Game Sense Challenges Traditional Coaching

Game Sense Challenges Traditional Coaching In Elite Rugby Union Coaches; Interpretation and Use of Game Sense in New Zealand, John R. Evans claims that Game Sense represent a very significant change in coaching at the most elite level of rugby in New Zealand and one that has filtered down through all levels of rugby, which that might be seen to have validated by the All Black’s victory in the 2011 Rugby World Cup. Game Sense is a variation of Teaching Games for Understanding (TGfU) developed in Australia during the 1990s through collaboration between the Australian Sports Commission, Rod Thorpe, and local coaches. To show how game sense has affected the coaching of rugby, Evans focuses on four elite level rugby coaches from the Super 14 and Tri Nation competitions contested between Australia, New Zealand and South Africa that had undertaking a two year long interviews and observations conducted in 2007 and 2008 in New Zealand who all had experience with Game Sense (87-88). Game Sense holds significant potential for developing thinking players but at the same time, it challenges traditional beliefs about coaching and practices have limited its uptake in elite level sports. The study contributes toward the development of knowledge regarding the implementation of Game Sense by inquiring into the influence that it has had on the practice of elite level rugby coaching in New Zealand. While there was some variation on an individual level, the participants viewed game-based training as one of a range of approaches to effective coaching (89-92).

In todays’ world, society has bombarded messages suggesting ways to improve our skills. We all heard the saying that practice makes perfect but, it’s just practice reduces the imperfection. Honestly, who does not want to be at the top of what they’re doing? Evans emphasizes, that all the coaches used game sense in their training programs and that they were a part of the way they would coach in the