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Rules for Spectators |
The items on this page have been borrowed, with permission, from other
soccer web sites.
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Rule No. 1: Keep POSITIVE support, encouragement, cheer
leading and general screaming and hollering to a MAXIMUM on the touchlines.
When the players are working hard, they need and deserve
everyone's best POSITIVE encouragement and support.
They need to know you're there and that their effort is
appreciated. Most teams have a tough enough time developing a
sense of teamwork and achievement at the same time the
players are gaining experience and skill. They DO NOT need
to hear YOUR anxiety piled on top of their own when the
game is going poorly. If you really want to make things worse,
crank your voice up a few notches and shout "Get it outta there!"
Rule No. 2: DO NOT CRITICIZE referees or players of either
team for any reason.
If the referees really ARE doing poorly, they may get angry
or offended by critical spectators and that may make things
tougher for the team. If they are good at what they do,
they will ignore you, or perhaps ask you to leave the field. Either
situation is at best distracting and at worst reflects
poorly on the team's overall sportsmanship.
Publicly criticizing players on your team can really hurt
team morale. They will already have an EXCELLENT idea what
their weaknesses are from their coaches and teammates. They
will not need reminders from their families, friends and
other spectators.
The players for the other team are also trying hard and in
truth are probably no meaner or nastier than players from your
team. Criticism is simply poor sportsmanship and leads to
unnecessary bad feelings on and off the field. The unfortunate
spectacle of a supposed adult shouting insults at a child
on a soccer field is merely disgusting. Soccer is a game, not a war.
Rule No. 3: Don't coach players from the touchlines, or for
that matter while THEY are on the touchlines.
In most leagues, coaching from the sidelines is frowned on,
and rightly so. Soccer is different from most sports in the
US, because it is a game of the players. Coaches are
supposed to intrude as little as possible.
If you feel a child is not doing what should be done, tell
the coaches, not the player. As parents occasionally discover, a
player may be doing EXACTLY what the coaches have
instructed. Either way, a parent can help a player's athletic
development much better working together with the coaches,
not independently.
Rule No. 4: Give the players, coaches and referees room to
work.
Many organizations have rules which require that spectators
on the touchlines stay in an area between the penalty boxes,
and keep all parts of their bodies (even outstretched feet)
at least one yard behind the touchline. Do not crowd the
touchlines for any reason and stay away from the goal area
to avoid interfering with those involved in the game.
Rule No. 5: Remember, IT'S ONLY A GAME.
Don't forget, YOUR attitude on the touchlines can affect
the mood and success of the team. If the coaches think that
your touchlines activity is hurting team performance in any
way, they should promptly advise you, hopefully without
ruffling any of your feathers. Be tolerant. Emotions run
high during games, and feelings are easily hurt.
Nevertheless, any spectator, whether parent, friend or
player, who persists in inappropriate touchlines behavior after
being warned by the coaches should be asked to leave the
vicinity of the field. Coaches should not argue with parents at
the game. If YOU want to talk about the game, call the
coaches later at home or get them aside after the game.
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