05/01/2024
This. It hurts the coach just as much to have players on the bench who just haven’t been quite what the team needed in that particular game. It eats us up as coaches because we want every player to be the best they can be with as much playing time as they can possibly have
.
Your kid being on the bench does not
mean the coach doesn’t believe in them.
Take a minute to re-read that.
Because this is a big one.
And for some reason, we automatically
assume that if the coach isn’t playing
them, they don’t believe in them.
& that’s just simply not the case in all
circumstances. Maybe some. Not all.
What it can mean is that -
The coach believes they can do it, but
they also know another player can too.
& that other player is either:
•more consistent
•listens better in practice
•understands situations
•is more athletic
•is mentally tougher
•is more dependable
That doesn’t mean your kid isn’t consistent,
doesn’t listen, doesn’t understand situations,
isn’t athletic, isn’t mentally tough and isn’t
dependable. Or whatever else you want to add.
It simply means another player is MORE so.
That’s it.
The job of a coach is to give everyone the
opportunity in practice and to put the best
9 on the field for the game.
At the youth level you can tinker with this
some. But as they get older, the talent and
the development starts to even out. So there
will always be bench players. And there will
always be somebody better. Which means
there will always be disgruntled parents.
& it is absolutely possible for a coach to have
9 players in the field that he believes in and
30 on the bench that he believes in as well.
It’s a tough pill to swallow.
But it’s necessary if you want your player to
find success in the long term of this game.
