SC Soccer Forums SCSoccer.com Forums Boys Varsity Soccer Late for practice / game

How would you react to this hypothetical situation?

A coach's expectation is that all players are at the field, ready to play, 60 minutes before the start of any game. The starting goalkeeper shows up for the game 50 minutes before the start time, or 10 minutes late from the coach's perspective. As a result, the coach does not start the keeper, and puts in a defenseman who has never played keeper before. In the first 10 minutes of the game, this substitute keeper gives up 3 goals, 2 of which would have easily been stopped by the normal keeper. After 10 minutes, the coach puts the starter back in goal, who plays superbly for the rest of the game. The team loses 3 - 2.

It should be noted that the normal keeper is too young to drive himself, and is dependent on a parent to get him to games. Mom got home 10 minutes late from work that day.

So, do we praise the coach for sticking to his stated expectations and not starting the keeper? Or, do we blame the loss on the coach, the normal keeper, his mom, or the poor defenseman who now feels terrible that he let in so many early goals? What would you do as coach the next time this happens?

the coach has to give some leeway about being on time, you have to let go 5-10 minutes about time. it is not the kids fault, there was nothing he could do. the blame can not go on the defensemen either, it is not his fault he sucks at goalie. the fault does not lye with the mother either, she can not control how late she gets off work or how bad traffic is. the fault it upon the coach, he needs to let a little bit go, especialy for a reasonable excuse.

I would support the coach. One minute late or 10 minutes late have the same thing in common, being late. I'm not late for work and my employees aren't late for work. If the team rule says that player sits for being late, so be it. Doesn't matter who is at fault. Part of life's lessons of "growing up". C'est la vie!

I am a stickler for the rules. I believe that if the rules are set then one should abide by them. However, that being said, stuff happens. You cannot always make things white and black. there are exceptions and they must be evaluated. If the kid was habitually late then I would have to side with the coach for sticking to his guns. It does no good to make a rule and then let people break it all the time. If this was a first time offense or a special case situation then the coach needs to ease up. If he cannot adjust to a special situation then he's probably not a very good coach.

i bet that kid won't be late again...lol

The problem with rules is that once made, they have to be enforced or their is chaos. I do not see a problem with the rule, but you have to question the punishment.

The truth of the matter is that if we instituted the death penalty for speeders, I probably would never exceed 45 mph. However, much like the hypothetical, the punishment really has no real relationship to the crime.

I agree with cornerflag, any coach that cannot judge the infraction in context just is not much of a coach.

If the lurker posts, is he/she less the lurker?

our old coach, Jonathon Wilson, once told us a story about having to sit out a half for chapin once because he was late. They were losing 2-0 at half, and he had a second half hat trick for a 3-2 win, but i don't know against who. Just thought I'd tell you a good little story. For details im me. lol

I don't know man, I think you gotta stick to the rules. That's what I'd do if I was a coach. Cuz if you let one kid get away with it then all the other kids have a justifiable excuse for being late. Myself and two other of our key starters took a college day the other day to Clemson and were an hour late to practice as a result of attending a later class. We couldn't practice that day, had to sit out the first half of the next game while we watched our team be tied at halftime with a terrible team, and lost my captain responsibilities for a few games. And we have a like 24 year old coach, but he sticks to the rules and I respect that.

I got benched for the remainder of the season one year for going on a chuch mission trip over spring break. I missed 4 practices, and that was the end of my season. I was a little agitated!

Wait a minute....This is HS soccer....are you telling me that NO other player drove to the game.....and that the GK could not find a ride???

GROW UP!!

Grow up?

a) I am a grown up.

b) The original post states this is a hypothetical situation. It may or may not have happened as described.

c) By the time a player realizes that mom is running late, it's far too late to call a friend.

d) I support the coach, as much as it pains me to see the team lose.

e) I prefer India Pale Ale. You can keep your malty browns.

Have a good weekend.

it all depends on how much you want to win, if you really want it then you could make a small exeption like this without losing credit with the rest of the team. If you win the game and the keeper had a shutout then no one would remember that the kid was ten minutes late for warm ups. This coach is an idiot who doesnt really care about results.

i respect our coach DCA, it is not like we needed you or we lost the game, and plus i scored; so in turn i think i should start at stopper/Center Mid, which ever you prefer, because i do have more goals than you, and i am a keeper.

I would't put the keeper in for as long as he missed unless he has a good reason for being late. I also think that teams should have two goalies for that exact reason.

Rules are not Rules. Look at the SC high school league. No games suspension for a player with a straight red and give another player a two game suspension. Real consistent. Sets a good example doesn't it.

I guess I'll chime in. I don't think that, in that situation, the punishment matches the crime. I think a coach has to be more creative than the hypothetical coach was in that situation. A punishment for one time offense like that doesn't have to affect the outcome of the game. There can be running at the next practice session for instance. The important thing is, that the players know what the concequence is before the crime is committed.

you're a moron jared....can we get a humility check please?

I HAVE LOOKED AT THIS TOPIC FOR SEVERAL DAYS THINKING THAT THERE MUST BE SOMETHING WRONG WITH ME, AND I WOULD NEVER POST ANYTHING THAT I THOUGHT WOULD OFFEND SOME OF MY COLLEAGUES, BUT ARE SOME OF US NOT TAKING OURSELVES A LITTLE TOO SERIOUS HERE?
ARE WE NOT FORCED TO MAKE DECISIONS DAILY THAT MIGHT INVOLVE VARIOUS CONFLICTS PLAYERS MIGHT HAVE? IF A KID HAS MULTIPLE CONFLICTS AND THIS BECOMES AN ISSUE--GET RID OF HIM, BUT IF NOT ,THINGS HAPPEN. HANDLE EACH SITUATION INDIVIDUALLY AND IF NEED BE DISCUSS BRIEFLY WITH THE ENTIRE TEAM WHY A SITUATION IS HANDLED THE WAY IT IS.
I HAD TWO PLAYERS THIS YEAR IN THE SCHOOL PLAY AND NEEDED TO MISS PART OF TWO PRACTICES FOR FINAL REHEARSAL.I KNEW ALMOST TWO WEEKS IN ADVANCE AND SO CONCERNED WERE THE PLAYERS TO GET ON THE PRACTICE FIELD, THEY DID NOT REMOVE MAKE-UP THEY WERE REQUIRED TO WEAR.HOW DO YOU PUNISH PLAYERS FOR THAT? DON'T YOU THINK THEY CAUGHT ENOUGH HELL FROM THEIR TEAMMATES?
WE DON'T PUNISH FOR PRE-ARRANGED CHURCH FUCTIONS OR OFFICIAL VISITS TO COLLEGE.I HAVE TWO PLAYERS RIGHT NOW REPRESENTING OUR SCHOOL AT A REGIONAL CHORUS PROGRAM IN TAMPA. I KNEW A MONTH AGO AND THEY HAD TO MISS TWO GAMES.HOW DO YOU LOOK THESE TWO YOUNG MEN IN THE FACE AND SAY, "GO AND FACE THE CONSEQUENCES WHEN YOU GET BACK"?
SIT DOWN AND TALK TO YOUR TEAM. YES, SOME RULES ARE NECESSARY, BUT THIS IS NOT PARRIS ISLAND AND WE ARE NOT DRILL INSTRUCTORS.

Are all players treated the same for the same violation and are the rules enforced regardless of playing the number one team in the state or a team that hasn't won a game?

I would have to agree with Anthony on this one. If a coach knows from the get-go that there are going to be conflicts then he should let the player know in the beginning the exact consequences if there are to be any. I was in a play as well and told my coach before he made cuts for our team.I told him that if it was going to be a problem, i needed to know, and what my consequences were to be. He knew I had to miss 3 games, and exactly which ones they were. He said it might affect a little playing time, but not much. So after missing the 3rd game, he not only benched me for an entire game, but it was our last season game against our rivals, and its my senior year. Whats worse is no one on my team had balls enough to step up and say anything, which, I don't know if I would either, and it seemed no one was really on my side. THe coach said, "will only affect some playing time, not much", but to miss one of the most vital games of my senior year really sucked. So I think if things are pre-arranged then the player should be informed of the consequences before-hand as well.

I personally think the mom should have gone to the coach and told him that she was running late and that it was her fault for her son's late arrival. This would hopefully raise some of the punishment off the keeper's shoulders. It wasn't the keeper's fault for not getting to the field on time. One of ya'll said that he could have gotten a ride from another player. What if that player was running late? should the keeper be punished for this? If the keeper can't drive, he can't be held responsible for getting to practice late if it isn't his fault. Plus, i think the coach should have allowed 10 minutes for the kid, as long as immediately after the keeper got there, he started warming up, not sitting around and waiting to put his gear on and slowly beginning to start.

Doesn't matter man, you're one of the cockiest people I have ever met, and you talk like your unbelievable. I might not have scored yet, but I play on the left, when I'm used to playing on the right AND I have missed 4 games this season, so give me break. I'm sure others will agree with me, so let others brag on you, don't build yourself up, you just end up looking and seeming like jerk...just looking out for your rep.

Interesting posts...My view is, whether a coach chooses to be lenient or strict..it is his choice how he handles his program and players AND parents need to comply and support his decisions, otherwise chaos will ensue. On the coaches end..he needs to be consistent. On the Mom's end..when she saw she was running late...she needed to call in re-enforcements. Assuming her son was dressed and ready to go...someone needed to be there to get him to the game on time. I would have to side with the coach's decision...