Coach Parents Too

This is a tricky area. It's been discussed in many forums at many coaches' meetings, among commissioners and at the board level. A coach's job does not end with instructing and guiding his or her players. We need to educate parents on a number of fronts, including how to be better observers of the game and not participants (or assistant coaches).

There was an article recently in the Washington Post about a group of parents who managed to get themselves a restraining order of sorts, ordered to not come within 100 yards of their kids' games because they berated a referee in the previous season. This is an extreme example of parents simply getting too involved emotionally and venting their frustration (arguably) inappropriately.

On the other side of the coin are parents who don't participate at all. They barely watch the game, take no interest in what's happening on the field. They stand, sip coffee and chat amiably with one another. Then, after the final whistle blows, they say to their children, "So how was the game?"

Without laying judgment on either of these two types of parents, it seems fairly apparent that coaches have at least a minimal role to play in giving parents some guidelines on appropriate and acceptable behavior on the soccer field.

Without appearing pedantic, how do we, as coaches, get parents more (or less) involved on the sidelines? What should our role be in this area? How far should (or can) we go?

The best start is to be enthusiastic yourself. Show how much pride you have in your team and how eager you are to see them have fun and succeed (without coaching from the sidelines). In other words, set an example.

You might also want to think about getting parents involved at their kids' level. Include them in the pre-game and half time pep talk. Maybe even have them help out withe pre-game practices (for U8 and under).

There are obviously many ways to get parents to show their best face at game time. Feel free to post your thoughts.