Coaches are role models for the players they coach as well as their players’ parents as they receive their cue for acceptable behavior from the coach.
In order to be good role models, coaches must have control of themselves and refrain from unacceptable things such as micromanaging players with constant instructions from the touchline, reacting negatively to missed shots or passes, plus complaining about the officiating.
In a recent game, the coach barked constant instructions in two languages to his players while the parents on the other side also yelled sometimes contradictory instructions in the same two languages. What’s a kid to do? Try and tune out all the noise if possible and just play soccer.
Every match is an opportunity for a team to display good sportsmanship, regardless of the outcome. Yet some coaches also complain with comments on the officiating. Whether referees enforce the Zero Tolerance Policy to the letter or not, refs cannot allow any coach to constantly yell about the officiating because then the kids (and everybody else) concentrate on what is being whistled and not rather than simply playing the game.
We lose more than half our referees in their first two years of officiating with the number one reason for quitting being verbal abuse from the so-called adults in youth soccer. So please think twice before you yell at a ref.
I recently refereed two games where there were many of the same players who played back-to-back futsal games. The first match was for their school team and the second was for their club team affiliated with the Eastern New York Youth Soccer Association (ENYYSA). With the school team, the coach gave a couple of instructions to his players, it was not constant and he said nothing critical about the officiating. His players were calm throughout the match.
The second game with many of the same kids playing on a club team was another story. From pretty much the opening minute, the players dissented just about every decision against their squad. As they were not complaining in the previous match, could I have lost all my ability to referee going from one game to another? These same kids were now playing rough and their coach started dissenting the foul calls whistled against his team.
In the first game, we had a coach who controlled himself and his players. In the second game, we had a coach who had no control of himself and anybody who does not have control of himself has no control of his players.
As the State Cup kicks off today, which type of coach do you want to be?
