Playing Time in Youth Sports - Are You Mad?
Man, am I angry.
JR is playing on a youth hockey team.
This team is made up primarily of 9 and 10 year old kids, with a couple of 8 year olds.
This is a Squirt level traveling team that plays in tournaments against teams from throughout our region.
It's only September, the beginning of the season, and we are having a "friendly" tournament at our rink.
We've invited 3 other teams to our town for 4 games to get the season started and give our kids some competition.
Everything is going great for the first couple of games.
I know JR is not the strongest skater on the team, and in fact he is among the youngest on the team even though he is also among the biggest.
So, I don't have any visions of him playing every other shift and getting equal ice time with the players that have stronger skating and hockey skills developed at this time.
No, I just want him to get some ice time and have some great game experience.
Like I said, the games on the first day were fine.
He didn't play as much as others, but that's ok.
Second day, the competition steps up a bit and it's our hated cross state rival that we are playing for a chance to go to the championship game, which would be against the same team again.
So, that first game of the morning, he gets even less ice time, and, while frustrated, I'm OK with it as I understand and am a fairly reasonable person.
Our team loses by a goal, but we advance to the championship game against the same rival.
Well, the ice time becomes even less.
Just a couple of shifts in the first period...
maybe 2 to 3 minutes all together.
And, it's a tight game.
Second period comes, and even less...
like two 30 second shifts is all.
But hey, at least he's out there and into the game, supporting his teammates, etc.
3rd period comes, and he does not touch the ice once! Not one single shift in the 3rd period.
I thought my head was going to blow off! You know what makes me mad about it? I could see his spirit being crushed by the coaches decision not to play him.
He was right there, right next to the coach, the entire 3rd period, and the coach just looked right through him like he wasn't there.
Didn't explain to him why or anything, just kept bringing other players around him while he stood there, at the ready, only to hunker down a little bit each and every time he didn't get in the game as his youthful spirit was slowly crushed.
You could see it physically impacting his spirit, and I was helpless as a parent.
Man, am I angry.
JR is playing on a youth hockey team.
This team is made up primarily of 9 and 10 year old kids, with a couple of 8 year olds.
This is a Squirt level traveling team that plays in tournaments against teams from throughout our region.
It's only September, the beginning of the season, and we are having a "friendly" tournament at our rink.
We've invited 3 other teams to our town for 4 games to get the season started and give our kids some competition.
Everything is going great for the first couple of games.
I know JR is not the strongest skater on the team, and in fact he is among the youngest on the team even though he is also among the biggest.
So, I don't have any visions of him playing every other shift and getting equal ice time with the players that have stronger skating and hockey skills developed at this time.
No, I just want him to get some ice time and have some great game experience.
Like I said, the games on the first day were fine.
He didn't play as much as others, but that's ok.
Second day, the competition steps up a bit and it's our hated cross state rival that we are playing for a chance to go to the championship game, which would be against the same team again.
So, that first game of the morning, he gets even less ice time, and, while frustrated, I'm OK with it as I understand and am a fairly reasonable person.
Our team loses by a goal, but we advance to the championship game against the same rival.
Well, the ice time becomes even less.
Just a couple of shifts in the first period...
maybe 2 to 3 minutes all together.
And, it's a tight game.
Second period comes, and even less...
like two 30 second shifts is all.
But hey, at least he's out there and into the game, supporting his teammates, etc.
3rd period comes, and he does not touch the ice once! Not one single shift in the 3rd period.
I thought my head was going to blow off! You know what makes me mad about it? I could see his spirit being crushed by the coaches decision not to play him.
He was right there, right next to the coach, the entire 3rd period, and the coach just looked right through him like he wasn't there.
Didn't explain to him why or anything, just kept bringing other players around him while he stood there, at the ready, only to hunker down a little bit each and every time he didn't get in the game as his youthful spirit was slowly crushed.
You could see it physically impacting his spirit, and I was helpless as a parent.
Man, am I angry.
Source...