Nothing ruins a good Saturday morning like an early morning soccer game listening to parents side line coach. I’ve observed youth soccer games at all levels and the parents absolutely grind my damn soul! You can tell how much a parent knows about the sport by how they act on the side line and it’s always the parents who look like they couldn’t possibly run down the driveway if they had to that make the most noise.
“Man on”, “Oh good ball”, “good idea”, “ref, what was that!?”, “take the shot”. These are the phrases that the soccer neophytes yell at each game- and many of them remain ignorant after years and years of watching their kids run up and down the pitch. The ones that have good sense and intermediate knowledge of the game will sit and quietly watch. You will find my smug ass sitting in a corner by myself (and sometimes with one or 2 friends) silently (and sometimes not so silently) judging the hell out of the soccer jackasses.
This may be a shocker but it’s often the girls soccer player parents who are the absolute worst. I went to an indoor game over the weekend- there was an all girl team playing before my sons game. Anna’s mom called her name so many times that I started counting. In the last 5 minutes of the game Anna’s name was called 17 times. Poor Anna!!! The mom who looks like she couldn’t even kick a bad habit much less a damn ball was joy sticking poor Anna yelling every move that she thought her 11 year old daughter needed to do.
Dear parents, these kids have coaches- you know that, right? You coaching your kid from the side line is undermining what their coach has told them. AND… you sound nuts!
And poor Max! His dad constantly gassing him up thinking that every one of his moves is the best. His kid gets a touch and daddio yells “oh good ball” right before the ball reaches the feet of the other team. “Good. idea” everytime Max tries a one touch pass and it goes flying out of bounds. Max will never learn that his actions aren’t all good if dad (who plays football with his other son on the pitch at halftime- barf) keeps gassing him up and making him think he’s a super star.
I’ve seen the video of CR7 and Messi at their kids games a hundred times. Do you think they were standing and yelling their kids names and arguing with refs? Nope!
Speaking of arguing with refs… do you think that helps the team at all? Again, no it doesn’t. It pisses the refs off and then they make calls against us.
For the love of all that is holy- sit down, watch your kid play the sport they love, stay quiet and on the drive home just let them talk.