A letter to the editor from Chanz Keeney a couple of weeks ago was also a statement made by parents across the country. Keeney complained that the emphasis on his second-grade son’s flag football team seemed to be more about winning than in about kids learning how to play the sport correctly. Keeney said he reached this conclusion because his son was spending most of the game on the bench.
Most of the complaints about youth sports I have heard over the years as a sports administrator, announcer and journalist, have centered around limited play and lack of learning the game. It is winning the game, the ultimate goal of each team, that seems to be the most important.
Each parent who signs up his child or children to play youth team sports wants them to have the following: Equal playing time; instruction in the sport; having an equal opportunity to play any of the positions of the sport; and a chance to play a position because they earned it by working and practicing hard to be the best, not because they are the coach’s or board member’s child.
In the lower levels of all sports, the emphasis should be on teaching fundamentals, teamwork and good sportsmanship. Winning the game is not most important.
I was once president of a Little League that had 385 to 400 players sign up every year , which meant roughly 1,200 people had to be satisfied – the players and both parents. Unfortunately, we do not live in a perfect world; even in Little League and all other youth sports we must deal with coaches who have a wide variety of qualifications, personalities, temperaments, patience, and teaching ability or the want to do so.
Most managers and coaches want very much to do a very good job, but only a few have the experience. The best way for coaches to get experience is by starting at the lower levels and working their way up to the oldest group.
Parents play a huge role in the quality of the experience their kids get in youth sports. Many want their child on a winning team and sometimes they get way out of line, screaming at games and displaying very poor sportsmanship of their own.
A survey was taken several years ago of young players, asking what they liked and disliked about Little League. The majority had one answer for each: They enjoyed the competition, playing with nice uniforms, a great field, with umpires and playing against their friends. They were very embarrassed and hated it when their or other parents would scream at the officials, coaches or players during a game.
Some organizations are taking steps to not only train kids, but parents as well. In Florida, in order to attend a Little League game, you must attend a conduct class and agree to follow an established code of ethics before you can attend a game.
The Boys and Girls Club in Sweet Home can provide the answer to many of the above situations. To do so, though, the club has to focus on kids getting proper instruction in sports so that they have a positive expeirence and, when they continue into junior high and high school, they can be competitive.