Transition from youth Handball to…?

For anyone working within talent development, this subject is both common and highly debated.

I'll start by throwing a question up in the air - How many players actually end up making a successful transition from youth handball to the professional leagues?

Lets define the problem.

The answer will differ from country to country. The likelihood in developmental handball nations is that most, if not all youth players with the drive to continue into senior handball will have the opportunity to do so at an okay level. In an established Handball nation, Scandinavia, Germany, France etc.etc, where thousands of players every season complete their youth career in the hope of a professional contract, the answer will be nearly none will make a successful transition to elite handball.

The players i'm referring to are those who, no matter where they grow up, dream of making it to the top of the sport, which no doubt means ending up in one of the Scandinavian, German, Spanish, French, or possibly the Hungarian top leagues.

The answer is very few players. Very few players are able to make a successful transition to elite senior handball.

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So why is this the case, and furthermore what happens to the rest of them? The players who do not reach the promise-land of elite handball and professional contracts?

In many cases it comes down to what drives these players to play. For some, it's the results, playing time, social cohesion, training, personal goals or something completely different. Among all of these motivators to continue playing Handball, are the challenges of full-time jobs, boyfriends, demands for study focus, party culture and previous experiences from many hours in the sport. In fact, research shows that the drop off from youth-senior handball is upwards of 50% in some established handball nations. And herein lies a huge challenge for the sport of Handball.

We as a Handball community must do more to ensure that players who not make the top league, the 2nd and 3rd best players, maintain joy in playing the game. If it is fun to play, train and hookup with teammates a few times per week, then you'l continue to play. Its that simple.

The fact that there is a dropout rate of around 50% demonstrates that we're not doing enough to keep players in the sport. We must consider the quality of our training and competition environments and the way we treat our players.

If our coaching is very much 'result focussed' or 'serious' at the youth levels then is seems reasonable to assume that when player X' doesn't make it to the next level, they quit trying!? If players feel pressured into playing to win, or commit too many hours into tactical training and too few into the social side of handball, then surely they'l quit at the first real possibility to do so?

I personally wish there would be a focus on creating more high quality training environments. And no i don't mean more focus on elite-preparation environments. I mean more handball environments that pay equal attention towards keeping hold of the 2nd and 3rd best players within the sport of Handball. On that basis i'm talking about social handball environments, where results take a back seat and quality relationships, enjoyment, and social fitness are a priority. Would we improve the retention from the disastrous 50%? I certainly think so.

How about making amateur senior handball a more attractive proposition for players who unfortunately don't make it all the way?

I believe that if we want to develop handball and start to challenge mainstream sports like football, then it is the role of the governing bodies, its clubs, and its coaches, to ensure that we retain as many players as possible in the sport. And to do that, there must be an attractive offer for players who have a huge opportunity to quit when they complete their youth handball years.

This might be particularly pertinent in developmental handball nations that do not have the luxury of elite leagues and a plethora of top potential in the youth categories.

Player retention must surely be a primary concern for the sport moving forward, and in my opinion it comes down to what we do with the 'next best' players..

Food for thought.

Scott.