Sam’s Blog will be a weekly addition to the US Youth Soccer Blog. Sam Snow is the Director of Coaching Education for US Youth Soccer.
Do Unto Others As You Would Have Them Do Unto You
Not long ago a coach asked what does US Youth Soccer teach regarding sportsmanship.
Well we do have a publication titled The Principles of Conduct and we certainly do promote good sportsmanship in our events. In the National Youth License coaching course we conduct a session on Ethics and Morals for coaches. So in reply to the coach I passed along a document titled Stages of Moral Development. After reading the document the coach made the comment and asked the question here, “Thank you for the insightful information on moral development. I had read it before, when I first took the National Youth License back in 1998. However it was good to read it again. I have one question, given that individuals cannot conceptualize morality any higher than one stage above their present stage and also given that only a small percentage of individuals ever reach level 6 ‘golden rule’, then how are we suppose to teach ‘Fair Play’ which is the golden rule?”
Indeed most players follow the ‘Golden Rule’ merely for reciprocation; that is they are hoping that if they treat others well then they may get the same treatment. This is especially true for children. It is not that they follow the rule because of a greater sense of the concept of morality, but instead an “I’ll scratch your back if you’ll scratch mine”. So while they follow the Rule for the wrong reason they do in fact follow the Rule. In time, they may grow to level 5 or 6 and come to a more holistic understanding of the Golden Rule.
It has become difficult to teach young players fair play when they see professional players often cheat. Nor is the cheating confined to players on the field during a match as coaches, team managers, and club administrators and occasionally the referees also bend the rules or out right cheat. Too many participants and spectators of American sports now accept gamesmanship and breaking the rules in order to win.
If this were not the case then groups like the Positive Coaching Alliance would not be necessary. Some universities now have Sports Ethics classes to teach tomorrow’s physical education teachers and coaches to play by the rules and demonstrate good behavior. Unfortunately only 20 percent of the coaches in youth sports in America have ever received any formal training to coach youngsters.
For us as youth soccer coaches being a good sport starts with how we conduct ourselves in front of the players. Do our actions reflect our words?
Sam’s Blog will be a weekly addition to the US Youth Soccer Blog. Sam Snow is the Director of Coaching Education for US Youth Soccer.The question below is from a US Youth Soccer coach working in his community with grassroots soccer. Please see my response at the end.
What is your advice on managing younger kids with superior abilities?
My youngest son is a Under-6 (only misses being a Under-7 by just over a month) and is dominate on the field. He has superior technical abilities (e.g., changes direction dribbling, shoots with both feet) for his age and very knowledgeable about the game. I won’t bore you with the details, but he can score at will and no one on the opposition can score when he’s in the game.
He’s not bored and is still having fun. Luckily for me, he is not consumed with scoring and limits his shoots. He gains possession and passes to a teammate. He does so on his own; I did not tell him to do this.
My larger concern is with the other kids. As a coach, he changes the dynamic at practice. I cannot put him with anyone if I’m doing something in pairs. I set up two games to end practice (2 v 2 and a 3 v 3) and he dominates the game he’s in. I’ve tried 2 v 3 with him on the short side to no avail.
As someone involved with our club, I’m concerned with kids on other teams. No one can advance the ball when he is in the game. This past week, I only had five kids show up and he had to play the whole game. Needless to say, the opposing team did not score and anyone who advanced the ball into our side of the field had it taken away.
I’m sure this is not a unique situation and I assume US Youth Soccer has some suggestions on how to handle this. I’m looking for a solution that is both fair to him and fair to the other kids. Any information/advice would be greatly appreciated.
On a side note, I am planning to attend the National Youth License Course this summer. I have also offered to run the Under-6, Under-7, and Under-8 programs in my club next year. My goal is to educate our coaches with what is taught by US Youth Soccer. Some members on our board are very stubborn, so I’m uncertain as to whether it will be accepted.
My reply:
I am pleased to read that all is well with you and your soccer experiences. What you have is a “good problem.” Yet I know that it is indeed a challenge. Here are a few suggestions for your situation:
- During training sessions have him teach another player one of his favorite moves…peer teaching can be a powerful tool…next week he teaches someone else
- Ask him in training when you are playing a small-sided game to make passes to set up teammates to score (how many assists can you get?). After doing so in training a few times then ask him to do the same in a match.
- Give him more leadership responsibilities…this component of athlete development is often overlooked as coaches focus too much on the physical components
- Give him cooperation challenges that will stretch him beyond his social/emotional age such as combining on passes with more than one teammate (small group play – say of 3 players) or to make passes to teammates other than his closest friends.
- Be sure he is getting the opportunities to play in all of parts of the field.
Those are just a few ideas to get you started.
