Herfst League & The Importance of Practice Games.

So, yesterday 4 belgian teams had a nice day of Ultimate in Aalter, called the 'Herfst League'.
Translation of 'herfst' is autumn, and that is exactly what it was : a little chilly and a little windy but next to that perfect conditions for some friendly games.
SLIJPSCHIJVEN,FREEZZZBEEZZZ,GENTLE Open and GENTLE Petards all went out with the ambition of having some good games, without necessarily feeling the need of pushing the limit and above all cost having to win the game.
Off course, you might say, every game is played to win, but in circumstances like these there's a little different approach.
None of the teams mentioned above were in full force, missing a lot of key players, but this only lead to teams being able to try some other things.
And this is where the importance of practice games comes in.
These are the games where less experienced players 'get educated'.
Each and every one of us, no matter how experienced you are, once had to get his/her shot to play with the big boys/girls. And that is exactly what happened yesterday.
All teams had some new or younger players on the roster and they all proved more than worthy to become part of these teams.
Next to the addition of younger players on the roster, practice games also mean you can practice some plays or set-ups.
Playing a practice game is just another big opportunity for a team to find it's chemistry.
You might try a different style of playing than if you would have been playing the final of a championship.
As important as this is, it is often overlooked in Belgium and beyond. I can imagine a lot of other European teams who would benefit enormously from playing less-pressured games all season long.
It's nice to play for the marbles, because that's when the heat is on.
But every once in a while you need to blow off some steam.
Be it after a long season for a team like Gentle (11th place at EUCF,anyone ? more on that later this week by the way!) or after a summer break for other teams, the well-known proverb says it all :

Or here's how the Livestrong foundation likes to explain it : 

"In team sports, practice is crucial for players trying to develop cohesion and familiarity with one another. Practice allows players to become familiar with how teammates operate, making it easier to anticipate actions on the playing field. Team practices also help establish relationships between players, which can improve team morale and encourage the desire to play for one another."

Read more at http://www.livestrong.com/article/481134-the-importance-of-practicing-for-athletes/#ixzz1d0pPNgYx

As far as results go SLIJPSCHIJVEN are the HERFST CHAMPS !! :

Anyhow, we all had a fun day yesterday and we all thought we had to do this more often, so let's hope it works out.
If anybody is interested in seeing another good friendly game, here's your chance :
Mooncatchers (belgian champions 2011) are playing against JetSet (belgian vice-champion 2011) on the 16th of november in Uccle.
More info at http://www.facebook.com/#!/event.php?eid=214014455336043

Keep on reading !
PS Voor de Nederlandstaligen onder ons : hier nog een verslagje van Robin (Slijpschijven,organisator HerfstLeague) http://www.slijpschijven.be/?p=236