Because, you see, in youth sports, winning is most definitely not the only thing. In youth sports, it's more important the kids have fun, develop their skills and understanding of the game, and maybe soak up a few life lessons along the way.
I'm not saying winning isn't important; on the contrary, it's very important, because young players need to understand that, as the former Jets coach Herm Edwards said, you play to win the game. Young athletes need to learn that there are things a player needs to do if he or she wants to win: The player must work hard in practice, and often on his or her own time, outside of practice, to sharpen his or her skills; and he or she must make sacrifices where he or she puts the team first ahead of himself or herself.
But in youth sports, it's not about winning at all costs. And the coach needs to balance the need to win with the need to develop players. Developing players should always be a youth coach's top priority (after safety, of course), and that's where it can get complicated.
Kids always want to play for a winning team, so a coach who has a winning record will likely have lots of good players wanting to play for him or her. And attracting the best athletes is the best way to keep a team winning year after year. But if the coach is winning because he or she is consistently playing the best players the entire game and leaving the weakest players on the sideline, that's not good.
Friends of mine in the youth coaching business say a youth coach who consistently wins and wins big, may be doing so because he or she is developing teams to win, and not players. My friends believe a youth coach's job ought to be to teach his or her players the necessary skills; help them improve those skills, and then, through good tactics and play-calling, put the players in position to be able succeed on the field. It then becomes up to the players to win the game. If their skills and understanding of the game are good enough, they should win their share.
The other thing about youth sports that people sometimes seem to forget is that kids all grow and mature at different rates, and the best players on the second grade team aren't necessarily going to be the best players on the high school team. Some may not grow as much as others, or maybe they discover new pursuits and lose interest in the sport over the years. Conversely, there are kids who may not look like stars when they first start playing, but then they start to grow and change, and they end up being stars when they're older.
No matter how good or bad a kid looks when he or she is young, you can't know for certain what that kid will grow up to be. Keeping that in mind, I always figured the best course of action was to try and develop all the kids, and not just the best ones. That means playing everyone on the roster, and not leaving the starters in the entire game. It may mean a few less victories when the kids are little, but someday the high school coach may thank you.
But in youth sports, it's not about winning at all costs. And the coach needs to balance the need to win with the need to develop players. Developing players should always be a youth coach's top priority (after safety, of course), and that's where it can get complicated.
Kids always want to play for a winning team, so a coach who has a winning record will likely have lots of good players wanting to play for him or her. And attracting the best athletes is the best way to keep a team winning year after year. But if the coach is winning because he or she is consistently playing the best players the entire game and leaving the weakest players on the sideline, that's not good.
Friends of mine in the youth coaching business say a youth coach who consistently wins and wins big, may be doing so because he or she is developing teams to win, and not players. My friends believe a youth coach's job ought to be to teach his or her players the necessary skills; help them improve those skills, and then, through good tactics and play-calling, put the players in position to be able succeed on the field. It then becomes up to the players to win the game. If their skills and understanding of the game are good enough, they should win their share.
The other thing about youth sports that people sometimes seem to forget is that kids all grow and mature at different rates, and the best players on the second grade team aren't necessarily going to be the best players on the high school team. Some may not grow as much as others, or maybe they discover new pursuits and lose interest in the sport over the years. Conversely, there are kids who may not look like stars when they first start playing, but then they start to grow and change, and they end up being stars when they're older.
No matter how good or bad a kid looks when he or she is young, you can't know for certain what that kid will grow up to be. Keeping that in mind, I always figured the best course of action was to try and develop all the kids, and not just the best ones. That means playing everyone on the roster, and not leaving the starters in the entire game. It may mean a few less victories when the kids are little, but someday the high school coach may thank you.
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