Talking Split

Coaching brings together a wide range of personalities — not just from the coaching side, but from the players as well. This week, the Talking Split crew create a handful of player personas (Rob lost count somewhere along the way) and discuss how they would coach each one to get the best out of them individually, while also helping the team achieve the best possible outcomes.

Sport should feel the same for everyone who loves it, and everyone should have the opportunity to play and excel. This week we sit down with Matt Cameron from VicHealth to unpack the Set The Standard campaign, a program built around exactly that idea, before hearing from Nya Lok, whose basketball journey offers a first hand perspective on why this work matters so much. Both Matt & Nya make a c...

Opinions are like clothes in a wardrobe, not all suit forever and some change as we evolve as coaches. This week we take a look back at some of the things we used to believe in as coaches, and how we have come to change over the years. Coaching, like playing is about growth based on experience, and potentially in a few years time we will change again!

This week Rob shamelessly grabs some content he heard on another podcast to use as a launching pad for the various trends we see in game play, skill development, and style of play in our coaching space. Meanwhile, Nick is all in on the Knicks making the NBA finals, and Zoe has a great attempt at stealing the “Rob’s Rants” mantle as her own!

It’s National Volunteer week, so we jump in to discuss the highs and the challenges that our grassroots coaches are facing. It sounds like a throwaway comment, but the sport would be lost without the hard work that our coaches put into it at all levels, so a huge thank you to everyone who gives up their time (and in some cases hairlines) to help out players that love the sport!

Sometimes there is a quote that just sticks with you, or is a way of shaping how you coach and live your life. The team has lots to unpack as we have Jenna’s farewell for Maternity leave, Rob’s Rants returning with Macklemore in his sights, and somehow, everyone’s favourite song for wrestling intros. If you’ve got a favourite quote, leave it in the comments for others to see!

Both internally, and externally, everyone expects something different from coaches. This week we unpack how to set yourself up as a coach for success in the preseason meeting with parents and players to make sure it’s a good environment for everyone moving forward, but also how to make sure you stay on track.  We also discuss the African Australian CALD Camp, Robs Rants is back for another week, a...

Another week, another podcast debutant as the Metro State Development Coach, Nathan Geer, joins us this week. A piece of Coach Education that has been floating around for a few years gets a bit of a review from us this week, as we encourage coaches to think more like a farmer. There are various takes on weeds, fertiliser, the environment and why it’s usually not a great idea to shout at players, o...

Sometimes it can feel a bit like you’re running in mud with your own development as a coach, and that you’re not progressing as quickly as you would like to. We discuss what you can do to address this and look at some of the reasons why it might be happening in the first place. DP also takes us through the Japan visit with the Victoria Select team and the experiences there.

Joining on the pod this week is Daniel Hamilton, the Director of the Ballarat (and Bendigo) Concussion Clinic. An unfortunate area of the sport is navigating head knocks, and Daniel talks us through some of the danger signs for diagnosing a concussion, symptoms to look out for, and the repercussions of not rehabbing from a possible concussion properly. With the long-term impact of a head knock bei...

Making sure we get the topics that the listeners want to hear about, we asked for some questions and the listeners delivered! We go on to discuss advice for U18 coaches, coaching your own child, timeout use and management and everyone's favourite topic, zone defence. And if anyone sees Brenton’s bike being ridden around, let us know! Guidelines for Supporting Coaches U18: https://api.basketballvic...

In sport and likely in life, we all want things to happen for us as soon as possible. Coaches and players can fall victims to this, but in most cases the patient route is the better path for people to go down. We discuss some of the things that those in the sport need to be careful of, and how to avoid the pitfalls of fast tracking or being too transfixed on short term wins over long term developm...

As we all return to coaching for another year, we delve into what we are going to focus on in 2026, and what are we looking forward to leaving behind? Coaching is all about growth and reflection, so there are no doubt things in your coaching world that can do with a little bit of a review to make your coaching better for the year ahead. Time to do a review, and work out what you’re going to apply...

You may have noticed this week that there was an announcement around the Coach Development Framework in Australia coming up, and we dive all the way into it to give all the coaches out there some insight into what is on the horizon, with Neil Gray from Basketball Australia. We discuss what it means for coaches, how they gain their accreditation, and how they can upskill to be the best coach they c...

Final episode for the year, and we are catching up with the Melbourne Tigers Head of High Performance, Nick Abdicevic, to discuss all things coaching that he’s experienced in his 25 years at the helm. We discuss his history in coaching, various mentors he’s had and why they’re important, the role that the shuffle offence has played in his development, and his experiences in coaching from domestic...

Whilst doing a bit of reflecting recently we looked back to some of the areas we wish we knew when we first started out as coaches. This probably could have gone on for a lot longer as there are a lot of things we have learned over the years, and we’ve all made a lot of mistakes. Reflection is one of the most important parts of being a coach, so hopefully this can help you avoid some of the mistak...

Making his podcast debut this week is Brenton O’Brien, the new Country Men’s Head Coach as we discuss some of the things that we as coaches can do, that might annoy our players. From subbing patterns, to communication, and delivering feedback there are plenty of mistakes we have made over the years, and some we probably weren’t even aware of that hopefully can allow coaches to reflect on their own...

It’s been a while of pre-recorded pods, but for better or worse, we are back this week to talk about an area of basketball we can sometimes get caught forgetting, the fun! Not the same for everyone, and players and coaches will potentially want to experience different things, but we discuss how each area can impact on the other, and some tools for making it more fun for everyone involved.

In this episode, we speak with Andy from The Hoops Geek tabout the development of digital tools designed to support coaches with diagramming, substitution management, and practice planning.  We discuss how technology is influencing coaching workflows and how coaches can integrate these types of tools into their everyday practice.

Joined this week with Matt & Bo from Autism Spectrum Australia to discuss the impact that coaches can have when coaching people who has Autism. We unpack what Autism is, share some real-life examples for coaches to relate to, and practical steps and advice that coaches can use in their own coaching to make sport, and the experience more inclusive for everyone!

You’ve heard 5 experts talk about some of the things we could all be doing better and now hear from 3 non-experts on how we can put some of these things into action! We do a review of some of the information and takeaways, and how they can apply to our lives as coaches with the aim to make a positive change to the wellbeing of coaches everywhere. If you’re doing anything in this space in the month...

The last of our guests joins us this week, with Bec Mihai in to talk about sleep and the impact that it can have on us.  We cover what good sleep hygiene looks like, the age old debate of quality or quantity, the different cycles that we may experience when daylight savings hits, or simply dealing with teenagers, and why a consistent sleep pattern might be the best thing for you.  Sorry to all our...

This episode we are joined by Francielle Wilson from Inner Game Psychology for Coach Wellbeing Month, who brings a unique perspective on mental health and wellbeing, based on her elite sports background. Francielle discusses how self care matters, some strategies to be the best version of yourself, setting boundaries for yourself and how to manage white line fever!

Joined by Ben McKechnie from Space Between Psychology this week, to discuss the Mental side of Coach Wellbeing Month. Ben does a great job of unpacking how coaches can be the best versions of themselves when coaching, how a decline in mental health can impact on those around them, and how to cope with stress, especially differentiating between big, and small changes that occur in life.

Week 2 of Coach Wellbeing Month, and  we are joined by Durham McInnis from Core Advantage to talk to the physical side of wellbeing. Durham dives into where to start your fitness journey, what you can do to get the most bang for your buck, the part that nutrition and creatine can play, and of course, recovery and how to make sure you don’t overdo it. We are also joined by Luke Lehmann as he talks...