Being a Team Captain - The Good, The Bad and The Ugly by Linda W.
Being a Team Captain has its ups and downs and a lot of responsibility. After being a Team Captain for only one season, that was enough for me. It was time to turn the reins over to a more talented leader and concentrate on what I love and that is playing darts, the competition and the people!
Being a Team Captain starts with putting a team together and then attending the mandatory Captain's meeting - always held at some far away location or in a small crowded pub. It's not a fun thing - sure you get to see people you haven't seen in awhile, but the meetings are long, boring, sometimes there isn't enough seating room and the room is hot with all those people. You cannot wait to get out but you have to listen to the important announcements and understand any rule changes that you must be aware of. The highlight of the meeting is picking up your Team's folder with the schedule and most Captains cannot wait to get a glimpse of which teams are in their division, how many byes there are, if any, and where they will be traveling to when not playing at home. Sometimes league night begins the night following the Captain's meeting so as soon as the meeting is over you have got to get on your cell phone and call your team members to tell them where they have to be on the very next night for league. And then you cross your fingers and hope that all your team members are responsible enough to show up when they say they will, and will show up especially when you need them to. It's understood that at times people have to work late, cannot find a babysitter, their car has broken down, or there has been a family emergency...these things happen to everyone at some time or another. BUT!!! You need to call your Team Captain when these things come up. The worst thing for a Team Captain is not having enough players and if the opposing team's Captain is not too accommodating, the ABSOLUTE worst thing is to have to FORFEIT a match, or two or three. As a Captain, I would rather lose honestly by not being the more skillful team then to forfeit a single match.
So putting the team together is very, very, very important. These darters have to be responsible, on time, able to travel to the various pubs, not drink too much before they play and no matter how good or skillful they are, they have to be nice and fit into the culture of the team. There has to be a team spirit concept with everyone and good camaraderie between the team members in order for a team to play well together, and with others.
Then league night comes...If it is the start of the season you have to make sure the team fees are individually paid. Why can't some players understand that? There are penalties if fees are late, and Captains should NOT have to pay YOUR fees because YOU haven't budgeted for dart league, or made time to pick up some cash along the way!
That's just the start of it...You see, when you are a Team Captain, from the moment that you walk in the door you have got to concentrate and deal with a million little details that no one but you can take care of. It is fun greeting the other team and catching up before the matches begin, however, there is little time for the Captain to practice or even concentrate on their own darts. Darts is the one place where you are not only Captain of the ship, so to speak, but you ALSO want to throw darts yourself!
The Team Captain usually introduces himself or herself to the other Team Captain and the night of league begins. In the best case scenario, everything is fair, everyone plays nice together, you win for the night, shake hands and of course, remember to call the score in to the league phone. In a worst case scenario, maybe there are not enough people, maybe there has to be a forfeit, possibly there are arguments over mistakes made chalking, then there are people not following the rules, postponing or switching around matches and so on. So the good Team Captain has to not only have a solid handle on the WCD rules but also has to be a good negotiator with the other Team Captain and ALL team members present on league night.
Another potential source of conflict is between your own team members. Sometimes they forget to be team players and are not too happy with decisions that are made. Not every player gets to play every match that they want to be played in. Yes the Captain wants to play people fairly but also who is shooting well on that particular night. Yes, we're all in this to have fun but let's face it, it's a whole lot more fun to win for the night. And sometimes this means making the tough decisions that a Team Captain has to make for the good of the team. It is what it is, and not everyone is going to play as much or in the line-up exactly as they want to play - but league night is about the team, not so much the individual players. This means that decisions have to be made by the Team Captain that the team doesn't always understand. That's just the way it is. If you are not a quick thinking decisive darter, then being a Team Captain is not your thing.
Next - the Team Captain is responsible for getting all the appropriate signatures, completing the paperwork, figuring out the stats at the end of the season and sending them in on time, and calling the WCD office line when your team has won. Most of this detailed administrative stuff is just a big pain in the butt so being a Team Captain is not for everyone. Not at all!
On the good side of being a Team Captain, you get to meet other Team Captains and players and that always presents the opportunity to make new friends.
Here's the long and short of it - the qualities of a great Team Captain:
Being a Team Captain starts with putting a team together and then attending the mandatory Captain's meeting - always held at some far away location or in a small crowded pub. It's not a fun thing - sure you get to see people you haven't seen in awhile, but the meetings are long, boring, sometimes there isn't enough seating room and the room is hot with all those people. You cannot wait to get out but you have to listen to the important announcements and understand any rule changes that you must be aware of. The highlight of the meeting is picking up your Team's folder with the schedule and most Captains cannot wait to get a glimpse of which teams are in their division, how many byes there are, if any, and where they will be traveling to when not playing at home. Sometimes league night begins the night following the Captain's meeting so as soon as the meeting is over you have got to get on your cell phone and call your team members to tell them where they have to be on the very next night for league. And then you cross your fingers and hope that all your team members are responsible enough to show up when they say they will, and will show up especially when you need them to. It's understood that at times people have to work late, cannot find a babysitter, their car has broken down, or there has been a family emergency...these things happen to everyone at some time or another. BUT!!! You need to call your Team Captain when these things come up. The worst thing for a Team Captain is not having enough players and if the opposing team's Captain is not too accommodating, the ABSOLUTE worst thing is to have to FORFEIT a match, or two or three. As a Captain, I would rather lose honestly by not being the more skillful team then to forfeit a single match.
So putting the team together is very, very, very important. These darters have to be responsible, on time, able to travel to the various pubs, not drink too much before they play and no matter how good or skillful they are, they have to be nice and fit into the culture of the team. There has to be a team spirit concept with everyone and good camaraderie between the team members in order for a team to play well together, and with others.
Then league night comes...If it is the start of the season you have to make sure the team fees are individually paid. Why can't some players understand that? There are penalties if fees are late, and Captains should NOT have to pay YOUR fees because YOU haven't budgeted for dart league, or made time to pick up some cash along the way!
That's just the start of it...You see, when you are a Team Captain, from the moment that you walk in the door you have got to concentrate and deal with a million little details that no one but you can take care of. It is fun greeting the other team and catching up before the matches begin, however, there is little time for the Captain to practice or even concentrate on their own darts. Darts is the one place where you are not only Captain of the ship, so to speak, but you ALSO want to throw darts yourself!
The Team Captain usually introduces himself or herself to the other Team Captain and the night of league begins. In the best case scenario, everything is fair, everyone plays nice together, you win for the night, shake hands and of course, remember to call the score in to the league phone. In a worst case scenario, maybe there are not enough people, maybe there has to be a forfeit, possibly there are arguments over mistakes made chalking, then there are people not following the rules, postponing or switching around matches and so on. So the good Team Captain has to not only have a solid handle on the WCD rules but also has to be a good negotiator with the other Team Captain and ALL team members present on league night.
Another potential source of conflict is between your own team members. Sometimes they forget to be team players and are not too happy with decisions that are made. Not every player gets to play every match that they want to be played in. Yes the Captain wants to play people fairly but also who is shooting well on that particular night. Yes, we're all in this to have fun but let's face it, it's a whole lot more fun to win for the night. And sometimes this means making the tough decisions that a Team Captain has to make for the good of the team. It is what it is, and not everyone is going to play as much or in the line-up exactly as they want to play - but league night is about the team, not so much the individual players. This means that decisions have to be made by the Team Captain that the team doesn't always understand. That's just the way it is. If you are not a quick thinking decisive darter, then being a Team Captain is not your thing.
Next - the Team Captain is responsible for getting all the appropriate signatures, completing the paperwork, figuring out the stats at the end of the season and sending them in on time, and calling the WCD office line when your team has won. Most of this detailed administrative stuff is just a big pain in the butt so being a Team Captain is not for everyone. Not at all!
On the good side of being a Team Captain, you get to meet other Team Captains and players and that always presents the opportunity to make new friends.
Here's the long and short of it - the qualities of a great Team Captain:
- A great Team Captain loves darts.
- A great Team Captain loves meeting new people, and is outgoing and personable.
- A great Team Captain is good at scheduling their time, making the meetings and always being at darts.
- A great Team Captain communicates well with their team, the other team, and the other Team Captain.
- A great Team Captain knows the rules of the leagues or knows where to find the answers out FAST.
- A great Team Captain is a responsible person with money, paperwork, schedules and so on.
- A great Team Captain is a good negotiator with the other Team Captain, the home dart bar owner who has sponsored the team and with the WCD board.
- A great Team Captain thrives under pressure.
- A great Team Captain is able to quickly assess any situation at hand and make good decisions.
- A great Team Captain makes decisions to benefit the team and not just one single team member. Favorites are not played.
- A great Team Captain takes everything in stride and doesn't get stressed out or rattled easily.
- A great Team Captain always remembers to call the score in when the team has won for the night.
- A great Team Captain completes all the end of season paperwork and submits it on time.
- A great Team Captain feels the joy when the team that they have put together works well together, wins, makes it to playoffs and even wins 1st place in their division.
- A great Team Captain is truly respected and appreciated by their teammates.