[tag-tec]Coaching youth soccer[/tag-tec] has been one of the most enjoyable experiences I have been involved in, however there have been times when I thought to myself, is all this really worth it?  Soccer training is on tonight, you have had a hard day at work and it’s a typical winter’s night out.  You make it to soccer training because the team hasn’t been going that great and they need this training session. As the training session progresses it is obvious that a couple of the kids seem hell bent on disrupting everything you do as well as disrupting the rest of the team.  You ignore them, hoping they will stop but they don’t and your patience is at the end.  You say to yourself “I have had enough” and you….

If you have been [tag-tec]coaching youth soccer[/tag-tec] for a while have you ever experienced a similar situation? It is really no different than being a parent and being faced with the problem in your own home – But is it?

In the situation above, there could be a number of outcomes.  You could yell and scream, you could walk away and watch the children train from a distance while you calmed down, you could identify the players and make them sit out the rest of the [tag-tec]soccer training session[/tag-tec], you could stand them down from the next game for misbehavior and advise the parents as to why or you could take a deep breath and get on with the training session.  These are just some of the options available.

As a youth soccer coach you get to coach children from all different backgrounds and experiences.  A coach has a role to mould these players together into a team working towards a common goal.  The players need to be made aware of this goal at the start of the season and they need to understand that they have a responsibility in working together with the coach to achieve that goal.  A set of rules should be established within the team at the start of the season with clear guidelines as to what the processes are if the rules are broken.  Discipline should only be used as a last resort. 

If a player breaks the rules throughout the year at soccer training, never yell, scream or lecture the child.  More often than not, if you do this it will only make things worse.  A helpful hint I was given a number of years ago was never ask ‘Why did you do it”.  When you ask this question it gives the child an opportunity to not accept responsibility and to come up with an excuse or blame someone else.  Always stay calm when asking a question and a better question is ‘What are you doing?” followed by ‘What are the rules?” and ‘What happens when you break the rules?”  Depending on the reaction of the child, if they will still not co-operate, they are given time out and stood down from that soccer training session.  I then advise the parents when they pick the child up.

While coaching youth soccer over a number of years, I have found that talking to the players and the parents at the start of the season as to what the rules are is an essential criteria of the coach.  Everybody is aware of what processes are in place at the outset.

I know it can be difficult at times coaching youth soccer, however remember always remain calm when talking to the children and do not lose your patience.  Your soccer training sessions will be more productive as a result.