You know what bothers me the most about kids sports these days? Parents. Let me remind you all, that Kid's sports is about the kids. It is not about you. It is not about reliving old glory days, it is not about getting them into a good college, it is not about getting them into the major league. It is about the kids.
I have coached kids sports for 14 years. In that time I have coached championship teams, and I have coached "fun" teams. Each has its own rewards, but make no mistake, I coached the kids equally...they each deserve a chance to play and a chance to succeed. But that success or failure is theirs to experience You, as a parent can enjoy the experience with them, but it is not about you.
Years ago I read a blog from another coach, and he said something to the effect of "Parents should be cheerleaders, they shouldn't coach". You should be there to encourage your son or daughter, and support them when they fail. You should not be coaching from the sidelines. All this does is confuse and complicate the plans of the coach.
The other startling and somewhat worrying phenomenon that has recently come to light, is the fact parents have become so competitive, they exclude their child's friends from sport related activities. Lets look back at the reason kids get into sports. They want to play with their friends. Simple. They are not born with the deep desire to make the MLS, the MBL, the NBA, the CFN/NFL or the NHL. They are born with the desire to play, and learn and have fun. From the beginning they want to interact, and they want to interact with friend. At some point, parents decide their child should play at a higher level, or get extra training, or (god forbid) their child shouldn't play with another because they are better than the other.
If you want a healthy happy and engaging child, you must include their friends. If they have bad friends, you need to encourage better behaviours. If your child is a better athlete than his best friend, support the fact your child wants to play with his friend. Maybe by including that friend in "extra" training sessions, or adding them to the list of those invited to a friendly game, you can do your part to support your child and someone else's.
It use to be said, "It takes a community to raise a child". Well today, for tre most part, that community needs counseling. Remember, Parents, its about the kids...
Sunday, 2 December 2012
Monday, 22 October 2012
Snow Geese
Ok, here it is....are Snow Geese protected? Are they an endangered species? What is their natural predator? Do they taste good? Maybe we can open season on these birds and give the meat to the Missions. There are thousands of them. The fly from green field to green field, and since they are rooters (eating roots of vegetation , they leave a barron, muddy, poop ridden field! And they are bloody noisy! Honk, Honk, Honk.....
I say cull the herd. Lets open the season on these birds and fill the coffers with Thanksgiving Birds! With enough gravy, I am sure they will taste good.
Honk!
I say cull the herd. Lets open the season on these birds and fill the coffers with Thanksgiving Birds! With enough gravy, I am sure they will taste good.
Honk!
Thursday, 11 October 2012
BC Children's Hospital
Ok....I don't want to sound like a crazy, nor do I want to sound like a a lickspittle....
My middle son was playing rugby the other day (and yes, I know it is a crazy sport, fraught with injuries). He took down a player twice his size, and was then hit and bent backward at a wrong angle. He lay still on the grass, 10 feet from where I stood watching in horror.
Prop's to the ref, who stopped the game right away, and the coaches who went right to him to see if he was ok. He was having trouble breathing, and the thought was that he was winded. It was quickly determined that he was not winded, but rather his back had been injured. He could still move his feet and hands, but lifting his legs was excruciatingly painful. The ambulance was called.
First to arrive were the fire paramedics They were great. Three of them rushed out onto the field and assessed the situation. They were very patient and calm, speaking to my 12 year old son and putting him at ease. One paramedic spoke with me off to one side while the other two worked on my boy. After about 5 minutes the ambulance arrived and two ladies came out with a stretcher and back board. They took over and within moments, we had him on the gurney and into the ambulance. Off to Children's Hospital.
I raced there in my car, and we got him into the emergency room. Now here is where I don't want to sound like a crazy person, but why are there so many people in emergency who are obviously not in an emergency situation? The paramedics were great....the hospital was so full that there were no beds, and they couldn't move my son off the stretcher. This meant that they had to stay in the hall way with my son strapped to the stretcher....they could not leave, as they told me "he is still in our care". They were great. They gave me room to keep my son's spirits up, and occasionally check on his injury and progress. I asked them when they were off shift, and they said 6:30 (it was now 5:50). I asked, what happens at 6:30 if we still don't have a bed....they said they stay with us. They were very dedicated and attentive paramedics. But my problem is....what if they were needed out on the road...what if there was another 12 year old lying on the grass somewhere needing their help?
Now, don't get me wrong, the Doctors and nurses at Children's Hospital were also great....they were just flooded with people. Having a good look around the waiting area, I saw one boy with a bandage around his left eye, one boy with a broken arm splinted, a little girl with a bad cough and at least 7 other children, running around, laughing, colouring or otherwise being holy terrors. Were these kids so sick they needed to be in the emergency room of BC Children's Hospital? The boy with a broken arm, the boy with a bandage across his eye, or my son, strapped onto a stretcher for fear of a spinal injury....yes; emergency. A cough, or cold, or the other 7 kids running around like they were at a playground? Not and emergency.
I appreciate the fact that not everyone has medical coverage, and maybe some of these parents thought their kid was really sick. But sometimes a cold, or flu just needs liquids and over the counter medication. Sometimes a bruise or a sprain just needs time to heal. Let's try and keep emergency rooms for emergency cases.
Fortunately the broken arm was taken care of, the bandaged eye was ok, and my son had only torn muscles along his spine and not a broken back.
But what if...?
My middle son was playing rugby the other day (and yes, I know it is a crazy sport, fraught with injuries). He took down a player twice his size, and was then hit and bent backward at a wrong angle. He lay still on the grass, 10 feet from where I stood watching in horror.
Prop's to the ref, who stopped the game right away, and the coaches who went right to him to see if he was ok. He was having trouble breathing, and the thought was that he was winded. It was quickly determined that he was not winded, but rather his back had been injured. He could still move his feet and hands, but lifting his legs was excruciatingly painful. The ambulance was called.
First to arrive were the fire paramedics They were great. Three of them rushed out onto the field and assessed the situation. They were very patient and calm, speaking to my 12 year old son and putting him at ease. One paramedic spoke with me off to one side while the other two worked on my boy. After about 5 minutes the ambulance arrived and two ladies came out with a stretcher and back board. They took over and within moments, we had him on the gurney and into the ambulance. Off to Children's Hospital.
I raced there in my car, and we got him into the emergency room. Now here is where I don't want to sound like a crazy person, but why are there so many people in emergency who are obviously not in an emergency situation? The paramedics were great....the hospital was so full that there were no beds, and they couldn't move my son off the stretcher. This meant that they had to stay in the hall way with my son strapped to the stretcher....they could not leave, as they told me "he is still in our care". They were great. They gave me room to keep my son's spirits up, and occasionally check on his injury and progress. I asked them when they were off shift, and they said 6:30 (it was now 5:50). I asked, what happens at 6:30 if we still don't have a bed....they said they stay with us. They were very dedicated and attentive paramedics. But my problem is....what if they were needed out on the road...what if there was another 12 year old lying on the grass somewhere needing their help?
Now, don't get me wrong, the Doctors and nurses at Children's Hospital were also great....they were just flooded with people. Having a good look around the waiting area, I saw one boy with a bandage around his left eye, one boy with a broken arm splinted, a little girl with a bad cough and at least 7 other children, running around, laughing, colouring or otherwise being holy terrors. Were these kids so sick they needed to be in the emergency room of BC Children's Hospital? The boy with a broken arm, the boy with a bandage across his eye, or my son, strapped onto a stretcher for fear of a spinal injury....yes; emergency. A cough, or cold, or the other 7 kids running around like they were at a playground? Not and emergency.
I appreciate the fact that not everyone has medical coverage, and maybe some of these parents thought their kid was really sick. But sometimes a cold, or flu just needs liquids and over the counter medication. Sometimes a bruise or a sprain just needs time to heal. Let's try and keep emergency rooms for emergency cases.
Fortunately the broken arm was taken care of, the bandaged eye was ok, and my son had only torn muscles along his spine and not a broken back.
But what if...?
Monday, 8 October 2012
Thanksgiving Soccer
Well, it is Thanksgiving Monday here in Canada and we just competed in the annual Thanksgiving Soccer tournament. You use to win a Turkey if you were the top team...but some traditions die out. I guess it was just too much trouble to keep all those turkey's in a pen for the weekend!
All kidding aside, the tournament is well attended, with over 300 teams participating. Our teams did well, but it really isn't about winning, as much as developing for the season. In that regard the tournament was a huge success. With any function as large, there are always minor issues, but I was surprised at the number of complaints about refs. Sure, we had some terrible calls, but these guys are only human, right? Do we not offer them the same courtesy that we would offer our neighbour if they made a mistake...ha, who am I kidding after the way we vilified the "Replacement Ref's" in the NFL. Maybe that is why there were so may complaints about refs. We had two that were terrible, and yes I did offer some opinion on their calls...right or wrongly.
Ultimately both teams have to play with the same ref, and the law of averages should rule that both sides will even out in calls. Not always true, but a good thought. Either way, it is nice to be out on the pitch in the sun in October!
All kidding aside, the tournament is well attended, with over 300 teams participating. Our teams did well, but it really isn't about winning, as much as developing for the season. In that regard the tournament was a huge success. With any function as large, there are always minor issues, but I was surprised at the number of complaints about refs. Sure, we had some terrible calls, but these guys are only human, right? Do we not offer them the same courtesy that we would offer our neighbour if they made a mistake...ha, who am I kidding after the way we vilified the "Replacement Ref's" in the NFL. Maybe that is why there were so may complaints about refs. We had two that were terrible, and yes I did offer some opinion on their calls...right or wrongly.
Saturday, 6 October 2012
Soccer for Thanksgiving
Soccer is a great sport. Boys or girls, there is a pureness to it when it is played right and well. Players working together, and striving for the same goal. The green grass, the clear crisp day, players striving to succeed. Win, lose or draw, as long as the team works together and works hard, it is a pretty thing to watch! Of course, the object is to win....winning if better than losing. Actually losing sucks! I know we are not suppose to say that, and it suppose to be all about "playing the game". But you have to learn, in life, that there are winners and losers, and to be a winner, you have to strive to be the best you can be.
That should be the goal of life....strive to be the best you can possibly be. In everything you do. Losing teaches you something valuable. Winning does as well. We all want to be the best we can be. Do the work and realize your potential. Just don't think you are entitled to be a winner. It takes work. Be a winner!
That should be the goal of life....strive to be the best you can possibly be. In everything you do. Losing teaches you something valuable. Winning does as well. We all want to be the best we can be. Do the work and realize your potential. Just don't think you are entitled to be a winner. It takes work. Be a winner!
Thursday, 4 October 2012
Questions and Answers
I find it funny that people (and I am generalizing here) tend to want to have someone else answer the questions for them. Sometimes I simply sit and listen and say nothing in response...the person asking the question will almost always answer it themselves! If this is the case, then why do they feel the need to question their own intelligence?
Wouldn't it be better to come to me with the question and the answer you think is right? Then we could have an intelligent discussion.
Wouldn't it be better to come to me with the question and the answer you think is right? Then we could have an intelligent discussion.
Wednesday, 3 October 2012
Sports and Politics
Really? Why must children's sports have politics? Shouldn't kids sports be about the kids? Now don't get me wrong, I am not about "everyone wins". I believe in winners and losers in sports, and I believe that kids learn valuable lessons playing competitive sports. But when parents, coaches and administrators start to make it about them, and not about the kids, there is a problem.
Coaches should focus on developing the young athlete and guiding them to be successful in competitions Parents should focus on supporting their children and cheering for them during game situations. Administrators of the sport should focus on making the sport better for all involved. When these lines are crossed, everyone suffers.
All kids should be allowed to play sports. They should be allowed to excel and be given all the chances to be successful. Conflicts between parents, coaches and administrators should never interfere with the enjoyment of a sport for a child. If this happens, the adults should give their head a shake and look at what is really important. The kids.
Coaches should focus on developing the young athlete and guiding them to be successful in competitions Parents should focus on supporting their children and cheering for them during game situations. Administrators of the sport should focus on making the sport better for all involved. When these lines are crossed, everyone suffers.
All kids should be allowed to play sports. They should be allowed to excel and be given all the chances to be successful. Conflicts between parents, coaches and administrators should never interfere with the enjoyment of a sport for a child. If this happens, the adults should give their head a shake and look at what is really important. The kids.
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