- Dec 14, 2009
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But without doing something like that, kids won't realize the seriousness of it, IMO. I coach hs field hockey and at our preseason meeting we tell them that I will be following them on social media, and if anything is deemed inappropriate (i.e. Poor sportsmanship, anything related to drugs, alcohol, etc, or bullying) we will bench them for a week, meaning they'd miss three practices and two games. Well two years ago one of the senior star athletes posted a picture of her at a party holding a solo cup. Guess what? She was benched the following week. If it was a playoff week, guess what, she still would've been benched. She was pissed, but the team realized that we were not playing around when it came to that. Policy still holds today and we haven't had any other issues since then. I think if we had let her slide, and not punish her others would've felt it was okay as well. I can't babysit them 24/7 and stop them from partying or being disrespectful all the time, but I can help teach them not to be idiots online.
I mean really, you can make rules all you want, but if you have no consequences, it's less likely that people will follow those rules, IMO. It sucks that it's a worlds team, but sometimes you have to bite the bullet (no cali pun intended) and make some tough choices. May just be me, but teaching kids accountability and respect always trumps winning.
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Yes yes yes to all of this. Kids don't learn without consequences. I like the practice you have of benching the athlete for a game. Maybe in cheer a coach could bench the athlete for the next competition. I know it would affect the team and make it difficult but that would kind of be the point. It would put pressure on the athletes and show them that 1. You're actions affect others, 2. You are responsible for your actions, and 3. Your spot is not guaranteed on the team if you can't abide by all of the rules of the gym. And the athlete should be mandated to attend every practice and if it's a comp where you aren't staying over night, they should be required to be at the competition.
Me likey. Of course I doubt many gyms would actually follow through with this. But it'd be great to see, especially with all the ridiculousness that has been happening recently. I'd respect any gym that does that.