Don't be that soccer parent - opinion piece in MOCO 360

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I agree with about half of that article.

Agree
- Don’t yell discouraging stuff at your kid, and definitely not at someone else’s kid.
- Don’t yell decision-making stuff “shoot, pass, switch the field, etc”
- Don’t belittle the other team. This is a cardinal rule.
- Don’t yell at the ref about inconsequential things like throw-ins, and give him/her a chance to call the foul before you react. Also, don’t just react to what happens to the players - a legal challenge can still knock a player down.

Disagree
- Don’t just enjoy the game quietly. That’s boring. Sports are meant for you to get into. Cheer loudly when your kids’ team makes a good play, and it’s ok to feel something (and show it) when a shot just misses.
- Encourage your kid. I’ve known a number of world-class athletes, including NBA / NFL families, Olympic level swimmers, national team level soccer players. Every single one of them had loud parents. Not obnoxious, or negative, but loud.
- If you’re lucky enough to know about the game, yes, analyze after the game. Watch Veo film with them. You have the luxury of not having to run the whole time, having a better view of the whole field, etc. You’re probably also singularly focused on your kid, while their coach has to spread his/her attention across 18. Ask your child probing questions and offer your thoughts in what went well and what didn’t.
- Don’t harass the ref, but absolutely react to egregiously bad calls that change the game, factually incorrect calls, or dangerous play. Especially at lower levels or uLittle, do not expect that the ref or even your child’s coach knows about or is paying attention to the build out line, rules about keepers punting, heading rules, etc. They should be on top of all of this, but are not consistently. Especially at ages where you don’t have linesmen.

Leave the referees alone and shut the hell up.
Hopefully your harassment let's the ref be biased against your kids team.

I'm a referee and so are my kids. They are 15 and 17. I think it's BS that all the effort is to shut the parents and the coaches up, but referees have ZERO accountability for what they are doing out there. ZERO! They show up late, out of uniform, don't move, don't check the kids in, don't check the fields, don't know the Laws or the rules of competition for that league. They just don't care. They just want to make a couple of bucks. Although screaming at referees probably won't make the situation any better, there needs to be something put in place to hold referees accountable. Personally, I don't like to be screamed at by people who don't know what they are talking about, but I certainly don't mind the...let them play or "that's a foul" or "how is that a foul", because I feel like that constant feedback keeps me more focused. But some of these referees are horrendous and something needs to be done. There are all different levels of soccer. I don't believe anyone should be yelling at a U8 or U9 ref because everyone is just learning the ropes, but, as you start reffing older and older refs, the standards need to rise.

It's simple...if there are issues, let the coach deal with it. Parents shouting is stupid and counterproductive.
They can be held accountable, and the coaches know the proper channels to do so.
Just remember, the reason that there are lots of bad referees is becasue there's a huge ref shortage. And there's a huge ref shortage because (among other things) screaming parents.
If you're really a ref....and I doubt it...you should know better.

They're obviously not a referee

As a referee man, I like to be kept in check by the smart parents yelling at me to "let them play" or "foul!". I find it keeps me accountable because these parents really know what they're talking about and us refs are always screwing up.

Said no ref, ever

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I agree with about half of that article.

Agree
- Don’t yell discouraging stuff at your kid, and definitely not at someone else’s kid.
- Don’t yell decision-making stuff “shoot, pass, switch the field, etc”
- Don’t belittle the other team. This is a cardinal rule.
- Don’t yell at the ref about inconsequential things like throw-ins, and give him/her a chance to call the foul before you react. Also, don’t just react to what happens to the players - a legal challenge can still knock a player down.

Disagree
- Don’t just enjoy the game quietly. That’s boring. Sports are meant for you to get into. Cheer loudly when your kids’ team makes a good play, and it’s ok to feel something (and show it) when a shot just misses.
- Encourage your kid. I’ve known a number of world-class athletes, including NBA / NFL families, Olympic level swimmers, national team level soccer players. Every single one of them had loud parents. Not obnoxious, or negative, but loud.
- If you’re lucky enough to know about the game, yes, analyze after the game. Watch Veo film with them. You have the luxury of not having to run the whole time, having a better view of the whole field, etc. You’re probably also singularly focused on your kid, while their coach has to spread his/her attention across 18. Ask your child probing questions and offer your thoughts in what went well and what didn’t.
- Don’t harass the ref, but absolutely react to egregiously bad calls that change the game, factually incorrect calls, or dangerous play. Especially at lower levels or uLittle, do not expect that the ref or even your child’s coach knows about or is paying attention to the build out line, rules about keepers punting, heading rules, etc. They should be on top of all of this, but are not consistently. Especially at ages where you don’t have linesmen.

Leave the referees alone and shut the hell up.
Hopefully your harassment let's the ref be biased against your kids team.

I'm a referee and so are my kids. They are 15 and 17. I think it's BS that all the effort is to shut the parents and the coaches up, but referees have ZERO accountability for what they are doing out there. ZERO! They show up late, out of uniform, don't move, don't check the kids in, don't check the fields, don't know the Laws or the rules of competition for that league. They just don't care. They just want to make a couple of bucks. Although screaming at referees probably won't make the situation any better, there needs to be something put in place to hold referees accountable. Personally, I don't like to be screamed at by people who don't know what they are talking about, but I certainly don't mind the...let them play or "that's a foul" or "how is that a foul", because I feel like that constant feedback keeps me more focused. But some of these referees are horrendous and something needs to be done. There are all different levels of soccer. I don't believe anyone should be yelling at a U8 or U9 ref because everyone is just learning the ropes, but, as you start reffing older and older refs, the standards need to rise.

It's simple...if there are issues, let the coach deal with it. Parents shouting is stupid and counterproductive.
They can be held accountable, and the coaches know the proper channels to do so.
Just remember, the reason that there are lots of bad referees is becasue there's a huge ref shortage. And there's a huge ref shortage because (among other things) screaming parents.
If you're really a ref....and I doubt it...you should know better.

They're obviously not a referee

As a referee man, I like to be kept in check by the smart parents yelling at me to "let them play" or "foul!". I find it keeps me accountable because these parents really know what they're talking about and us refs are always screwing up.

Said no ref, ever

I thought that listening to parents input was in the referee handbook😯