I have a feeling that Brosnan thinks his coaching can do what almost nobody else can do- get his runners to a XC peak and then continue to produce stellar marks month after month and then expect to peak for the State Meet after having his runners run great times at Sundown, at Arcadia, at Azusa Pacific, etc. Almost every runner was unable to hold their peak into CIF qualifying. The one big exception is Samantha McDonnell. And the answer is very simple- she was out for awhile (injured?) and so when she started training again she was nowhere near her peak and had a lot of room to improve. Now she's heading into the CIF SS Masters relatively fresh. I also think his disses the State Meet and maybe convinces some of his kids that a big performance at Arcadia is more important than getting to the State Meet and performing well there. I don't he'll change unless some of his athletes approach him about modifying his regimen to allow them to peak at the State Meet.
Appleford is tough kid. He got a flat tire from someone stepping on his heel with 1000m or or maybe 600m to go. I saw him and his coach after the race with blood everywhere on his foot and shoe. They were taping his foot. Im sure there is video of the race that shows how it happen. I saw it, I just forget where it happened in the race. I think 600m or 1000m to go.
I'm not following this too closely. Who has the best team in the country now that it counts?
Let me clear it up. Not NP. Not sure what you you think a team is, but their “team” got demolished yesterday. How can you defend the disaster of a coaching job that we’ve all just witnessed?
1. 12 Sam McDonnell 10:28.91a PR Newbury Park 2. 11 Ailish Hawkins 10:48.17a Newbury Park
8. 12 Morgan Nygren 11:14.35a Newbury Park 9. 9 Tiffany Sax 11:31.64a Newbury Park
6. 12 Daniel Appleford 9:17.10a Newbury Park (advanced to Masters by a few tenths of a second, too close to comfort for an 8:52 guy...)
Conditions were pretty tough today, with a decent amount of wind and pretty high temperatures.
Appleford is tough kid. He got a flat tire from someone stepping on his heel with 1000m or or maybe 600m to go. I saw him and his coach after the race with blood everywhere on his foot and shoe. They were taping his foot. Im sure there is video of the race that shows how it happen. I saw it, I just forget where it happened in the race. I think 600m or 1000m to go.
Just watched the replay. Couldn’t see where it happened. Was it before or after he made the ridiculous move and then got swallowed up and spit out by the pack?
Crushed the Sundown Series back in February, but really put on a clinic in the CIF post season. Hahahaha
3:39 and 13:45 isn’t good enough for you?
Classic comeback.
Listen, for all those giving this guy the heaps of praise when things go well, be fair and give him some guff when almost the entire team craters at the end of the season. Can’t have it both ways.
Look at the results. Almost the entire team pooped the bed when it counts. How is there any other conclusion than the coach royally screwed up?
I wouldn't describe it as screwed up. I think Brosnan sincerely thought that he could have his athletes perform at a high level for months and then peak for CIF qualifying. Beyond the results yesterday consider that Dev Doshi had run 9:02 at Arcadia, and then after advancing to CIF Prelims could only manage 9:34 and failed to advance. Similarly, Aaron Cantu had run 9:21 at Marmonte League finals and then could only muster 9:44 at CIF Prelims.
In fairness, maybe there were illness or injury issues. However, when almost all the runners run slower in qualifying or at best simply maintain what they had done before it raises questions about how the runners are peaked going into state meet qualifying.
Look at the results. Almost the entire team pooped the bed when it counts. How is there any other conclusion than the coach royally screwed up?
I wouldn't describe it as screwed up. I think Brosnan sincerely thought that he could have his athletes perform at a high level for months and then peak for CIF qualifying. Beyond the results yesterday consider that Dev Doshi had run 9:02 at Arcadia, and then after advancing to CIF Prelims could only manage 9:34 and failed to advance. Similarly, Aaron Cantu had run 9:21 at Marmonte League finals and then could only muster 9:44 at CIF Prelims.
In fairness, maybe there were illness or injury issues. However, when almost all the runners run slower in qualifying or at best simply maintain what they had done before it raises questions about how the runners are peaked going into state meet qualifying.
I think this is where Brosnan's inexperience as a coach started to come into play. He's done well to not over race his runners during the past couple of years, but he flew a little too close to the sun when he tried to add in all those indoor races and record attempts this season. This should be a learning experience for him and next year, I don't think he'll make the mistake of trying to stretch his runner's peaks over several months.
I think that Brosnan has done a remarkable job with his athletes. While Colin Sahlman & Lex Young opted out of CIF qualifying, for most of the kids, including Colin's brother Aaron, the California State Meet is still a big deal, and his planning should factor that into the training.
Any criticism must be driven by jealously, right? Never mind the fact that he had a 8:52 guy run 9:17 to sneak into the next round in the last spot, a 10:29 girl run a minute slower and take last in her race, running even worse than the previous week where she bombed. In the previous week a 9:02 guy runs 9:34 and doesn't make it past prelims, a 9:17 guy runs 9:44. We're not talking about missing PR's by a few seconds because it was warm. Those are complete blow ups, all synchronized for the championship season.
How can anyone say this is NOT a stellar coaching job? One kid bombs, things happen, that many kids bomb when they're supposed to be at their best and it's most likely the coach. Suck it up and take the criticism. You earned it!