Captaining my first ever APA team in first APA match...any advice?

[Celophanewrap]

Captain advice?
Collect everyone’s fee before they leave. Whatever you’re missing falls to you. It’s the
shits when you have to foot the whole bill. Don’t be an asshole, but don’t be shy about it.

Remember, it’s now about the team. - Be smart when you match up. A 3-0 is better than
a 2-1 or a 1-2 so your better players may need to play matches against they’d rather not
play. As captain you need to serve the team, not someone’s ego.

Don’t let yourself fall into the role of self appointed rule book or policeman. You have to
be responsible for your team. What they do reflects on you. As captain anything they do
will likely be blamed on you. Be captain, but make your guys own their actions, they’re
adults, remind them of that every so often.

You don’t always have to be the coach. In spite of being captain you won’t always be the
best coach for everyone, try not to be territorial.

Pick the right co-captain. Someone you trust and can count on to be there every week

Let your team know you have their back. Even if you think they’re wrong. You can discuss that later.
They need to know you’re on their side. Don’t be afraid to say so.

Sandbagging? That’s the other guys problem, not yours. Play honest and the S/L’s will take care of themselves

Don’t drink too much and have a good time. It’s a game, it’s supposed to be fun.

 

[Michael S]

1. First and foremost! Have fun with your teammates.
2. Try to match up your players with the opponents. This often means you need to know your opponents.
3. If you win celebrate quietly. If you lose, chalk it off as a lesson for everyone.
4. Do your best!
5. Make sure everyone has paid and mark the score sheet accordingly.
6. And last but not least, don't go over the point limit!!

I've captained multiple teams over the years...

 

[justadub]

Captain advice?
Collect everyone’s fee before they leave. Whatever you’re missing falls to you. It’s the
shits when you have to foot the whole bill. Don’t be an asshole, but don’t be shy about it.

Remember, it’s now about the team. - Be smart when you match up. A 3-0 is better than
a 2-1 or a 1-2 so your better players may need to play matches against they’d rather not
play. As captain you need to serve the team, not someone’s ego.

Don’t let yourself fall into the role of self appointed rule book or policeman. You have to
be responsible for your team. What they do reflects on you. As captain anything they do
will likely be blamed on you. Be captain, but make your guys own their actions, they’re
adults, remind them of that every so often.

You don’t always have to be the coach. In spite of being captain you won’t always be the
best coach for everyone, try not to be territorial.

Pick the right co-captain. Someone you trust and can count on to be there every week

Let your team know you have their back. Even if you think they’re wrong. You can discuss that later.
They need to know you’re on their side. Don’t be afraid to say so.

Sandbagging? That’s the other guys problem, not yours. Play honest and the S/L’s will take care of themselves

Don’t drink too much and have a good time. It’s a game, it’s supposed to be fun.

^^^ This too........

 

[justadub]

1. First and foremost! Have fun with your teammates.
2. Try to match up your players with the opponents. This often means you need to know your opponents.
3. If you win celebrate quietly. If you lose, chalk it off as a lesson for everyone.
4. Do your best!
5. Make sure everyone has paid and mark the score sheet accordingly.
6. And last but not least, don't go over the point limit!!

I've captained multiple teams over the years...

As well as this......heh heh...... :thumbup:

 

[WoodyMPW]

Drinking heavily will help with the regret of deciding to Captain a team.

 

[frankncali]

I typically do just the opposite so that I get 3 chances to putb who i want against who they put up.

Though, there is occasion when I win the flip that I decide to put up first for one reason or another.

I believed in putting up first but most here did not.

There are not tons of options most of the time.

1 match one .. solid performer.. maybe they dodge them a bit which is perfect
2- you react knowing the score and might even have a tip off on their lineup
3- you put up setting up the last 3.. you know your lineup most every time by this point
4 and 5... you control both as you should know their last 2.

Teams laughed at us early on for putting up first but then it soon changed.

 

[CCCue]

I believed in putting up first but most here did not.

There are not tons of options most of the time.

1 match one .. solid performer.. maybe they dodge them a bit which is perfect
2- you react knowing the score and might even have a tip off on their lineup
3- you put up setting up the last 3.. you know your lineup most every time by this point
4 and 5... you control both as you should know their last 2.

Teams laughed at us early on for putting up first but then it soon changed.

Thinking this true and I can see when putting up first could work to hour advantage. For example if they have a 6 or 7 on their team, putting up a strong 5 might force them to play the higher SL player. Thus, their options are more limited because of the 23 rule.

 

[jokrswylde]

Thanks to all who have taken the time to chime in! I am most anxious about helping my team be competitive and have fun, hopefully helping turn them into pool regulars.

 

[Coop1701]

Thanks to all who have taken the time to chime in! I am most anxious about helping my team be competitive and have fun, hopefully helping turn them into pool regulars.

You will have a great time. I have been doing it for awhile now and I like my nights out. Very seldom do we have any drama. There is a lot of good advice everyone has posted. Take them to heart and don't be scared to learn as you go.

 

[ctyhntr]

Remember to enjoy your self first. Unless you like footing the bill for the team, collecting the money from everyone who played is a close second.

Being competitive team captain
If your team makes it to the post season tournaments (Tri-Cups), where teams from different divisions compete. LO may supply a sheet with every player's info. I usually grab that, and include the information when comes time for match-ups. Nice to know the SL3 the other team is putting up has 800 games under her belt, versus another SL3 who could be a wildcard at only 30 games.

Thanks to all who have taken the time to chime in! I am most anxious about helping my team be competitive and have fun, hopefully helping turn them into pool regulars.

 

[RichSchultz]

if someone has had too much to drink, and you think it will affect their play (and the team), be strong and sit them out.

 

[lorider]

How about sharing your experience in the ....how are yall dong in league thread.

 

[jokrswylde]

How about sharing your experience in the ....how are yall dong in league thread.

good idea, will do

 

[pogmothoin]

To really answer that would go into all sorts of depths of discussion and debate

My philosophy is to try and match up as evenly as possible while working within the 23- rule restrictions. At least during the regular season, playoffs are a whole other discussion. My feeling is that we're there for fun and for competition.

There are many who really dig into the strategy, and will "throw off", playing lower Skill players against the higher skill players on the other team. I'm not a fan of this for two reasons.....first, no "good" player wants to beat the brains in of a beginner, and have to win 6 or 7 games against someone who is a beginner. Second, and more important to me, is it's no fun for a beginner to have to absorb those beatings. Where is the fun in shooting once or twice, against someone you have no chance against, in order to make the captains strategy of throwing off work? How are they gonna learn, and how are they gonna have any fun and want to keep playing....

This is a debate that I'll never win, and I expect a lot of push back following this post. It's how I feel.

You will see lots of different strategies as you go forward. No real way to tell you all of them, best to do what you think is best, and run with it. Good luck!

I totally agree with you. It's about fun, I'm not matching up a 2 against a 7 during regular session. Playoffs it's all about winning so anything goes, but the regular session is about fun.

 

[justadub]

I totally agree with you. It's about fun, I'm not matching up a 2 against a 7 during regular session. Playoffs it's all about winning so anything goes, but the regular session is about fun.

Happened to my team first week of this session.

 

[jokrswylde]

So is there an "ideal" makeup of a team where rankings are concerned?

For example, I can see my team legitimately being 2, 3, 4, 4, 5

The team we are playing next week is 2, 4, 5, 6, 6

In this Hypothetical Match, My first thought is to put one of my 4's against their 2.
put myself, 5, against one of their 6's
My strongest 4 against their 4
My other 4 against their 5
My 2 against their other 6

Or would it be better to let the 2's battle it out and then try to match up as even as possible?
SO MANY OPTIONS!

I understand all of this is dependent on who they put up and when. I am just curious if there is a system or strategy that has shown to be effective when it comes to matching up based on rankings...

I don't think I would like sending a 2 out to get blasted buy a 6. I can't imagine that would be fun for either. Sheesh...the more I learn about this APA stuff, the more I realize I know NOTHING!

 

[RichSchultz]

So is there an "ideal" makeup of a team where rankings are concerned?

For example, I can see my team legitimately being 2, 3, 4, 4, 5

The team we are playing next week is 2, 4, 5, 6, 6

In this Hypothetical Match, My first thought is to put one of my 4's against their 2.
put myself, 5, against one of their 6's
My strongest 4 against their 4
My other 4 against their 5
My 2 against their other 6

Or would it be better to let the 2's battle it out and then try to match up as even as possible?
SO MANY OPTIONS!

I understand all of this is dependent on who they put up and when. I am just curious if there is a system or strategy that has shown to be effective when it comes to matching up based on rankings...

I don't think I would like sending a 2 out to get blasted buy a 6. I can't imagine that would be fun for either. Sheesh...the more I learn about this APA stuff, the more I realize I know NOTHING!

Do NOT fall into paralysis by analysis. Go with your gut and learn.

 

[CGM]

This is my second session as a captain and there are few things Ive learned. 1) You will not be competitive as a team until all of your guys are ranked correctly, unless they are all better than 4's. It usually takes about 5 weeks. 2) A full roster of 8 is much more competitive than only having 5. You just have more options, however, some people get upset if they dont play both. 3) Dont be afraid to ask for money as soon as the match is over. Getting stuck with paying more than your share sucks. 4) Look at winning percentages online to figure out good match ups before the match. A player may be a 4 but have a very low winning percentage meaning they are probably really a high 3. Matching a strong 3 against a weak 4 could net you an easy 3-0 split. 5) I still have a lot to learn.

 

[tonyboy59]

Not to be a Debbie downer...it can be a thankless job no doubt. Who wants to play first or last, who's gonna show up or call out, who's gonna be straight or drunk, who's got money to pay their way, if you gotta play a player twice (because you don't have enough people) you usually pay for them to play, who's gonna keep score? I can continue on but I think you get the point.

Enjoy it while it lasts...and good luck.

 

[lorider]

Not to be a Debbie downer...it can be a thankless job no doubt. Who wants to play first or last, who's gonna show up or call out, who's gonna be straight or drunk, who's got money to pay their way, if you gotta play a player twice (because you don't have enough people) you usually pay for them to play, who's gonna keep score? I can continue on but I think you get the point.

Enjoy it while it lasts...and good luck.

I have been a captain on as.many as 4 teams a week. Finally got smart and dropped it down to 2 but i still play 4 nights a week. Over the 6 years I have been captain I have encountered every thing you listed except one. Being drunk..

I got rid of a few that never kept score...now every one takes turns and j make it a point to teach new players how to do it properly.

Most have never had a problem paying to play twice and the ones that did claimed they didn't have the money anyway. I helped a few out occasionally by paying for them. Then one night when j went to collect one told me he didn't have the money. I went off like a rocket on his ass and asked him wtf did he show up for if he did not have the money to play. I had another player who had been having the same problem occasionally so.i had a quick team meeting and told every one ...from now on if you dint have the money to play dont show up. Solved that problem right then and there.

Had a few that wanted to play first and leave. I made it a point to throw them last and told them they had to keep score before they played. Solved that problem.

Needless to say there have been a few times it seemed like my team was a revolving door of players but over time managed to get some good people who have stuck with me.