Kudos to a coach

Yesterday, I officiated a JV game at one of the local public schools. During the meeting with the captains and the head coaches for each team, my officiating partner and I were informed by the home team's head coach that she will not be starting 3 of her players for a full half due to their lack of attendance at practice.

At this point, I grinned and turned to the visiting team's coach and said, "Just because she is choosing to play short does not mean you have to play short as well."

The home team's coach followed that up immediately, "Oh PLEASE play with your full team. I encourage it!" With that attitude, I was very happy to support the coach in this decision. The rule states the team must field 7 players, including a goalie, at minimum, so there was nothing saying otherwise.

My favorite part of the game, though, was in the second half when both teams were fielding full fields. I heard the home team coach yell out, "WHY ARE YOU TIRED??? Oh wait, it's because you weren't AT PRACTICE!!!"

AWESOME.

Kudos to that coach for sticking to her guns and teaching the kids a lesson on responsibility and commitment.