Strategy

Canada

McGill Releases Seeker Guide

by Jen Janiak | September 26, 2013

Photo courtesy of Plunger Parvulescu

Just in time for the 2013 - 2014 season, a group of McGill University students and other players from Canada and the US have put together “The McGill Quidditch Seeker Manual: A Handbook for Training.”

The manual includes drills, game strategy and conditioning for new and veteran seekers alike.

Started by Benjamin Carlisle, Plunger Parvulescu and other contributors named in the manual, the project began as a shared document of seeker drills but has transformed to its latest edition: a polished guide to improving skill and fitness.

“The process of putting the manual together [was] a mix of private initiative and determined nagging,” Parvulescu said. “I myself started heavy contribution and editing after going to the second edition of the Firemercs Fantasy League in LA this summer...This experience convinced me that, while all teams can benefit from a seeker training manual, and while this might raise the seeking level in general, a manual might be of special help to younger teams, which often seem to think that seekers are made, not trained.”

As McGill’s snitch and seeker coach, Alan Blayney was one of the creators of a training program for new seekers and snitches. Many of the drills he used, primarily the “Beware the Beaters,” were incorporated into his team’s regular practice.

“I've been snitching a long time, but I've always been a terrible seeker, so when it (somehow) fell on me to coach both groups last year, I reached out to the two most qualified seekers [Parvulescu and Chelsea Gilliam, contributor and Canadian regional snitch representative] at my disposal,” Blayney said. “I would absolutely recommend it to other teams. Having spent a year working with the writers, this is like a book of hindsight; I can't imagine anything that would have been more useful to me a year ago when I first started coaching snitches and seekers.”

Like Parvulescu, Blayney recommends the manual to new teams and players, but insists there’s no rush

“There's a lot of content in there (and there's more coming) and no one can learn it all at once,” Blayney said. “Having raised my flock of snitches and seekers last year from little hatchlings up to seeing them fly at the Canada Cup, I would really emphasize that it is a process.”

The manual is available for all teams to view, but the team of contributors is still looking for some assistance. The team is looking for and welcomes further contributions via comments on the google document.