or any professional what had the biggest impact on their success, they all say it is practice. The key with practice is to put the effort in. That does not mean just showing up and going through the motions of practice.…

How should athletes act? Do we care? What do we tell kids?

I am sure you have all heard, seen, discussed the actions of one of the players from the Seattle Seahawks after their playoff win. The first question I asked myself was, “Who cares?” Seriously, why was it such a shock and a big story that immediately following a very rough, emotional game, one player acted…

Practice: Does it matter?

We always hear the story, practice makes perfect. Or the old joke, “how do you get to Carnegie Hall?” The reply is “practice.” What about attendance? I always liked the saying, “Half of life is just showing up!” So I decided to do a little experiment this year and take attendance of the U13 and…

Is a coach’s style of play important? Or is it more about substance?

Coaching wise, it’s been an interesting month. With the NBA season in full swing, the NFL season ending and the NHL back, there has been a lot of talk about coaches, coaches’ styles of play and their philosophies. I have read/heard much talk asking, “What style of play does that coach institute?” As one radio-talk…

End of year wrap-up: Now is the time to set goals

After every season, it’s good to take a few minutes and look back to think what could I have done better, what went well, what didn’t. And where am I going? Standing still is, in essence, going backwards. You must strive to improve everyday, every season, every year. In order to do so, you must…

Winning, is it an attitude?

This month’s article is on winning. Is winning something that is purely about performance on the field and ability? Or is it more about the total package? By total package, I mean, is there an intangible that some teams have and some don’t? What is an intangible? How does one get it? How does one lose it?…

Basics of rugby: ball handling, protecting possession and defending

Coach Persanis provides timely pre-season tips on ball handling, protecting possession and defense. With the ball: Carry it in two hands so the defense doesn’t know what you will be doing. Bring the defender to you and then pass. Pass to where your teammate will be, not where they are. Stay low! Run straight (don’t…

Winning, is it all the same?

  This past weekend I experienced the rare occurrence of winning two leagues on back-to-back days. On Saturday, I was in Seattle with the New York Athletic Club’s rugby team—I am assistant coach—winning the U.S. Super League Final, which is the national championship. On Sunday, I was back in Pelham as coach of our seventh-eighth grade team as…