Hi Callum,

We had the same issues last season with sometimes 6 subsitutes for a 7vs7 game, very difficult to rotate and keep everyone happy. We tried to split the squad into two teams this season but the new coach walked away last minute :( So we have a large squad again this season and we have introduced rest weeks for the girls. Its not ideal but we feel at least when the girls are there on a match day they are getting lots of sustained gametime rather than 10 minutes here and there on rotation. Also through the winter they are not stood around in the cold. It seems to be working ok so far and we try to plan the rest weeks around holidays and things the girls have on to try and help. 

Hi Callum,

We had the same issues last season with sometimes 6 subsitutes for a 7vs7 game, very difficult to rotate and keep everyone happy. We tried to split the squad into two teams this season but the new coach walked away last minute :( So we have a large squad again this season and we have introduced rest weeks for the girls. Its not ideal but we feel at least when the girls are there on a match day they are getting lots of sustained gametime rather than 10 minutes here and there on rotation. Also through the winter they are not stood around in the cold. It seems to be working ok so far and we try to plan the rest weeks around holidays and things the girls have on to try and help. 

Hi Mark,

We’re just discussing this at the moment with our team and potentially limiting the squad for each match to 10. Interested in how you have managed it and what feedback you had from parents. 

Assuming you are a parent too, do you rest your son/ daughter too or give them priority?

Thanks,

Andy

Hi Andrew, so far it's working well. We asked the parents for holiday dates, weekends away etc.. So that we could try and plan rest weeks around those. It's not ideal but much easier to manage on match day. Had no complaints from parents yet. 

Hi Andrew, so far it's working well. We asked the parents for holiday dates, weekends away etc.. So that we could try and plan rest weeks around those. It's not ideal but much easier to manage on match day. Had no complaints from parents yet.

hi mark, this is my first season coaching and we also have a similar problem and for this age group i agree its fair to rotate players around as much as possible. 

weve been on the tail end of about 5 10-0 defeats recently and i could see the motivation starting to slip. i am thinking of introducing having 4/5 core players and rotating the squad around them. would anyone think this not right? i obviously understand at this age group its not fair for most players however if theyre losing week on week due to our 'better' players not playing and lacking enjoyment do you think this is fair?

It's such a difficult one, the scorelines shouldn't matter but they still hurt. Could you introduce rest weeks, then you could try and manage the match day squad with a blend of your stronger and weaker players. My daughter was one of the weaker players last season but has come on leaps and bounds with more gametime. I don't think it helps much when only playing 5-10 minutes here and there in games. I try to give everyone at least a full half but can only do that by reducing the squad on a match day. Just my opinion though. 

Yeah in each game they get act least a half most of the time more. Rest weeks is a great idea thank you!

we’ve also capped it at 10 players a week to make it fairer on the girls especially now it’s getting colder!