Team managers are the worst for this

Wow. I have been the team manager for my son's teams for the past 5 years, because not one single other person was willing to do it. We had no one volunteer, and the coaches had to send out multiple emails begging someone to step up. I haven't asked for anything special for my son, or offered the coach anything beyond dealing with tons of scheduling issues with other teams and searching for an arranging for the guest players that the coach needed or requested from me. If you are that unhappy with the team managers of your child's team, I suggest that you step up and volunteer yourself.

Snowplowing parents at their best!!

I’m sure they are doing this to brag to their friends that their DC is starting on a team cause this actually hurts their DC’s development.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Happens most places, I don’t think it affects team selection at the GA/ECNL level. It would be very obvious if a kid is not good enough to play/start

I think you'd be surprised even at the top levels. We've seen it affect team selection (e.g., your kid trains extra with a coach in our system and thus gets the nod for a bubble slot), AND play time -- be in the ear of the coach or the TD and suddenly Sally's prospects improve.

Just volunteer to be a chaperone or host a team party or buy the bench/tent.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:We have this too. Striker who starts every game who is just horrible. His parents are always in the coach's ear though. Typical big and fast kid, but has cinder blocks for feet. No touch or control and couldn't hit the broad side of a barn with no defender in front of him. Uggh. So frustrating. I would put any kid we have on the bench up there before him.

Same. But our striker is short, fat, lazy and a year younger. He came back even fatter after Covid and doesn't even run...god forbid he chase back. He has started and played full game now for 2 years even though none of the goals come from him. This is a first team too, btw.

I'm starting to wonder if the parents have some damaging information on someone in the Club that keeps him in that spot. Nobody can figure it out.

Wow things start to make sense now.

Some parents join the board.

Some parents even have their company as a corporate sponsor to keep their kid in high standing...

Anonymous wrote:We have this too. Striker who starts every game who is just horrible. His parents are always in the coach's ear though. Typical big and fast kid, but has cinder blocks for feet. No touch or control and couldn't hit the broad side of a barn with no defender in front of him. Uggh. So frustrating. I would put any kid we have on the bench up there before him.

Same. But our striker is short, fat, lazy and a year younger. He came back even fatter after Covid and doesn't even run...god forbid he chase back. He has started and played full game now for 2 years even though none of the goals come from him. This is a first team too, btw.

I'm starting to wonder if the parents have some damaging information on someone in the Club that keeps him in that spot. Nobody can figure it out.

Have you seen instances of where it seems like the parents just contributed money to the club or maybe even coach? There’s a player on my kid’s team who clearly did not belong on the second team last year. This year, the player who to their credit has improved, is being given opportunities with the top team now. In my opinion, the player is no better than half a dozen kids on the second team and plays a position that is fully stocked on the top team. The family has significant means.

We have this too. Striker who starts every game who is just horrible. His parents are always in the coach's ear though. Typical big and fast kid, but has cinder blocks for feet. No touch or control and couldn't hit the broad side of a barn with no defender in front of him. Uggh. So frustrating. I would put any kid we have on the bench up there before him.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:As a coach, I’d estimate about 1/2 of parents are contacting coaches to opine about their kid and, eventually, it slides into commentary on the team as a whole, other players, etc. And it’s markedly worse than 5-10 years ago. Unfortunately, I see a lot of coaches who - possibly unintentionally - acquiesce to the parent’s demands/“suggestions”.

When you say "opine", what do you mean? I approach my DS' coach about my son once a year about 1/3 of the way through the season - but just to ask how he's doing, what he should be focusing on, and what reasonable expectations should be as far as recruiting goals. Are you including this sort of behaviour, or is this people trying to tell the coach that their kid should be used differently?

Nothing wrong with that. It’s parents with “my kid is better at position X”, “my kid doesn’t want to play position X”, “my kid should be practicing/playing with the A team”, “player X [not their kid] hasn’t been scoring much at Striker, they might be better as a Center Back”...And you see it where the parent’s kid gets the opportunity with the A team, even if they aren’t the most deserving kid. Unfortunately, especially in the current climate, clubs and coaches are responsive to it because they don’t want players leaving.

Both team managers kids on my son’s U16 team. They aren’t even in the top 5 of best players on the team. Not even close.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:As a coach, I’d estimate about 1/2 of parents are contacting coaches to opine about their kid and, eventually, it slides into commentary on the team as a whole, other players, etc. And it’s markedly worse than 5-10 years ago. Unfortunately, I see a lot of coaches who - possibly unintentionally - acquiesce to the parent’s demands/“suggestions”.

When you say "opine", what do you mean? I approach my DS' coach about my son once a year about 1/3 of the way through the season - but just to ask how he's doing, what he should be focusing on, and what reasonable expectations should be as far as recruiting goals. Are you including this sort of behaviour, or is this people trying to tell the coach that their kid should be used differently?

Nothing wrong with that. It’s parents with “my kid is better at position X”, “my kid doesn’t want to play position X”, “my kid should be practicing/playing with the A team”, “player X [not their kid] hasn’t been scoring much at Striker, they might be better as a Center Back”...And you see it where the parent’s kid gets the opportunity with the A team, even if they aren’t the most deserving kid. Unfortunately, especially in the current climate, clubs and coaches are responsive to it because they don’t want players leaving.

Anonymous wrote:Happens most places, I don’t think it affects team selection at the GA/ECNL level. It would be very obvious if a kid is not good enough to play/start

I think you'd be surprised even at the top levels. We've seen it affect team selection (e.g., your kid trains extra with a coach in our system and thus gets the nod for a bubble slot), AND play time -- be in the ear of the coach or the TD and suddenly Sally's prospects improve.

Wow. I'm not a sports parent (my kids just do music), but I wandered on here from Recent Topics, and this is pretty blatant cronyism. What a lesson to learn at an early age...

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:FCV? VDA ranks #1 for this category.

No they don’t. Shut up

Yes, they do.

Your turn.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:FCV? VDA ranks #1 for this category.

No they don’t. Shut up

Team manager? Chaperone for trips? YOU ARE IN!