Training Teens to Work with Teens with Disabilities

http://outside-blog.away.com/blog/2009/05/adaptive-sport-center-to-offer-youth-training.html

We need more of these kinds of programs!

3v3 Soccer Tournament Shameless Plug

http://www.nwystrikersoccer.org/3V3_Tournament.html

June 20 & 21, 2009 at Hubert Soccer Complex

Open to ages U8-Adult, max 6 per team

The above is a soccer tournament that my wife is putting on in a few months. Winners qualify for a tournament in Orlando, FL at Disney.

This will be an opportunity for you to come out and play a great with a great organization the North West YMCA of Kennesaw GA.

Lessons Learned from a Coach/Parent

http://dadomatic.com/lessons-learned-on-the-pitch/

The above link will take to an article written by Scott. Scott is a wise man indeed. I agree with him about much of what he says and I preach whenever I speak to my students about coaching or administering youth sport programs, or even managing their organizations. 

This is timely considering a very recent mishap with a local soccer team. These three lessons are irrefutable. 

His lessons are:

It's not about you coach. We must always remember that it is not about us it is about the kids. Scott speaks of "being all powerful and having little 8 year old girls willing to run sprints at his given command." Some grown men and women see their youth sport team as an extension of themselves and it becomes apart of their self esteem. It is not about the "Coach" the adult it is about the kids! It really is!

Look away from the scoreboard. I do agree that winning and losing are important but should not be the focus. The main reason I think not keeping score in some age groups is because the adults cannot handle when you keep score. The score becomes the focus, not how the game was played or if their child actually had a good time. Competition and learning how to win and lose are important lessons that we must keep in perspective.

Life lessons are important. The last lesson deal with modeling and being a role model. If you are a parent you know what I mean. Have you ever done something thinking your 3 year-old was not watching. Then a few days later the 3 year-old surprises everyone by repeating what you said or the actions they saw you perform. The kids are watching and you attitude will rub off on them. If you behave poorly and yell at the ref and the other team then guess what...you players will as well. Maybe not at that moment but you are stting the example. If you intmidate the referee (as I saw a grown man do to a teenage boy officiating this weekend...I actually took a picture it was intense) the athletes will will not only immulate this on the field at some point they may take into other  aspects of their lives.

We as youth sport coaches, administrators, officials, and parents have a big responsibility and we should not be the focus, but we often are!

Youth Sport Specialization

I saw something this morning about how 50% of youth sport injuries come from overuse and specialization. Which reminded me of an article I wrote for Georgia Coalition for Physical Activity and Nutrition (GPAN). It is on youth sport participation and health. I will have to dig up my Youth sport specialization article I wrote for the GA Games.

http://www.g-pan.org/images/feb_09Newsletter.pdf

The short of the long is I believe parents think children are getting their daily physical activity and exercise needs because they are involved with sports. This may not necissarily be the case.

The Growing Need for Female Coaches

http://onesportvoice.wordpress.com/2009/04/21/youth-sport-needs-more-female-coaches/

I will look into this research a little more and write something more in-depth including my experiences and some potential research of my own.

As of right now I do see a horrible trend of women being treated as lessor coaches even though they have better qualifications. On the other hand I have seen some very qualified males get the shaft just because the other candidate was female. This is also prevalent in some of the administration position in youth sport organizations. I truely support the idea that women need to coach female athletes, but only if they are qualified.  

I have not looked into the data the article speaks about that was produced by the NCAA and the constraints/barriers to women coaches, but let's look at the life of the youth sport Mom.

• Generally speaking the woman runs the household i.e. does laundry, cleans, grocery shops, takes care of the kids, literally puts food on the table to name a few.
  
• Most probably work part time and/or volunteer at their child's school.
• Helps children with homework.
• Listens to husband's complaints about work.

I hope you see where I am going. Time! Time can be and probably is why we do not see as many women coaching as we should. Society and societies norms have not caught up to what we think should be happening. 

Change is a very difficult thing!

Read the above article and check back in a few days for more comments.

Responsible, Respectable Youth Sports?

This article discusses some very valid points on teaching character in youth sport. Character building and other life lessons are why many people love youth sports.

With the emphasis in both professional and college sport on just being a good athlete has made the job of the youth sport parent, coach, and administrator even more difficult. More often than not the great athlete makes the news for something other than their on field performance. Whether it is breaking a organizational rules or the law these high profile athletes seem to get away with these shenanigans because they are really good at their sport. This is what our young athletes see on a day to day basis making it difficult to get the character building lessons across through youth sport.

Consistent discipline and focusing on athletes that are both good athletes and good people is the key to building character in youth athletes.

NBC's Parks & Recreation

I have not read what anyone else thinks of NBC's Parks & Recreation but I do not need to! I watched maybe half of it this morning and despised the documentary/reality tv style sit com with a story line that centers around a deputy director of a parks department that is a complete idiot.

The show could have been ridiculously funny considering the experiences I have had in my life as a parks & rec employee. From the crazy parents in youth sport to acquiring a contract with the county government to use a large tin storage type building with no heat and no AC to practice basketball in when the program outgrew the gym. Not to mention the unmentionable things people tend to do in parks when the lights go out! Very disappointing!

The resignation!

We may need more people like Kinahan in youth sport! He made what some may call a "mistake" and owns it. I would buy him a beer!

KINAHAN’S RESIGNATION Patriotledger.com

Team, After careful consideration, I have decided to resign from all coaching responsibilities related to Team 7 this season. Unfortunately, it has come to my attention that some parents and the Board of Scituate Soccer failed to see the humor in my pre-season email. For the avoidance of doubt, the email was largely (albeit not completely) meant in jest and with the goal of giving the parents a chuckle while enduring yet another round of organized youth sports. It was also meant as a satire of those who take youth sports too seriously for the wrong reasons. My overarching goal is the well-being of my players, and I do not want any player to feel uncomfortable, nor do I want to see the team disbanded because of a lack of active players. Therefore, while I’d prefer to go down swinging, it’s really about the kids and it just makes more sense for me to take the year off.

While I respectfully disagree with the Board's interpretation of my comments, I believe that they should be commended for their immediate actions to address the concerns of the offended parties. The Board’s action proves that the chain of command is functioning as designed. Board members volunteer their valuable time and I do not plan to add to their already significant workload. I also respect those parents who were offended as I am sure they acted in the best interest of their children. While I may question their sense of humor, I have no right to question their judgment regarding their children. Perhaps we may even have beer (I’ll buy) and a couple of laughs at the end of all of this.

And while I am sorry some people failed to see the humor, I do not apologize for my actions; I wrote it, I think it's funny and I do have a distaste for the tediousness of overbearing political correctness. Furthermore, I was serious about parental involvement as I do believe parents should cheer and encourage players (in a positive fashion obviously) so that the kids feel the excitement that comes from team competition. And most importantly, I was completely serious that I want to see each young girl develop a positive self image, self-confidence and the will to succeed in any endeavor that she desires. Lastly, I have added some comments to my initial email (in capitals) to clarify several points that may have been viewed as offensive.

Sincerely,

Michael A. Kinahan

Go Green Death!

How not to write a intro letter to the parents!

Here is the rub. A girls youth soccer coach made the unfortunate error of trying tobe funny when humor is no longer allowed. I thought the letter he wrote was funny in a very Will Ferrel in "Kicking and Screaming" fashion. In real life you cannot approach a bunch of strangers whose little angels are playing a sport for the first time with sarcasm. It will get you fired every time!

The following is the actual email followed by some of my comments. The first part is good. It shows organization and provides useful information. You can start to see the turn at the end of the first part with the first insult of the email..."for you slow readers stop here!" The below is a copy of his email obtained from the story at Patriotledger.com.

"Congratulations on being selected for Team 7 (forest green shirts) of the Scituate Soccer Club! My name is Michael and I have been fortunate enough to be selected to coach what I know will be a wonderful group of young ladies. Chris Mac will also be coaching and I expect the ever popular Terry to return to the sidelines. Our first game will be Saturday April 4 at 10:00AM. There will be a half hour of skills followed by a 1 hour game, so total time will be 1.5 hours. All games will be played on the fields in the front of the High School. Each player will be required to wear shin guards and cleats are recommended but not required. A ball will be provided to each player at the first meeting, and each player should bring the ball to games and practices. There is no set practice time allotted for the U8 teams, but I will convene with the coaches to determine the best time and place. If there are cancellations due to rain, all notices will be posted via the Scituate Soccer Club website, no calls will be made (though I will try to send an email). Attached is the Schedule and Code of Conduct. After listening to the head of the referees drone on for about 30 minutes on the dangers of jewelry (time which I will never get back), no player will be allowed to play with pierced ears, hairclips, etc. We used to tape the earings, but that practice is no longer acceptable. Please let me know if your child has any health issues that I need to be aware of. My home phone is 781 XXX XXXX, my cell number is 781 XXX XXXX, and I check my email frequently. According to my wife, my emails get too wordy, so for those of you read too slowly, are easily offended, or are too busy, you can stop here. For the others……"

I was good to this point! Sounds like a great guy and I would not mind having him coach my child.

"OK, here’s the real deal: Team 7 will be called Green Death (not exactly a name I envision for 6 & 7 year-olds). We will only acknowledge “Team 7” for scheduling and disciplinary purposes. Green Death has had a long and colorful history, and I fully expect every player and parent to be on board with the team. This is not a team, but a family (some say cult), that you belong to forever (this is kind of funny and to the point that when you have a child playing on a team you need to allow the coach to be in charge and trust that they will make the best decisions for your child and the team) . We play fair at all times, but we play tough and physical soccer (at 6 & 7). We have some returning players who know the deal; for the others, I only expect 110% at every game and practice. We do not cater to superstars, but prefer the gritty determination of journeymen who bring their lunch pail to work every week, chase every ball and dig in corners like a Michael Vick pit bull (I like what he is saying but you cannot bring in a topic of dog fighting when dealing with 6 & 7 year-old's). Unless there is an issue concerning the health of my players or inside info on the opposition, you probably don’t need to talk to me. Coach MacDonald has been designated “good guy” this year."

Some say soccer at this age is about fun and I completely agree. However, I believe winning is fun and losing is for losers. Ergo, we will strive for the “W” in each game (As you should strive to win. Winning is important but in most leagues at the U8 level across this Great Nation do not keep score. So winning and losing is irrelevant. The game should be played for the sake of playing.). While we may not win every game (excuse me, I just got a little nauseated) I expect us to fight for every loose ball and play every shift as if it were the finals of the World Cup. While I spent a good Saturday morning listening to the legal liability BS, which included a 30 minute dissertation on how we need to baby the kids and especially the refs, I was disgusted. The kids will run, they will fall, get bumps, bruises and even bleed a little. Big deal, it’s good for them (but I do hope the other team is the one bleeding). If the refs can’t handle a little criticism, then they should turn in their whistle. The sooner they figure out how to make a decision and live with the consequences the better. My heckling of the refs is actually helping them develop as people. (What can I say? This statement is well over the line and gets me hot under the collar. Why is it ok to heckle refs and not the coaches? We should go out to the fields and heckle the coaches that are heckling the refs. See how they like it) The political correctness police are not welcome on my sidelines. America’s youth is becoming fat, lazy and non-competitive because competition is viewed as “bad”. (I do not agree that competition is viewed as bad but he just called someone's kid fat and lazy!) I argue that competition is good and is important to the evolution of our species and our survival in what has become an increasingly competitive global economy and dangerous world. Second place trophies are nothing to be proud of as they serve only as a reminder that you missed your goal; their only useful purpose is as an inspiration to do that next set of reps. Do you go to a job interview and not care about winning? Don’t animals eat what they kill (and yes, someone actually kills the meat we eat too – it isn’t grown in plastic wrap)? (I could do without this!) And speaking of meat, I expect that the ladies be put on a diet of fish, undercooked red meat and lots of veggies. No junk food. Protein shakes are encouraged, and while blood doping and HGH use is frowned upon, there is no testing policy. And at the risk of stating the obvious, blue slushies are for winners.(I actually like this line!)

These are my views and not necessarily the views of the league (but they should be). I recognize that my school of thought may be an ideological shift from conventional norms. But it is imperative that we all fight the good fight, get involved now and resist the urge to become sweat-xedo-wearing yuppies who sit on the sidelines in their LL Bean chairs sipping mocha-latte-half-caf-chinos while discussing reality TV and home decorating with other feeble-minded folks. I want to hear cheering, I want to hear encouragement, I want to get the team pumped up at each and every game and know they are playing for something. (Where I can see why some would get offended by this statement; sometimes you have to call them like you see them.)(Patriotledger.com)

Lastly, we are all cognizant of the soft bigotry that expects women and especially little girls, to be dainty and submissive; I wholeheartedly reject such drivel. My overarching goal is develop ladies who are confident and fearless, who will stand up for their beliefs and challenge the status quo. Girls who will kick ass and take names on the field, off the field and throughout their lives. I want these girls to be winners in the game of life. Who’s with me?(Obviously not one person! Again what he is saying has some redeeming qualities, just not for U8's!)

Go Green Death!

Please feel free to pass this story on as how not to write a pre-season letter to the parents. The guy's heart may be in the right place, but his words were not. I have dealt with many coaches over the years and I am sure this is guy is very dedicated and a good person. He just made the mistake that people still have a sense of humor. If this were only true.