By all apparent indicators- I am failing miserably at this blog stuff. I have not only NOT kept true to my intentions of 2 posts a week, but I also have not even posted in the last 2 weeks OR updated my Facebook and Twitter. I can only apologize and hope that the money I have spent on a new Chrome Notebook and Blackberry will mean that my technological woes are behind me. I am PLANNING to make Wednesday my post day and plan to do a weekend post as I attend the many tournaments in the next few weeks and then the start of our seasons. It is my intention that the Wednesday posts will be where I include researched topics and resources, while my weekend posts will be more geared towards my thoughts and experiences with Long Island Youth Soccer that weekend. That in itself will give me material for YEARS! I figure, as my emotions vary each post soccer game weekends, these posts will vary from angry rants, amused observations, embarrassed apologies, to boastful gloats (just kidding- I would never gloat). Since I have already spent too much time away from my topic tonight, let me just also state that it is not my intention to imitate any other youth soccer outlets or be something that I am not. I do not profit from this blog and do not plan to profit from this blog. I DO plan to use my experience here to create another blog that will be a professional blog that ties into an online “Interview Skills” course I am creating, but for the purpose of this blog for Long Island Youth Soccer, my only intent is to share my experiences, information, resources, and stories for the benefit of other youth soccer coaches, team managers, and parents. I hope you enjoy what I have to say and share and as always encourage comments and ask that you share this site with others. Now back to our regularly scheduled blog post...
It seems that in the last month, both of my son’s coaches and I have discussed acceptable expectations for players and parents. In addition, I have ranted with my trainer and to some of my parents about what I should be able to expect as a coach from my players and their parents. Recently, I received a mass email from Long Island Junior Soccer that highlighted a conversation with the Coach of the new BU 16 National Champions Smithtown Arsenal and discussed the sacrifices his players and parents made and how he felt it was the difference in his team being able to win the title.
(Are you picking up on a theme here?) YES!! The sacrifices that the Arsenal Coach attributed to his team’s win, are the SAME sacrifices that we all felt our players and parent’s need to make. (Imagine that.)
To me, the sacrifices (personally, I think that is a strong word- I prefer common sense choices- but many would probably take offense to that) make sense and once a Coach makes the request, the parents and players who are spending their time and money to play Youth Soccer would have no problem abiding by the coach’s requests. I am finding, unfortunately more and more, as a Youth Soccer Coach and mom, that even at a high level of soccer and travel soccer, the level of commitment varies greatly. This is extremely frustrating to the parents, players, and coaches who are willing to make the “sacrifices”. I will still never understand why parents would pay the money to have their child involved in “Premier” level and/or Travel youth soccer and not make the commitment of time and whatever else is expected by the coach they are trusting to coach their child.
At this point, you are either nodding your head in full agreement and muttering along with me, OR you are re-reading the post and asking yourself “What is she talking about? What sacrifices?” So, in order that we can all be on the same page, let me back up and ask some questions for you to answer (honestly- you are in the privacy of your own space):
1. What time prior to games does your child’s soccer coach expect you and your child to be at the field?
What time do you and your child actually arrive to the field?
Most coaches should expect their players to arrive to any playing field a minimum of 1 hour prior to game time in order to ensure time to properly prepare the team for the game. (The Arsenal coach states that his team showed up atleast 90 minutes prior to gametime and the opposing team showed up only 45 minutes prior to the game.)
2. When travelling (or home), what time does your coach expect your child to be in bed the night before a game? (Usually, curfew is only put in effect when travelling out of state for tournaments).
What time do you actually put your child to bed?
Personally, I LOVE when my son’s Coach gives a curfew because it makes him the bad guy when I tell my son “Coach said...”. I also feel this way, because I WANT my child in bed by 8 or 9 pm the night before a game. Even the night before afternoon games because I want them up early enough to be alert for the game. So when his teammates are hanging out in the hotel at 10:30pm and Coach has not given a curfew, I do feel like a bad guy and will often wimp out and let him hang out with the teammates for the bonding experience. (The Arsenal coach states that his team of BU16 players willingly agreed to an 8 or 9pm curfew.)
3. What do you feed your youth soccer player prior to a game or between games at a tournament?
This one has driven me BATTY for years. YES, I agree, it makes little sense why the Tournament committees have vendors who sell only fried and greasy food and candy, and offer bouncy rides and other activities to distract and exhaust our players. Here is the thing....repeat this out loud 3 times: “Drink this water and eat this light sandwich and fruit now and after you play hard you can get a snack and go on a ride before we go home (to hotel).” It seems so simple and makes so much sense. Our young soccer players and their coach have trained and practiced for months for these games and tournaments, but yet us parents who have shelled out the training money and time to go to practices and to this tournament, will torpedo ALL the work and sacrifice by allowing our kids to eat junk and run around like maniacs prior to the games (or in between games).
We then send our players to the coach with full bellies, not properly hydrated, and exhausted from their excursions between games, and we stand on the sidelines in disbelief (and sometimes questioning the effectiveness and soccer knowledge of the coach) when the players are slow and seem “uninterested” in playing.
Any athlete should begin drinking water to hydrate the night before a game and atleast 1 hour prior to a game. They should eat a light snack or fruit 2-3 hours prior to game time and should have adequate sleep and be woken atleast 2 hours prior to when they need to
leave home or hotel. Some of you are laughing and thinking this is extreme, but I challenge you to try it a few times and see the outcome. How can we go wrong teaching our kids to eat healthy and get rest?
As a Youth Soccer Coach, I can go on and on and on, but I will not. If you think I am extremist or the only soccer maniac to think this way, try printing this and showing it to your child’s soccer coach. Ask your child’s soccer coach what they think of what I have written. I can say with complete honesty that the same things that I shared above have been repeated by many coaches. I often chuckle to myself and allow a small sigh of relief that it is not just “my” parents and soccer players who need the same lecture. (Although it is even more amusing when I hear the speech given by the Coach of my son’s competition as opposed to one of their Soccer Coaches). I found it fitting that the conversation with the Smithtown National Champion’s Coach came out as we enter our month of Youth Soccer tournaments and found it a perfect segway into this conversation. Somewhere a Long Island Youth Soccer Coach is reading this and trying to figure out how to get their parent’s to read it without offending them. Good luck to all of our young soccer player’s this month as we prepare for School Ball and the Fall Long Island Youth Soccer season!
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