During the Fall season, we noticed that during games some coaches would tend to commentate on the game rather than coach the game. This Spring, Tom and I have continued to notice this.

Parents will always support and cheer for the children from the sidelines, but to have the coaches doing the same, and often contradicting what the parents are saying, has an adverse affect on the children.

What we mean by commentating, is that coaches will shout, "kick it," "chase it," "boot it," "good shot," etc. While trying to encourage the kids to do this, there is some point when the kids have to take responsibility for their own actions on the field. Yes, praise good play, but at the same time let the kids find out for themselves. Guided Discovery is one of the best approaches to coaching.

Children will know when they make a mistake, and it does not take a coach to shout, "why didn't you pass it to him/her?" If a child does make a mistake, just give them the opportunity to do it again, and explain to they what they can do to improve it next time.

Children will, after about 5 minutes, block out any outside noise (coaches, parents, players) if constantly told what to do from the sidelines and switch off, which is the worse thing possible to happen when trying to coach within a game. We can both vouch from this as we were like this when we played youth soccer in England!

Here are some possible solutions to bear in mind to combat commentator coaching and increase the quality of play and responsiveness from players on your team: