How do you deal with players that wont try

A

americanfighter

AzB Silver Member
Silver Member
I recently took over an eight ball team and it is a team that I honestly think could win the season However I have a player who openly admits to me he is not trying and a player who I suspect is not trying.

I would Just skip over them and not play them but sometimes I cant do that. Its frustrating cause I sacrifice myself to get them a favorable match up then watch them lose and I know they are better. They talk about no problem we will win in the playoffs but one thats no given and If they would play to their capacity we would win the season and not have to worry about the playoffs.

How do you deal with someone like this.
 
Well I think every team deals with this to some extent. As pool enthusiasts who practice and play a lot and post on message boards about it we're more into the game than the average league player. So I think it comes down to what "not trying" really means. If it means they won't do drills or practice or watch pro matches or videos then good luck trying to get them to. Some people just are in it for the once a week league experience and that's not really a problem in my opinion. It might be frustrating to some, but I understand completely. However, if they're not trying to win their matches, not showing up, not giving it their all when they play that is a problem, and it's probably only dealt with by getting them off the team somehow.
 
StraightPoolIU said:
Well I think every team deals with this to some extent. As pool enthusiasts who practice and play a lot and post on message boards about it we're more into the game than the average league player. So I think it comes down to what "not trying" really means. If it means they won't do drills or practice or watch pro matches or videos then good luck trying to get them to. Some people just are in it for the once a week league experience and that's not really a problem in my opinion. It might be frustrating to some, but I understand completely. However, if they're not trying to win their matches, not showing up, not giving it their all when they play that is a problem, and it's probably only dealt with by getting them off the team somehow.
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Exactly how I feel!!!
 
This is an inherent issue with league play, such as APA. Let's face it, anybody who has much of a commitment can rather easily make it to the 4 or 5 level. It simply isn't that difficult to do. Problem is, you can't keep a team together that is comprised of all 4,5, 6 and 7's; you can't make the s/l handicap. So what choices are there? I think there are 3. One is to simply live with it, view it as recreational and take what you get. Another is to constantly be changing the team personnel, looking for beginners who are committed to getting better. That's an ongoing battle obviously as those who are committed will move up in s/l at a reasonably fast pace. The third alternative is to cheat the system and sandbag. There's no shortage of stories here of how that is rampant and unchecked in the APA leagues.

Back to the core question of your thread, i.e., what do you do with them? My answer is: nothing. Perhaps you can attempt to give them a Knute Rockne speech or play Tony Robbins. I doubt any significant positive effects that would have. So either accept them for what they are, have fun or trade them in for more motivated players when the next session begins. I think it really is that simple. If you push on them, week in, week out, they and you are likely to get frustrated and things may get miserable.
 
PocketSpeed11 said:
It sounds like the player who openly admits he's not trying is just making an excuse for his poor play.
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EXACTLY! :thumbup:

If you lose points with them, you may as well lose points without them (if possible).
Take a strong hand and get rid. This kind of attitude will only spread through your team like the wildfire.
 
I tell them to GTFO.

I'm not the team captain but if I feel strongly about it,
I'll force the captain to pick me or them.

League can sometimes be frustrating and full of drama,
even if everyone shows up with the right mindset.
The instant teammates start showing a bad attitude,
league goes from "kinda fun" to "shitty waste of time".

I don't worry too much about "maybe there's some underlying issue" or
"maybe he's just trying to save face from losing".
It's all symptoms of the same problem.
 
americanfighter said:
I recently took over an eight ball team and it is a team that I honestly think could win the season However I have a player who openly admits to me he is not trying and a player who I suspect is not trying.

I would Just skip over them and not play them but sometimes I cant do that. Its frustrating cause I sacrifice myself to get them a favorable match up then watch them lose and I know they are better. They talk about no problem we will win in the playoffs but one thats no given and If they would play to their capacity we would win the season and not have to worry about the playoffs.

How do you deal with someone like this.
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With honestly. Ask him about it, ask him if he feels he tries as hard as he could. I have always found players who don't seem to try hard are afraid of losing. So they lose anyway but have a fall back that they didn't really try as hard as they could have. It hurts to try your best and lose. That is why competition is not for everybody. In fact playing on a team can harder then gambling for your own money for many. You feel an obligation to the other players and that can really create pressure.
 
americanfighter said:
I recently took over an eight ball team and it is a team that I honestly think could win the season However I have a player who openly admits to me he is not trying and a player who I suspect is not trying.

I would Just skip over them and not play them but sometimes I cant do that. Its frustrating cause I sacrifice myself to get them a favorable match up then watch them lose and I know they are better. They talk about no problem we will win in the playoffs but one thats no given and If they would play to their capacity we would win the season and not have to worry about the playoffs.

How do you deal with someone like this.
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Tell them that as captain that your expectation is they put some effort forth and if they are not willing to do that they should look for another team to play on.
 
If you are referring to people who just view league play as their one night out a week, we discussed this not long ago.

Myself and a couple of other players are dedicated to maintaining our level and improving.
So, we put in extra practice time when we can.

One person has a team, the three other players view the team as their one night out but never put in any practice so they will basically never improve beyond the level that they now play at.

The same person has another team. There is one girl on it that views Tuesday as a night out providing she doesn't have anything better planned. She only has been showing up 50% of the time which creates stress for the captain.

I told the captain to watch her weeks as in at the end of the first half season, neither she or the spare (me) will have enuff weeks in to make the play offs and then the tourney.

To us, we play all year in order to improve, make it thru the play offs and then on to the tourney. What is the point of playing all year if your team gets excluded from both the play offs and the tourneys.

So, as the captain, its up to you to decide which direction that you'd prefer your team to go in.

If you're ok with just having a night out, thats ok, but if you would prefer that your team
is made up of players who want to and care about winning, then you have a decision to make.

Either you will have to sit down and talk to the players individually and see if you can't give em a pep talk or you will have to think about replacing them with someone who is of the same mind set as yourself. There is a difference between a player who doesn't play as well as you hope and one that just doesn't care. You can't be mean to someone that is trying but just isn't that good.

Not easy sometimes Buddy. I have been the captain of two teams for approx 8 years now. You'd think that it should be relatively stress free but it isn't always the case.

I have had to make a couple of decisions now and then and it isn't easy. Sometimes you have to put the boot to someone. Its not a nice thing to have to do but it was mine and my team mates piece of mind that mattered most in the end.
 
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StraightPoolIU said:
Well I think every team deals with this to some extent. As pool enthusiasts who practice and play a lot and post on message boards about it we're more into the game than the average league player. So I think it comes down to what "not trying" really means. If it means they won't do drills or practice or watch pro matches or videos then good luck trying to get them to. Some people just are in it for the once a week league experience and that's not really a problem in my opinion. It might be frustrating to some, but I understand completely. However, if they're not trying to win their matches, not showing up, not giving it their all when they play that is a problem, and it's probably only dealt with by getting them off the team somehow.
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It the second thing you mentioned.
 
From now on use him as the sacrificial lamb and save yourself for the more favorable match up.

Then during the off season replace the bad seeds.
 
I am not so sure there is a "One size fits all," solution to this puzzle. There are soooo many reasons why a player can/will lay down in league play, esp in APA. I think you snicerely need to have at least 5 players that want to go to Finals, and nothing else would be best. Even then its almost a lock that 1 will not make to the end of the season for whatever reason. So,... you just deal with it and do the best you can IMO.
If you DO find the magic /silver bullet to solving league problems, let me know ! :smile:
 
How do you deal with a captain that has no idea how to create favorable match ups and strategize? Play for a different team is the easy answer I guess. It can be a little tough to switch teams if your a 6 or 7 though, much easier for a 3/4.
 
I dealt with it by quitting and going to play in a singles league. Leagues are just for fun and i'm all for having fun, but to me personally winning is more fun than not even trying to win or at least learn something from losing.
 
Hmmm... I'm an APA captain and a local league captain as well. I have one rule... When you are on the table, you have to take it seriously and try to win. While I'd like people to practice outside of league night, I'm not gonna force it, but when I put them up, they've got to try.

The quick shots, no aiming and visible lack of effort will find you 'riding the pine' quicker than anything else.

In regards to matchups, I'll sacrifice any player ( including myself) to give the team the best matchups and chances to win the night. Yes, I try not to throw the same person to the wolves all the time (could destroy their confidence long term), but you do what's best for the team (in you opinion - you are the captain).

Joe
 
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