The “Green Death” Debacle

Check out any or all of:

Scituate “Green Death” soccer coach resigns – Quincy, MA – The Patriot Ledger.

Coach Learns That Youth Sports and Satire Don’t Mix

Poor Communication…

…Possibly Insane Email…

Scituate ‘Green Death’ coach’s satirical e-mail causes national furor

Maybe there’s something to be said for quickly becoming the most famous coach of 7 year-old girls soccer in the nation. As a couple of the above articles suggest, while I can’t tell whether he’s a good coach, I’m sure of a few things:

1. He’s not a very good writer
2. Electronic communication, particularly email and social networking, are poorly understood and often poorly used media
3. Bad writing can create problems

I’m not re-posting the original email (it’s linked above), but I can definitely see in it parts that are meant to be funny and parts that clearly are not. Smack in the middle, however, are comments whose intent are unclear. Many may have been clear if they’d been spoken (at a parents’ meeting, let’s say), but Coach Kinahan isn’t able to make his intent consistently clear in his writing.

I blogged earlier about social networking in youth athletics – my staff just lost a good young coach because he didn’t fully understand the implications of that communication.

The Associated Press: RI weighs resolving youth sports spats at council

I did NOT make this up….

A bill pending in Rhode Island would create a seven-member council to settle disputes in youth recreational leagues, with the power to fine parents or others it thinks are in the wrong.

via The Associated Press: RI weighs resolving youth sports spats at council.

More Parent Violence

Man slugs kid’s football coach over playing time — Newsday.com

Upset over how much time his son was getting in a Pop Warner football game, police say a man punched the boy’s coach, knocking him unconscious for about 30 minutes.

Over playing time….

Penalties likely for parents in sports fight in Olympia, Washington

Penalties likely for parents in sports fight – News – The Olympian – Olympia, Washington

Several parents involved in a fight after a youth football game last weekend are likely to face consequences from the Black Hills Junior Football League, its president said Sunday.

Just to note: Later in the article, it is mentioned that the teams include 2nd, 3rd, and 4th graders. As somebody who’s never seen a game in this league, it seems to me that that is a pretty wide grouping of ages for a contact sport. Picture an above-average-sized fourth grader and a below-average-sized second grader. Ouch. Not to absolve the parents, but does this sound to anybody else like a perfect recipe for trouble?

Parenting Youth Athletes

GilroyDispatch.com of Gilroy California

Most parents often wonder and question when is the earliest and best time to introduce their child to competitive sports.

There’s not an easy solution nor is there a concrete answer because every child is different.In a lot of cases, perhaps, the better question is, when is the parent ready to face the politics, pitfalls and frustrations their young athlete may endure? Because of a lack of knowledge or first hand experience, a lot of parents don’t readily understand what they’re getting their child, or themselves into.

So we talk all the time about “ages of readiness” for youth athletes. It’s interesting to look at whether the parents are ready for their kids to be involved in youth sports.

“All it takes is one bad parent”

The vice: High school coaches feeling added pressure from pushy parents : Football : Knoxville News Sentinel

The sounds of fall: Leaves crunching underfoot, the first football practice of the new season, and parents griping. It must be time to get back to school!

Put the foot down on parental tantrums

Put the foot down on parental tantrums – A Concord Monitor Article – Your News Source – Concord NH 03301

…a league board member allegedly hurled a slice of pizza at an umpire.

A board member no less? I don’t think I could give up the pizza no matter how mad I was!

Boys parents sue youth grid coach for $1M

SI.com – More Sports – Boys parents sue youth grid coach for $1M – Saturday May 12, 2007 4:25PM

MASON, Ohio (AP) — A lawsuit filed by the parents of a youth football league player seeks $1 million from a coach they accuse of grabbing the boy by his helmet and jerking him off his feet.

K-States Huggins a great coach

Kansas City Star | 03/08/2007 | K-States Huggins a great coach

This is a wonderful brief portrait of the complexity of K-State Bob Huggins. Worth a read.

Insane wrestling dad attacks

You have GOT to be kidding me with this garbage. I guess the craziness isn’t limited to the left coast. At least the kid that Cory Petero attacked was in high school – the victim here is all of 11 years old! Apparently he’s also a coach… great!